Sorey is a human youth who grew up among the seraphim, spiritual beings not visible to humans.
Sorey believes in the folklore that says “long ago, every human was able to see the seraphim" and
dreams of unraveling the ancient mystery to make the world a place where people and seraphim can live
together in peace.
One day, Sorey visits the human capital for the very first time. He becomes embroiled in an incident
during which he pulls out a holy sword embedded in a rock and ends up becoming a Shepherd, one who
casts away calamity from the world.
He begins to realize the gravity of his mission, and his dream of coexistence between mankind and the
seraphim becomes more intense—
And thus, the Shepherd embarks on a journey with his companions.
(Source: Official Website)
Note: Includes episode 0.
This is a simple and not heavily analytical review of __Tales of Zestiria the X Season 1__. This review contains spoilers, so read at your own risk! ~~~img220(https://i.gifer.com/origin/70/702f49d8d178b8f1ecee3d7f05fedd7c.gif)~~~ # ~~~STORY - __6.5/10__ ~~~ I'm going to preface this section with the fact that I have never played any of the Tales games, let alone the ones this particular show are based on. From what I know, the vast majority of the story focuses on the plot and characters of the game Tales of Zestiria, which is the show's namesake, however there are two episodes that show events from the game Tales of Berseria. While they take place in the same world and the events of Berseria are technically a prequel to the events of Zestiria, in the anime their inclusion felt misplaced and confusing. Two episodes is not enough time to fully cover anything meaningful from the Berseria storyline in relation to the Zestiria storyline and its placement in the middle of the story is too early for the viewers to make any kind of meaningful connection between the two. Reducing Velvet's storyline to a single event tossed in the middle of Sorey's storyline with no context is honestly an insult to both stories. As for the Zestiria plot itself, its entertaining at the very least. Many of the concepts are not original in essence but interesting in execution. Negative energy corrupting the land is not a new concept, but the implementation of malevolence is good. The isolation of a mythical race akin to angels or gods that once helped purify the evil forces but have since become forgotten by humanity is also not new, but their interaction with the chosen human hero (the Shepherd), how they purify malevolence, and how they can become corrupting and turn into _dragons_ of all things (normally an angelic creature would simply become something akin to a demon so dragons is a little out of left field) is a very interesting execution. The story is action packed but the pacing is a little odd, but its not too bad. Overall, the story mostly suffers from slight pacing issues and the unnecessary inclusion of the Tales of Berseria storyline, which throws off the groove of the entire show partway through. # ~~~CHARACTERS - __7/10__~~~ The majority of the characters introduced so far are very likeable and are all extremely varied from one another. The show gives each character a pretty well-fleshed out background and motivation for joining Sorey on his journey, however the show is lacking in character development. Most characters remain relatively stagnant even after their major issues are resolved. Some characters, like Edna and Mikleo seem to have issues that will be resolved in the next season. I personally dislike Edna, as I find her to have an incredibly dry personality. # ~~~VISUALS - __7/10__~~~ Animated by ufotable, its no surprise that the show looks very good. The 2D animation and character designs are beautiful. Nowadays, ufotable is known for having killer animation, but the CGI in this show, especially with the dragons, is incredibly off-putting. It is not well integrated. Additionally, and this might just be me because I am incredibly susceptible to motion sickness, but the CGI is VERY nauseating. # ~~~AUDIO - __8/10__~~~ I watched this in dubbed and the majority of the voice acting is good, with the exception of Edna, who is so deadpan it makes it sound like she's reading from the script. The opening absolutely SLAPS. No particular highs or lows with the rest of the soundtrack. # ~~~ENJOYMENT - __8/10__~~~ The show keeps your attention for the most part as Sorey's story is interesting and action packed. The interlude with Velvet is annoying and adds nothing of value to the story at the point where it is shown. If you like the show, consider buying and playing the game for a more comprehensive dive into the story.