86 -Eighty Six- Makes Mech Warfare Feel TOO Real 

Just FYI, this video was finished back in December, but because we were working with the rights hokders, it took... A while to get copyright approval. We also had to limit how much non-86 footage we used, hence all the live action.

nothing broke my heart as the commander realizing she asked for the cat's name before that of any of her operators and THANKS THE DIRECTOR FOR NOT SPELLING IT OUT LOUD

I'd also like to preface that the term "Eighty-Six" is also slang for: "to throw out", "to reject", "to refuse service to", which makes the title of the LN/anime series even more so metaphorical and thematic

That Fido episode though, just incredible creative cinematography and story boarding.

I was in the Army and deployed to Agghanistan in 2009. This is the only anime I've seen that manages to really get what that's like. Films and shows like Jarhead have done so but never an anime. There were times when watching I kept thinking that this had to be written by a veteran. There were a couple of times that triggered some unpleasant episodes but that's a testament to how well done this is. One thing that I identified with immediately was the separation between the people on the battlefield and the people safe back home. This show reminded me of times where I was angry at the fact we were in the middle of Kandahar province, dodging IEDs and getting into firefights while everyone back home went on with their lives oblivious to what we were supposedly doing in their name. It pissed me off that it was barely mentioned in the news and that it was already referred to as the "forgotten war" while we were still fighting it. The show gets that dynamic and gets how people in such a shitty situation carry on and even take pride in it. There's a lot more I could say but I dont want to write an essay. Especially considering I'm typing this on a phone and my thumbs are fat.

So the reason that I love this show is because it get so much right about what is like to be in combat. A little background I was U.S Marine with a combat deployment to Afghanistan in 2009. Yes I have seen combat I was in 1st battalion 5 Marine Regiment Weapons company 81s platoon. What it get right is the outer craziness of being in a combat zone. I have personal gone from being in a Firefight then a couple of hours I am cutting up potatoes we bought in the local market. So the scenes of the Spearhead squadron being a brutal fight then later that night talking B.S while making dinner. What it also get right is the reaction to losing friends to enemy action. In the show they show the members of being sad for a little then diving back into the fight might seem cold but it is necessary since if your to wrapped up in grief you can miss what the enemy is doing and get yourself or one of your squad mates killed. If all that sound crazy and curle that is War.

As a fan who originally picked up the light novel a couple years ago, I'm thrilled to see the anime do so well!

"Highly maneuverable scorpion tanks." Just gonna add, the source materials state that juggernauts are actually not much more maneuverable than a traditional treadmill tank. The pilots of the spearhead squadron are elite veterans who have survived many years on the battlefield and are a capable of pushing their juggernauts well beyond the limits of their standard capabilities. But in the hands of your average processor, they're just like treadmill tanks.

My biggest disappointment with this anime was that it didn't get talked about half so much as it deserved. A lot of things about the light novel hit really close to home for me and everything from the military perspective, from the slang terms to the severe PTSD is dead accurate.

I also love how Ishi uses the symbolism in background scenes to convey messages. For example the railway scene with Shinei and Raiden. Raiden’s railway track that he’s standing over wnet straight, whilst Shinei’s track veered another direction displaying their disconnect in goal/objective.

I've never cried for a robot dog before, but man... that one episode... onions were everywhere that day.

The ending was so perfectly made, just felt so emotional on how Lena has gone thru thinking they were all dead and at the end they were there in front of her. just hope there are more seasons to come

My favorite aspect about the series, which i'm amazed you didn't mention, is the subtle body language the characters have to convey emotions, in STARK contrast with most anime going for exaggerated angles and expresions. During season 2 mostly, we get to see very very subtle twitches in shin, cleverly hidden from other characters in the conversation but show to us through low camera angles and closeups. You can see the slow decline of shin's mental state and THAT is what gets me. Also also, you probably won't notice if you haven't seen it irl but, the faces the main cast make... those are the faces you see on soldiers who're not really back home.

86 is something special. It's one of the most maturely told stories about serious grownup subject matter I've seen in years, nothing like those edgelord deathgame anime which act like ultraviolence and grotesquely inappropriate fanservice is the same as "adult" storytelling. Even when the production team is pressed for time, you can't really accuse them of taking shortcuts when the direction and quality of the narrative is so high-level.

Episode 22 had one of the best use of aspect ratio transition i have ever seen across all mediums of entertainment. Truly amazing work all around.

