Toaru Majutsu no Index Movie: Endymion no Kiseki

One word to describe this movie? "Ouch." Despite its immense popularity in Japan and abroad, the Index series in general has always been wishy-washy (my honest opinion). Sure, there's a running plot with a somewhat interesting ensemble of main characters, but it has plenty of flaws too - too many convoluted terms that are unexplained or mentioned once and quickly forgotten about, an utter lack of character development, and so on. This movie - Toaru Majutsu no Index: Endymion no Kiseki - continues to extrapolate these same exact flaws, and in addition to that, adds some serious inconsistent plot elements that are both glaring and ridiculous. Let's startoff with the positives for once. Compared to the original Index series (which, I would recommend watching first before watching the movie, just to get a sense of what is going on), the artwork has vastly improved. The artwork and animation is crisp, fresh, and light. You can just tell from the first few frames that a lot of effort was put into this movie, and for that I am thankful. But there is just plenty of inconsistencies that utterly destroys J.C.Staff's (& co) hard work and washes everything down the drain. First off, the plot inconsistencies. Despite having a clear goal in mind, the Endymion movie takes more of a meandering path to get to its destination. In doing so, it introduces many new plot elements that were not present in the original series and does so in a terrible fashion. I would recommend watching the Endymion special if you get the chance - even J.C.Staff points out a lot of the plot points that I have a problem with (in a comedic fashion, too) - but I'll just briefly mention a couple: Kanzaki in space. The three midgets plus Stiyl fighting against Touma and crew. Who are these three individuals? Why are they important in the story? What is their purpose, and why did the writers feel a need to introduce them at all? I mean, seriously, what is even going on? Second, the characters. Arisa and Shutaura are clearly the stars of this movie and fortunately they get plenty of screen time. They meet the main characters, learn about them, and grow as individuals. Could their development been flushed out a little more? Yes. Could their relationship be more clearly explained besides trying to shovel everything together in the latter half of the movie? Yes, but it is satisfactory, so I'll just leave it at that. The main problem I have with this movie regarding the characters is that plenty of characters appear in this movie. You have plenty of characters from the Index series showing up, and also some others from the Railgun spin-off series. But here's the catch: they don't really serve any purpose except to serve the fans and/or make the plot interesting. Of course everybody would complain if Accelerator never shows up, but his transitioning into the movie is both (1) rushed and (2) doesn't really serve a particular purpose except for one particular thing (I can't spoil everything for you, ok?). And that's it. Otherwise from that, if you removed him completely from the picture, the story could have just proceeded fine. One final thing that I will briefly mention and did like, however, was how the theme of "miracles" was decently integrated throughout the plot. It showed up throughout the movie over and over, and is well-incorporated through both symbolism and the dialogue among the characters. Hell, the entire space station structure is symbolic in itself, but you'll need to put a critical lens on to see just how it is related to the entire concept of "miracles." Overall, a lackluster story with a little bit of development and some thematic material, but it is weak as a whole. Some of the sound elements were clearly borrowed from the other two Index series. Would have gotten a 3 by my rubric if it weren't for those two big glaring errors. tl;dr Pros: - Crisp, crisp, crisp art. So crisp. Probably some of the most improved artwork I've seen over a stretch of a series. - Well-incorporated theme - Plotline that was (relatively) easy to follow, even for the average viewer; but I would recommend watching the other Index series first just to make sure you don't get lost in everything Cons: - Many of the characters are still one-dimensional, but there is SOME development. - Many characters were rushed into the movie and don't hold any real significance except to please viewers

