***Warning, the following may contain spoilers for Occult Academy. Reader discretion is advised.***
Series Synopsis
The year is 1999 and the founder of the Waldstein Academy is dead. Maya Kumashiro (voiced by Yoko Hikasa) returns to succeed her father as headmaster.
The Academy is well known for its study of the occult. Though an expert on the subject, Maya has a strong disdain for the paranormal. So much so, she wishes to destroy the school her father created.
Then without warning, the sky opens up. From a bright shining light, a man descends to ground. The person is Fumiaki Uchida (voiced by Takahiro Mizushima). He claims to be from the year 2012 where aliens have taken over the Earth. And the invasion will occur on July 21, 1999.
To complete his mission, Fumiaki must destroy the Key of Nostradamus. Maya agrees to help Fumiaki once she learns that it is somehow connected with her father’s death.
Together, these two learn the Waldstein Academy’s supernatural reputation is well founded.
Series Positives
Occult Academy wasn't great. In fact, it was actually quite disappointing.
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| Maya |
Still, there was enjoyment to be had. There were entertaining moments. Enough to give this series a distinct charm. Boring isn't the word to describe this show. Unbalanced, absurd, and laughable sure. But not boring.
Occult Academy did have a few things going for it.
The Animation
Visually, Occult Academy looked great.
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| Fumiaki |
The animation, the backgrounds, the environments, the fights, everything was well done. This played into why the show wasn't uninteresting. There were ample amounts of pretty imagery to help keep your attention.
The show had a realistic, down to earth animation style. Combined with standard anime characteristics. It didn't always mix, but it worked more often than not.
The ending was where Occult Academy shined. Tons of vivid colors. The action was fast and vibrant. The entire spectacle was grand in scale. Unfortunately, the story couldn't follow suit. We’ll get to that in a moment.
Maya
All the characters played their parts. They were functional in their roles. Except for one. Maya, though, stood out.
Appearance wise, she was the best example of when Occult Academy’s art style succeeded. When a moment called for her to be serious, she looked serious. When a moment was a little light hearted, it showed in her expressions.
As a character, Maya was also outstanding. She was the best thing to come out of this show. I especially liked how the series showed how she became the person she was. It gave her depth.
This was a character worth following.
Series Negatives
While watching Occult Academy, there were several problems I had hoped to focus on.
There was a surprising lack of occult activities. And even fewer that had anything to do with the school. For the most part, the school has no real significance. This should've been nothing more than a club because that was all it played out as.
Also, the teachers of this school allowed students to do some rather dangerous things. Life-threatening things. Was it okay for a student to take part in an experiment that actually involved dying?
Plus, due to the show's art style, there were times where things needed to be a tad more anime to fit the mood. But then there were times where the show went way too anime. Thus, completely breaking the more grounded atmosphere.
There was a lot wrong with this series.
Yet, I can accept all that. I can do so because they're inconsequential to the larger problem at hand.
Fumiaki Uchida
Think back to when I said all character did well in their roles except for one. Fumiaki was that one. This guy made me mad.
He became insufferable.
Fumiaki was lazy. He was a coward. He was easy to outsmart. He couldn't stand up for himself. He was selfish. This wasn’t the type of hope humanity could afford to have.
In the beginning, this was all passable because he came off as the underdog hero. And near the end, he did show some worth. Kind of.
But not of that matters. There were many instances which could've got fixed with easy. One of them being the actual alien invasion. And they would've got fixed had Fumiaki taken the time to sack up and do his damn job.
But Odyssey, wasn't Fumiaki the hero of the show. He did save the day and all.
No, he wasn't. And no, he didn't. Sure, the story said that was what happened. But that was because the story just did things. Things that made no sense. Things that were pulled straight out the show’s ass.
Speaking of which, this leads me to the biggest problem of Occult Academy.
The Ending
I maintain that the twist at the end of Danganroupa wasn't good. It was too random. There wasn't enough support for it to make sense. And wasn't the least bit clever.
That said, it's still worlds better than the end of Occult Academy.
I won't spoil what this show did. I will, however, tell you when it happens. You can try being ready for it. You can try piecing it together before it happens. I doubt you will. That's because at no point was the twist hinted at, suggested, or even casually mentioned. It just happened. Because why not.
It will occur in Episode 11.
Before you say it, you're right. I didn’t see this coming. Except a good twist is one you could've seen coming. You only failed to do so. Danganroupa failed in this sense as well. But at least that show tried to make an attempt to connect everything. There was none of that in Occult Academy.
The suddenness of it all left me speechless. The show had the audacity to keep throwing in more surprises. Each one making as much sense as the last. As in none. I can't believe what this series turned into. The last few episodes were a different show onto themselves.
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for something to watch, I'd actually recommend this one. Let me explain why.
As I said, this wasn't a boring show. The animation was nice. The art was spectacular. And in visual terms, it’s worth checking out. Also, the characters, except Fumiaki, were fun and enjoyable. I don’t regret watching.
And though the ending is stupid, it is still a sight to see if only to please your curiosity.
Occult Academy had more good than bad. Granted the bad happened to be real bad.
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