Developed from Dragonball, the shounen formula is a fairly consistent style of anime, considering the most well-known and popular shows tend to adhere to pattern – Naruto and Bleach for example. This is not without its drawback. Shounen animes (fighting ones in particular) are often long and overtly drawn out, having fighting sequences that can span for multi-episodes, which is especially tedious if they are unimportant to the major storyline, for instance a secondary or even a third-rate character fighting an inconsequential side villain. Not to mention the tedious and endless filler arcs.
Ao no Exorcist is not a radical leap from the shounen formula, not by any stretch of the imagination, in particular if you address the similarities between it and Bleach (which I will later on). Nevertheless there are several remarkable improvements to the tried and test formula. The most prominent is reduction of long-winded fighting scenes. Aside from the big bad square off during the final three episodes, most action is tamed to one or two episode parters and fights do not exceed themselves needlessly. Ultimately this means the audiences is not overloaded with violence, deterring away from the plot, which results in genuine tension since we are invested in the characters. As much as I like Bleach and Dragonball, Ichigo and Goku are fairly bland archetypal protagonists. Right from the get go we know if beaten both will eventually return stronger, even if killed (in the case of Goku).
A shorter, more concise series is beneficial to the filler episodes as well. Since in Ao no Exorcist these are singular, stand-alone episodes and therefore don’t come across forced. It’s actually pretty favourable to observe characters during their ‘off-days’, despite the limited use of the school backdrop. It really was a shame that the anime didn’t make full use of the school outside of the Exorcist classes. Of course this is comparable to Bleach and Dragonball, where the protagonists often leap from one epic adventure straight into another, living filler episodes (as mentioned prior) empty and forced comic-relief. Take the impending epic battle between Cell and instead of training Goku’s wife decides she wants him and his green alien training buddy Piccolo to learn how to drive. Really? I mean is that even a priority? It just seems so silly and out of place.
Onto the tropes! Unfortunately in the character department Ao no Exorcist does not excel, since it opts out for the safe approach. We have our main character, Rin, the son of Satan and like most protagonists, his birth right feels like the weight of the world on his shoulders. Nicely this is even pointed out plenty of times since Rin is often running head first into danger on his own. This is in part due to his heritage the need for secrecy but is a habit Rin finds hard to break. In comparison Ichigo (Bleach) has actually very little reason to the main protagonist. He only gets involved with the conflict after his two potential love interests are kidnapped, yet that seems enough to declare Aizen his enemy and take on the responsibility of stopping him. Whereas Rin’s reasoning is much more simplistic and holds more realism. Satan killed his father, Rin want’s revenge. It’s no wonder vengeance is such a high motivator; it effectively brings the conflict to a more personal level.
The secondary characters are where things don’t quite gel. We have the rival archetype Ryuji, doubling as potential love interest and healer archetypes Shiemi, the smart but haughty girl archetype Izumo, the shamelessly big chested-little clothing teacher archetype Shura (more common than you think, the good guy on the wrong side archetype Arthur August Angel and the mysterious, has additional motives archetypes Mephisto. While most of them are pretty harmless and even do a good job upholding their stereotype, others are woefully grating and just extend into plot devise territory – take Arthur August Angel as an prime example.
What gives Ao no Exorcist a real boost is the additional of Rin’s twin brother, Yukio. This enables the plot to reduce the pressure placed on Rin as primary protagonist and even at the end have a more balanced resolution. By getting rid of this lone-wolf complex, the anime enables a brotherly bond to be beautifully created and developed over time. There are one or two hiccups along the way, the sudden jerk as Yukio rapidly changes character feels a little stiff but this is quickly turned around.
On the disappointing side, the main villain was a colossal let down. The series spend a good deal of time introducing Satan as a bad arse and portraying him as a major player, then suddenly right at the end we received some crucial information that is supposed to flesh out the character from standard bad guy archetype – he’s got a I’m so lonely, I just want to be loved side. It doesn’t work, primarily because it flat out contradicts not just the original premise of the character but also their immediate actions. Making your character do a complete 180 is not adding depth.
Despite the ups and downs, Ao no Exorcist is a very strong show and has potential to be next big shounen anime. Alas there seems no secondary season in sight, through a movie is in the works. Perhaps this is for the best, let the manga develop first than have a second season. No filler seasons!
Rating: 8/10
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