Flourishing aesthetics come a long way in holding a show up from just being average or forgettable. Sometimes loving a show for its robust and energetic personality can be a blessing and a curse. Then again, it all comes down to the show’s purposeful existence to help distinguish how an anime should be viewed. It wants to be a fun and stupid show with the only intention of being provocative or a thought-provoking show with a deep narrative. Now that shouldn’t be said to excuse it entirely on the numerous faults it might have, but with a show like No Game No Life, it is one of the instances where you can’t help but admire its silliness.

With that all said, No Game No Life is not what you would call a “masterpiece,” as many would love to build this up to be. While the entertainment factor pulls through the most out of any experience, it cannot be forgiven for how low-quality it tries to implement a story. That, in turn, comes from the fact that there’s not much of a story to digest in No Game No Life. It is just a plot that follows two NEET MMO players thrown into a virtual reality where they play games to become rulers of this virtual world. There is hardly any suspenseful pull in getting invigorated in it because it is insanely predictable in every game outcome. I know from the beginning that Sora and Shiro will win all the way through, so why should I be invigorated in it to begin with?

It is a real shame that it does not bother to create a cohesive narrative to follow from point A to point B. Especially with the amount of creativity, it brings to the overall cast. Granted, they are not, what I would call “magnificent” in development, but what makes up for it is their significant energy and charm. This all comes from their witty dialogue and fantastic designs that have unique styles to whatever emotion they are portraying. It would be easier to dissect the main cast individually because it will put my argument into context with my feelings about them.

Our main protagonists, Sora and Shiro, are inseparable siblings on who the writers are pulling the brother and sister relationship card. I will argue that, by themselves, they are incredibly bland and atypical in their archetypes. However, they are quite an entertaining duo when they are together, thanks to their chemistry and hilarious interludes between one. It helps more on Sora’s side that he does pack in great charisma thanks to Yoshitsugu Matsuoka’s fabulous voice acting. On the other hand, Shiro has Ai Kayano on her side, which is mostly just playing her as Shiina 2.0; nothing special in the slightest.

Then we get to Stephanie Dora, and it may be controversial to say this, but she is by far the most entertaining of the cast. The main reason is Yoko Hikasa’s voice acting, who is having such a freaking ball with voicing for this character. Her exceptional ability to show great dignity to her voice and suddenly become a raving maniac in the next second shows her talent in full throttle. Many people may have a point in criticizing Steph for being both an intelligent girl and a stupid one in other scenarios. My response would be how No Game No Life has so many silly elements to its comedy that it fits perfectly with the tone. This makes her archetype more forgiving since we often see female characters of this magnitude several times, but these two great qualities make her all the more lovable. Also, she dresses up as a puppy, and we get to hear Yoko Hikasa bark like one. Need I say more?

Finally, there is Jibril, who was hard to get into at first glance. But once she went on and more funny moments came along, she later became on par with Steph in entertaining qualities. This is Yukari Tamura at her best. We don’t ever get to see her voice females with perverted personalities. When she does, she is just heavenly every time. What eventually led me to like her more was how she seemed to possess the same fun qualities that Steph had in personality shifts from time to time.

What does stand out for No Game No Life’s credit to make it more interesting than most shows of its caliber is its art and animation. The extreme usage of over-saturated colors gives it its look from the original creator and character designer, Yuu Kamiya. His name under the cast and crew had me hesitant initially, seeing he was also involved with Itsuka Tenma no Kuro Usagi, one of my most hated shows. Luckily this was not anything that levels awful, and the artwork stood on its own. However, it could’ve worked better if the color palette had been emphasized less and made more consistent for a better viewing experience.

Now, do you like fun entertainment as much as I do? If yes, then No Game No Life is one show that only cares about being a fun show from beginning to end. Is it perfect for bringing forth these enjoyable moments on full display? Not necessarily, but if anything, No Game No Life is at that level of entertainment to be respectable in giving forth reasonable effort. It incorporates fun action sequences with flashy animation and delivers incredibly hysterical comedy in one package. Not many anime can achieve the difficulty of balancing both aspects to significant effect, which No Game No Life accomplishes this feat. Though the action and games can be predictable as to who’ll win in the long run, the journey is at least fun for the ride.

With the advent of VRMMO anime being in full force at the moment, it is likely we won’t see the light at the end of the tunnel for this phase in anime history. The popularity of No Game No Life clearly shows this. While its qualities do not come on par with its impact, it is by no means wrong by its very nature. Once you can find some great substance in entertainment that in and of itself justifies it as being good, if it comes to showing off these same instances of cliches without any significance in the future, I would be hugely worried.

Grade: B