Arpeggio of Blue Steel Ars Nova BD - Nov 04, 2016

[Elandyll]

I was very surprised to find the Arpeggio of Blue Steel anime (2013) on Netflix recently, but given that it currently is one of my favorite manga series, I gave it a try and found it to be a very good quality. The soundtrack in particular is stellar, and the CG is top notch.

Of course, there are (quite) a few variations from the manga, but the core story is there, and it finds a somewhat suitable resolution for something based on a source that is ongoing (unlike the Claymore anime back in the days).

Here is the synopsis for those of you not familiar with the manga:

Due to global warming and rising sea levels in the early 21st century, much of Earth's landmass has been lost. In 2039, fleets of powerful sentient warships, armed with advanced technology and weaponry, mysteriously appear and decimate the world's naval forces. These ships, collectively called 'The Fleet of Fog', impose a worldwide naval and aerial blockade, preventing humanity from both traveling the oceans and to other nations. During the blockade, the Fleet of Fog created Mental Models, humanoid avatars containing a ship's Union core, as a means to develop self cultivation and overcome their lack of creative thinking of tactics like humans, which at the same time made the Mental Models have their own unique personality.

In 2056, 17 years after the blockade began, Gunzō Chihaya, a former student of the Japanese National Marine Academy, is the captain of small group of privateers called the 'Blue Steel'. The Blue Steel are infamous for possessing a Fog submarine, the I-401, along with its Mental Model Iona, who defected to the human side. Due to I-401's technology and Gunzō's tactical skills, the Blue Steel have not only survived several encounters with the Fleet of Fog but managed to sink one of their most powerful warships.

Gunzō and his crew are hired by a faction of the Japanese government to deliver the prototype for a powerful weapon, a weapon that may finally allow mankind to fight back against the Fog, to the United States. The United States is the only country with the resources and capability to mass-produce the weapon system. However, the Blue Steel will face obstacles on their journey not only from the Fleet of Fog and their human allies, but from other governments and factions with their own agendas. Along the way they will also gain allies of their own from both sides, increasing their chances against seemingly overwhelming odds.

Intro & closing:

Arpeggio of Blue Steel ARS NOVA Opening - YouTube

Arpeggio of Blue Steel ARS NOVA ED 1 - YouTube

The characters are what matters in this anime (the battles are numerous, but always come off as a bit rushed and never quite as spectacular or suspensful as one would have hoped - although the last three episodes do deliver), and the mental models in particular shine (aside from Hyuga, which seem somewhat over the top in the anime). Weirdly, the captain of the 401 is actually quite bland in the anime though, but his relations with Iona is translated quite well.

I would underline:

Iona (I-401 Mental Model)


Haruna (Fog Kongo Class Fast Battleship)


Kirishima (Fog Kongo Class Fast Battleship)


Hyuga (Fog ISE Class Battleship, now Fleet of Blue Steel)


Takao (Fog Heavy Cruiser, now Fleet of Blue Steel)


and by far my favorite:

Kongo (Fog Kongo Class Fast Battleship / Flagship of 2nd Oriental Fleet)




PS: If you wonder why all the Fog weapons Mental Models are female, there is a reason (explained in the anime): The Fog collective AI, wanting to emulate human behavior to "understand" us better in order to fight us more effectively, looked into Historical Navy documents, and realized that ships were refered to familiarly as being of "female" gender.

PPS: What is up with the fan service in this anime? (and in general) It never quite gets into Ecchi (let alone Hentai) territory, but it is far more pronounced than the manga (which has barely any at all) and in a few occasions got a little bit distracting.
Never mind the Hyuga - Iona shipping which got waaay overblown (Hyuga here is characterized as a sort of "Washu" -of Tenshi Muyo fame- on crack).
Oh well.