This is what I was talking about in my last article, A1 Pictures keeps winning. They put out not one but, two awesome original anime in a single season. While Engage Kiss is nowhere as good as the other A1 Pictures original from this season, Lycoris Recoil there is still some good stuff here. I was purposefully avoiding this show till now because my schedule was clouded. Then I started watching it for the same reason I started watching Game of Thrones… for the plot of course!
Look, I won’t pretend Engage Kiss is a perfect show or it is just meant for fan service. It is a quite good show and there is some genuinely good stuff here aside from the… well, the obvious stuff. So welcome back to another edition of our anime recommendation series. Let’s talk about Engage Kiss today.
Introduction
As mentioned earlier, Engage Kiss is an original anime by A1 Pictures i.e., it has no source material. The anime finished airing fairly recently and is one of the more controversial animes of summer 2022. I’m honestly surprised people flamed this more than Mamahaha. Not saying Mamahaha is bad, it is just that it is more of the controversial type than Engage Kiss. The anime is 13 episodes long and the last episode came out not too long ago.
Engage Kiss has a pretty unique plot that blends some elements of fantasy with sci-fi. A textual description won’t do the plot any justice because the presentation of the anime plays a big part in nailing the feel of the plot. So I recommend you experience the plot yourself knowing as little as possible about it.
Plot
Engage Kiss is set in Bayron City, a huge metropolis build around a newly discovered power source, Orgonium. The mayor promises a luxurious lifestyle to everyone in the city. While that is obviously not true, unknown to people there are hidden dangers associated with using Orgonium. Our protagonist, Ogata Shuu pretty much lives in poverty and is a demon exterminator, a detective of sorts that also kills demons for hire. The story follows him and his partner, Kisara.
As I said, I won’t reveal too much. Because the less you know about the story, the more you’ll enjoy it. I won’t lie, I came to Engage Kiss for the fan service but ended up staying for the plot. Shuu’s backstory is heavily related to the plot and in fact, a portion of the plot is even dedicated to Shuu finding out about his past. The world-building is pretty well done and the plot itself has some really good twists and is very well paced.
Characters
I’ll be honest, this is one aspect of Engage Kiss that I am not completely sold on. Ayano and Kisara, while I really do like them, they’re pretty basic. Little to no character development, and they’re pretty stereotypical. Now as for Shuu though, he’s a really well-written character. While he comes off as kind of a douchebag at first, (which is why some people don’t like him) if you stick around you’ll soon learn why he’s like that. His backstory is very much an integral part of the plot and is explored in quite a detail.
Animations and Soundtracks
The art style is really really good. A huge part of Engage Kiss’s atmosphere comes from the art design. The whole sci-fi + fantasy setting is extremely well executed. And as with LycoReco, the action sequences are really well animated and directed. The OSTs are also fairly good. I don’t care if you want to watch this anime or not, go and listen to the opening theme. It is from one of my favorite artists.
Why should you watch Engage Kiss?
Quick pointers on why you should check out this anime:
- Good plot
- Awesome art style
- Great animations
- Cool fights
Fan Service(yes, that is more than enough of a reason for some people)
Conclusion
That is all for now. Engage Kiss is deceptively good. I know people will brush it off as another fan service anime but no, this anime actually has a good plot underneath all that. Let me know what you guys think in the comments though. I will take my leave here, I have some scarabs to hunt down. See ya!!
