ryleigh.witting - 2016-12-20 05:35:58

First, I’d like to mention that when I watched this anime a while back, I was unaware of how popular the idol industry was in Japan, let alone who the group AKB48 was. I came into this show expecting an enjoyable music-focused anime, and I was happy with what I got.

STORY:
The best thing about this show is the mixing of genres. It has a futuristic sci-fi setting, which lays the foundation for the universal ban on entertainment. The group of idols also serves as a group of rebels who are fighting to bring their music to their fans all across the universe. I really liked this premise and enjoyed the combination of their music performances and the fight scenes. That said, the plot about “saving the world” didn’t really go anywhere and could’ve been fleshed out more.

CHARACTERS:
It has a huge cast of characters, and all of them are likable for the most part. I liked the concept of succession, which ends up being a major point of motivation for the new idols. Since there are so many characters, only a few get proper character development (mainly Nagisa and Chieri). Unless you find some characters particularly annoying, it’s easy to ignore the unimportant background characters and focus on the group as a whole (especially during their performances).

SOUND:
I liked the songs. I don’t listen to J-pop much, but this style of music appeals to me and the music is the main reason why I enjoyed this show so much. There were a couple songs I found cringey, but combined with the dance routines and the fight scenes, I still liked their performances.

ART:
It’s colorful and fun. I don’t really have any complaints. I especially liked the contrast between the bright stage during their performances and the dull backgrounds: it emphasizes the futuristic setting and and gives it an ethereal look.

ENJOYMENT:
I enjoyed it. I was looking for a music anime, and the music is what made this show for me, combined with the unique setting and action scenes. It was a mix of everything, and though the actual story had its flaws, it was a very entertaining show to watch.

malvina20 - 2015-07-29 03:06:54

-First let me apologize for the mistakes I can make as I am from Brazil.

I have watched some Idol animes to know that this one is my favorite of them. I will try not to tell any spoilers.

-Story (8):

The plot spins around 4 girls who as kids attended to the concert of AKB0048, an ''rebel'' group who makes concerts on planets where entertainment is banned, facing lots of danger they risk their lifes to bring joy to people, and show love. These 4 girls decide that one day they will join this group. I really think this is a great story, it is different from what we are used to on idol animes. I mean, even though it is an idol anime it has a lot of action on it due to the fact that entertainment is banned in a lot of planets, and there are fights on it. There are also some emotional parts (nothing that resembles something like Clannad but it gets to you). One feature that i liked is the fact that they used the real akb48 names on the anime to refer to the ''original'' members.

-Art (9):

The art overall has nothing really special, but it is well made, and the 3D characters on the dancing parts are really cool.

-Sound (9):

Well the soundtrack is the music from akb48 the real idol group from japan, so its really good. The music that the girls sing are also from the group so thats cool. I liked it.

-Character (9):

I felt like every character were well developed and had enough time to make people fall with them. Of course there are the main ones that got more time but secondary characters also are important for the trama. If anyone is wondering, my favorite is Hikari Kimishima also known as Yuko Oshima the 9th!

-Enjoyment (10):

I think i finished all 2 seasons of this anime in 3 days, and that is a lot, i just got hooked from episode to episode and couldn't stop, I really liked it and i feel that even dough there should be a third season, the second one has a decent ending.

-Overall (9):

I recommend it to anyone that seeks an Idol, musical, action or drama anime cuz this one has it all. It is between my favorite of the genre so give it a shot, it has kind of a slow start but it only gets better!

kevon59 - 2014-11-24 17:10:59

           I can honestly say this a top five anime for me, purely based on enjoyment. AKB0048 is really easy to get into and is a thrill from beginning to end. Although the character design may seem a bit off-putting at first (i.e. shiny hearts in pink, blue, green etc hair, and fifteen to eighteen year old girls who all look twelve), the art as a whole is fantastic and the sound is absolutely beautiful. The studio made a huge, but wise investment into their animation and sound studios. the intricate dances and view shifts, lighting and color are all spot on. This is definitely a 1080+ or nothing show to get the full experience.
           The plot line and story as a whole are compelling enough but definitely not the best, but even a great premise, if done wrong can be essentially worthless (SAO for example). Characters all have depth and unique personalities, but we were unable to delve into them as much as we probably should have, due to the fact that there were simply too many and spending time on the secondary characters would've been extremely time consuming and compromised the plot. I would advise that in the first few episodes, depending on your tastes, you may find one or two of the main characters irritating, but perseverance is completely worth it.
             On a similar note, please do try to watch this English subbed. To be completely frank, the English voice actresses cannot sing and it is almost painful to hear. On the other hand, the Japanese actresses are much better and immensely improve the experience.
             I love AKB0048, I am really glad that I stuck with it, by the time I reached the third episode I was in love with the show. The eighth and ninth episodes are absolutely gorgeous.

pearline63 - 2013-08-16 09:59:51

Title: AKB0048 First Stage

Manga: No

Genres: Music, Sci-Fi

Episodes: 13

Summary:

In the beginning of the 21st century, a world war breaks out over interplanetary travel tech. The environment is pretty much destroyed so mankind leaves Earth, settling on other planets, and starts Star Calendar 00.

