Sacred Blacksmith: Complete Series
After the passing of her father, Cecily Cambell becomes a fully-fledged knight. Her first battle protecting the people of her home village however does not go so well, as the family sword is destroyed and she nearly loses her life. Luckily for her, Luke Ainsworth, the legendary sacred blacksmith, defeats her opponent with his signature and powerful katana; unluckily for her, Luke happens to be very anti-social and refuses to help Cecily by forging a new weapon for her. Life becomes even more complicated when Cecily is charged with protecting Aria, a special demon sword that can take on human form, and finds out that demons have starting appearing again after a gap of several years.
Being an RPG and fantasy genre fan, I just love being introduced to a new mystical world and being completely drawn into its own rules, powers, and characters. Sacred Blacksmith hits the spot from the get-go as its fantasy setting – although not exactly overly original – is solid and gives the feeling of a vast world to explore. The rules for magic, talks of mana, making contracts with demons, multiple kingdoms mentioned and rich history with wars and gods make the series very appealing to lovers of the genre. It also allows for multiple story threads and character developments to enhance the world the anime takes place in in and still seem like it’s all streamlined and heading toward one common goal when we eventually come to the grand battle at the end of series. From the impossible clothes to the powerful spells, everything about the setting won me over.
But like a typical Japanese RPG, its storytelling has some pacing issues. I’m not one to condone a series for taking it’s time, but every fan will tell you that all J-RPG games always take a detour from the main ‘quest’ to back track to the past, build main characters, and develop side stories before getting back to the meat of the main plot. The first three episodes introduce the main four members of the cast and setting but it’s not until Episode 10 (of 12) that we finally get back to the main driving force of the story. In-between, we get lots of questions (but not many answers) plus character developments and romance subplots that don’t exactly bear fruit at the conclusion. The last episode practically begs for a second season or for the manga to be read to get a sense of closure.
This is also slightly bogged down by the slightly cliched humour and the main cast. The heroine Cecily is your typical short-tempered female klutz that just wants to help and protect everyone, Luke is withdrawn and seems cruel on the outside but is actually sweet on the inside with a dark past, and Lisa, his little partner in blacksmithing, always has a smile and an innocent outlook on life. Plus we get introduced to a bunch of other characters that are obviously high-ranking but we never learn much about them. None of that is a crime in itself, they’re all likeable and fun in their own way, but there’s nothing here that’ll stand out too much a few weeks after watching or will be honoured a few years down the line. But the basis is firm and will be enough for some people, and that’s fine.
However, I have to pick on the fan service, as most of it is based on what we’ve seen before and doesn’t add anything in particular to the story. Several members of the female cast seem to be obsessed with Cecily’s chest and there’s a running joke of Luke seeing it or mistakenly referencing it that results in the old-as-sliced-bread joke of nose bleeding and him being punched in the face. Yes, the boobs are biggest of the cast, but they’re nothing compared to what you’ll see on Queen’s Blade or Eiken, so I didn’t get what the big deal was.
The animation is very bright, colourful and fluid; this isn’t an anime that sticks to static stills on conversations for too long or skimps on the action scenes with minimal movement. Everything on the visual side is very well done, beautiful when needed, and delivers when the battles get intense. Thankfully the special powers used throughout the series aren’t in embarrassing 3D so they all look great and diverse. Character designs will be familiar to anyone who is into fantasy series in general: giant men in armour carrying huge swords and ladies in elegant and revealing clothing. The female faces have been given the ‘moe’ look, which works with the younger girls but looks a little weird with the older females sporting a tougher act and medieval gowns. Males have the typical small eyes and square heads, whilst the demons range from oversize frogs to frozen blobs – definitely a variety to admire.
The score is a nice orchestral backdrop with quirky yet simple melodies that you can easily find duplicates of in any RPG soundtrack but provide the atmosphere needed and work well within the series. The opening and ending themes aren’t anything to brag about; both are basic upbeat J-pop tracks, the opening reflecting on the main heroine’s character perfectly whilst the chirpy ending theme, reflecting Lisa’s character, sounds like it should be on a preschool cartoon. Voice acting on both sides of the pond contains many experienced actors such as Monica Rial and Megumi Toyohuichi; both are a delightful listen, so preferences aren’t necessary.
DVD extras include the typical clean opening and closing along, with the episode previews (the segment at the end of each episode promoting the next one), which have been taken out of the episodes themselves to help with the DVD flow, but are available separately on disc 2 should you feel a dire need to see them.
Sacred Blacksmith is certainly different and welcomed in the UK, but it’s nothing amazing or unique. Long conversations between some characters can lose audience interest, plot threads that aren’t concluded is a shame, and the cookie-cut characters will make the beginning episodes seem a little too squeaky clean and basic to recommend at first. But if you’re not after anything too original and like strong fantasy settings with an in-depth back story to get lost in, Sacred Blacksmith is a fun quest overall and warrants at least a rent.
