kiel.kshlerin - 2015-05-01 07:29:28

This review will cover both seasons

Don't take what I say about this anime personally. We all have different opinions, so I hope you respect mine.

Story (4.0/10)
The story is about the main character, Kamijou Touma, and the people he encounters appear to be magicians and espers. There are two sides, the magic side, and the science side. The story has potential, but it is ruined by the awful cast...The story is seperated by arcs, but I felt like some of the arcs were filler even though they weren't, and I felt that way because it seemed like there was no effort put into the certain arcs. Story is mediocre 'cause of the supernatural and magic in it makes it a bit more exciting, but it could of been better. Also, the script is boring, as the characters often just explain how their powers work, or someone else that they have heard of or know. We never find out about the origin of the magic or science powers... And sometimes info-dumps are inserted too.

Characters (3.2/10)
Crappy cast, with the main character, Touma being a chick magnet and goes around expanding his harem circle. S1 wasn't as bad, but S2 really was basically Touma expanding his harem circle, and walking into naked girls showering... No good characters from this series, despite the large cast. All the new characters that are introduced are very generic and simple. None of the characters introduced in the anime are fleshed out. Hell, even the spin-off, Railgun, atleasts tries to flesh out the main character, Misaka, in the 2nd season. But Index makes no effort when it comes to the characters. Don't be salty Light Novel readers, I'm only reffering to the anime in this review.

Animation & Art style (6.5/10)
Pretty simple art style. Animation is a bit above average since some of the characters in Index has some really cool powers (Styil, Orianna, Accelerator etc...)

Sound (7.3/10)
Index has a nice soundtrack, I like it. Alot of the music playing in the action scenes fit really well with the atmosphere.

Enjoyment (4.0/10)
I did somewhat enjoy Index at times but, it is a bit overrated IMO. I tend to be harsh on anime that I find overrated/overhyped.

Overall (4.5/10)
Index is an okay series, with nothing special in it. The flaws CAN be forgiven if you just want to watch Index for pure entertainment. I reccomend Index for those who only want to watch it for entertainment, but if you actually want a good story and good characters, you should skip this one, not worth your time.

Reccomendation for those who want to watch this anime for entertainment: 6/10 (Watch it, unless you're too bothered by generic stuff)

Reccomendation for those who want to watch it for critcal thought ONLY: 3.1/10 (Skip it, not worth your time)

Reccomendation for those who want to watch it for both entertainment AND critical thought equally: 3.8/10 (Meh, if you really want to watch it, then go ahead)

I reccomend Index's spin-off, Railgun, over Index . Although S1 is just sol bs with the conflicts feeling very insignificant and boring, S2 focuses more on the main character, Misaka and the trauma she goes through. It's a shame that S2 ends with filler though...

adams.shayne - 2014-12-22 20:21:49

Weather your into science like I am or you prefer the religious mambo jumbo I don't care for, the idea of this show is actually brilliant. 

Though, I think it had the potential to be a great seinen series, (and in some ways this show gets really adult at times) the way its executed and the lessons it teaches aren't actually half bad. Well, if you can put up with the bullshit shonen execution style.

The story is simple. On one hand you have academy city, the city of science and espers who can use their abilities like super heros. Then on the other hand you have religion and magical people who use magic. And they are at odds with each other. 

Its right for the audience. Middle to high school kids are starting to become adults. Adults are much more logical and practical (science) and kids are well, into faries and imagination (magic). So as kids transitions from being kids, and becoming adults they go from being ignorant and living in their own mind to adjusting to the real world. At least that's what the show tried to teach. 

This show depicts the evils of both sides. Science with horrific experiments and religion with its horrific corruption and bullshit.

This second season was easier to watch. We had some great fights and things are getting a little more serious with the war looming in. Character development is as static as ever. Though I am happy to see Accelerators character development, develop.  

Honestly, this season had way too many fan service scenes, though I am not gonna complain about them. Just be ready for them if you watch. Thats it for my review. I don't have much else to say.

ygorczany - 2013-04-02 13:54:17

So, here we are. Toaru Majutsu no Index II, a second season/sequel to the first season. The audience is once again shown following the adventures of a certain man, Touma Kamijou, through the hells of Magic and Science. All the while building his (in)famous harem, of course. Honestly speaking, the Index series has been one of my favorites ever since I laid my eyes on it. After finishing season 1, I waited patiently for a season 2, expecting this series to be more awesome than already is. After the 24 (or 25, if you count the delay) weeks of watching it, I have found myself in quite a shock that Season 2, strangely, didn’t live up to its first season counterpart… for me, at least. Let’s break this down:

Story: 7/10 (Good)
One of the more distinctive features of Toaru Majutsu no Index is the way its story is presented. Instead of every moment leading up to one giant picture by the end of the show’s run, Index is divided into disjointed story arcs, each telling a different story. This is not to say that each arc is completely disjointed, as sometimes, characters and events leak from a previous arc to another. For Index II, the story arcs are more disjointed as compared to its first season counterpart, but with no events being absolutely inconsequential. This leaves more space for error, with each arc being judged by the audience instead of evaluating a whole show. Needless to say, each arc is a hit-or-miss. In Index’s case though, the show has a
surprisingly good rate for “hit”, though it will always be subjective as always. What one may notice about the story arcs in S2, though, is the formula that runs through each. Each and every arc follows a specific event sequencing that, over time, will wear the watcher down. The stories in these arcs are actually quite interesting and some even really exciting. However, if one is to note how each arc ends, there will surely be a visible pattern in motion, and certain viewers may actually end up really tired of the procedure. For some others though, the way it ends is pretty awesome anyway so it doesn’t matter too much. (But of course, some arcs do admittedly end pretty weakly.)

Art: 7/10 (Good)
Hints of Index II’s art can actually be seen in most of J.C. Staff’s other works. The art in the show is pretty clean and crisp. In well-crafted scenes, the way a picture is drawn and the quality of the art is great. Do note though, I did say “In well-crafted scenes”. Index, despite having top-notch art, sometimes does
suffer from animation resulting from cutting corners and all that. While other scenes look good, the series also has its fair share of bad quality moments.

Sound: 9/10 (Great)
Iuchi Maiko composes great music for the show. That I can really vouch for.Its 2 Opening themes, “No Buts” and “See Visions” by Mami Kawada are very catching tunes and fit the show’s theme and mood. The same goes for both Ending themes, “Magic World” and “Memories Last” by Maon Kurosaki.

Character: 6/10 (Fair)
Characters. It gets pretty tricky here. For our hero, Touma Kamijou, he retains his whole personality from the first season. A strong determinator, clever… and preachy? Personally, I don’t have a problem with him as I do with the others. Some characters (especially one of the famous ones) evidently suffer flanderization. This is especially jarring when a character from the previous season shows a solid personality while most appearances here depict(visibly) only one trait. This can be really cute at times, and actually quite endearing. But in Index II, this trait was overused and for me, became quite tiresome.Other characters, though, are still okay personality wise. As for “Touma’s harem”, characters designs are still solid as always and always a plus.

Enjoyment: 9/10 (Great)
But just because I have been saying some pretty negative things about it, it doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy to its fullest. The show drifts from intense and thrilling action, to mysterious and dark atmospheres, to refreshing moe and fanservice galore. The way to enjoy this show is to accept the flaws and enjoy whatever the show wants to shell out. Each punch is precious, every thrill worth the ride and the fanservice all out to cherish.

Overall: 8/10 (Very Good)
For me, Toaru Majutsu no Index has been a fun ride. And I’m glad I watched it. The show has its very visible flaws but will always remain to be a fan favorite as Index does not rely on being “intellectual” or “deep”, but instead, wants to be fun and enjoyed by everyone(even if it means satisfying lowest common denominator). As I said earlier, even though for me, Index II didn’t live up to its first season it was still a good watch. Being a fan of the first season doesn’t entail the enjoyment of the second, but it’s worth the shot. We may wait for a Season 3, and hope it fairs a lot better and surpasses expectation.

hermann.asia - 2013-03-17 17:45:45

Pretty good stuff. No fillers. New characters came off a bit shallow, but the ones introduced in previous series were further developed in interesting ways.Not enough Mikoto :-D but then again there's no such a thing as enough Mikoto.Ending was a little weak, but then again it's obviously not an actual ending, but rather a cliffhanger for the next series (Index III or Railgun II?). After the amazing endings of Railgun and Index 1, that was a bit of a let-down. Had it ended in 22, it would have felt like a stronger series.In fact, my greatest fear with this series was that there was a lot of preparation, foreshadowing, and cliffhanger-ing, so in the end it kind of feels like a giant pilot episode or something; if for whatever reason the meta-series does not continue, fans will be rather disappointed.The music was better than the average anime, but even that was a little disappointing after the epic coolness fripSide delivered in Railgun (some of my favourite music in the last few years). Let's hope fripSide comes back on the next one.Overall, not as good as Railgun IMHO, but better than Index season 1.