Oda Nobuna’s Ambition
(This review may contain spoilers for the following series. If you have not seen the series before, please exercise caution before viewing this post. You have been warned.)
For those who enjoy Japanese Culture, the name ‘Oda Nobunaga’ will often remind anyone of the unification of Japan. In pop culture nowadays, his trials and tribulations are often referred to and mentioned as a form of entertainment and study. Oda Nobuna no Yabou adds to the story and unveils its own twists to grab a new audience. Of course, one may be wondering what twists the animation holds, with the main change being the gender-bending of most, if not all, lords of the territories. This change caters to new audiences while retelling the classic story of Nobunaga’s Ambition.
The story begins with Yoshiharu Sagara, a present day Japanese citizen, running in the middle of a battlefield with who would become Hideyoshi Toyotomi. Unfortunately, Hideyoshi is shot and leaves his hopes and dreams with Yoshiharu. He later meets Nobuna Oda, the now female general of Owari. To his surprise, he later finds out that the people involved in the unification of Japan are not who they appeared to be, and he finds himself trying to adapt to this new situation. Luckily, Yoshiharu, now called ‘Monkey’ in place of Hideyoshi, happens to be a huge fan of Oda Nobunaga’s conquest, and begins his journey to aid Nobuna through his knowledge from the future.
In regards to story, it’s just another retelling of an already told tale. Being only twelve episodes, the retelling of the story has yet to be complete, and I’m sure there will be more to be told in the future. However, I really enjoyed the minor details and humorous moments that were added in to make the story more efficient and interesting, and I feel they worked well enough to keep someone coming back week after week. During its run, this was one of the few shows I kept tabs on as it aired, and I’m really looking forward to another season to complete this journey.
I really enjoyed this show’s animation as well, and I personally think the animation was fluid and impressive. Granted, there aren’t too many terribly animated shows out nowadays, with the standard improving and whatnot, but this animation clearly works well in this situation. The OP is also animated well, with the action swelling up in those seconds of introduction. Speaking of battle scenes, while this story revolves around many battles and bloodshed, there aren’t many scenes full of action and violence. There are a few, but I think this show mainly focuses on the mental and internal conflict aspects of his conquest. That’s not to say there isn’t any violence at all, but it’s definitely not a series that primarily focuses on violence; the series merely adds violence to spice the story up a bit, and remind viewers they are watching a series about conquest.
I really enjoyed the OP/ED for this series, but I can easily say they don’t compare to my favorites. The OP really created the excitement and energy for the next 20 minutes, and the ED cooled things down with soft animation, slow music and a peaceful mood. While the action in the episode may have been intense, it’s always good to cool off with a nice, peaceful ED, and revolves around the OP to bring the viewer back to the game and hype the episode that’s about to be shown.
I’m actually surprised at how well the music brought out the emotions in this series. If there is one thing this series did right, it would be the music composition and placement. The tense moments became more tense as that awesome BGM began playing, and the sigh of relief that could be felt as the soothing music played after a battle or conflict had ended. I really enjoyed the music in this series, as it just felt right in every scene it played. Of course, as mentioned above, this also includes the OP and ED, as the mood wouldn’t have been set as well without it.
In short, I really don’t have too much to say about this series. I can easily say I enjoyed this series, and Nobuna is easily the best girl, but I can’t really say too much about the show in general. If one doesn’t know too much about the history of Japan, they can easily be overwhelmed by the amount of people and places important to this story. However, I feel that the series did its job well, and while not the greatest show in the world, provided entertainment for its run. If you enjoy history or harem / comedy series, I’m sure you’ll find somewhere to enjoy Oda Nobuna no Yabou. The animation appears decent, the story adds some favor to the mix, and the music deems appropriate for this series.
-Ace
Oda Nobuna OP -Link-