Anime REVIEW: Kiznaiver

Although Space Patrol Luluco may officially be the fifth anniversary celebration for Trigger, the Spring 2016 anime season proved to be a rather busy period for the popular anime studio as they also debuted another original work. Written by Mari Okada (the woman behind AnoHana, the Black Rock Shooter series, Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans and more) and the directorial debut of Hiroshi Kobayashi, Kiznaiver is an intriguing story of friendship and growing up with a sci-fi edge. The secret behind a strong friendship may be the bonds formed in sharing pain, but what if this was literal rather than just figurative?

First Impressions: Kiznaiver

Studio Trigger may have already established a name for themselves thanks to the ex-Gainax staff that helped form it and critically acclaimed projects such as Kill la Kill and Little Witch Academia, but in terms of original properties they are a studio still very much in their early days. The total number of big productions they've tackled in the past four years can still be counted on two hands, and among those only three of them are non-adapted works - the aforementioned two and the unashamedly ridiculous Inferno Cop. However 2016 is a big year for the studio as they launch two entirely new products this anime season. We've already seen Hiroyuki Imaishi continue his own brand of insanity with Space Patrol Luluco, but on top of that there's also Kiznaiver - a full length series from director Hiroshi Koboyashi and writer Mari Okada (Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans, AnoHana).