Search - S.T.R.A.I.N.: Strategic Armored Infantry - Complete Series Box Set on DVD

Kenneth S. (Kodess) from JACKSON, MI
Reviewed on 1/14/2011...

Short series but pretty good. Not a lot of character development but fair amount of drama and action.

SPOILERS at end of review

RavenRing | USA | 08/11/2010

(1 out of 5 stars)

"First off, I absolutely loathed this series. Out of all of the 200+ anime shows/movies/OVAs I've watched, I hate this one the most. That said, loathing aside this is probably more like a 2 or 3 star anime. But I am not a professional critic, so loathing must be factored in, hence the 1 star. Just be warned that this review is filled with bitterness and truth.

I decided to watch this show based on three things: It was only 13 episodes, it was available to legally watch for free on AnimeNewsNetwork , and the synopsis of the show I read claimed it was loosely based on the novel "The Little Princess". If you stretch your imagination, you can see a similarity between the first two episodes and like the first two chapters of the book, but that is it.

The story centers around young Sara Werec, who is training to become a Strain pilot like her idolized elder brother (whom she hasn't see for many years). Strain pilots are the elite and Sara's school looks like a fancy private school save for the whole war training thing. Then it gets attacked and Sara loses her friends (whom she never seems to think about afterwards, or ever even grieve for) as well as her ability to pilots a Strain, and she also catches a glimpse of the attacker and *gasp* he looks *just* like her elder brother! So with the mystery all set up, the real story starts when she has moved from Earth to some spaceship training center where she pilots a lesser mecha (i.e. not as cool or respected as Strains).

I wasn't impressed with the beginning or with Sara, but I thought it might be a fun little Sci-Fi adventure and I foolishly wanted to know why her brother would betray his people and sister like that. So I held on. None of the characters are particularly likable or interesting. They are all pretty flat and stereotypical. The story wasn't too slow, it is only 13 episodes after all. I don't normally pay much attention to the art, but of what I do remember, it looked pretty good, the character designs were distinctive, and the mecha looked cool. No complaints there.
But being board by the characters isn't enough to warrant a 1 star rating. So why did I end up hating it so much? The story! It wasn't too bad in the beginning - spoiled rich girl who idolized brother loses everything because of said brother, then ends up poor in the lower ranks where no one really likes her, but then her determined spirit wins her friends, and through her perseverance she is able to see her brother again.

I wasn't too interested, but it had some entertainment value. I'd probably say 3 stars for the episodes before the ending (the last 2 episodes, I think, where everything falls apart). Then came the bad stuff. You know how you hear the expression "his/her jaw dropped open in shock"? 'Cause that is what my jaw did on the 12th episode (I believe it was). I was so surprised, I didn't even notice it was open until about half way through the episode. I was unable to close it until the end. I felt trapped in shocked horror.
The real reason I hate this series is its complete STUPIDITY. There were little warring spurts before the end, but end really cinched it for me. It was the dumbest reason for a betrayal EVER. I know that I am very particular about this kind of thing, so others might only think it dumb.

That said, I can see some mecha fans enjoying this for the cool mecha. Or if you enjoy just watching Sci-Fi shows and don't care about bad guy motivation much.
I am not a mecha fan, but every once in a while I can appreciate a good mecha show. So if you want good mecha, I recommend Full Metal Panic! Season One, Escaflowne: Complete Collection, or Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Anime Legends Collection 1.

I don't know if it makes a difference, but I watched this series in Japanese. The cast did a good job, it is just their lines that were terrible.

If my review has put you off, but you still want to know the end, or if you've seen some and just want to find out what happened, then read on:
ENDING SPOILERS----------ENDING SPOILERS------------ENDING SPOILERS------------ENDING SPOILERS
So you wanna know why Sara's beloved, well respected and famous brother decided to destroy the human race and totally abandon his sister and only family? Prepare to be amazed at his depth and logic! Years ago before the series began, he was sent to the edge of the universe to do some clean-up, when to his horror, he discovered that the government had been experimenting and dissecting some psychic aliens whose existence the government has been hiding. Feeling the horror of what was done to them, he vows to get revenge on the horrible people who had done this to them (naturally, these are cute little girl aliens) and also naturally, rather than taking care of the scientists and/or government responsible, he decides all humans must be erased. And due to the way space travel works, what was a few years for Sara was like a day for her brother. So this guy wakes up one morning, discovers some atrocities, and then decides to commit genocide in response. Seeing his sister appears to elicit absolutely no emotion from him.

While I totally felt sorry for the aliens and thought they might be justified in some revenge, I completely did not buy the doting brother turning into a crazed sociopath. So dissecting some poor little aliens is just so horrible, but wiping out an entire race is completely justified.

I suppose in the end, whether or not you enjoy the ending depends on your ethic standards. I just couldn't stomach it."

S.T.R.A.I.N. Review

JMH25 | 08/07/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In truth, I had never heard of STRAIN before, so I was very curious to see what it was about. The plot itself is VERY WELL done and detailed. I especially liked the Strains themselves because the detail that was done was INCREDIBLE! I did not mind the profanity in it, nor did I mind the other content in it, because that is a common part of anime now. I gave this particular anime a 5 star rating because the story was very thorough, the characters were excellently represented, and the overall experience was a very enlightening one for me."