Anime: Zero no Tsukaima

I had a bit of time to kill so I decided to go back and pick up some shows that I've skipped over the years, and there just happened to be four seasons worth of Rie Kugimiya in her forte- a short, violent tsundere. Zero no Tsukaima is an ecchi-based comedy (harem?) that takes place in a fantasy-ish world where magic takes the place of technology. Our somewhat-perverse hero is "summoned" from present day Japan into this world (in a very similar manner to Astarotte... which also stars a short, tsundere voiced by Kugimiya...) and soon finds that his rank is essentially that of a pokemon. Will our hero be able to escape this life of servitude?

While many of the elements in Zero can be found in other series, the overall series is well presented and came across as an easily digestible and enjoyable work.

Animation:
The animation here is pretty standard stuff. There aren't gorgeous backgrounds to wow at and the effects are underwhelming (having just watched multiple UFOTable works). Character designs are fitting for the fantasy theme and the characters are easily distinguishable. My only major complaint is the use of Nagasarete-Airantou-ish animals (creatures that don't quite resemble what they're supposed to represent).

This is an ecchi series, though more implied that visual. Saito's eyes do wander a bit though the camera never ventures anywhere that necessitates using god rays. There is actually a surprising amount of kissing involved in this series though, which a lot of relational, ecchi-based series fail to ever venture. As for action, don't expect anything grand or even realistic (bullets apparently are made of rubber...). There is very occasional blood but nothing to lose dinner over.

Overall a fair production, possibly comparable to Shakugan no Shana (also by JC Staff) but with less of a dark mood.

Sound:
Music-wise, this season was pretty average. The OP and ED were both fairly generic and not very memorable. There are some BGM pieces that stand out but not enough so to scramble for the OST. VA-wise, this show is outstanding. You have Rie Kugimiya in her strongest role, as well as Yui Horie and Ayako Kawasumi as primary supporting roles. It's been a while since I've heard these VAs and boy do they deliver.

Story:
Zero isn't a terribly focused story, mostly feeling like an ecchi slice of life in mage-world. Perhaps later seasons will feel more plot-focused as multiple episodes were spent on character development; some on, interestingly enough, minor-feeling supporting characters. The plot direction is often very predictable, and multiple foreshadows are given prior to any major event. The story eventually builds to a final climax that is partially resolved, which is fine granted that there are three more series afterwards.

I'm actually quite amazed at how much they were able to weave into twelve episodes without it feeling overwhelming. There are general hints of an impending underground rebellion and some questioning of a class system (mages vs. non-mage) interspersed throughout the primary story. They also throw in some entertaining "relics" from Japan that are named in very fantasy-RPG-like terminology such as "Dragon's blood".

If you're looking for a fairly light and simple story with a few predictable twists, this is a good pick.

Character:
As mentioned above, there is a fairly heavy focus on character development. Louise is known as "zero" for being unable to wield any of the four magical elements, and is often bullied on for that fact. In comes our hero from another world. Will he be able to break through that "tsun" barrier? Or will he be too distracted by all the other girls (or maids) at the academy?

There is definitely some good relationship building in this series, much more so than some of the more recent ecchi harems (though I still don't get the 16-year-old S&M elements...). As I usually mention, I prefer shows with fewer but more well developed characters, and this is definitely one that follows that principle.

Value:
While not a series that I finish speechless, Zero was a fair and enjoyable series. Astarotte is probably the closest series I can think of in terms of mood/setting/characters but this is much better directed. If you have a few hours to spare and don't mind watching something a few years old, this is a pretty decent watch.

Review
Zero no Tsukaima is a show I would normally keep away. It carries the same loli as a protagonist that has plagued 90% of the animes since 2008 and has an art style so typical from today's Japan that has irritated me for all these years. Yet when the show was released in 2006 the loli-plague was still fresh and I gave it a chance as I did with Shakugan no Shana and Haruhi Suzumiya. Zero no Tsukaima surprised me by that time. While the show is very dependant on ecchi moments and blushing little girls, the initial idea is good and the show keeps a narrow and well maintained setting that helps to keep things under control.