It's super cool that in the light novel they have mechanical design pages for the different mechs. Including specs and dimensions as well as things like ammo type and size. Not to mention a drawing that shows the design of all the mechs that are piloted or controlled by the legion. There's also the written description that tends to explain use-case or other details. I love that they put this much effort in to think of and explain these little details.

I’ve always liked the relationship between Shin and Lena. When you think of it, Shin hears countless voices of Anguish and Despair yet her voice is that one light in his life. That one voice that reminds him little by little that he is Human. That he isn’t a monster. That he’s more then The Undertaker. When she’s gone, he fell back into despair and began to once again think that he was no longer human. It’s no wonder he began to fall for someone me he never even met face to face.

The thing that gripped me most about 86 was that it felt like a genuine look into an alternative fascist reality that really understood both how that would work and why it was bad while not simply directly referencing real historical/present-day events. There were, of course, parallels to historical atrocities, but the story was less of an allegory for a specific one and more of an exploration into what fascism as an ideology does to a society. It reminds me of FMA in that sense, where it takes the ideology and uses it as a pillar to tell a new story. And it doesn't shy away from the harder aspects of that stuff, either. It not only examines the violence and death that come as a result but the real human toll this kind of society has on its people in both ways that are obvious and subtle. This is one of the best political drama anime I've ever watched.

the word you're looking for Lena action within the early episode is called Armchair Activist. put it simply, "those people that only wanted to say about a certain issue. however, doesn't do anything for that said issue" in the words of Raiden "Typical Politician... Big Promises, but all talk."

the scene where Shin first sees Lena in person is easily one of my top 10 scenes in anime (definitely the top 1 from 2021). AND THE MUSIC!

Surprised that this anime hasn't been in a lot of people's list of top anime of 2021 even if there were a flurry of great shows that came out along side it.

One thing I noticed is that a lot of the criticism for 86 comes from the first cour, which is basically a prologue. The show has massive change in plot, character and themes in the second half

Really loved the complex societal analysis told through an apparently basic story and the amazingly well-written character that is Lena. Her evolution from quite naive and goody-two-shoes, to sheer devotion to save everyone, throught the hopelessness of understanding that the horror you are fighting against is the foundation of the system you are living in. I truely cried at the scene where she crumbles in public while realizing this. Was a bit disappointed to see her less in part 2, but it was understandable storywise. This analysis can also be made IRL for threats other than fascism and racism, especially the ones caused by climate change and the biodiversity crisis, where the actions you are trying to make seem inconsequential against the magnitude of the changes needed to give humanity a chance.

the part of this show that really got me hooked was the voice acting when you meet Frederica her voice actor absolutely kills every line

haha, the elite upperclass deciding that a threat to all of our mutual existences isn't a threat to them personally or something they need to directly aid in addressing as it continually drives the less fortunate out of home, land and life approaching an inevitable doomsday clock as the rich handwave it... Man, I just can't relate to this story.. it's so incredibly different to our realworld experience...

One of my favorite things about 86 is the subtlety. I may be wrong about this but as far as I'm aware there's a detail that's never explicitly stated until the second season. It is only implied to you by the fact that Shin retrieves everyone's insignia by carving it out with a knife. That is that, while they are called tanks, the Juggernauts are not armoured. Stated outright in the second season when the republic's analysts talk about how insane the Republic must be for sending people out in what equates to "aluminum coffins." The second thing I love most about this, specifically from season one is that the director really knows how to control your emotions. Even when the members of the cast we actually get more involved with die, he held me back. Daiya for example, after the battle you don't actually get to see Anju grieve and that kept me from feeling much. At the time it felt wrong to me, almost a wasted opportunity for emotional connection. You never get to see ANYONE grieve, it's only ever implied. Then they hit you with the straight cut from dancing under the cherry blossoms to that *clunk* noise during Fido's montage. They didn't use it in episode 5 but I think there was a specific choice made that no other door in the show makes the same sound. When you heard that door close during Fido's montage you knew exactly where this was, when this was, and your heart sank. Fido turns around to look at who it is, and then finally you are allowed to cry for the lovers.