Such misfortune! Here comes another review! One thing I always find great about movies based off of series isn't just more of what I like, but to see how the company handles it, so with J.C. Staff holding the reigns I had expectations and those expectations were surprisingly met. The production value truly shows with Toaru Majutsu no Index: Endymion no Kiseki when it came to top-notch visuals, soundtrack and even though it wasn't as good as it could be, the plot wasn't too bad itself. It seems this movie has had a better share of miracles instead of misfortune. Story: The plot is something I've always beenskeptical on when it comes to movies from more popular series like Index, Bleach, FMA, etc. I always feels it's more like a way to show off some snazy visuals with a mediocre story(Not for all movies of course) and cash-in, but Toaru Majutsu no Index: Endymion no Kiseki did manage to deliver a slightly better than average story, only slightly though. It follows the main set-up of our favorite Certain Magical Girl Puncher(I kid) Touma, Index, and a new girl Arisa whom sure enough is a mysterious girl with some sort of power that creates friction between the Science and Magic faction with Touma being the guy right in the middle of it. While seemingly standard there are twists to keep you interested enough to keep watching. The main problem after watching the movie I had though was I was left with plenty of questions and not many answers, so while the plot had its advantages in some areas, it lacked in others. That being said though, I was satisfied with what I was given, could they have gone further with it? Sure. Did it lessen my viewing pleasures? Not at all. Art: This is what I was looking out for in this movie. One thing I know these companies love to do is make spectacular visuals for movies compared to what has been made before for the series and it was spectacular. The fight scenes, scenery, animation, everything was top-notch and very appealing to the eyes. They had put a lot of time and money into the visuals and it paid off very well and it will leave you amazed. Sound: The soundtrack was another fantastic aspect of the film. I had expected some nice Background music here and there, but it looks like they went all out and even gave our main girl Arisa, a stage with plenty of songs to sing for us. The songs are done professionally, leaving me baffled as when you're watching the songs being sung by her on stage, along with the visuals, it truly felt like a concert. Character: The characters are probably the most important aspect of this movie. We see plenty of familiar faces aside from our main cast, Saten, Misaka, Accelerator, Last Order and so-on, but are introduced to plenty of new ones as well. While I enjoyed seeing so many of these characters, the problem was trying to fit so many in the time-frame the movie had. While we are familiar with our cast, the new characters are left to be desired and even a few seem to just be there to be more fan-service than anything. There was no real development with characters, just plenty of interactions and the most that did take place was between Arisa and Shutaura, while Touma of course helped them along the way. Now was this bad? No, we know our cast already of course, so it wasn't as much of a problem, but when it came down to the new characters and even antagonist, they were really shallow characters with not much of a story to go with them. Enjoyment: The movie was weak in some areas, but it succeeded in others. While I still feel a bit confused and have questions, I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it. The jaw-dropping visuals, amazing soundtrack and all let me momentarily forget about my questions and just savor the movie. It was a real treat and probably will be for anyone else that's a fan of the series. Overall: Even though Toaru Majutsu no Index: Endymion no Kiseki had its flaws, I sure as hell was entertained. The cameo appearances from several characters, music, stunning visuals when it came to the battles, background and such, were all just superb. The only thing holding it back from being great is the un-answered questions it left and the shallow characters, but Touma, Misaka and the gang made that up as I enjoyed every second of seeing them on screen. It's not the best movie, but it is pretty good and I recommend if you're a fan of the Index or Railgun series to check it out or have misfortune befall you!