This is the tale of Saito, a modern-day boy thrown into a fantasy world, summoned by Louise to be his pet and servant. However, his modern-day intelligence and knowledge, even if just average, makes him much more than a simple pet. He became the focus of the school where Louise attends and even draws the eyes of those high in power.

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1. An amazing idea, but...
   Zero no Tsukaima's initial idea is very good, showing a modern-age guy being carried out to a medieval-fantasy setting. The range of possibilities with such concept is superb, making his basic knowledge over technology seems something magic or powerful in the eyes of the medieval inhabitants of the land and making him some kind of heroic being. The show, however, fails to use the basic concept with quality. It loses too much time showing a blushing Louise, brings more harem-like scenes than necessary and simply forgets to carry the plot from time to time. Shows that takes too much time showing shy girls are usually doomed to stupidity (even though the japanese audience likes it) but Zero no Tsukaima can barely get out of this problem because of the nice turns of events that happen to move the plot. The master-servant relationship of Louise and Saito is not clearly defined and rarely really used but allow some fun scenes at least.
   
   A bright show for a typical tale
   Zero no Tsukaima was one of the first shows to use what is today the standard art style for many animes. It means it has bright colors, all characters are childish, even serious character designs seems flashy, dark atmosphere is impossible to be carried out but animation is extremely good and the quality that it's done is superb. By that time this style was not overused and was somehow refreshing, reminding of Love Hina, Ai Yori Aoshi, and others shows with similar styles that came before. It fits greatly to the show, succeeding in bringing a fantasy setting with ecchiness and shy girls without exaggerating proportions or bizarre character designs.
   
   Loli voice for a loli show
   Louise is supposed to be an annoying little girl, and there she succeeds flawlessly. Her voice will keep echoing in your ears for a fer hours after every episode, but beyond that Zero no Tsukaina does a decent job at its sound direction, meeting what is expected from a happy and carefree harem comedy, only failing to provide the needed plus to the dramatic scenes of the tale.
   
   ah... Louise and Saito
   Louise is your typical loli tsundere (far too typical nowdays), Saito is your typical stupid japanese guy, you also have your big-breast beauty, the silent smart girl, a princess, and all the rest of the cast are completely out of a stereotype's guide. They can be charismatic even with their limitations, but most (if not all) of it comes from a bright design instead of a well developed personality or depth. For a harem show this is enough, but it could be something better considering the nice setting the story takes place. You'll be tired of moments with Saito and Louise getting more intimate and blushing, but besides that you have some interesting situations that make use of Saito's background.
   
   An interesting try
   By the time it was released, Zero no Tsukaima was somehow fresh. The ecchi genre was lacking, harem were more scarce and the good production quality and nice initial idea made things more tolerable. The show is far from original, rarely showing scenes different from what you saw in early 2000's shows or late 90's harems, but it mixes things in a good way. It has a small dose of ecchi, some fun scenes and a good pace despite all its cons. It's only bad that nothing new is brought to develop the characters or to twist the plot.
   

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Comments
I personally don't like ecchi shows. Since Love Hina there were only a few that caught my attention and they were usually those with more drama and a more serious romance. Zero no Tsukaima is far too childish in terms of drama and is more apt to please lolicon fans, but it grabbed my attention with its interesting concept and a somehow different approach to the genre. It's small length helps to keep things from getting boring or excessive and the turn of the events in the story are good enough to keep some degree of attention.

I was caught by surprise by this show, but because of the absurd amount of anime with lolis that came after 2008 (Dragon Crisis, Haruhi, Shakugan no Shana I, II, Vampire Bund, Lucky Star, etc.) anyone who've watched more recent shows may grow tired of Zero no Tsukaima by its start. I also would warn that despite this show being an average loli show, the sequels are extremely worse than this and you'll be seeing all the blushing and ecchiness without any sort of control or excuse.

If you're into Zero no Tsukaima to watch it's full trilogy, get away quickly, but if you don't mind watching only this first season you can get out while it's still good (or at least not bad).