For me, I first became aware of 86 after hearing that Hiroyuki Sawano (one of my favourite Japanese composers) was helping with some of the film score. And as someone with almost 10yrs as a weeb & having watched over 800 different anime series (of various types), I was really blown away by the first episode when it aired (something that rarely happens nowadays). If anything, I was hooked, and it became one of the few animes that I was willing to watch as it aired. I'm personally not a big mecha fan, so it was surprising to see how quickly I became emotionally attached. I think the real turning point for me was Episode 4 (Real Name), which encouraged me to seek out the Light Novels (my spiralling down a rabbit hole moment). Reading the light novels gave me better insight into the world of 86 & level of depth Asato Asato had put into the story. As a history buff & someone with a passion for philosophy, I really appreciated the fact that the author had really taken the matter seriously by putting a lot more focus into the realism of warfare & the controversially related topics, than on that of story drama. It was also cool to see her draw a lot of inspiration from modern warfare (mainly WW2), particularly when it came to the weapons and tactics used. It's interesting how the reason why 86's storyline so closely resembles Modern warfare, likely has something to do with the fact that Asato Asato was first inspired to write 86 because of 21st-century drone warfare (as she explained in an interview).

Several thoughts. 1: RIP to Shinei Nouzen's English VA. He passed away yesterday from Colon Cancer. Rest well, Undertaker. 2: I am part of a wargaming club that developed our own gaming system called Combat Patrol and I made a mecha supplement that can use any mecha out there and this includes spider tanks. I plan on running a game soon that pits a platoon of soldiers (3 squads of 8 troops, Russian style command) and my 30 Minute Mission models against a US style platoon ( 3 squads, 6 fire teams) and my Juggernauts with maybe my Aoshima 1:48 armed slaves for support. Maybe. I could get more 30MM models and go all legion on the table top. Oh, new thought. I SO HOPE they make the legion as kits. I would love to have a Dinosauria and Lowes, Ameise, Grauwolf. The self-propelled mines would be neat to have as well but scary.

Having done the war thing and come home to deal with the physical and mental scars, 86 was like a continuous series of punches to the gut. It really nails that mix of feelings that comes with fighting, and it does it better than anything except maybe Violet Evergarden.

I want the second season to finish. But this series is definitely a masterpiece imo. It's something that has it all. The characters are compelling and there motivations stay consistent. Unlike other sci fi that have come out in the last 5 years

God damn episode 23 is a real tear jerker. I don't think I have cried at an anime this much before. I need a second/third season.

So I just finished it, 10/10 what a masterpiece. It’s my 5th 10/10 outta 540 series. It’s a must watch.

Eighty-Six got me into Light Novels. I've been watching anime since my childhood but nothing has ever come close to getting me into the LN's as 86 did. It's believable worldbuilding, atmosphere and well-executed action scenes, drama, tension building like you said are a masterclass. It's easy to dismiss this show as "Just another mecha" show from a far perspective but when one gets to know and comprehend each scene shown to them, it really hits hard. The symbolism, the subtle hints from the dialogues, and the tone brought to life by the voice actors speaking them were just some of the best performances I've ever heard. I loved the recap episodes, too, ESPECIALLY 11.5 where they introduced "Voices of the Chord", a song that I can only describe as getting beat up in a bar, thrown out and then getting beat up again.

As someone who has read the LN I’m really glad they nailed the adaptation, and it’s coming from A-1 of all places, just look at what they did with SAO.

13:48 This line of dialogue right here is what so many people get wrong about racism. It's not just about the _overt_ things that are considered racism, but the subtle; how it becomes a part of people's everyday lives so seamlessly that unless they actively understand it that aspect of racism is completely cloaked to them. Many don't understand they are being racist even if they aren't actively _trying_ to be racist. And when called out on that some become defensive, which only makes the situation worst. It's also the part that others try to consciously hide from the world. If the populace at large understood not just the overt, but the _foundation_ of the corrupt society it would cause the power structure to fall apart. This is how racism truly affects people and the only way to deal with that is to show people that racism is far more than the conscious understanding of it, but it's unconscious underpinnings.

