Popular reviews

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  Review by More_Badass ★★★½

  For a good hour or so, I was totally invested in Arion and its anime reimagining of Greek mythos. But soon the plot became needlessly convoluted, burying its original premise under lore, reveals, episodic pacing, and thin motivations. By the end, I was mostly only watching for the animation. That animation - and the action, landscapes, interactions it brings to life - is fantastic, so I can’t say I wasn’t entertained! There’s a kinetic fluidity to the bloodshed and battles, accentuating key moments with stylish flourishes.

  Overall, Arion weaves its own distinct adventure from the myths, tweaking as needed to tell a story of revenge against the gods and war against (and among) Olympus. But its portrayal of the malicious all-too-human gods, consumed by war and petty meddling, is a strength throughout.

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  Review by MushiMinion ★★★★

  Japan plays fast and loose with Greek mythology, throwing an OC demigod into a war against the rest of Olympus to rescue his twin sister whom he also wants to bone. Beginning as an inventive reinterpretation of familiar myths, Arion abruptly transitions into a sexual identity crisis manifesting itself through animation. Incestuous relationships and child lovers are on point for the ancient world. Now combine that with general Japanese proclivities and you're in store for some real culture shock. You might say I'm not being respectful, but I'm not the one overeager to draw a prepubescent Arion's lil' sausage. Seriously, give that boy some pants!

  I was reminded of the HBO series Rome while watching Arion, specifically with how the…

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  Review by Caleb Caj. 3

  If it wasn’t already established, APOLLO IS *HIM*

  I absolutely adore Seneca, who has some great lines including:
   - “I told you I loved you, bro.”
   - “He’s so cool. Dammit…”
   - (jumping out of a bush with fingers stanced 👉👈) “Bro…”

  This movie is gorgeous.

  Recommended by and borrowed from Aaron, who discovered the loophole that incest in anime is cool when it’s about Greek mythology, I GUESS. You win this round.

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  Review by Sid V 🌪️ ★★★★½

  🧡 = Technical Merit (Direction | Writing | Acting [voice] | Production Design & Art Direction | Musical Score | Animation)

  🧡 = Artistic Vision (Mood & Atmosphere | Symbolism & Metaphor | Complexity)

  🧡 = Personal Affect (Gratification & Comfort | Emotional Response & Resonance | Replayability | Influence or Change in Perspective)

  
  
  

  (Original Japanese audio track)

  ***SPOILER ALERT***

  Cerberus, Hydra, the Erinyes, mermen, the pantheon of gods... Greek mythology and classic anime converge to create something truly special with this grand, tragedy-inspired hero's journey.

  The story of Arion's quest to defeat supreme God Zeus is truly epic in scope-- playing out against the backdrop of all-out war between the triumvirate of patriarchal Gods/ estranged brothers Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, betrayal, and incestuous love, and is directed expertly to surprising emotional impact thanks to riveting storytelling accentuated by a stunning score.

  Really slept-on epic adventure.

  
  
  

  The Holy Trinity of Adult Anime Feature 🍣

  Oddly Comforting 🍜

  Classic Anime Worth Watching 🏯

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  Review by Nic Kinopanic ★★★★

  Medium: Dailymotion, 1080p, Jp Audio with Eng Subs

  
  REVIEW LENGTH: 1,176 words

  
  [Arion starts charging towards the enemy and “戦闘 (Battle)” starts playing]

  
  Shozo Kaga. While neither Nintendo nor Intelligent Systems is too keen to highlight it, Kaga still is the father of the SRPG-cum-Waifu Sim Fire Emblem.

  Infamously, after leaving Intelligent Systems, Kaga and his new company got into hot water with Nintendo, with his creation “Tearring Saga”, which bore many similarities with his work in Fire Emblem, prompting Nintendo to sue. Although the ensuing lawsuits had mixed results for him, one must wonder how the f*ck did Kaga conjure the courage to fight Nintendo head on?

  Additionally, I had read this and/or heard of this claim that some…

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  Review by tobe_whooper ★★★

  Kind of endearing how fast & loose this plays with the mythology, & the monster designs are very cool when it chooses to front them (rarely), but the pacing is really wonky & it feels at least half an hour too long. Honestly I had a hard time focusing for a lot of it. More Cerberus!

  Cf. Asura

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  Review by Comrie ★★★

  An interesting film.

  Very loosely based on Greek mythology, taking liberties with names, powers, roles but has some pretty cool monster design (cerberus fires lasers??? sweet) and has some pretty solid to occasionally excellent animation

  it's just a pity the second half gets bogged down with overly complex lore

  also those japanese sure do love that god level incest, don't they

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  Review by Per Hasselström 1

  The music, animation, and artwork came together to create something magic for me.
  Yes the story and characters are a bit rushed and nonsensical, but I did not care because the mood was so good.
  I can also sense this being part of important influences to following culture in Japan - specially games.
  The music, artstyle, and adventures can be clearly recalled in Falcom's Ys-series for example.
  The theme of fallen gods, and the moody ruins they inhabit, is also familiar in Demon's & Dark Souls.

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  Review by KyleYadlosky ★★★★★

  So fucking cool! Anime remix of Greek mythology into a darkwave fantasy samurai western epic!

  Crazy use of overlays, color shifting, and layering to bring this adventure to life. It's a really stunning display of both animation and what could be done with film. On top of that you got laser-breathing kaiju Cerberus, snake-headed nightmare sorcerer Hades, and a phantasmagorical journey that gives heavy doses of vaporwave vibes!

  An absolute masterwork of anime that dares to ask what if a ragtag group of teenagers killed an entire pantheon of gods? Incredible shit, that's what!!

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  Review by rjtougas ★★★★

  Eighties anime sprints through the Greek myths with reckless abandon. Stellar animation and unlikely characterizations buoy this survey of the pantheon’s temperamental, incestuous, and monstrous aspects, sometimes leaving its narrative seeming as capricious as its gods but never denying the entertainment of either.

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  Review by Luke Perez ★★★★

  The character designer behind Gundam and the composer for so many of Studio Ghibli's classical works teaming up to bring to life a Greek epic fantasy about killing gods. What more on earth could you possibly ask for?

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  Review by femboy_fatale ★★★★★

  This film is Disney's Hercules if the titular himbo's definition of "going the distance" was hacking and slashing his way through the entire Greek pantheon. Epic.