Entertainment and songs become heavily regulated and eventually banned on several planets due to their power to move people, but a brave idol group puts on guerrilla performances in these systems in the name of a famous act from earlier times that sang to Earth's bitter end, AKB48. Famous throughout the galaxy, the group's name is AKB0048.

This story centers around a group of girls from various planets, some where entertainment is banned and some, where it is not, striving to become great idols and join AKB0048.
Therefore, they participate in the entrance exam and eventually become undergraduates, aiming to someday succeed the current members of the group.

Story: 8/10
AKB0048 started off great. I really like an anime that has a perfect first episode, and from then on every other episode had me in tears. I don't know if that was due to the fact that I sacrificed a whole six and a half hours of sleep to watch this or because I was emotionally touched in some way. Probably both. This anime is just so unique though. Idol anime + Action + Mecha + Cute Girls. What more could you want? Oh yeah, plus it actually has a decent story. It's dark, mysterious, filled with love, hate, jealousy, and all that nasty stuff. The only reason I can't give the story a 10/10 is because it's incomplete >.<
But that's why there's a second season airing at the moment!

Characters: 10/10
Even though there are so many characters and I still can't name 3 of them off the back of my head, they were great. I don't listen to K-pop, J-pop or any of that stuff, nor do I keep up with the latest about that kind of stuff. I do however, know the hardships that girls have to go through in order to become idols and this anime does a pretty damn good job of showing it through another perspective. The constant fear of being replaced, competing with your friends non-stop, hours and hours of giving it their all, just to please us. I could really relate to some of the things they went through so this anime had some positive impact on me. I also believe that the characters were voiced by actual AKB48 members so that was a cool change~

Music: 10/10
Only two things need to be shown here...

I'm sure by watching those you can already tell.. This anime is like no other.
Aside from the awesome opening, the anime was also filled with songs which played at the perfect moments.

Art: 10/10
HD. What can I say? It's unique. Like nothing I've seen before. Bright colours, dark colours...
There was really nothing faulty about it. Only one thing annoyed me for a while, and that was their eyes. But then I figured out that there was a meaning behind them, so my peeve is invalid!

Overall Enjoyment: 10/10
I just decided to start this anime at 3am on a whim and ended up watching it all the way through to 9am without sleep, that must mean something right? It was quite an enjoyable anime unlike anything I've seen before. Literally.. I have not seen ANYTHING that's comparable. Unless you can show me another anime about inter-galactic idols who use guns and mechas fighting like.. tanks and stuff, while singing and performing in front of huge crowds...

So as you can tell.. I really enjoyed this anime. It was fresh.
And while I can't recommend it to everyone, I'd say to at least give it a chance.
It's pretty underrated.
VOTED BEST ANIME OF 2012 BY ANIMENZZZ

FINAL RATE: 48/50 (9/10 on MAL)
All I can say is, there is no other anime that is comparable.
It's either a masterpiece, or complete madness. You decide.

All I'm saying is that you should at least give this anime a shot, otherwise you're missing a lot of fun~

barbara.botsford - 2013-05-27 14:12:02

There are times when anime throw some of the supposedly important aspect of anime such as the story and the plot to focus on the animation, music and it's beauty. AKB0048 is such an anime. A glamorous, beautiful anime that shatters the rule of anime which shows people that not every need a good plot to be a good anime. AKB0048 had SPECTACULAR animation by sacrificing the plot of the anime which was a big bet, but which in the end, turned out all right.

Now, before I even go into the ANIMATION, this anime had two major advantages when airing this anime. First is that the anime was about an actual band existing in Japan at this moment with 86 members. Which means that the dance sequence and the songs were already made beforehand with the exception of the OPs and EDs of First Stage and Next Stage. Second, is that the animation was done by Satelight along with a production committee specifically made for the AKB0048 anime known as "AKB0048 Production Committee". This meant that the whole committee could cooperate to produce high quality animations every week. Many animation production company do not do this as this involves high risk but producers of AKB0048 took the risk to do this so that the audience can enjoy episodes of beautiful animation which I am happy pleased to hear.

As for the sound, well nothing to say but "PERFECT". This may be just me for being a sucker for J-POP but the songs were much professional than most anime insert songs or EDs and OPs as these are professional idols singing. 

What many anime fail to do is mainly character development. The characters during the course of time should change but not too much to the extend where the purpose of the character is gone such as *cough* SAO *cough* Asuna *cough* but neither should it be too little *cough* Shinji *cough* Pussy *cough*...On either case, out of many which have plots and still fail to do this, AKB0048, which have barely any plots, succeed which is totally understandable. While producers from other animation studios need to flood ideas with plots and storylines so people can enjoy, producers from the AKB0048 committee have time to spare to suggest character developments into the story which turns the tables for AKB0048 as it has such beautiful development which an idol anime should have which makes the anime a mile better :)

Enjoyment... Hm... Enjoyment... Now, a very personal matter which may differ from person to person. We all enjoy different kinds of anime genres such as Sci-fi, Ecchi, Horror, Drama, Slice of Life, Romance etc. Now as for me, the favourite thing that made me like AKB0048 is the ever foretold beauty. As I have said over and over previously, this anime is one heck of a rare find. An anime which rely entirely on it's animation and music aspect which may seem very boring but which slaps you in the back of your head and say " Hey... I'm fahking awesome kay?"