For the tabletop game, if someone can do this then please do so: 1. Decide on a number of landscape elements: 1 story ruined building, 2 story ruined building, ruined skyscraper, clear field, hill, mountain, etc. 2. Make a random field generator program to set up a map design based on the inputted difficulty rating so you can either use it as the battlefield for a digital version of the table top or replicate it on a physical tabletop using metal blocks. (Do this for every battlefield) 3. Players are given a number of juggernauts with different stats based on the operators they build upon. (Could be one juggernaut per player if many players are involved, or multiple juggernauts per player if otherwise.) If they have multiple juggernauts, they can name their own squadrons. 4. Dice rolls for movement check, hit check, dodge check, damage check, critical check, juggernaut decommission check, operator death check. Let's use the idea of magnets so the models can stick to any surface, using terrain for cover or altitude advantage for critical and hit bonus. 5. For Obstruction checks between shooter to target where multiple buildings or terrain may block attacks, an extendable stick can be made to confirm if a hit is possible. 6. Each legion killed will give experience to the operator/s under the player based on the map design difficulty, battle difficulty (Based on total value of legions deployed) and the type of legion killed. Players can then manually allocate stats to their operators once they level up. 7. Juggernauts that are decommissioned will not be able to move but the operator can be rescued by another juggernaut. The operator rescued will be unavailable for the rest of the battlefield but can join in the next battlefield. 8. Operator deaths are permanent. (After every battlefield, map design difficulty should be increased by 1 and the number of legion units should be in the discretion of the DM. Each Legion type will have its own value, base stats, skills, and weapons and are controlled by the DM. It should be noted that at normal battle difficulty with 1x exp multiplier should have a total legion value equal to the total juggernaut value. Each point of increase in the legion value should increase battle difficulty exp multiplier.) 9. The campaign can continue indefinitely, until all operators are dead, or specific end goals are met. 10. Weapons, armor, and ammunition are the same across all juggernauts but each operator can pick 3 skills from a built-in skill pool. Then dice rolls can determine which tier of each skill they get. Example: Player chooses: Double Attack Skill, Double Movement Skill, and Marksman Skill. There will be 3 tiers of each of these and the player should roll a 12 sided die with 1-6 resulting in a low tier, 7-10 resulting in a mid tier, and 11-12 resulting in a high tier. For Double Attack, a low tier will have 60% damage on each attack, a mid tier will have 75% damage on each attack, and a high tier can have 100% damage on each attack. 11. Once an operator reaches every 5th level, a player can choose a new skill and every 10th level, a player can additionally upgrade 1 skill to a higher tier. If none are upgradeable, the operator will retain that chance for future skills obtained. 12. If a session somehow ends without ending a battlefield, the next session must be played with the same players at least until that battlefield is ended. New players can join the next battlefield or previous players can opt out of it but only before the map is generated. More ideas are welcome and if in the off chance you are interested in more of my thoughts about this or want my cooperation in the making of this, let me know.

One other element I'd like to highlight is the question the series asks which is, "How far is a nation willing to go to to fight a war and whom are we willing to sacrifice for the cause?" As an American, I saw a lot of parallels between 86 and the US military post Vietnam. Since the draft was removed and the military was converted to a professional army, the personnel makeup has basically shrunk to a few kinds of people (ex. military families or poor folks trying to pay for college) creating a large civ-mil divide. Growing up post 9/11 America, you just learn to live with forever wars because for most of us (myself included) war's barely an inconvenience. It's only when something major happens that directly affects us in the homeland that we suddenly care, at least just for a while.

Milize's definitely not straight scientist friend who probably also has a crush on her is another way the show LIGHTLY explores how San Magnolia is fucked in a way which kind of satirises how harsh some of japan's attempts to force up their falling birthrates have been? She's CONSTANTLY rejecting state-arranged marriages because the dudes are fucking assholes and instead hanging out with her one girl friend who she literally helps break the law on multiple occasions. (Not just that one time Milize kiinda blackmailed her... D:) And like yes at least she has the choice to reject all of these creeps, but also... she shouldn't be forced to see all of these people she's not interested in in the first place.

The show filled a gap I was desperately trying to fill. The need for an actually good Mecha anime that takes the severity of war and it's consequences seriously similar to what some Gundam has done before. 86 has done it for me for the first time in years and when it's complete it will stand as one of the best Mecha shows in history.

I love when this kind of deeply immersive world gets so much attention, I adored every single aspect of the show, the music, the acting, the animation, even the recap episodes were great. It really got me down to know of the delay of the last episodes before the last one was premiered, but when I watched the last episode.I was so exited to know how everything would unravel that I'm more than willing to wait months to get such an amazing story.

Hell yeah, I needed a video to watch while I had my dinner and this is just what I needed. I love mechas and 86 is really good so far

I love this video, as a big mecha fan (I'm one of those UC nerd you mentioned) I was excited by the premise of 86 from the moment it was announced and boy, did they deliver. Your analysis of the show was as always very good, you hinted many plot points without spoiling them altogether and highlited the strong points of the story. While it was a shame that there wasn't much analysis on the varied cast of the show beside the main protagonists (like for example henrietta could have been used as another great example on how racism is seen as a "normal" behaviour by the albians) I understand that main objective of the video is explaining the great worldbuilding, so it's fine. I always struggle convincing my friends to watch mecha animes, since they know I'm a gundam/go nagai fan and I see anything slightly related to mecha, but I'm sure this video will help me get the message across and make them watch this show, because it sure as hell deserves some more recognition. On a side note, the image at 10:28 made me really tear up, why should you remind me of best doggo?

