Director: Shinji Ishihira.
Starring: Emiri Kato, Takuma Terashima, Tomoaki Maeno, Ayahi Takagaki, Daiki Yamashita, Jad Saxton, Andrew Love, Mike Yager.
Running Time: 325 minutes
Certificate: PG
Sword Art Online has already given us a fantastic story in which people become trapped in an MMORPG. The first half of that series really is anime perfection, therefore Log Horizon has a lot to live up to. Essentially the story is the same, thousands of people find themselves trapped in a fantasy world that resembles a popular MMORPG, with no rhyme or reason for such a turn of events, the people inside the game must begin to adjust to a life in the computerised world.
Where the plot differs is in its innocence and fun. Sword Art Online went with the idea that if you died in the game, then you would die in real life. It added a great sense of dread, whereas here the killed players will simply respawn. It means that there isn’t such a great focus on escaping from the game, so instead the characters embrace their missions and start joining guilds etc. It’s a lot of fun to see confident gamers shoved into the situations they have always imagined, but it’s a lot lighter in terms of intensity.
The worlds are beautifully realised with gorgeous animated sequences, and the comradre of the protagonists is very commendable. Another plus is seeing how things start to contradict each other, such as big fantasy fights being interrupted by on screen displays representing choices for the game, or the true personalities of the ingame players bubbling to the surface.
With a wonderful set of characters for the most part, it’s a shame the females aren’t treated as well as the males. Two higher-ups in the guild are given comedic quirks of being obsessed with various other characters, completely undermining their authority at times. It could have worked with just one, as the contrast between their fantasy and real life selves is what draws us to the characters, but two is just a bit much.
Log Horizon is a very solid show, and although it may not be pushing boundaries or offer anything new, there’s lots of action, lovable characters, and interesting stories all presented with great animation. It also overcomes the biggest hurdle, which is not making you want to play an RPG instead of watching people live in one. Hopefully the upcoming second collection will expand and improve.
[usr=3]Log Horizon Part 1 is released on DVD and Blu-ray from 27th April.
