THE SAGA OF TANYA THE EVIL
Yojo Senki, better known as Saga of Tanya the Evil, was released in 2017 under Nut Studios. I can say that I watched its first episode purely by chance when I got the wrong release date for an anime I was planning to watch. And oh boy, I found GOLD. It ended up captivating me completely and positioned itself in my list of favorites of that year. To the point that I watched it again when its dubbed version was released (something I never do except for this and another occasion), Without further ado, let's start with the review.
Tanya Degurechaff has the appearance of an innocent little girl. However, she is a high-ranking Japanese executive who has reincarnated in a magical alternate world in an alt World War I-like era in the body of a little girl after fighting with a mysterious being, "X," who claims to be God.
Tanya is born an orphan and stays in an orphanage for the first years of her life until she can take a magic detection test. Upon learning of the girl's outstanding abilities in this field, she is taken out of the orphanage and recruited by the army of the country she lives in the so-called Empire.
As time goes by, Tanya's goal will be to live a quiet life in this new world, but things will not turn out as she expects. Her talent will lead her to be promoted in the army faster than she expected, and being put in the front line as a vital piece of the war will be inevitable.
More than about the war itself, the anime is about Tanya’s different experiences during this conflict, quickly telling us the period from her childhood and training as a soldier until finally joining the ranks of the Imperial army and then showing us the different missions and military operations. Gradually gaining more and more fame due to her combat ability, intelligence, insight, and luck to survive situations in which she had everything against her.
Luck that unfortunately only leads her to be sent to more dangerous missions, due to the manipulations of "Being X,” whose relationship with Tanya is due to one of the most absurd backgrounds and origins that I have seen for a protagonist in a long time.
The story has two kinds of battles, the first of which has to do with the war itself. The second battle is the philosophical struggle between God and Tanya. While the former wants her to accept him, the latter seeks to destroy him, not to acknowledge his existence.
All that aside, there are expected and unexpected twists in the plot. Happily, there are more unexpected ones, but it still has something somewhat expected because you're watching a war anime.
Seeing how Tanya behaves like an absolute demon in a girl's body is a delight. And you get to enjoy the strategic part of the issue, both the military for winning the war and Tanya to be sent to the army reserve. Likewise, the story is enriched because it not only shows us the perspectives of the protagonists but also of the antagonists (although, in theory, they are the good guys). And those stories intertwine, leading to the beginning of a massacre.
Tanya Von Degurechaff exudes charisma wherever she goes. She is one of those intelligent, well-built characters that, despite being horrible killers, one can't hate. Tanya is a Light Yagami in the body of an adorable 10-year-old girl, with the difference that while Kira had his own concept of Good or Evil, Tanya is all ego, she does not mind going over the heads of whoever it takes and take ahead of many others as long as she gets her way, and she shows it in the most brutal and most varied ways during the 13 episodes of the first season.
It must be said that Saga of Tanya the Evil ends up failing with its secondary characters, unable to keep up with its overwhelming protagonist. They end up not being very memorable, with a few exceptions.
My respects to the Art Director for the composition, the colors, and having scenery similar to Italy and Germany. You can see the love of research of how the scenery took strong inspiration in the First World War with the clothes worn by the characters. The character design was curious how it was changed concerning the light novel, giving a loli aspect to the characters.
The soundtrack is spectacular in the moments of the war, having an epic tone. The moments of fighting and magical battles are simply beautiful. The opening is also good; it has that dark gothic spark.
On the other hand, the action scenes are original. They know how to capture the attention powerfully, managing to produce an actual state of tension, since, in an anime of this type, one can expect any unexpected plot twist, and not even the death of an important character is discarded. So, in regards to the animation, everything was incredible.
The Saga of Tanya the Evil is, in short, a highly recommended series, a breath of fresh air not only as an anime but also compared to any current western live-action series. Youjo Senki turned out to be, for my liking, a tremendously enjoyable series and one of my favorites the year in which it broadcasted, as I mentioned at the beginning. Being in general, a simple but very entertaining work to watch, which manages to stand out due to its main character's tremendous charisma.
It is surprising how risky its plot is and the controversy that some of its main character’s terrible decisions can generate. It is 13 episodes of 20 minutes that are watched one after the other. And after its sequel film in 2019, I'm still eager for a second season.