This is literally my favorite anime at this point. The story is told so well, the music is great, the characters were excellent. It got to a point where the combat scenes were the least interesting part of the series whereas many anime use combat as their crutch. That's not to say that the combat in 86 was bad. It was great, but I loved everything else more.

86 is one the few pieces of fiction I call an absolute masterpiece, the animation, storyline, world building, and the those goddamn ost's by Hiroyuki Sawano. It doesn't appeal to much of an audience but those who are invested in it, know how much of an emotional ride this is. A-1 Pictures has done this piece of work with passion and perfection. I'm totally obsessed with this show and I'm very pleased that my anime taste is evolving as time passes. Really want this to be a long running show. F*cking glory to the spearhead squadron!!

86 was robbed at the anime awards

watched this anime after this video and man do I have to say it's still stuck in my head. This show was absolutley fantastic.

The episode about FIDO was so fucking brutal & good. I love that this show made me cry about a helper droid's perception of war.

I just finished 86, and I can't stop thinking about it. One of the best endings I've ever seen in anime.

Let's take a brief moment to appreaciate the soundtrack of 86 -Eighty Six-. We all know Hirouki Sawano and Kohta Yamamoto are some of the greatest composers of this generation, but here they just kicked it out of the park. THE ANSWER , Hands Up to the Sky, Voices of the Chord, Avid , EIGHTY-SIX , Shin , 4N. There are just too many incredible songs in this series.

This show has spoken to me from the first episode, the main character and how he carries his damage and PTSD, while still maintaining control of himself to still lead his squad. In one of the later episodes when he talked about how he felt like he died a long time ago, and is a ghost made me feel something gut wrenching and familiar.

86: an anime I overlooked purely because I didn't see the meaning behind the numbers. When I first discovered it and became interested was when season 2 started airing and I saw some footage on RU-vid at random. That alone got me to watch it, and all I have to say after watching it. This is one of my top 10 anime of all time. Story is incredible, depth is insane, visual quality and art is ideal. Animation and realism 9/10. The whole anime was brilliant and I really hope there will be a more seasons. 86 is underrated and should be as popular as attack on Titan is.

As someone who was never really the biggest fan of War/Mech anime, i honestly didn't know what to expect from this show initially. It came up on Crunchyroll so i figured "eh ill give it a shot" .... Well i binged watched both seasons in 2 days and I can now say this show instantly made it into my top 5 all time. I ended up buying the LNs, bought the Bandai figures, and now try to recommend it to anyone and everyone. From the plot line to the character development to the music and art work this show honestly goes above and beyond.

So, I am a new fan of the show. I admittedly watched the anime before reading the light novel. However, this series was the first one that made me actively want to read the source material. The combination of racial issues and the military structure drew me in, and I can’t wait to see where it goes

Goku: oohh I love the anime 69

86 is a especial anime to me. None other show makes me think about it as one of the first things when I wake up..."today is saturday...new episode of 86. Yeeeeyyyy!!!". I can't explain it. I'm a history buff and I love all the references the author made in his dialog. It's truly went the next mile in it. It makes me invested a lot in the characters more than any show. Also read a lot of real war veterans that praise the treatment the author do of real war experiences and the dreaded PTSD. The opening of the second cour (or season 2 if you want to called it) it's straight fire and the best of the year in my opinion. It's a shame of enormous proportions that was not included in the Crunchyroll awards. Because of the delay of the production?. Maybe be included in the awards 2022?. Please!!!! I considered it a masterpiece. I feel that this show is criminaly underrated and not giving the amount of recognicion it deserves.

Hey, just came back to thank you after whatching the whole show, and finished this video. This is a great review, and i found my return to watching anime because of this show, and your "recomendation". Thanks, i cryed a lot during it lmao

Watching this right now, such a brilliant show! Intense, emotional but also with moments of joy and happiness. Amazing stuff!!!

I've been watching anime for the better part of 12 years now, and everytime I think 'this is it, it doesn't get better than this', the industry somehow, someway, proves me very very wrong. But I can honestly say that I can count on a singular hand the number of shows that have made me immediately start buying up the source material as quickly as humanly possible. I am absolutely obsessed with this series as well, and I literally don't know what to do with myself until March 12th. In other words, 86 is just built different.

One of the stand out moments in this show for me was seeing character deaths from Lena's perspective. There's something grim about seeing each member just removed from the list when their killed in action. From the command room you can't see anything that's happening but you know right away when someone is now dead. On top of that, the labels for destroyed processors never go away so Lena and the audience are always reminded of how many have been lost as the show goes on.

