[Switchblade]

It's been a long time since I watched a pilot raw, but since it's right there on YouTube I figured it was worth a watch. First things first, I have not been following much of the pre-release information, so I have no idea who any of the characters are or what the show's basic premise is. It was pretty easy to follow, though, so I don't feel lost.

I'm really enjoying most of what I'm seeing so far. The robot uprising is an interesting concept and should lend itself to some good pathos since it seems like the corrupted bots aren't recoverable. I'm not sure what's up with the paramilitary dudes, but I'm guessing we'll learn more when it gets subbed. I'm liking the look of Aruto's new assistant. She reminds me of Elly from Ultraman Max, which is never a bad thing to remind me of.

I liked the action scene and how Zero-One works in a fight, but I'm not sure about Aruto in civilian mode. I get that the show is playing up his goofier elements for now and that may not say. We have Ex-Aid's writer again and Emu spent a lot of time in the first few episodes of that show awkwardly falling over and being a doofus, too. The fish-eyed lens was back, though, which is one of my least favorite gag techniques in these shows. Thankfully Aruto's actor doesn't do a lot of those overreacting facial expressions, though, which are something I absolutely hate. In any case, I'm hoping he'll calm down over the next few episodes.