Happy Mardi Gras to you all! Sorry for delayed updates but I have been showing some older shows I really enjoy to some friends. I intend to also post up a review fitting for upcoming Valentines Day focused on of of the romantic anime that have aired more recently then these past two reviews.
Title: Toaru Majutsu no Index
Genre: Supernatural / Magic / Action / Comedy
Aired: October 2008 to March 2009
Review Score: 9
Toaru Majutsu no Index (A Certain Magical Index) is one of my favorite series. Recently I’ve had the pleasure of introducing it to someone who I thought would really enjoy it and so far he has. As such I decided to throw up a review of this show if you never have seen it. Before going into any details I will warn you that the show is pretty slow moving and it isn’t non-stop action either. I would define it as a great mix of story, action, character design, art, and music.
Toaru Majutsu no Index follows Kamijou Touma, a level 0 esper who lives in Academy City. Academy City is a city devoted to science and education with a prime focus on the study of espers and their powers. On the flip side of the world there are the magicians out there that are connected to various churches and push the study of religion and magic. The world revolves around this concept of two entities, magic and science. People who are labeled as not having an ability are level 0. Touma however has a special trait, his hand has the ability to cancel out both esper and magic when it comes in contact with it. They define in the show that it is neither an esper ability or magical trait, more defined as a curse that will even negate the effects of blessings and luck. The show opens with him meeting a young looking girl named Index who is hanging out to dry on his balcony window. Index has a skill called “Perfect Memorization” and her brain holds 103,000 of the most dangerous magical books, thus she is a magical index. She is being chased by the “Magic Cabal” who is after the contents in her head, thus the show starts.
Not to be deceived the show is not strictly focused on this base premise. The plot is pretty intertwined and flowing, it moves as the show moves from arc to arc. Each arc of the show contains its own plot which will have effects or points of interest later in the show, even later in seasons. The central concept would lie around Touma, what he is, those around him, and what he does. He mainly will go to rescue or help any girl in danger, each one of those girls special in their own way. The entirety of the “A Certain…” series takes place in a short time frame and does a great job of giving you character background, skills, and purpose. Most of the information in the show actually holds a purpose to the current plot/arc and is used to explain what lies behind the “plot/power/situation”, most of it coming from Komoe sensei.
A big reason I love this series is that you also get the “esper” side with its side story (focused on Mikoto) “Toaru Kagaku no Railgun” (A Certain Scientific Railgun). The series does a great job of teaching the fundamentals of the world they exist in and the factors that shape the everything around them. The big down side is there is no overall plot laid out, except you know that the leaders of church and of the science factions all have an ultimate goal and are willing to use anyone to achieve it. Beyond that, you do not know much of the people in control, but the of the people involved. The plus side I can see from how the show is constructed, it forces you as the viewer to be part of the main cast of characters and learn as they learn. That concept is very fitting after you get through the first arc in my mind.
Overall this is a great anime in my books. The arc plots move really well and previous events do hold significance to what goes on in the story. The anime can feel a little sluggish at times, but I felt the comedy inserts with overall concept carry it well. I loved the concept of magic being in the center of a scientific city. Then seeing the story move deeper with the concept of magic and/vs science. If you have never seen it, it may require a second watch to fully grasp how well things are really tied together. I would honestly recommend this entire series to most people, however I know it is not up everyone’s ally. It is a show I would mark as see for yourself, but at least watch the first arc before dropping to the side.