Drama Digest
The story revolves around Shiki Granbell, who is a human Ether, and Gear user, who lives among robots on the planet Granbell, a deserted theme park world in the Sakura Cosmos. All his life, Shiki has been surrounded by machines. At the Granbell Kingdom, he is the only one of his kind. He meets two space-traveling B-Cubers – Rebecca Bluegarden and her robotic cat companion Happy. Their goal is to make fun videos for their B-Cube channel, but they end up being friends with Shiki. When Granbell becomes too dangerous for the three, they set off on an adventure through the Sakura Cosmos. They hope to make more exciting videos and even find the elusive goddess Mother, while Shiki wants to make more friends, spurred on by the words of his late grandfather. Of course, the journey will not be easy, as no one has seen Mother before, but Shiki is determined to reach his goal and explore the boundless reaches of space with his new friends.
The Feel Good Part
The plot is simple, with a goal that the main cast to visit various planets in hopes of accomplishing it. It showed what each planet was like, as well as how important each of them was for the cast to grow as characters. Creativity in abilities, such as gravity, swords, and other types of skills, are fascinating. It gives the characters their uniqueness by not focusing on one specific superpower. Another mesmerizing aspect is the darkness of this series. The series is well-written and it foreshadowed the fact that Edens Zero will not be light-hearted all the time, and it will get intense as it goes on.
The Disappointing Part
Most critics found the visual aesthetic disappointing, as the artwork is bland. The kind of artwork that does not fit in this era of animation seems deeply uninspiring. Most fans call it a “Fairytale” rip-off as the artwork is quite similar.
In-Depth Analysis
Edens Zero takes place in the Grand Shiki Cosmos, a fictional space-faring universe inhabited by humans, aliens, and sentient robots. The universe is divided into four smaller “cosmoses” corresponding to the four seasons. Most planets and locations have futuristic elements, combined with classic fantasy. The universe is also home to various cosmic entities, such as cybernetic dragons that swarm in a sector bordering the Sakura Cosmos called Dragonfall and a monster called the Chronophage that devours planets. Several characters directly harness the Ether in their bodies with Ether Gear, power from the universe’s Dark Ages that grants its users superhuman abilities, which are enhanced by a transformative “Overdrive” state achieved by pushing their Ether past its critical point. Later in the story, the universe is established to be part of a larger multiverse with its range of alternate histories and outcomes to specific events.
Star Power
The way Mashima created the series gives its individuality. Mashima doesn’t use the usual power of friendship trope that often, so that’s also a respectful choice to make the show unique. It had a reasonably solid production. The most impressive core staff Kenichiro Aoki did a great job with the animation. In the music aspect, the VAs have done an excellent job voicing their respective characters, especially Shiki’s VA Takuma Terashima and Homura’s VA Shiki Aoki.
Overall opinion
Overall, Edens Zero improved on the mistakes of Fairy Tail and turns them into improvements that make the anime better. It’s the journey of the characters that make up the story. It is a pretty good show to enjoy, especially if you like Mashima’s previous works, including Rave and Fairy Tail.