This ends my review. Please do watch AKB0048, I will utmost recommend this anime and I hope you enjoy it like I have. Now, as long as there are lovers, there will always be haters. I do not get what you disliked about this anime but I wish I have answered your distressful questions to this anime.

umorissette - 2013-05-27 03:04:13

AKB0048, space; idols; space-idols; awesome mechs; guerilla concerts; cute girls; microphones; lightsabers; mic-sabers; beautiful animation; DES (sounds like 'deaths' in the sub); entertainment ban; cute girls; rockets and lasers; colors; adrenaline rush; music; militaristic universe.

The series' name is based off a real japanese idol group called AKB48. It was produced by SATELIGHT, an animation company well known for the quality in animation of it's works. Which include: Hellsing Ultimate and the entire Macross series. 

Plot is not amazing but it works very well with what the anime is trying to do. If you're a plot buff, Go. Away. This is not for you, though you are more than welcome to return when you're feeling peckish for something different.

Character design is moe-styled which in this case is, very good. It's not beautiful, compared to Guilty Crown or Valvrave. HOWEVER, it's cute, big eyed and most importantly, ties in very well with the anime. The design just 'works'. As in, the series would not have worked with any other character style.

Mech design is gorgeous. Drawn by the genius mech designer Shoji Kawamori himself. If you don't know who he is let me just list a few of his works. He drew the mechs for Eureka Seven, the entire Macross series, Escaflowne, Aquarion and the original Optimus Prime as well as many others in the First Generation Transformers. (NOTE: Shoji also is the Chief Director for this series).

Animation is faaaaaaabulous, as expected. The concert scenes are unforgettable, though sometimes it reminds you of MMD and basically uses the same system as the dancing games. The dance scenes are beautifully balanced between 2D and 3D in an innovative manner. Color is abundant and flashy, the palette used is well rounded too. (WARNING! This show is definitely not for those who suffer from epileptics).

The series is one of the few modern anime not based on highschool, not romance and has CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT. Many anime fail on this aspect and I'm proud to say that the characters in this series "grow up". They face trials and tribulations and change who they are as a result. It is beautiful. The characters themselves all start of representing a certain trope of the anime world but turn out to be ORIGINAL as they grow with the series.

The music is appropriate. As in, the songs in the soundtrack are useful. All songs played are chosen specifically to fit that situation and evoke a certain emotion. Though most of the time thrilling, and adrenaline pumping. And I swear that even if you've never spoken japanese in your entire life, you will be caught singing along a few lines of one of the most recurring songs in the series. Especially the OP and ED.

The show is a truck load of excitement. Every episode induces awesome goosebumps and the series is one of the few to ever make me feel "THE VOID".
There is a Second Season and a very good ending, which you will witness yourself if you choose to stick around. I truly suggest atleast watching 3 episodes before deciding to drop it or to watch the full thing through.
i.e.
It was very enjoyable to me.

I really hope you enjoy the series and even if you don't, you're always welcome to try again next time.

With love and laser beams,
Your fellow ア二メ lover.

providenci.hickle - 2013-03-31 14:47:40

Almost everyone expected AKB0048 to be one of the worst anime of spring 2012, the show being about AKB and how they save the world with songs. But the weird part was the staff working on it :

-Shoji Kawamori was the director, this guy is behind Escaflowne, the Macross, Aquarion and other great titles. 

-Mari Okada was doing the script, and she was behind the script of show like Ano Hana, Lupin the third : Mine Fujiko to Iu Onna, Zetsuen no Tempest... 

-Satelight, who is a studio who I have loved in 2012 doing great animes like Aquarion Evol and Mouretsu Pirates. 

With people like that working on this anime, I was really curious and was totally disappointed when I watched the first episode, and dropped it shortly after because of a busy schedule.

It's a few months later, when the second season started and a lot of people started talking about it, that I decided to give a second chance to AKB0048. Staying on the same impression than the first time after two episodes, I decided to watch a third episode before dropping it. 

Four hours later, I was already in front of the ending of the first season. AKB0048 is totally underrated because it was made to promote AKB48, because it's slow to start, and because of the chara-designs who is hard to like at the beginning. 

It's not perfect, mainly because of the story, but if you're searching for an anime with Idol and you've already seen Idolm@ster, then AKB0048 should be the perfect pick. It's a great entertainment, you want to cheer for the characters, and the music are awesome if you like JPOP/AKB48.

The last point is the visuals. I'm not fond of the CGs in animes, but they are using it very well, reproducing the choreography of the original group, impressing me during concerts. 

If you want to watch a show about idols, AKB0048 would be the perfect pick with Idolm@ster.