"Do you believe in miracles?" A somewhat cheesy start to the review perhaps, but appropriate to the theme of the movie nonetheless. Recently, I've noticed that I seem to have developed a knack for somehow always being able to review a show by J.C Staff, despite me saying that I'm not too fond of them. Now, honestly, I've had to re-evaluate that assessment, seeing as I've been somewhat unfair on them in the past - they've got their fair share of fantastic shows under their belt (Honey and Clover and To Aru Kagaku no Railgun S), as well as some that are bad or lame representationsof their source material (Little Busters! and Spiral, respectively). To Aru Majutsu no Index: EnK finds itself somewhere in the middle of that spectrum, not really ending up on either good or bad. I got exactly what I expected from this movie, that is a really, really enjoyable feature which still retains quite a few of the problems that oftentimes hamper Index. At its core, Index EnK is really nothing more than your average Index filler arc in movie form, all of the right boxes are ticked: Mysterious girl with some kind of special ability? Check. Touma needs to save that girl? Check. Some kind of group wants to use said girl for nefarious purposes? Check. Said girl will fall for Touma and add herself to his ever growing harem? Check. Index biting Touma in an attempt to create a humourous scene, only for it to fall down on its face? Most definitely. Indeed, the Index movie really does hit all the clichés that you've probably come to expect from the franchise. This serves as both a negative and a positive; negatively, the story is quite predictable and you'll be able to see quite a few of the twists coming before they happen - with that being said, there are a couple of rather unexpected twists towards the end which did surprise me, so I've gotta give the movie kudos for that. Another negative with the movie is one that irked me throughout the film, that is, the need to show every character who has had some role of importance or another in the story so far into the film - including characters from Railgun. This is an incredibly double-edged sword with some rather nasty repercussions, for instance, I would have been annoyed had Accelerator not been in the movie, so I was happy to see him, but at the same time, his cameo was wasted so much it makes me wonder what the point of including him at all even was. The same thing applies to Mitsuko's appearance too, if she's only going to appear for one scene, then what's the point of even bothering to include her in the first place? I realise that this movie is, essentially, character fanservice - but it feels like such wasted character fanservice; the second Prince of Tennis movie did this as well, but it did it far more tastefully than the Index movie, when a character made a cameo appearance in that movie, their appearance held meaning, this just feels like they're including the characters because they're obligated to do so. Another issue with the story, aside from the wasted cameos, is the really cheesy ending; you know the kind, the one when every character has to lend a helping hand in order to assist the main character in stopping whatever calamity or disaster is about to happen - the movie is incredibly guilty of this, and the way it happens feels incredibly silly and doesn't sit right with when the movie is set canonically with the series (granted, it'd still be silly even if it was right at the end of the series). Then there's the singing thing, don't get me wrong, I don't mind the fact that this is essentially To Aru Majutsu no Index: The musical (sadly there was no Touma and Misaka singing duet, which would have made the movie totally worth watching for that alone), but considering how cheesy everything is building up to the climax, this also felt incredibly silly and somewhat unnecessary too. On the flip-side of things, average Index arc though it may be, it's definitely among the best of these average Index arcs, mainly to do with the point that, for once, Touma doesn't end up giving an idealistic speech to the person he ends up fighting and keeps his idealism well in check - which is a saving grace to say the least. Another thing is the twists towards the end, which are actually genuinely well executed and do serve to spice up the story a little bit - even if, for the most part, they remain on the predictable side, the twist that is implemented right at the end is actually rather well done and something I was caught off guard by (albeit, only slightly). Aside from that, the story isn't really anything to write home about, if you didn't like arcs like this before then it certainly won't change your mind, but if you can tolerate Index filler then you'll probably be able to make it through this without too many problems. There is however one thing that caught me off guard completely about the movie, and it's not the story twists - it's the animation. Put simply, it is stunning. Now, don't get me wrong, the Raildex franchise has always been receiving the best part of J.C Staff's budget, but Index: EnK takes that to a whole new level; in the past, the Index TV series has always suffered from the occasional still frame or an off-model every now and then, the movie gladly doesn't have that problem and, when it's in motion or if there isn't much action, it looks absolutely fantastic. Magic attacks in particular, such as Stiyl's Innocentius, are an absolutely glorious sight to behold, and don't just look but feel powerful, I was left with my jaw slightly hanging open when I saw how good the movie looks. There was a fight in the movie about forty minutes or so in, when Touma is up against a random dude that he has to fight due to plot convenience, and I was honestly wondering if this was still To Aru Majutsu no Index, the animation was incredibly fluid and well done, more-so than a lot of the big fights in Index (although they're usually bogged down with monologuing, so