SEX !!!

If that made you more interested in reading further, then Zero no Tsukaima is the show for you. If not, then don’t even bother because it’s all you’ll get from this crappy quadrilogy trilogy. It is just an ecchi comedy with a pint of fantasy shenanigans for flavor and NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND. Do not try to see it as some sort of an amazing setting with elaborate mechanics and complex social structure because there isn’t much in terms of plot or character development beyond the funky premise. But if you are somehow satisfied with aimless softporn that makes vague tributes to other famous shows, and you never get bored of the stereotypical tsundere, then you will definitely enjoy Zero no Tsukaima way more than I did.

When I said tributes, I referred to a bunch of unintended comparisons, such as:
- Harry Potter because the setting is about a magic school, where aristocratic wizards rule over lower commoners.
- Shakugan no Shana because the lead girl reminds us of her (or for the same reason any other loli tsundere voiced by Rie Kugimiya).
- The Lord of the Rings because of a fantasy war raging on in the background.

So yeah, imagine Shana riding a flying broomstick and giving us lots of panty shots, while she wastes hoards of Orcs next to Mount Doom for 48 episodes. And instead of a red eye the main villain is a bald Lich constantly scheming behind everyone’s backs. And having a thousand horny NEETs near by taking photos of Shana’s tsun moments while screaming OUR PRECIOUSSS !!! Sure, it could work; I love just the description of it.

… Too bad that instead of all those awesome events I made up, all we get in this show is jack SHIT!

STORY

The story is (as it usual is in such shows) just an excuse to have a ball-less dork doing WHATEVER before he starts tripping on boobs and getting his ass kicked hard by a loli. Yeah, sounds funny … if it doesn’t repeat every 10 minutes without any sort of progress and while there are a hundred other shows WITH THE EXACT SAME THING GOING ON. So yeah, the premise may sound original, or interesting, or captivating, but the presentation is just the same old tsun fuss all over again. Here, let me give you a list of the subplots you can find in here:

- A magician girl’s struggle for acceptance by her society, who considers her weak
- A normal boy’s drama of being away from his home, against his will
- A conflict between the rich and the poor
- A mystery regarding a powerful magic element
- A war between two powerful factions for the control of the world

Boy, this could mean the birth of the most awesome epic adventure of the PAST 30 YEARS! Tremble Lord of the Rings! Step out of the way Game of Thrones! Run to the hills Malezan Book of the Fallen! Here comes Zero no Tsukaima!

Yes, it would be quite lovely to have at least half of all that, and yet what do we actually get? NOTHING! A big, ugly, fat, shitty zero, as the titles implies. The only progress we get from all those amazing subplots mentioned above is the fan service which keeps increasing exponentially while context and plot go for a walk. They occasionally try to make it epic and interesting (especially during the first and the last seasons) but it never manages to be anything more than a minor side dish before the next done to death ecchi scene comes along. So much for priorities …

The truth is that the novels the anime is based on have a lot more plot and far less softporn in them. But as usual Studio J.C. Staff only cares to make its adaptations as fappable as possible instead of making them decent and faithful to the source material. But what can you expect when their target audience is deviant NEETs and their ace card is a loli tsundere voiced by Rie Kugimiya?

CHARACTERS

But who cares about the story if the characters are unique, special, developed or just highly humorous? Most people care about the cast and not the story anyways. That is why the cast of this trilogy is again SHIT because they are carbon-copied harem archetypes you can find anywhere, with absolutely nothing special or memorable about them after awhile. Why in blazes would I find Louise any better than any other stereotypical tsundere? She’s no Asuka Langley; that’s for sure. And why is Saito any better than all the rest of the harem or shounen leads out there when he allows to be humiliated all the time without even being a masochist? Or why is anyone else in this show worth remembering when I can think of a hundred other similar characters with far more depth and development? Some say it was the voice actress who made it all worthy, but, surely, after a dozen identical Rie Kugimiya roles I no longer give a fudge. Some others say it was the jokes that made them feel funny, which means absolutely NOTHING because I have seen shows with far more original jokes and greener pastures.

