[Enchilada645]

So I'm unsure if I'll have much to say on the episodes but we'll just play it by ear. I have decided I'll be doing an almost immediate rewatch of this show but through the lens of the dub since I went sub for the past 13 weeks. Figured it'd be fun to revisit this just to see how it flows in a more compact format than watching it over the course of 3 months.

That being said I've got to say the dub performances were pretty top notch on this one. It's been a while since I've actually seen a dub of a recent anime, so it's nice to hear.

As for the show itself, I was sold from minute one once the teaser dropped, and it was mainly just showing snippets from Viola's fight with Rouge alongside some brief glimpses of our main duo and some establishing shots we saw in this episode. And yet there was something so haunting about it that just immediately drew me in.

There was just this cool aesthetic to everything, from the visuals to the music. Not to mention I just immediately got Henshin Hero vibes from this and figured it'd be a good show to keep an eye on.

What probably helped (aside from the gorgeous design of Rouge's Gladiator form itself) was the teaser being accompanied by the piece Falling Stars and Moonlight, in which we hear a variant sung by Viola in the episode.

The episode itself is mostly introducing characters, setting up intrigue, dropping us into this fairly fleshed out world. It's a lot to take in, but it makes for an interesting setting and premise. That said, from what little we do see of Rouge and Naomi interacting, it highlights one thing I love about this show, the character writing/interactions.

Just the way Rouge interprets Naomi's hums as not getting what she said and nearly droning on in repeats of the exact same dialogue until Naomi stops her was cute.

While I definitely have my issues with Metallic Rouge in regards to certain aspects, I ended up coming out of it enjoying myself despite it all. So here's hoping you'll find the same enjoyment I did.