Death Game Anime are a staple of any anime season. This season is no different, with this year’s quota being fulfilled by Battle Game in 5 Seconds. Let’s check out what it is all about in our Battle Game in 5 Seconds Episode 1 Review. The series is also known as “Battle in 5 Seconds After Meeting” or “Deatte 5-byou de Battle” in original Japanese.
Battle Game in 5 Seconds Episode 1 – Overview
Battle Game in 5 Seconds is a Death Game style anime that is being produced by Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions in collaboration with Studio A-CAT. Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions is known for producing several well-known anime series of the past, such as Monster and Pokemon, to name a few. On the other hand, Studio A-CAT is mostly an unproven commodity whose prior outputs have all been on the receiving end of criticism. The series is based upon a web manga written by Saizou Harawata.
Battle Game in 5 Seconds Episode 1- Plot and Characters
I’ll be honest. I didn’t particularly appreciate how Battle Game in 5 Seconds Episode 1 started. I thought it was too cliched and reliant on tropes, including but not limited to the Genius, Gamer, and Hikikomori Protagonist, the token blonde girl, the mandatory weird power of the protagonist that is fit for a “gamer”, and the template feeling episode ending battle. It all felt like I had already seen it at least 10 different times.
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There is a cerebral aspect to the plot, that much is visible from the start. However, the way the anime set about establishing it doesn’t fill me up with much confidence. The characters are all caricatures, including this season’s top contender for the most annoying character, the awful Mion. The main character, Akira Shiroyonagi, is another typical bland anime protagonist, with nothing else setting him apart from the rest of the field. The concept of a death game isn’t exactly new, but there have been anime that do something interesting with the concept. Battle Game in 5 Seconds Episode 1 isn’t one of those anime.
Battle Game in 5 Seconds Episode 1- Art and Music
Similarly, the art style in the anime is also drab and lifeless. It is technically competent, but if I were to be shown a screenshot of this anime and told to guess the year the anime released, I wouldn’t guess 2021. There weren’t any critical flaws, but it didn’t feel like Battle Game in 5 Seconds was made with any particular effort or passion.
The sound is also a similar case, uninspiring and uninteresting. Even the voice acting doesn’t feel fantastic, something that is standard in the current anime sphere. The opening and ending are standard anime offerings, nothing too special. I am having trouble thinking of words other than “uninteresting” for everything related to this episode.
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Verdict
Out of all the anime I’ve reviewed this season, Battle Game in 5 Seconds has easily been the worst. It is always possible that this episode was just a bad start to an otherwise decent series, but I wouldn’t be so sure about that. The studio is new, and the manga isn’t that popular. As of now, everything is working against this series. I’ll still be covering it in its entirety, one can’t only watch good anime after all. Battle Game in 5 Seconds is boring, plodding, and formulaic. It can only go up from here.
If you enjoyed this review of Battle Game in 5 Seconds Episode 1, you can check out our review for the next episode in the series, available right here.