It goes further down the gutter if you think of what progress the cast had throughout the season. Any hints of development we had in season 1 are conveniently deleted in season 2, and the hints of progress we were given in the finale of the second season play no importance in the third. As for the fourth season, the characters ACTUALLY develop, but it is done in a lazy and rushed way. Plus by then you have run out of toilet paper and no longer care about their personalities. So no, they are even less that average since for 48 episodes we see them doing aimless things with ZERO importance before ending the whole thing in the most boring way imaginable. Hell, they shamelessly reset development just to prolong the show’s crummy plot. Just how tasteless do they expect us to be for liking this crap?

VALUE & ENJOYMENT

Yet another high-seller garbage of a franchise. Sure, it sold a million bucks amongst the sick otakus but that does not prove it is a quality show; it only proves how low the bar is for most in the target audience. The fandom just loves mediocrities and never gets bored of eating the same piss soup every day. This mentality would perform miracles in a communistic society. But, being the capitalistic pig I am, I say this is a dreadful franchise and I would never recommend it to anyone, other than to waste his life when there are better shows out there. Now where is my tuna salad, zero coke, French fries with ketchup, and Cheeseburger with no onions?

p.s.:
Oh, I forgot to say something about the production values. Well, not my fault if they are the least of the things anyone should care about in this shitty franchise. Ok, here you go, animation and sound are good if all you want is generic pop songs, blunt medieval backgrounds and simplistic character figures that do and say generic harem stuff. There, now my perfect analysis is complete, have fun you tasteless otakus.

VERDICT: S1: 3/10, S2: 2/10, S3: 1/10 S4: 3/10

2006. A year for crappy anime?

I think not. While Zero no Tsukaima isn't as well known as some of the other series from 2006; Rec, Binchou-tan, Ergo Proxy, Shinigami no Ballad, Aria, School Rumble 2, Suzumiya, Nana, NHK, etc. It still has plenty of merits to stand on its own.

Take the setting for example, a magical Harry Potter world, character sterotypes, ecchi... surely those would mix to be a good show right? Well it did in my book. While I have yet to see the third season, I can say that I liked the first far more than the second.

Animation - Magic!? What fun!
While the characters resemble others, Louise = Taiga for example. Each one of them has their own traits that you like. There is the quiet glasses girl that reminds me of Yuki Nagato, there is the busty one that has all the boys chasing after her, the stuck up pretty boy... but each one of those come together to make the cast enjoyable.

While the second season seemed to completely ignore their development and traits that were established in the first, this isn't about the second, I already did that review.

While the backgrounds are rather bland, but you don't really mind because the characters are pretty to look at and brightly colored. If the background was anymore detailed, it would become distracting. While the world resembles Harry Potter in more ways than one, I will get into that in story.

Sound - Not really memorable
To be honest, I don't really remember the sounds. Sure I remember that Aisaka Taiga and Louise have the same voice actress, but for the OP/ED, don't really remember. Same with the BGM, so I suppose you can take it at that.

Story - Where's Harry?
While Tsukaima isn't a complete rip off of Harry Potter, there are several ways it comes close. Firstly the magical world. Mages, as they are called, are aristocrats and run society. Although there is a Queen, the aristocrats are still better than the magicless plebians. Secondly, the school. A magical school that resides inside a castle where the students practice and learn magic, I was partly expecting some Quidditch and a cocky blonde kid to taunt Saito about how awesome he is. Oh wait! That happens... Guiche is a ladies man and when Saito insults him there is a duel, but as expected from someone summoned from a different world, he owns!

While that aspect is different, Louise having no magical ability and Saito not from the world, there are still quite a few similiarities to Harry Potter, at least that I noticed.

Harry Potter aside, lets examine the story shall we?

Here is Louise, she comes from a rich noble family that is known for their excellent use of magic, but as expected, she doesn't. She isn't as pretty as her sisters, she has no magical ability and isn't that popular in school with the other children. During their second year, the children get to summon their familiar. What a familiar is exactly, I suppose it is like a best friend that stays with you for life, I don't exactly remember, but Dumble... er Ottman explains it.