I love 86, it's perfectly Mecha for me. It ditches the absurdity of the bipedal Mecha. And yeah I'm fully obsessed with 86, to the point I own all of the Light Novel.

To be fair, I've had the best Immersion within in an Anime from 86. The world building and atmosphere is really good with some likeable characters and the show constantly makes you not to grown too attached to a single character. No cheesy tropes, just pure Immersive Racially based War Mecha Anime that I really liked.

Ay yooo 86 finally got recognized. Loved the show and the Light Novel.

Falling in love with this show was a whole experience for me. Like most of the people i know, I started the show with cautious optimism, not sure if I would like it since I'm not huge on mecha. By the end of the first episode, I had an appreciation for the sharp scene direction and the compelling characters and world. By the second episode, my eyes were wide at the truly incredible animation, especially the CGI integration. By episode 6, I was in love with the characters, and by episode 11 I was crying at the drop of a hat. I thought it was a truly impressive show and I was hyped for more. Then the second cour dropped. And that's when I started noticing the subtle details, like the symbolism baked into the backgrounds of certain shots, the tiny details in the way the characters move and interact with their surroundings, and the careful attention put into the facial expressions and body language of the characters. I was in absolute awe. And at the end of episode 16, when they hit us with an ending scene that literally made my jaw drop, I finally broke and read the light novels. In my opinion, this show is an example of a perfect adaptation. They turned the series into an anime that fully utilizes every advantage an animated series has to convey the same story, characters, and emotions that the novel captures through words alone. Every change made was carefully crafted and beautifully executed. 86 has become the standard that all other adaptations are going to be living up to for me. I'm looking forward to the final two episodes in March and I hope to god it gets renewed, but even if it doesn't, I feel truly blessed to have had the chance to experience this show.

Personally, I think 86 has to be one of the best animes to have aired in 2021

“If you enjoy running tape measures…” Me: -heavy sigh- I didn’t need this callout today. Ok boys, let’s make this game quick, I’ve got an anime to go watch.

Started watching this show today because of this video. It truly is incredible, thank you so much for making this video and sharing your love of it with us!

Why i’m obsessed with 86 you say? The moment i heard that tha juggernaut’s gun was the same from a real life tank (begleitpanzer) it was hooked in. This show is full of real similarities to one of my favourite history topics, ww2. The comparisons between the republic and nazi germany are just to obvious to skip, as well as all the military details that tank nerds like love, hell, the mechs shoot fucking apfsds and heat rounds (real life rounds used today). Not only that, the character development is also top notch, the way the show is able to develop it’s characters and the way they relate with eachother si amazing, more so for a military action show. And shin’s character deserves a special mention as well, it still amazes me the way in which the show develops his depression in such a realistic and heart breaking way is deserving of an anime of the year award.

"86 Eighty-Six" Episodes 22 & 23 will be airing on the 12th and 19th of March respectively, additionally there will be a new recap episode airing on the 5th of March

This show is phenomenal. A group of masters working at the top of their game. It is gorgeous to look at, constantly engaging to watch. I wanna put down a highlight in this comment, some great detail that really stood out but like… it’s just everything man. Should I talk about the super interesting and engaging directing choice in the first half of the show to have each episode split into two portions, one where we’re in san magnolia and our only link with the processors is their voices over the para-raid, and then the other half where it’s reversed, and we’re living with the realities of this battle, and only the voice over the para-raid reminds us that there’s anything else. Maybe I should talk about shin, and how he is such a heartbreaking protagonist, shouldering all the pain, not only from watching his comrades die, but from the fact that he has vowed to take them to the end, meaning there won’t be anyone left to carry him. Maybe I could continue where this video gushed about how in depth and realistic the world-building is, paying painstaking attention to all the intricacies that would have built this world Maybe I should talk about the exhilarating way the juggernauts move. How watching them fight makes me sit up at attention and watch, fully engrossed in how each of them moves and fights so quickly and frenetically. Or maybe I should just tell you to go watch it. Do it. Even if you already have, watch it again. I think I’m gonna go do that right now. Just that good.

Finally someone's talking about this show past the "yeah racism is bad, we now" aspect, thank you!

