Name: Occult Academy (2010)
IMDb: link to Occult Academy page
Genres: Animé, supernatural, action, mystery Country of origin: Japan
Directed by: Tomohiko Ito.
The Three Acts:
The initial tableaux:
For the backdrop and character sketches, see Occult Academy (Wikipedia). For short descriptions of individual episodes, try List of Occult Academy episodes.
The series is set in the Japan of 1999. An alien invasion is to occur on 21 July 1999 unless somehow prevented. The results are almost complete devastation of human civilization. Survivors from the future (2012) make multiple attempts to thwart the invasion of Earth by sending agents back in time to find and use the 'Nostradamus Key,' whatever that is. The first five agents die trying. The male protagonist is the sixth to attempt finding the key.
The female protagonist, Maya, is the daughter of the founder of Waldstein's Academy, better known as the Occult Academy. She returns to the Academy after her father's death, and takes over as the school's principal. The male lead, known to most as Abe Minoru, takes the disguise of a history teacher at the Academy. Maya and Abe get off to a rough start, but eventually learn to work together.
Delineation of conflicts:
Most of the storyline is consumed by tracking down leads on the Key, describing Maya's difficult childhood, and describing Abe's difficult childhood. Also, everyone involved is discouraged by Abe's ineffectual nature.
The Academy is beset by occult attacks. Maya and Abe do their best to stop the attacks and mitigate the damage. Earth is to be invaded, if the signs are to be believed. This is the bigger threat, and the leads are, at first, terrible at preparing for it.
Resolution:
Abe and Maya are working against a date for the invasion. The occult attacks have taken their time and attention. Will they be ready for the bigger threat? That is, will they find the Key, figure out how to use it, and have enough time to act?
One one summary: Determined young woman and a nebbish work against a hard deadline to save Earth. Shorter: Young couple fight to save Earth.
Statistics:
Art: 8/10 Most of the art is gorgeous. Other parts are prosaic to ordinary to amateurish. Mature women and young women in their late teens are depicted skillfully. Children and adult men are not. Buildings, forests, roads, cars, and other objects are drawn well.
Sound: 8/10 reasonably good. The background music was not irritating.
Screenplay: 10/10 The series could have been wrapped up in 8 or 9 episodes. Four filler episodes were inserted for no particular value, or so it would seem. The plot was not all that gripping, until the end, which justified the entire series approach. This was one of the five or so best 'coming of age' treatments I've ever seen.
Final Rating: 9/10
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