While being chided by the other children, Louise exclaims that she will summon the best familiar ever. (Foreshadowing?) The other children laugh and go on to summon magical beasts of all sorts, when it is Louise's turn, she summons a measely plebian, enter mocking. But the teacher sees the marking on his hand and goes to look it up. Fast forward to the teacher talking with Dumbl... Ottman about it, there is some hush hush and you think back about that foreshadowing, although you don't really know what is going on... yet.

Enter in various girls that like Saito, I am thinking about Miss Busty and the maid, but Louise doesn't tolerate anyone chasing after Saito, so instead of punishing them, she beats up the poor boy. Which was fun at first, it wasn't overdone in the first season, but I quickly grew sick of it in the second. But Saito is a noble boy, he misses home and despite many advances from Miss Busty, he doesn't persue them. Maybe it is because Louise always interrupts and gives him a rather harsh hazing... I don't know. But you can easily tell that Louise is falling for Saito, and he too for her, although the maid also gets some of his attention.

Anyway, there are a few side quests and missions that only Louise and Saito are able to do, requested from the Princess herself, only to have Miss Busty and Nagato tag along. Despite them all being adequete in magic, sans Louise, Saito really ends up doing all the work and saving the day. There are also a few missions that tell some back story on Nagato, but I don't really recall any other characters really getting developed. Well, there is Saito, you learn about him coming from another world (despite watching it) from him telling the maid about his home world.

It ultimately ends in a mission to avert war, only for the Prince to die and war come anyway. There are several things that are predicatable and you can see coming from a mile away, so you aren't really surprised when they happen.

Character - Again!
Well, I ended up going into character while talking about the story, but there really isn't any development. You know that Saito comes from another world, but you don't really learn about what his hobbies were, what he liked to do. You also learn that the maid is a descendant of a Japanese person, and that her Great Grandfather was Gandalf, the legendary familiar (remember foreshadowing?) that can manipulate any weapon of war. Well, he is the legendary familiar of the legendary mage. Yes, Louise is a legendary mage that uses a mystical form of magic called Void. There are the four elements; Earth, Wind, Water and Fire, and the fifth is Void, but no one really believes that it exists because no one uses it. Hence why Louise can't learn any spells and any spells that she does do cause explosions....

Anyway, most of the characters are stereotypes, but you don't really mind. They are fun and there are several laughs. Although the story is actually in the foreground and is being told, there is also ecchi, although not as much as the second season.

Value/Enjoyment - Hmm, that was fun
Despite my rambling, I did enjoy the first season of Tsukaima, I am waiting for the third to download then I will post a review of that. I would recommend that the second season be avoided, only because it is bad. There is no story development for the majority of the series, and when there is... it is shallow and rushed and leaves no impact.

Enjoy your stereotypes!

Note: This review applies to the first three seasons of Zero no Tsukaima. It is based on SS-AYU and SS-Eclipse fansubs, both of which offer great quality and good translation.



Originally written as light novel series by Yamaguchi Noboru and directed by Iwasaki Yoshiaki (Love Hina, Hayate no Gotoku!!) and Kou Yuu (Chrono Crusade) Zero no Tsukaima[/b] is a romantic tsundere comedy with fantasy elements. It's plot is relatively basic, if shallow - Louise a student of magic academy fizzles a spell and summons a young japanese male, Hiraga Saito, for a familiar due to mistake. The guy is pretty much lost in the new land, so he has no choice but to stick with Louise and her horrible treatment. The light hearted story goes to touch stuff like sacrifices for ideals, war politics, unequal social standing issues and more, but never really delves too deep into anything and tries its best to tell a light, romantic and ecchi story about the growing attachment between Louise and Saito, which, in this case, is surprisingly not a bad thing.