As a lover of mecha, 86 has been a godsend. There haven't been many seriously good mecha in the past, I dunno, decade? So many stumble and falter their way into contrived plots and weak narratives, so getting the treat that is 86 is like eating rich chocolate after years of Easter Bunny chocolates. I have to say, my favorite quirk of 86 is how it frequently jumps between two different perspectives of the same scene, often separated by credits or musical pieces. In the early episodes, this aspect alone helps make the literal and figurative separation between Spearhead and Lena. Also the show is just kinda gorgeous? God I can't wait for the final episodes to air.

Light novel reader here. The anime is definitely one I recommend to everybody I know, it's an easy gateway show into the Mecha genre kind of like how Code Geass was earlier.

This is legit, as a mech fan I was curious as to what was the buzz about 86 is, as I watch the whole series it keep me wishing nobody would die anymore, but damn every episode they kill a person you started liking. the end of season 1 episode 12 was a real tear jerker as one by one the last spear platoon die and the last stand of the MC and the regrets and efforts of the female MC was very impactful. but with season 2 it gave me hope for a better life for the 86's future the cliff hanger blue ball so much on episode 11 for the long wait for episode 12 of season 2 is on march. My reating for 86 Season 1 10/10 Season 2 8-9/10

For 3-5 years I did not watch any anime, but I had a lot of free time this weekend/holiday so I watched it. I wanted to read it first, but I watched it instead. I had to say, the visuals, the sounds, the story, man even the dog/robot are fenomenal. It has that punch that makes me wanna watch it again, and again, and again. But man, the feels that this show has, is insane. It is everything that is worth watching anime for.

10/10 masterpiece, one of the best anime of 2021

In a season jam packed with great shows it was still by far my number 1 for all the reasons you stated. I can still _feel_ the emotions that rose up in me as I watched the battle scene unfold to Kohta Yamamoto's "Spearhead" building from its opening drums into an epic symphony that wove together with the action to point where I literally jumped up and shouted "HOLY SHEEEEEEEET!! Things just got real! Yeah!" It is simply gripping!

If anything, 86 feels like a modern answer to Code Geass to me, actually centering the oppressed footsoldiers and not the genius privileged commander

This series easily deserves 2 more seasons.

Binged the entire 86 series. I have never enjoyed being depressed as much as this before.

Timed brilliantly for me just getting stuck into this series! Always look forward to your insight on any show I’ve enjoyed or am about to enjoy watching.

I got back into anime the year before last and watched the first episode while completely out of the loop and didn’t know what to expect. I was so moved i got my right arm tattooed of Lena and shin. The nuance of these characters and their dynamics (although completely different circumstances) is extremely relatable. Each of the characters has an odd ability to create such a relatability that is unparalleled in many animes or stories just in general. That alone is enough for it to be well deserving of all the praise and hype not even counting the so many other facets that have been clearly factored in and balanced in a way that’s truly refreshing. I appreciate the show for just being a good story and being honest in its animation and it’s limitations. Instead of just giving up and kind of putting it out and relying on its characters to drive the story, the production clearly made a decision (that they aren’t ufotable) to create an uncanny atmosphere i can only describe as comfortable and oddly believable. Now i know none of it is real but the way it portrays emotion through clearly thought out imagery, pacing, and sound dynamics is truly an unmatched masterpiece. I’ve gotten many people who aren’t traditionally into anime to watch demon slayer and they are blown away but those same people have put aside their love for flashy and endearing characters and genuinely fell in love with each character and connected with the setting and emotions that are created. This is my favorite anime and although I’ve watched it through 10 times you opened up new ways for me to look at it and i truly appreciate it. I hope this anime gets the recognition it truly deserves because the production and decisions are those that if it weren’t “just anime” and was portrayed live action in the same high rolling cast, it would be up for multiple awards.

Couldn’t even get halfway through the video cuz you sold the show to me so well. Gonna have to watch it before I finish this video lmao

I love how much visual storytelling they did on this show which I feel is quite rare in Japanese media. I was surprised that this was actually an adaption of a light novel with how much they relied on the visuals. It just shows how much the creators are passionate about this project. Thank you so much for dissecting this show! I feel this show is so under appreciated despite how mature and amazing it is.

this here is a masterpiece in the making.. like the frst season alone.. atleast the episodes which had been released up until now had been thoroughly amazing..the direction, soundtracks and especially the character which seem 2 dimensional at start thoroughly get stretched to full extent especially cour 2 on how it gives a whole new aspect to the character drama in the series.. ngl i had to pick up the LN after the freakin cliffhanger at ep 21,and it just gets better and better

This anime tackled systemic racism in a way I had never seen before and it rocked me.

so what I'm hearing is that 86 is what Attack on Titan could've and should've been if actual care for humanity was part of the war story that was being told

Thank you thank you thank you for making an 86 video. It's so good it's a shame that it's so underrated and unknown. It's become one of my favourite anime of 2021 and has a strong hold of my heart. The penultimate episode of the first season's second cour was breathtaking in a production standpoint, it became my favourite episode so far. Not only is it emotionally stimulating but the cinematography, sound design, and animation is absolutely stunning.