maybe this is an example of what would happen if Touma didn't speak during his fights). There's even a car chase. Another thing worth mentioning about the animation is that, with the increased budget, Academy City looks far more detailed than it did in the TV series. The night sky, the lighting - for once, Academy City feels like a proper city rather than just some location that the characters happen to be in at the time, it looks like a place that people would actually live in. It's impressive to say the least, the little details that are usually ignored such as crowds moving in the background are actually given quite a bit of attention, I remembered that there are actually people supposed to be living in this city as opposed to it being somewhat empty. The CG for the most part looks rather impressive too, particularly the Index equivalents to Tron's lightcycles, which do look incredibly cool and have become another item on my list of fictional vehicles that I would love to ride one day. Sadly, the one chink in EnK's otherwise impenetrable animation armour is the rather ugly CG that is used whenever a character is singing, it does look incredibly out of place and, in comparison to the rest of the movie, just looks plain odd and somewhat unnecessary, what they were trying to achieve really could have been done better with conventional animation. Sound wise, the music isn't really worth mentioning all that much, seeing as t is, for the most part, tracks from the TV series, there may have been a couple of remixes in their too, but I sadly can't recall, my point being that, if you liked the music in Index, you'll like the Index movie's soundtrack, if you didn't, then you won't like it. The actual song that is performed by Meigo Arisa throughout the movie isn't really something necessarily special either, it's a nice little song, but not necessarily something that I'd say is any better or worse than the soundtrack as a whole. As for the cast, you get exactly what you expect from them by now, Yuka Iguchi is still incredibly annoying as Index, Abe Atsushi delivers as Touma, Rina Satou gives us exactly what you'd expect from Misaka (not at the level of To Aru Kagaku no Railgun S mind you, but this isn't her movie so I can't complain as much as I'd like), they're almost all good performances apart from Index. The major additions to the voice cast, Sachika Misawa, Yoko Hikasa and Ayane Sakura, all give passing grade performances and all deliver exactly as you'd expect them to, with sadly no surprise star performance to speak of, they do the job and that's that really. Other cast members, such as Nobuhiko Okamoto, are totally wasted in the few seconds of screen-time that they get, it goes back to my original point of the character cameos feeling so wasted that there's really no point in them appearing at all. Which brings me to my next point. Index, as a series, has a lot of characters that appear on quite a regular basis throughout, characters like Accelerator, Stiyl and Tsuchimikado, the series suffers as a result of this, having to deal with too many characters at once - and the movie suffers as a result of this as well. Nearly every character that has served some role of importance between volumes 1-7 of the Light Novels (not including villains), gets an appearance in the movie, however short their appearance may be - heck, even Aleister of all people gets an appearance in the movie. This is a serious problem, as the movie wastes cameos that should have been something that really pleases fans, I should have felt happy that Accelerator appeared in the movie at all, instead, I was left feeling rather confused as to why he was there - don't get me wrong, I'm happy that he was in the movie, as he's by far the best character in Index (at least, by this point in the story), and I'm pleased he had a moment, but it's not the kind of cameo he deserves. This waste of cameos actually also has a negative effect on the new cast members too, the movie spends so much time bringing in everyone that it hampers any serious development for Meigo Arisa and Shutaura Sequenzia (which is a ridiculous name even by Index standards), as such, they come across as rather flat and somewhat one-dimensional, this in turn also harms the twist at the end now that I think about it, seeing as the characters are rather unsympathetic, which lessens what should have been serious emotional impact. The main villain isn't worth talking about, motivated by a stupid reason that is really not worth going into due to its stupidity, it tried to develop her in some way I suppose, but I can't say I actually felt anything even remotely resembling sympathy for her, especially considering what she was going to do to achieve it. All flaws aside though, Index EnK is a very, very enjoyable movie - one that I was quietly anticipating. A common thing I've noticed with Index (especially in Index II), is that, when it's going in all guns blazing, it's totally possible to ignore all the flaws and just find something really enjoyable. I wouldn't go so far as to say that it's "turn off your brain and enjoy it" style viewing, as there's method in the madness (for lack of a better idiom). I don't think I would have enjoyed this anywhere near as much as if it was an actual part of the TV series though - the animation is definitely one reason why I enjoyed it so much and it really is stunning to behold, but the wasted character cameos did detract from my enjoyment of the movie a bit. Don't go into this movie expecting some kind of revolutionary new appreciation for Index that you never thought possible, you won't be getting it. It's traditional Index filler at the end of the day, meaning that it comes with all the pros and cons that you've come to expect from the franchise by now - it also comes with fantastic action scenes that should are totally worth watching the movie for. Now hurry up and announce Index III J.C staff, you've kept me waiting long enough.

