#Scarlet Nexus’s First Episode Is Decent, But The Action Disappoints

Based on the Bandai Namco action RPG of the same name, Scarlet Nexus is set in a near-future world where psionic troops — some with innate powers, others with abilities attained through training — battle against bizarre-looking, brain-eating mutants called Others. Among these troops are our protagonist Yuito Sumeragi, the son of a political family, and his friend Nagi Karman. The duo are the latest additions to the Other Suppression Force, and they soon reunite with Yuito’s childhood friend Hanabi Ichijo and encounter the Randall sisters, which include the clairvoyant Nagi and the stern and mysterious Kasane.

I watched the advance release of Scarlet Nexus’s first episode right after viewing the first episode of Sonny Boy, and the resulting whiplash from the difference in animation fludity made me feel like I had tumbled from heaven to Earth. That probably sounds overly harsh, especially when Sonny Boy isn’t your typical anime. Still, even without comparing the anime to Sonny Boy, Scarlet Nexus disappoints during its big moments, namely the fight scenes.

If I had to make an assumption, Scarlet Nexus’s outfits might be the issue. They’re definitely nice to look at, but they don’t look very conducive for elaborate 2D animation, and the results so far fail to dispel that impression. The non-combat scenes are fine, but when it comes to the battles, we get plain and stiff action instead of cool choreography.

The better bits of movement come from CG constructs like the wonderfully bizarre Others (one type looks like a combination of a bouquet, a corset, and a pair of legs) and the side characters that transform completely into their masked, combat look. While there’s too little screen time of the CG-rendered OSF troops to make a proper judgment, I can’t help but wonder if Scarlet Nexus would’ve been better served by a full 3DCG approach instead.

As for the story, the first episode doesn’t have many noteworthy or surprising events — Yuito and Nagi meet their squad, get their first taste of combat, are assisted by the Randall sisters, and walk away with a positive outcome. It’s not boring, but it’s nothing special either. There are a couple of fairly interesting bits that involve Yuito being saved by an unknown OSF soldier (who seems to resemble Kasane) in the past and Kasane having vague dreams about mysterious Red Strings, but the game’s trailers do a better job of selling these elements as important, compelling material. The episode is also quick to mention that the “mother of all conspiracies” is behind the Others’ attacks, which probably isn’t surprising when the source material is a Japanese action RPG. However, it feels much too early for the anime to drop such foreshadowing, and the impact falls flat.

It’s hard to comment on the story’s potential when this first episode mainly serves as an introduction, but Scarlet Nexus ought to be a decent, alternative way of experiencing the game’s narrative. However, this first episode does a lesser job than the game’s trailers in selling the story as something that should be experienced, while there’s not much to shout about on the action side. Watching it wasn’t a bad way of spending time, but it’s best not to expect much from this show at the moment.