Watching the final 5 make their last stand in episode 11 had me in tears; it was basically my time playing Halo Reach for the first time on steroids. Having not looked into the story at all beforehand, I genuinely went into the second season believing that Lena was going to be the focus. Then the next episode came out and... then things got interesting. I cannot wait for the last episodes to air.

this anime does have a LOT of good original ideas, as for an anime

Thank you very much for taking a closer look at this show, that I think gets often overlooked (like at the Anime Awards) or downplayed as simply "racism bad", when it actually provides a nuanced look at (systemic) racism. Also, I think that the script is extremely tight and that no piece of dialogue is without purpose. You talked about the scenes with the pets as if they were just slice of life part, when they're actually used to give a deeper insight into the relationship between Lena and the Spearhead Squadron. The relationship between the Spearhead Squadron and the cat is the same as the relationship between Lena and the Spearheads. Because Lena subconsciously treats them as her pets who she takes care of after a long day of work, similar to how the Spearheads relax by messing around with the cat a little bit. This is also mirrored with the name of the cat. The Spearheads think of the cat as their pet, as something subhuman that doesn't have such a thing as an inherent name, so they call it whatever they feel like based upon the cat's appearance or whatever book Shin was recently reading. The cat's name is volatile, because they don't see it as human. Likewise, Lena did initially not fully regard the Spearheads as fully human, because she did not ask for their proper names and instead called them by their unit name, which is based on a marking on their mechs, i.e. their visual appearance like with the cat. This goes to show that you can't fully escape systemic racism, even if you honestly want to and attempt to circumvent it. Or in other words, this show is more than simply "racism bad", like so many of its critics throw at this show. And unfortunately it didn't really get the recognition it deserved at the Anime Awards from Crunchyroll or Reddit's anime subreddit. It's a well produced show with a tight script, lots of subtlety and symbolism.

I appreciate how you articulates the greatness of this show. At first I thought this anime was just going to be a blatant "death of the week" tearjerker, but at the end of Season 1 I found myself compelled to give it a 9/10 on MAL.

Thank you so much for highlighting the creators. I find the production staff often gets overlooked or just condensed into "studio X"

Wait _that's_ why the show is called "86"? Wow that took me way too long to figure out.

86 is honestly my favourite anime in 2021

watched it and it’s honestly one of if not my favorite animes

An extremly deep series analysed by one of the biggest brains of the youtube anime community? Sign me up! Jokes aside, I adore this video, from the explanations, to the vocabulary employed and the different facets of the show tackled, this is amazing.

My all time favorite anime, fuckin' glory to the spearhead squadron

Just finished watching the last 2 episodes, and this would probably be the mech anime that I will not stop talking about for my entire life like what Eva and Gundam did to the previous generation of mecha hardcore weebs 86 will be that one anime for me, I finally understand on why there are people who are so vocal with those anime because of how much depth, care, and attention the production crew did on those mech anime. 86 was one of those, I still think that 86 is a bit underrated last season blocked by other big time anime airing at the time. But thankfully that 2 months delay was worth it for the last two episodes to air. Giving the anime the spotlight it needed to end. I'm just excited for a season 2/3? For 86 that last episode just shed a tear on my eye, that totally scene was the pay-off that I needed after watching it all from the start. MB's Review on 86 was everything that I wanted to hear, most especially at the tatical aspect of 86, design, cinematography, little details that caught my attention... MB just mentioned them all it was satisfying. The light novel of this anime was said to be really good as well so perhaps it is time for me to take a small peak on Vol.4 hopefully no spoilers lol.

First time watching the opening for the second season I literally cried cause it made me realize how amazing of a setup and misdirection for the series the first season was and then the second season kept delivering EVERY SINGLE EPISODE. I'll never forget this anime for as long as I live.

Ok, honestly i never really expected 86 to be an anime that would make an impact on me, i thought it's gonna be a generic anime, one that airs every season, and as a veteran otaku, i didn't think it would be bad, but damn this show broke my expectations, though it was too short so... It didn't have as much of a kick as attack on titan, rezero, or jujitsu kaisen, but yeah, it's a step in the right direction for the anime industry