As a fan of the To Aru series (given I haven't seen any Railgun yet). I had a decent level of expectations for this movie. Toaru Majutsu no Index itself was a series I enjoyed greatly. I watched it a while back and ever since the "break" to go forward on the Railgun side story I haven't seen the series since. Since no anime is perfect I could blatantly point out most flaws I found in the show and look past them but as I grew as an anime viewer these flaw became more and more of a cripple to the series. Again since Ihaven't seen the series again ever since I finished Index II I haven't really had time to go back and re-watch with this new mind set even though I remember the flaws. Then this movie came a fresh start to get a little summary of what index was again and oh did I remember what Index was. Story 7/10 The story had a good premise but the execution could have been better. The story based around the word miracle and what that word holds and means. The pacing of the story itself I found good but slightly rushed at times given that the movie is only 1hr 30mins. I found myself losing the story at times but maybe it was just me not paying attention. The story itself is something you would expect from The Index series a "girl" is in trouble and Touma with his save everything attitude come to help while another "girl" with a tragic past connected to the first "girl" is in pursuit of her and Touma has to fall on them or vice versa sometime within the movie. Putting that aside just Index's harem subplot at work and Index's subtle misogyny was not portrayed in this movie so don't worry KINDA SPOILER "no girls got punched by Touma". But all jokes aside the story was good in the premise but the execution was a little bad and pacing was a little fast at times but nothing too bad it was almost unnoticeable but that is just my personal view. Within the time of the movie screen time was given to the center characters evenly but other characters felt like they were only there to help pull the story together in the end such as "Accelerator and Last Order". Art 8/10 The Toaru series does it's art very well. J.C Staff has given this show a lovely art design that looks well with its visual animation it doesn't feel like it ever lacks throughout the movie. The scenes where the stunning visual effects are needed portrays them very well while the less focused scenes don't have a lack in animation or visuals to for us to notice and complain. Sound 8/10 The sound is very fitting to for the movie. The main girl in the show is a pop music start and the music fits the character well and fits in well as background music for certain scenes such as the scene with Kanzaki and the missiles. The soundtrack as a whole was good in the sense that everything fits and it fits well making action scenes thrilling and visually stunning scenes captivating. Characters 6/10 The characters for the movie were not up too pare with what I expected but not a total failure. The main girl Arisa could have been better. They did not give her character much to work with in terms of her role. She felt quite generic at times given that she is the center character of the movie I would have expected her to show more of a character as a whole instead of just fitting the role as she did in the movie. The other girl Shutaura was a more interesting character and I found she would have been a better main character than Arisa. Not because she had a bad past made her a better character that fact that she showed more of a personality and less generic behavior for here role even with a stupid mental illness they gave her (Which I found kinda funny and desperate on the writers behalf just because they could think of anything better to move the story.) again just bad writing. The first time I saw Magical Index I thought Touma was a good character but as I grew I found him more and more mediocre and generic. He himself is a character that makes the statement "Just fitting the role." He doesn't do much to make himself as a character indifferent form other anime MC's of this genre, no unique traits, no distinct personality, no set motivation. They try to make him seem badass but in reality its just the show trying to make him seem that way. I don't hate his character though but again...generic. The main antagonist too was just another power hungry loli with some bent motive. And some characters where just there but the original cast as a whole played there part and did it well. From electric tsunderes, to lesbian teleporters, to annoying loli nuns to sociopathic vector controllers. Enjoyment 7/10 I may have talk down on the series and movie but I am a review and sometimes I may be bias (like we all are) and other times I may be not. In this review I'm not. I love the series and the movie may have not been the level of greatness I wanted it was far from bad it was actually pretty good. Overall 7/10 I know you all may think I'm using the word generic a lot but that is what Magical Index holds a lot of generic content with a great premise. Generic yet Unique" is a phrase best describes Toaru Majutsu no Index and it's contents. This movie was no different had its flaws, bad writing and crude development thrown at you but you still enjoyed it. These problems aren't even on a scale for you to complain because other shows have tried like Index and failed miserably so we should applaud it for that have something great isn't easy to come by and this movie like Index didn't reach that point but it didn't reach too far from it.

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