OVA Impressions: Kyousogiga

Now, Kyousogiga just aired. It’s an anime original one-shot OVA from Toei animation, directed by the same woman who directed the Heartcatch Precure movie. And holy crap it looks gorgeous.

And it’s not just one part of the 25 minutes. In fact, the only parts of this episode that didn’t look awesome was the ending credits. It just kept the balls in the air, and even the small build-up scenes were really creatively animated, in many different ways. You can really see that a lot of different talents participated in this episode.

On top of that though: this also has a lot of heart. This could have been an arthouse work and just got things over with, but the characters too were really enjoyable. It’s the simple story of a bunch of random… supernatural thingies that are stuck in some sort of more “normal” world, with a main theme of just wanting to go back. You can’t put much more into 25 minutes if you also want to create a fun and action packed OVA, but it worked really well with the portrayal of the character as a bunch of innocent, yet confused and very powerful kids. In the end it’s both fun and has a subtle touch of emotion to it.

Kyousogiga is a one-shot OVA, and if you’ve got 20 minutes to burn: go for it. It’s pretty much the best one-shot we’ve seen in more than a year. And yet: it deserves more. The end of this episode hinted at more, but that could very much be wishful thinking on the creators, but it would be wonderful for this show to get an actual full TV-Series. I’d definitely blog that.
OVA Episode Rating: 8.5/10

17 thoughts on “OVA Impressions: Kyousogiga

  1. Ok, just finished it. What did I just watch? I didn’t understand at all, but I have to say it was really fun to watch!

    The characters are just as cute as Heartcatch precure!

    I wish this would get a TV series!

    1. I just rewatched the 5 minutes PV of it, and basically nothing that was in PV was in the OVA! I’m pretty sure there will be a TV series!

      1. I would have LOVED this to become a TV-series. But considering that Cencoroll also used a lot of footage for the PV that never came up in the movie, I’d say that the probability of a TV-series remains a dead heat. I can only hope that it will get a series someday.

        1. Really? I only watched Cencoroll Ova, not the trailers :O (yeah, this is another show that need a TV series)

          But as Psgels said, the end hinted something 🙂

          1. Cencoroll’s ending also hinted at something too….considering that the main bad guy didn’t die… That’s why I’m not terribly optimistic.

            Geez. The creators of good one-shots just love teasing us, don’t they? ^^;

  2. Even if I didn’t understand a thing, I loved it! Such a visual feast. I hope it gets a full series eventually.

  3. I cant believe that was 20 minutes. I was so into it, it only felt like 10 minutds. Anyway the story itself is a bit confusing but overall its great.

  4. Yes it was very pretty and all, but I think the two little brothers summed it up best when they said this at the end of the ova:

    “I dont get it”
    “Neither do I”

    Yeah, me neither.

  5. I agree with the comment that the film itself makes more sense after watching the PV.

    The opening narration/poem is from Lewis Carroll — one of the Alice books. I think it helps to know that, deep down inside Kyousogiga is an adaptation of Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. In the PV, you have all the chess imagery, the White Rabbit. In the actual film you have the citation of Carroll and I suspect Koto’s “brothers” are Tweedledum and Tweedledee.

    If you enjoyed this, try to find the short Noiseman sound insect, which, in addition to a lot of visual fireworks, has background music by Yoko Kanno.

  6. Loved it, utterly confused by it all, but a coherent linear storyline felt less important compared to the rampant visuals. Watching it reminds me somewhat of Masaaki Yuasa’s Mind Game and even a little FLCL. If only the pilot could be picked up for a series production because the coming season looks to be a several months-long doldrum…

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