Out of the many anime I have watched, this series are one of the easiest to recommend. It builds all of its substance on tsundere and nothing else: it throws away drama potential to offer tsundere jokes, it throws away political warfare potential for tsundere charm and it exchanges character depth for recurring tsundere violence. So, yeah, the likability of this show completely depends on to what extent do you like tsunderes. Simply, if you are not turned on by the archetype - go away from this show, run as far as you can, you will most likely hate it. On the other hand, if you are the one who finds tsunderes close to your heart - don't miss your chance to watch this show, you will most likely love it, as Zero no Tsukaima is one of the few romantic tsundere shows which actually manage to go past the kisses and offer more.. errr, erotic romance. Since I personally fall into the latter category I have enjoyed this show pretty much, much more than I would dare to give it credit for.

Animation: 6/10

Animation done by J.C. Staff (Shakugan no Shana, Hayate no Gotoku) is exactly what you'd call average. Mostly deserted and bland backgrounds are redeemed by the vivid color palette and simplistic character designs are made cute due to many moe factors. We have pettanko, maids, meganeko, zettai ryouiki, elf ears and many others. I myself found character designs to my liking, with the exception of the oversized breasts of some. Fluidity falls into average category as well, everyone and everything moves in realistic ways, but fights are far from amazing. The artistic quality of animation starts and ends with clever ecchi snapshots which give the show much of positive flavor. It seems that, unlike the majority of other studios which make their ecchi either lame or bordering disgusting, J.C. Staff knows how to deal with eroticism with style (the trait I have already noticed in Hayate no Gotoku).

Sound: 7/10

All three OPs and EDs, as expected, are more or less generic pop songs, though they fit the show relatively well and are, dare I say, slightly above average of what you usually get in anime. OPs mix lyrical singing with upbeatness and EDs are those cute and really moe tsundere songs sung by Kugimiya Rie. I personally only found the second ED Suki!?Kirai!?Suki!!! notable because it was damn funny with Louise chasing Saito in that dog costume creating a clever satire of the real plot of the show.

Background music is composed by Mitsumune Shinkichi (Furi Kuri, Rozen Maiden). Unfortunately, unlike the other shows he had worked on, music in Zero no Tsukaima is not genius, good nonetheless, but nowhere near as awesome as in his other works. There are quite a few dramatic scenes which get boosted by the good use of music, especially the action ones and romance climaxing ones. If I recall correctly, best pieces account to various string instruments, though you can hear some beautiful piano from time to time as well. Unfortunately, the comedic nature of the show doesn't let the composer to use emotional string music much, so you also end up having to listen to much comedy fitting generic music. So it's not as much the problem with the composer as with the show itself why the music is, well, just good.

Voice-acting, on the other hand, is marvelous, though I guess it's already a given whenever the show is produced by J.C. Staff. They always get the best female seiyuu for their romantic comedies and not only Zero no Tsukaima is no exception, it might be their best. Quite simply, this show offers the tsundere queen Kugimiya Rie (Toradora! as Taiga, Hayate no Gotoku as Nagi), master of exotic, brassy voice Kawasumi Ayako (Seikai no Monshou as Lafiel, Fate/Stay Night as Saber), best of the soft voices Noto Mamiko (Monster as Anna Liebert, School Rumble as Yakumo) and a singer, romantic comedy veteran Horie Yui (Love Hina as Narusegawa, School Rumble as Sawachika Eri). All of these seiyuu are professional, talented and, really, beyond any need of more recognition. Though Zero no Tsukaima doesn't offer their best performances, the sheer presence of their voices makes the characters of the show appear much better than they really are. Especially Kugimiya Rie does wonders with her tsundere lines, I can never get tired of her. I should also mention Hino Satoshi (Shakugan no Shana as Sakai Yuji, Texhnolyze as Ichise) whose voice, though unremarkable, fleshes and fits the harem archetype males extremely well.

Story: 6/10

The show takes place in, what I would call, a watered down version of Harry Potter world. There is this magic academy and the magical society, but there is little, if any mysteries behind it. You can see dragons and later elves come into play, so it is a most basic fantasy set up for the most part. I wasn't really interested in all those shallow politics, though I must say the addition of warfare turmoil between countries added some positive spices to the otherwise boring setting. The existence of Gandarlf and his ability to manipulate all weapons that exist was the only really interesting part of the setting.

