Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
_Bubassotto_
Man, what a colorful and beautiful anime.
That was, no joke, my first reaction when I started Nanbaka. The anime is incredibly colorful, packed with characters sporting eye-catching designs, over-the-top settings, and a visual identity that definitely doesn't go unnoticed. In fact, the visuals were exactly what made me want to watch it. I caught a glimpse of some images and thought, "Wow, this looks really beautiful and unique." So, I tuned in out of curiosity to see if that whole style actually worked in practice.
Right off the bat, the plot managed to surprise me a bit, mainly because I don't recall seeing many anime use a prison as the main setting in such a laid-back way. The premise is pretty simple: a group of totally wacky inmates living in an extremely peculiar prison, trying to…
Read at the sourcedr_axd
(ENGLISH/PORTUGUESE REVIEW / FREE OF SPOILERS/LIVRE DE SPOILERS.)
PT;
A sensação de assistir esse anime é que nem a de assistir shitpost, não faz o menor sentido mas é bastante engraçado. Em Nanbaka, acompanhamos prisioneiros que, teoricamente, estão na prisão mais ‘protegida’ do mundo, nessa prisão, eles embarcam em algumas aventures em prol da fuga da mesma, torneios, e de dramas que acontecem entre os personagens. E diga-se de passagem, o mundo que esse anime se passa é o do tipo que beira o absurdo, não só visualmente (por conta do visual da prisão e dos personagens) mas sim por conta da maneira que ele funciona.
O Protagonista é um hacker, Nico é um alívio cômico, Uno é um bom líder, e Rock que é um cara forte que gosta muito de comida; todos esses personagens, incluindo alguns outro…
Read at the sourcewhiteflame55
I thought this show was fine.
The character designs are colorful and diverse (don't know why everyone and everything is so sparkly, though), the comradery between the leads is pretty well realized (with Jugo as the one who brought them all together), and when this series leans into the humor and spectacle, I think it works decently well. The short tournament they had in the middle is this series at its best.
However, it doesn't really handle the balance of serious to funny very well, leaning mainly into the latter before pulling a hard right turn into some of the heavier content. It doesn't quite give me whiplash because at least it telegraphs that it's taking that direction eventually, but it still feels out of place in what otherwise behaves as a rather lighthearted and low stakes st…
Read at the sourcetjhyy
I really like this fresh new aesthetic with sparkles and comedy! ☆*:.｡.o(≧▽≦)o.｡.:*☆
Although when it started getting way too serious for my liking, it had me like (ᵕ—ᴗ—) Cuz it kinda ruined the vibe with all this scifi stuff. It could've worked if there was a proper build up to it and not the main character suddenly trauma dumping on his supervisor's little brother. It was just off-putting.
It also bothers me that the main protagonist is 16. I thought everyone was at least in their 20s-30s, but now that I know there's teenagers in there, it further takes me away from the serious vibes that it tries to balance with the comedy. I know 16 year olds can be tried as an adult, but his reason to be in jail is kinda dumb when you don't have all the facts until later. I feel the same for all the…
Read at the sourceheycoolbook
i'm gonna start the review by saying, that i'm probably way over the intented demographic (i'm 28 yo), and that i only watched this because of my sister
so what can i say about nambaka? i felt asleep halfway throught episode 4, so that should tell you how was my experience watching this, i didn't laugh once in none of the 13 episodes, and as i previoulsy said, and to be fair to the mangaka, i'm probably too old for this kind of jokes, so the humour didn't click with me. The character design i'm not a fan of it, it's too bussy for my liking i guess? or i don't know what it is, but i can't come to like them, the constant use of sparks around character was another thing i didn't like, the colors were too bright for my liking, surprisingly the animation was alright, with some highlight in the…
Read at the source_Moon_Light_
Nanbaka started off as a comedy but then it slaps us in the face a whole bunch of angst and a mystery plot. I wish they stuck with one or the other. The characters were pretty bland and didn't have much depth. Some of them were insanely annoying. The premise of "escaping the prison" didn't stick to the end. And tbh, i don't think they could've written a story solely based on that anyways.
It starts to lose its way and amounts to being confusing and not being good at either genre they were trying to do. There were some nice moments, but they immediately get ruined by the pacing, storytelling, etc. When there was some interesting development happening, they don't *go* for it. And it ends up being a crappy job. The mystery plot was really interesting, but it seemed like they ran out of joke…
Read at the sourceLovely_Hollow
If you're in need of something that is funny and light-hearted then this is perfect.
