2000https://escapethisplanet.files.wordpress.com/2022/06/shano.jpeg?w=1024 Fire it up The wonders of a light novel adaptation falling into J.C. Staffs hands are ones that dont begin and end with Shakugan no Shana. Up until 2005 none of the studios other LN adaptations latched on with viewers with Maburaho an ecchi comedy being their most successful result. Not to be confused with Shafts similarly named ecchi comedy from the early 2000s Mahoromantic Either way J.C. Staff finally struck gold with a tried and true light novel selling formula that launched Shana into the stratosphere. It has action it has romance and more importantly it has an eyecatching female character as the storys focus Shanas appearance is one that draws in curious onlookers. She looks like a typical anime school girl and yet her hair and eyes are both fiery red and shes holding a SWORD. And shes surrounded by FIRE. Additionally Shanas design and personality both represent a popular anime character archetype at its most straightforward. Small but also hotheaded. Her hair color can flip back and forth just like her temper. With the added ingredient of a male lead character who doubles as her romantic interest Shana exemplifies the tsundere trope to the point where her existence helped to become the future blueprint of the idea. 2000https://escapethisplanet.files.wordpress.com/2022/06/nom2.jpeg?w=1024 Baka. Thats not to say that Shana was the first or most important of her kind. This character archetype can be found in much older media even in media Ive reviewed already like Akiha Tohno from Tsukihime though I cant help but link later light novel adaptations with similar character dynamics back to this one. Haruhi Suzumiya Zero no Tsukaima Kaze no Stigma Toradora Oreimo all playing with the idea of a central untouchable female character usually with some type of soft spot. Regardless J.C. Staff can only do so much in their adaptations. The main problems with the Shana anime are the same problems that crop up in other light novel adaptations. Being a medium of words you will need to stay attentive so you can piece together every little explanation that drops on your head with each new episode. Many systems are introduced many characters pass by and you only have a limited amount of chances to get acquainted with them. Denizens destroy humans. Humans can become Flame Hazes. Flame Hazes destroy Denizens. Some humans become torches and some torches are Mystes. Juggle this logic with an expanding roster of characters featuring unique combat abilities and you got that classic brain frying light novel charm. Although the selection of characters is vast most of our mainstays are worth keeping up with. Shanas predictable fiery personality hides no surprises though she makes the action sequences a lot more enjoyable as she doesnt waste time moping about. Its clear that her and our main protagonist Yuji make for a fitting pairing. Neither of them are clever though both are reckless enough to get the job done when they need to. Despite this the story tries to stick some drama into Yujis relationships by tossing in an average schoolgirl named Kazumi who also has a crush on Yuji. Yet despite the obvious matching of Yuji to Shana Kazumi gets multiple episodes of attention On the flipside our other resident boozedrinking Flame Haze Margery makes for a fun time whenever shes involved. 2000https://escapethisplanet.files.wordpress.com/2022/06/wave.jpeg?w=1024 Woooooo alcohol The next light novel problem would be the storys structure. The contents of this first season reaches through the first nine volumes of the light novel series as well as its own original anime material. While episodes from the first cour take their sweet time with the first two introductory light novel volumes the rest of the season blasts through well over 1500 pages of content all at once. Suddenly the comfortable pace from the early episodes turns into a mad rush of information and action that is difficult to take in. Each arc takes on a different set of villains so if you need a summary of what Shakugan no Shanas actual plot is its about constantly trying to save the city from being destroyed by Denizens. My favorite parts of the story are towards the beginning where Yuji and Shana are getting to know each other with Shana needing to relearn human conventions. This makes up the underlying concept of this anime where each conflict serves the purpose of further strengthening Shanas personality and relationships. Yuji is also trying to get a grip on his whole torch situation while trying to find a place for himself in Shanas actionpacked adventures. The two slowly learn how to work with each other while also trying to understand their compatibility. As for the other parts Id much rather have too much story in an action adventure than too little though the amount of characters feels like overkill at times. The whole Tiriel/Sorath conflict feels like an afterthought secondary to Shana learning about affection. Even side characters like the previously mentioned Kazumi seem like an unnecessary source of drama secondary to a greater conflict that is also happening at the time. Even with so many different problems arising Im left wondering what all this commotion is building up to in the long run. Im looking for some kind of hook but Im not finding any. 2000https://escapethisplanet.files.wordpress.com/2022/06/rain.jpeg?w=1024 Shana left wondering why Yuji HATES her so much Despite the information overload and colorful action scenes its not as if Shakugan no Shana is fighting for your attention. This story is confident in its mechanisms and youre either along for the ride or youre getting lost in the details. The real question is whether or not this ride is worth getting on in the first place. And as much as I hate to shoot down a popular 00s staple I confess that I couldnt get into this. Truthfully I stopped wanting to follow it by the time I got halfway through. Its not as if I couldnt keep up with it I did manage to follow the flurry of characters and the ever changing scenarios by revisiting episodes. But regardless so many special beings were being poured into the cast that the impact had been entirely diluted by the time I got to the last arc. Any time it was hinted that Yuji or Shana were going to die I had gotten used to it. They dont make for good victims even when theyre out saving each other because there isnt a chance that either of them are going to get killed off. Not in the first season at least As for the romantic drama of the show I felt that the love triangle situations were unnecessary. Shana and Yuji clearly have enough problems to deal with as it is. I can understand wanting to shape Shanas human emotions over the course of the season but the way this story goes about doing it is always bordering on hacky. Every conflict is overcomplicated and every arc is constructed with far more characters than it needs. Its an anime that has its moments and has its own good characters too. Its unfortunate that its best qualities are buried under its worst ones. If you can stomach it you wont hate it. 2000https://escapethisplanet.files.wordpress.com/2022/06/spaghet.jpeg?w=1024 Doh