• Studios: Shaft
• Source: Other
• Genres: Action, Magic, Fantasy
• Synposis: “In the near future, humanity faces imminent destruction from mysterious creatures known as “Huge.” The world wages war against the Huge, and develops the anti-weapon “CHARM” (Counter Huge Arms) by combining science and magic. CHARM works more effectively when used by teenage girls, and those who use the weapons are revered as “Lilies.” The Lilies are trained at military academies called “Gardens,” which also serve as bases to protect and advise people. This is a story about girls who aim to become Lilies so they can protect Earth.”

-MAL News

First Impression:

If you know the animation studio SHAFT, then I’m sure you already know about their dark history with the magical girl genre. You also probably know know about their quirky art and animation style! It’s really exciting to see a new content produced by SHAFT and even more so that it’s about magical girls. Now, will it have a similar atmosphere as the infamous Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica? Let’s dive in!

What I love the most about Shaft productions is the style that never fails to show itself throughout whatever show that they’re working on. We’ve seen these aesthetics used countless times in the different shows like the Monogatari series, Nisekoi, and 3-gatsu no Lion, just to name a few. But enough about Shaft, let’s dissect Assault Lily! The monologue that Riri runs through start off cheesy and somewhat long but it establishes the setting and Riri’s character. Her drive to meet the Lily that saved her some time ago from a HUGE is the main motive and will likely develop into something more down the road.

I want to take a minute to appreciate the eye-catch here at the mid point of the episode. I noticed that a lot of anime are starting to leave out eye-catches (I really like eye catches but it is what it is) and to be able to see some in a newer show make my heart happy! The nice art style change with the simple color palette are wonderful but will these cycle through all of the different characters in the show? Guess we’ll see!

In my season preview post, I talked about how ambiguous the “Huge” are from the PV alone. The “Huge” are humanity’s enemy, leaving destruction where ever they show up. There’s a little bit more information about them in the first episode: They look like some type of robot…maybe an alien and they’re getting smarter. Though that’s it, I’m curious to see what the origin is and what are the other types (if there are any). Every time the characters get into a fight, I get all tensed up thinking that there’s a possibility that one of them could die (is this what you call trauma?). Ignoring my PTSD, the fighting animation is very slick, the articulation of the movements, the composition of the camera to capture the action movements of both the Lilies and the Huge are immaculate.

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I’m, oddly, ok with the HUGE being animated in CGI. The different animation style hits home on that fact that they are not of this planet. Not sure if that was the intent but that’s the type of vibe I’m getting!

Recommendation:

YES

You can’t miss a new production from Shaft, but you also can’t miss this interesting story that is unfolding. Assault Lily has great character design and artwork and the immaculate animation to back it up. While the story hasn’t developed enough to get you hooked, it’s definitely on the way there. I would at least give this one the three episode rule. This show does cater towards fans of the magical girl genre and is quite unfriendly towards those who aren’t. It’s a slightly different take on the genre (sorry there are no transformation sequences…yet but there are weapon transformation sequences which are pretty slick!). I’m calling this one a diamond in the rough that will polish as the story continues!

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