There are very few good things to say about the show if I were to judge it as fantasy adventure anime. Setting is bland and the plot either starts jumping too fast, solving wars in one or two episodes, or lags for too long with virtually nothing serious happening. However, if you were to treat it as a tsundere exhibition for romantic purposes show, you would have to agree that it's fun. It does only one thing right, but that thing is the only that really matters. Frankly, I went to this show for tsundere action and I got more of it than I dared to imagine, serious story is so light that a gust of wind can blow it away, but it's not like I, or you for that matter, should have expected anything from it from the first place.

I must say that the growing attachment between Saito and Louise is very well fleshed out through the first three seasons and they actually go past the kissing period in the very first one. Period at which the majority of romantic comedies actually end. Some of the happenings which never let Saito and Louise move to official lover status appear forced and get annoying later, however, all of them flesh out Louise better and better while creating an even stronger bond between her and Saito. Though the relationship itself is jumping frantically between angsty confusion and bed-lovers in later seasons, all the regressions of relationship always originate from different reasons and are solved by overcoming different problems, thus making the love scenes between Louise and Saito even cuter and more engrossing. However, from the way I see it, the author has already used virtually everything tsundere's archetype and different traits of Louise's personality have to offer, so the show will either end with season four, or will finally become an another annoying speck of fanservice, which it still is not. Unless they were to come up with a plot device which would throw Louise and Saito into Japan, that would hold enough fun for another one or two seasons, hehe.

Characters: 7/10

The main lead, as you could expect, is a generic harem archetype. However, unlike the most guys who seem to just copy someone else's lines, he appears to talk his stuff from heart. Though indeed he is a perfectly normal Japanese adolescent and it is easy to tune with him, he does have HIS opinion about things and HIS way of doing things. I even thought him pretty cool near the end of season two. He doesn't offer new things and indeed follows the archetype, but he is fleshed out much better than the majority of characters from this genre are.

The star of the show and definitely the best character of it, is, of course, Louise. There is actually a reason why I do like tsundere archetype so much, it's because it has originated from some of the most awesome and important characters in anime business. Pride, deep feelings, ambitions and strong will, Lafiel of Seikai no Monshou had more than half of your usual tsundere traits even before the word was even created. Tsundere also comes with an integrated two-dimensional personality from the very beginning and if the author tries, like in Zero no Tsukaima, he can easily make it into a multi-dimensional one. Finally I find pride and high self-esteem always commendable traits in my characters and tsundere can't be one without them. In other words, though Louise is indeed one of the finest examples of tsundere stereotype, the author's passion to flesh her out and turn her into a distinct character makes her original enough to tell her and other tsunderes apart. She has a full fledged background, many worries and her tsundere appeal rarely feels fake or forced, especially since her standing of an aristocrat doesn't allow her to treat plebeians equally. Though not original, Louise is a character good and different enough to lead the show and its romance to where it is indeed interesting.

Other characters, unfortunately, don't hold the half of charm or depth Louise does. Most of them are only there to simply obstruct the romantic relationship between Saito and her. I think they've used each female character at least once to create a romantic 'misunderstanding' on Louise's part. Everyone in the side cast has at least one dimensional full-fledged personality and though they aren't deep, they serve in comedic relief moments well. Also, thanks to the good variety of characters, none of them have enough time to make you actually get bored of them. The Queen is the only exception to the one dimension rule, since she is fleshed out pretty well. I actually expect her to take one of the leading roles in the following season.

