Regios has neither a setting nor aesthetic I typically have much luck with but I still enjoyed it a good deal. In terms of style and structure it is very much a typical action LN adaptation of its time. The anime greets its viewer with like 4 dozen characters non sequential scenes about another two dozen made up nouns and world mechanics terms. Nothing is really resolved or explained in the end but I was 100 prepared for that with an anime like this. It is not a series for people who need to have every element spelled out for them or those who are concerned about plot holes and the like.
The strength of the show lies in its strong cast of a few heroines Im fond of and their different relationships with the MC. It also works at an effective pace and aside from some plot bombardment in the first and final episodes takes on a rather relaxed mood for a dystopian action anime. There is some core theme of the importance of fighting alongside your friends but for ones own ideals and not anyone else. This is developed mostly through dialogue and is a little redundant at times but theres enough going on in the anime for it to be acceptable. There is a minor chosen one theme that becomes most apparent towards the end which I always enjoy but its nothing crazy since the backstory is still vastly under explored.
There is a weird side story portrayed in jarring cutscenes sprinkled in at random. I started skipping them in the anime since it was such a strange creative decision. I see these were reorganized and polished up in a separate anime titled Legend Of Regios. I think it is supposed to hint at the creation of the world the main anime takes place in. But even so almost nothing is actually revealed. I think watching Legend Of Regios on its own after completing the series might at least help me infer my own sense of direction with the plot of this anime.
So a 7/10 for me. I have the DVD and will keep it on my shelf as Im left with good memories of this anime. As a whole I might have enjoyed it slightly more than its comparable seasonmate Asura Cryin which to its benefit does have an end no matter how chaotic it is but I dont think its as good as its studiomate Densetsu Yuusha which has probably even less of an end than Regios.
PS. A few random positive things of note are that Felli Loss is one of the best standalone kuuderes Ive encountered in animeshe has some genuinely hilarious scenes. This anime is probably very influential in the explosion of battle academy anime that properly began with Infinite Stratos. While I am indifferent to the OP the anime boasts a pair of EDs that I found very niceone of which has a special version featuring a real life husband+wife duet between Nobuhiko Okamoto and Asuka Oogame.
https://www..com/watch?v=790Da3Qda8c
70
/100