The show is pure comedy with those few moments of seriousness and fights. I loved the character's vibrant designs and colour. The fights in it were great. It isn't like some comedy animes where it's just a random day every episode. This anime actually has a storyline and has some character development. The only one that actually gets good character development (or any development) is the main character Jyugo. Overall its great if you just want to enjoy something that's funny but if your looking for something that has exciting fights and a really good storyline then Nanbaka isn't it
Read at the sourceSharpedon
(SPOILER-FREE Review)
Nanbaka is an anime that is, from start to end, in search of identity and purpose. Since it lacks a single identity, purpose and any focus at all, it adopts multiple ones arbitrarily. I am all for multi-genre anime as long as the mix of genres is done gracefully, it serves a purpose and the plot is largely coherent. Neither applies in the case of Nanbaka; the sudden change of pace and genre is even lampshaded by some characters a few times, presumably because even the writers thought it was excessive and wanted to alleviate the problems by pointing them out. Lampshading often helps but in this case it didn't. From the 4th episode onward, starting with that ridiculous prison tournament, the anime abruptly changed from a gag comedy anime to a mix of shounen, drama, cha…
Read at the sourceJane_Rain
This anime had so much potential, but ended up falling flat as nothing goes anywhere during the "plot", but isn't funny enough to carry itself with it's lackluster comedy
STORY: 5/10. Had a lot of potential, but not enough action. I though the plot would focus more on how these characters ended up in jail, their crimes or motives, or anything really, but it doesn't, choosing to leave watchers hanging by a thread.
ART: 7/10. Surprisingly good, but could be a bit much at times. Each of the characters is unique... but everyone is too unique all the time, not to mention all the glitter in every single frame. It kind of hurts to look at. The backgrounds aren't too interesting at all, and the animation is relatively smooth.
SOUND: 5/10. Nothing special or even memorable, but nothing atrociou…
Read at the sourceRarerock
NOTE: if you’re watching nanbaka on crunchyroll you’ll find out that nanbaka has more than 13 seasons for it’s first season. That’s just because crunchyroll decided to continue the season, the season was still meant to end at the 13th episode though.
Story: 8 out of 10.
I rated it this because the overall story is pretty good. Nanbaka's plot had me hooked from the moment I saw those four idiots try to escape nanbaka prison. Nanbaka had a lot of action and I laughed at least three times during every episode. Though the plot was sometimes very random and I had trouble following it, I found the story very endearing and good. I expected it to be a comedy anime (which it was) but it’s also a slice of life and action anime, in my opinion.
I liked that all of the characters (most of them) were a…
Read at the sourceahart48
A rainbow colored story that starts off all laughs but becomes serious and makes your heart ache.
I originally added this anime to my watch list because I liked the bright colors and I think something this saturated in color is hard to come by. It took me a bit to get used to the art style-- almost every character had 2 tone hair and tattoos. But once you settle in, you might think the MC and/or his prison guard are quite attractive. (Male viewers- may I suggest you look to the female prison warden.)
I was expecting a story to make me laugh and that it does. However, as the story goes on there is a complexity and sadness to it. If you have ever found yourself feeling sorry for a villain then this anime is for you. The story touches on mental health in a way that I think most people can re…
Read at the sourceHaneken2086
Sho Futamata's story NANBAKA tells the tale of Nanba Prison, considered the most unbreakable facility in the world. This prison is populated by a host of colorful characters, both the prisoners that have been contained there and the warders who are employed to contain them. Each of these residents have their own distinct history,
The animation is beautiful to see, and the characters are pretty and interesting with enough character depth to gain interest. Also, there are some numerical jokes in the story (for instance, Nanba means "number") that give the story a clever touch.
However, one major problem the series suffers from is too slow writing. The first season had decent pacing and was enjoyable, but the second season drags on for too long. The manga comic has already moved on beyond w…
Read at the sourceHirotara
Let me start off with this statement: This anime is quite literally one of THE most under-rated ones I've watched, it clearly does not get enough praise as it should have in my opinion.
The plot-line initially starts off as a comedic, non-serious, over-the-top anime series that's lighthearted and is simple overall. But what I didn't expect was how it so easily shifted from a comedic standpoint to a full-on serious, shounen-esk type of genre with actual high stakes without much effort. Not to mention, the serious story plot-points are actually really good in my opinion and it has a rather unique level of backstory for each character and even has a few wholesome moments in them too.