Myers-Briggs personality type indicator:

Siesta - ISFJ (D)
Hiraga Saito - ISTP (D)
Tifania Westwood - ISFP (D)
Henrietta de Tristain - INFJ (C)
Guiche de Gramont - ENFP (D)
Agnes Chevalier de Milan - ISTJ (E)
Montmorency Margarita la Fère - ESFJ (D)
Charlotte Helene Orleans de Gallia - INFP (D)
Louise Françoise le Blanc de la Vallière, - ENTJ (B)
Zerbst, Kirche Augusta Frederica von Anhalt - ENFP (D)

Show Spoiler

Value: 6/10

Zero no Tsukaima certainly loses a lot of its appeal once you know where the romance will lead up to and how the problems are going to be solved. However, the sheer charm of Louise and some nice music doesn't allow me to delete this show from my collection. I am most certain I wont re-watch it as a whole, but I am pretty sure I will check some of the cute romantic scenes again later, especially since this is the only tsundere show which goes THAT far.

1. Conclusion[/u]:[/b] Watchable by anyone who is of 13 years old or older Zero no Tsukaima is one of the best tsundere comedies in the market. However, it weighs on its tsundere appeal so much that it forgets to nurture its other ones. In other words, watch this show then and only then if you are indeed a fan of tsundere archetype. If you don't find tsundere moe - don't watch this show, or you will most definitely be disappointed. Other shows with attractive tsundere romance I found entertaining are - Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora, Shakugan no Shana and the best one Toradora!. Finally, not strictly a tsundere and not even a comedy, but the best romance show in anime form, an ancestor of tsundere anime is the remarkable Seikai no Monshou.

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My first impression of Zero no Tsukaima was that it was a Harry Potter clone, with all those magic stuff and clothing and even Old Ottman resembling like some other wizard of yore. Fortunately that impression didn't last and I found myself enjoying the show.

The animation was consistent at being pleasing and nicely done. Louise stands out for the cuteness factor and Montmorency has that cool set of locks. The characters here do tend to resemble characters from other series, though. Movements are smooth, nothing too flashy but still well done for a series like this. But I was quite disappointed with the way that the Tristain arc was done. Epic battles are definitely not the cup of tea for this series. Other than that, everything was clean and crisp, especially the character designs, something that I can say as eye candy.

Other than the Potter thing, another impression with my first episode was that, is this Shakugan no Shana redux? The seiyuu of the two main characters there also did the voices for Louise and Saito. It was fun hearing the two knowing that just sometime ago I was watching them giving life to some other characters. Anyways, Louise here was definitely (IMO) better suited with that voice compared to Shana. Somehow, her shouts of "Urusai!" and "Baka" were not that irritating to me. The OP was teeny-bop sounding, and it sets up the mood for a fun ride for the next 23mins. The ED was a bit hateful though. Overall, the BGM used was nice and perfect, as they definitely added to the humor on whatever is happening onscreen. Special mention to the funny popping sounds of the character's train of thought.

There is no central plot here, as most of the episodes sort of chronicle the daily mis/adventures of Louise and Saito. Along the way, the truth about what kind of a familiar Saito really is and the mystery of the so-called "Gandalfr" are revealed. A lot of it were light hearted episodes, funny sequences and fanservice thrown in for good measure. One of the best parts of the story is the development between Saito and Louise, which may be *ehem* inconclusive but heartwarming nonetheless. We also get to see Saito's lecherous side, and he reminds me of a watered down version of Ataru Morobosh, the scheming and lusty lad from Urusei Yatsura. But soon enough, the good things had to end as the season comes to a close, so the Tristain invasion was finally introduced. From there, things began to get a little predictable and a bit too convenient for the protagonists. It may be a bit of a downer but all's well that ends well. The second season is there to look forward to.

High rewatch factor since it only lasts for a couple of episodes, and being all that lighthearted comedy with a bit of ecchi gives the show something to look back to. I'll be rewatching this as soon as I get my hand on Zero no Tsukaima: Futatsuki no Kishi, which will not be anytime soon.


Zero no Tsukaima, while having elements of fantasy, comedy, drama, romance and fanservice makes for a good and entertaining watch. Well I don't know of anyone who doesn't get interested with that. I'd even say that it's cool for anime starters since I myself haven't found anything unsatisfactory with this show in terms of enjoyment. I thoroughly liked the show, and while the turn of events and/or technical factors leading to the end may not satisfy all, again it's just the first season. It'll be forgiven as I have yet to see how it turns out.