Released earlier this month as a collector’s edition Blu-ray and standard edition DVD by All The Anime, Rage of Bahamut: Genesis is a 2014 anime from Studio MAPPA, based on a free to play mobile game. MAPPA are the studio behind Terror in Resonance, another title All The Anime released this year, Punch Line, which is coming soon from Manga Entertainment, and the upcoming In This Corner of the World film which is to be released by Animatsu Entertainment. They have also co-produced the Kids on the Slope anime and the currently airing Ushio and Tora anime. The blu-ray collector’s edition is, like Assassination Classroom before it, a straight-up port of the Funimation release, sadly.
“Meet Favaro Leone, professional bounty hunter and casual scoundrel. When he’s not crossing swords
with his arch nemesis and former best friend, Kaisar Lidford, he can be found at the local tavern
spinning tall tales to anyone who will listen. After a onewinged demoness overhears his drunken
boasts, she wrangles him into an unbreakable contract that will force him to make good on the
promise he made. With nothing but a destination in mind, the pair set out on their grand adventure completely unaware of the dark forces working to fulfill an ancient prophecy that will bring about the end of the world. That is, unless a charming rogue, a clueless demon, a disgraced knight, and a tiny zombie can band together to change the course of history. Visually arresting and fun from start to finish, Rage of Bahamut is a can’tmiss title for any action-fantasy fan.” – All The Anime
Rage of Bahamut: Genesis is a rather shallow anime; that isn’t to say it’s not good, it makes for a fairly enjoyable watch. However, there just isn’t really much to it; characters are likeable but not memorable, likewise for their backstories. Rage of Bahamut: Genesis does nothing to stand out amongst other fantasy-action anime, I see no reason to go back any time soon for a rewatch, personally. Thankfully, the show is visually pleasing, for the most part anyway, with only a few instances of CG animations that seem obnoxiously out of place compared to the rest of the scene. If you’re after action in a fantasy world, Bahamut fits the bill, just don’t expect it to leave any sort of lasting impression.
Both the English and Japanese audio tracks feature 5.1 surround sound, which is a pleasant surprise; Japanese audio tracks for TV animes are all too often stereo only. The rear channels are used sparingly in both, but it’s nice to see them used at all for a Japanese track. The English dub itself is fairly average, but the voices do fit the characters rather well. The audio can be switched at any time from the pop-up menu, except for episode 6.5. Episode 6.5 is dual audio, but as it is in the extras section, its pop-up menu only allows you to return to the main menu – a minor annoyance but worth pointing out. Changing the audio in the menu proper prior to launching episode 6.5 is your only option.
This release has the usual extras of Textless Opening and Ending, including the full-screen version of the episode 12 Ending. Also included are two English dub commentaries, for episodes 1 and 12, and recap episode 6.5. Annoyingly, Funimation opted to include this recap episode on disc two rather than on disc one where episode 6 resides. Having to switch discs to watch this recap is another minor nuisance, but it’s nice to see that it was included at all.
© Cygames/MAPPA/BAHAMUT GENESIS