Just about forever ago, I stumbled across a romantically themed AMV featuring characters from Rage of Bahamut: Virgin Soul (not that I knew it at the time, mind you) and set to the song “Cinderella Step.” I found the song is incredibly catchy, for one thing, but more importantly, the amount that I found myself shipping the main characters was ASTRONOMICAL. The art style looks beautiful, as well, and while Chronic said that I should really watch the original Rage of Bahamut first, the first show doesn’t interest me in the slightest right now, to be honest, and I just can’t get this pair out of my head, so here we are…
To quote the plot synopsis from My Anime List:
A decade ago, humans, gods, and demons joined forces to stand against the threat of the colossal dragon, Bahamut.
Now, in the present, humans living in the capital city of Anatae have been enjoying lavish and prosperous lives. Their progress is largely due to the administration of the newly appointed king, Charioce XVII, who has stolen a power from the gods and allowed for the abuse and slavery of the demon race in the capital. As humans continue to immorally exploit demons, a sense of hostility against humans begins to build up within demon communities, threatening a revolt. Meanwhile, an atmosphere of uneasiness is spreading among the gods, as they scramble to regain their lost power.
Amidst it all, Nina Drango, a cheerful young bounty hunter, has arrived at the Royal Capital with hopes of settling down and earning a living. However, her peaceful life in the capital is quickly thrown into chaos when she crosses paths with the ominous Rag Demon who is determined to seek revenge against humans, and Kaisar Lidfard, a noble knight battling an internal moral conflict.
Shingeki no Bahamut: Virgin Soul continues the tale of the social and moral conflict between humans, gods, and demons, and their struggle for survival and dominance.
Before we dive into episode one, I’m leaving this ending sequence below for your enjoyment as the AMV I watched is no longer available online.
And so, we begin!
- I can already tell just from the operatic opening with dragons, this is something I’m going to enjoy.
- Oh, my gosh, are those angels?
- Oops, I didn’t turn the subtitles on, and I have no idea what they’re saying. lolol Better fix that… Who knew Amazon video had so many subtitle display options.
- OH, MY GOSH. ANGELS VS DEMONS. I’m in love already!
- Is that thing a leviathan?
- See, humans are attacking, and I didn’t expect that.
- I can’t tell if the CG is bad, or if it looks particularly bad because my TV hadn’t finished buffering.
- I keep saying “oh, my gosh,” but this beginning is so intense.
- NO NO NO, IT’S THAT GUY!!! (What guy? Well, you didn’t watch the AMV…)
- Okay, so the CG isn’t great, but it’s not terrible. Also, fire slug lit a cigarette and someone is coming to save the nameless demon ?children? from slavery.
- Whoa. Um. Yeah. Giant demon.
- Not gonna lie, I’m a little lost at this point. I should probably back up a few minutes, but meh.
- Ah, there’s our main girl.
- OHIO! ;P
- Her name is Nina and the townspeople love her.
- And she loves bread.
- She’s also short.
- So Lord Chariose is the guy’s name, then.
- She’s also very strong.
- “Where are you from?” *Nina dies a little inside*
- She’s also 16.
- Okay, so I guess that the humans led by Lord Chariose are attempting to eradicate all supernatural beings (both angels and demons) in effort to protect themselves from anything happening like it did 10 years ago… And I have a feeling that’s not going to go over really well.
- Chariose’s sidekick is a fantasy medieval Elvis.
- Did the little boy’s kiss kill the boar demon gladiator?
- THE PALE MAN. PHEW.
- Okay, there is a certain level of disbelief I can suspend. I can buy into the boar demons, the angels, all that. But the talking duck? Really? Isn’t that kind of… outside genre?
- AAAAAAAND she’s a bounty hunter.
- “How can a bounty be a good guy?” I mean, he sounds like a good guy. There’s a lesson there, somewhere.
- YAS, THE PALE GUY IS BANDAGE GUY.
- The guards, they… they turned into wood.
- Okay, so he’s “rag demon,” not “bandage guy.” Whatever, he’s still bandage guy in my heart.
- She’s an easy blusher.
- Oh, no! Elvis, no!
- Yeah, okay, the CG is pretty bad.
- I like how she sees nothing weird about encountering a boy atop a random tower. She’s so casual about the whole thing. And I also love how he just switches places with her, like no big deal. The boy is so unconcerned.
- Mugaro. That’s the boy’s name.
- SO… Nina needs a crush to transform into a demon…?
- OOOOOOOO…. a dragon rather.
- And now, ?magic? gundams…?
- She is naked, but she’s O.K.
- Only at the end do they tell us the episode is called “Red Dragon.”
-
I really, really enjoyed that dive into Virgin Soul. Aside from the questionable CG, there’s really nothing not to like, at least for me. I’m excited to start episode two! Have any of you anime compatriots seen this title? If so, feel free to let me know what you think in the comments below! (No spoilers, please.)
Something problematic just occurred to me. Nina is 16, but Chariose is obviously much older, AT LEAST 26. And while I’m not about that (Please, don’t date children. That’s awful.), I’m going to have to let it go because that is pretty standard in medieval times.
But seriously, humans, don’t date children. Yuck.
Bye for now!
~Shoujo
To enter the sweepstakes mentioned here, click here. I’ll include this link on all blog posts published between now and the sweepstakes conclusion. 🙂
Shoujo Thoughts: ☆ ～('▽^人) Otaku Ramblings 
Yeah sadly even younger too.
This does look interesting. I honestly haven’t heard of it and it looks like I need to check this out someday.
LikeLiked by 1 person