Character development is clearly there in terms for the protagonist and also the supporting cast. Like Rock…
Read at the sourceFraoch
I first watched Nanbaka due to having been nagged into doing so by my younger sister, who loved the series. After finishing it and reading a good portion of the manga, I can say with confidence that I am very glad I finished it - in fact, it's by far one of my favourite anime. So why only a six? I do try to be honest with my reviews so, despite how much I enjoyed the show, I am well aware of its flaws and I can understand why they might ruin the viewer's enjoyment slightly. With that being said, I'll try my best to write a spoiler-free review with as little bias as possible.
STORY
"Colourful, sparkly inmates have fun trying to escape from an equally colourful, sparkly prison. Shenanigans ensue"; - Thomas Sanders, Real or Fake Anime?
Set in a prison, I went in to Nanbaka expecting to find…
Read at the sourceRalV26402
This anime, for me, is the epitome of the 'well you had us in the first half' meme.
The tonal shift in the 6th episode gave me whiplash and made me feel like I had all of a sudden started watching a different anime.
At its best Nanbaka is a fun show about a group of lovable morons. The group dynamic was so fun to see and made me love all of the characters. At its worst it casts aside all of that for a much darker and more serious action type anime and in doing so loses all charm from the characters and any attachment I had to them.
Tl:dr, should have stayed a 'gag' anime.
Read at the sourceSeregosa
Pretty good anime, at least good enough to watch without feeling bored. There were a few laughs to be had here and there. I like most of the characters, although I pretty much hate hajime the guard, that bastard can go and die somewhere. I also dislike the female boss, she just can't stop being lovestruck all the time and it pisses me off, especially since I hate the one she likes.
The story is so-so, kinda average, nothing special at all. The art is pretty nice, I like the style although the colors feels a bit too flamboyant. The sound is great, well, at least the opening song, I was really fond of that one. The characters are nice in some ways, at the very least they feel kinda unique, but I feel like too much effort was put into making them too extreme, the author should learn some mod…
Read at the sourceanimesscythe
It's difficult to make a comedy series, mainly because sense of humor is subjective. Nanbaka's comedy was barely noticeable, and even if it was there, it wasn't really funny. But personally, the action and drama parts were better written than the comedy.
The story is mainly as the synopsis says. There's no story progression as such, and there's just a tournament arc filled with games at the beginning, mostly games where comedy can be introduced in. The action part was also mixed in there, the fights were well done, and the flashy artstyle did not interfere. The comedy part was mainly in the first half of the series, with some decent jokes, did not make me cringe, made me grin twice overall, was fairly enjoyable, so I'll take it; it was above average. The second half introduces character b…
Read at the sourceDnny99
This review encompasses season 1 and 2.
I want like Nanbaka a lot. The biggest positive is without a doubt the style of the show. The "content" itself is just ok.
I love the way everything looks in this show. All of the character designs are super distinct. This makes a huge difference for me, as theres nothing more I hate then trying to figure out which high school girl is which by the color of their hair alone. These guys are vastly different heights and sizes, with transitional hair, different teeth styles, uniforms, eyes, number placements, accessories, etc. Its undoubtedly the best part of the show. So if youre interested, just google search the characters and if you think they look cool, then watch it.
The comedy part of Nanbaka is fine. I was never rolling on the ground, but so…
Read at the sourcemvhcmaniac
Overall: 4/10
Nanbaka had vast potential as a pure comedy anime. The animation and characters were stellar, and all the anime needed to do in order for this to be a hilarious and entertaining watch was to follow the everyday life of these guys and observe how they interact with each other. But whoever is responsible for writing this managed to screw that up. By the end of the season, I felt as disappointed as I've ever been by an anime, which says something considering I've seen Gantz.
Story: 1/10
Watching this anime, I got the feeling that whoever wrote the material thought it was critically necessary to add some degree of a serious plot in order to make a good anime. The plot shows up about halfway through the season, and shatters everything that was good about the anime up until that p…
Read at the sourceJustProud
Now...How the dickens did I find out about this anime called Nanbaka? Well, let me explain. A Mimimi AMV on youtube. I really liked the art style, but I only watched about 30 seconds of it, because I didn't want to look at that many spoilers. It looked like quite the enjoyable comedy anime, which it was for about...6 episodes or so? 8? I don't know. But at one point in the series it went from this: :O
To this: :/
That was because of the (to me) cliche dialogues which hardcore roleplayers would die for, and the lack of comedy. There was a gag here and there, but that was it. I litteraly no other comments about this anime, because the first half were worth an 8 or even a 9.
Read at the source
