This Is a Perfect Anime Adaptation, But…
Why is nobody watching the Guilty Gear anime? Guilty Gear Dual Rulers has everything it needs to be the perfect anime adaptation, but after just four episodes, it’s one of the worst performing shows this season, which is a shame because Guilty Gear fans were really excited to finally get their own anime. And as someone who loves the games, I think this is the perfect start if you’re a new fan. But as much as I’d love to give this anime a 10 out of 10, there’s clearly a couple of reasons why it’s not doing very well. That’s why in this video, I’m going to share my first impression of Guilty Gear Dual Rulers, discuss the blatant flaws that are holding it back, and explain why I think it’s the perfect show for new and old fans. Just be warned that this will contain some spoilers for the first four episodes. Now, if you’re watching this video, then you probably already know about Guilty Gear. It’s a Japanese fighting game made by Ark System Works, the studio that made Dragon Ball Fighters. Since then, they’ve been a huge name in fighting games, but now they’re trying to break into the global market and compete with companies like Capcom and Bandai Namco, which brings us to the new anime, Dual Rulers. Guilty Gear Dual Rulers is an original story that takes place right after the events of the latest game, Guilty Gear Strive. So, right away, one of the first reasons this anime is perfect for new fans is because it’s a self-contained story. If you’re already a fan of Guilty Gear, this means you get a brand new story outside of the games. Plus, it’s got a bunch of the best characters from the games, like the one-armed samurai Bikin, the US ladies man and master swordsman Johnny, and the yo-yo slinging mercenary Bridget. And they even got most of the original voice actors to play these characters. So, if you’re an old fan, then Dual Rulers really feels like it was made just for you, which is great because as cool as it is to get an original story, part of the excitement is seeing the characters we already love from the games getting the love they deserve. But if you’re completely new to Guilty Gear, then this anime is for you as well. Dual Rulers is a story that centers around Sin Kishke. And if you play fighting games, then the reason why they chose Sin over the actual main character of the game’s soul bad guy makes perfect sense. Soul has been the main character for 20 years now. So, because Guilty Gear is trying to get new fans, it only makes sense that they would give it a new face. It’s the same thing Street Fighter did when they shifted from Ryu over to Luke. Anyway, the story follows Sin as he encounters a brand new villain by the name of Unika, who wants to destroy all of the gears, including his parents. Now, if you don’t play Guilty Gear, then you probably don’t know what a gear really is or why it’s actually called Guilty Gear. But thankfully, Dual Rulers takes the time to give basic recaps of the main story. To answer the question about gears, they’re basically characters like Sin who have special powers that were used during a massive war known as the Crusades. Clearly, if you’re a new fan, then you don’t need to play the games to watch the anime. You can enjoy the anime while also learning the basic story. Then if you like Guilty Gear after watching the anime, you can try out the games. So really, it’s a win-win for everybody. That being said, this takes us into the first big problem with the anime, namely how the anime balances the plot with lore dumps. But real quick before I get into that, make sure to become a channel member if you’re enjoying the video. You get custom badges and emojis to show off during our weekly live streams, and you can pick which series I cover next. Now, Dual Rulers is by no means just a recap of the games, but while it is an original story that everyone can enjoy, there’s clearly a favor against new fans. The first episode starts by giving a basic summary of the main story. Mankind discovers magic. They combine magic and science for all kinds of technology and living weapons. Some of these weapons, the gears, start a war, which leads to mankind hating the gears. It’s after this war that Sin’s parents, Kai and Dizzy, eventually meet each other and start a family, which amounts to roughly 3 minutes of lore. Now, on the one hand, because Guilty Gear has a pretty goofy story, I think you need that quick summary so that new fans can actually follow everything. That being said, Dual Rulers kind of suffers from a case of telling, not showing. Typically, you want viewers to invest in characters naturally. The Dual Rulers kind of has to walk you through that investment. The whole point of the first episode is that the new villain, Unica, stops Kai and Dizzy’s official wedding and they end up frozen. But these are two characters that we just met. So, if you’re a new fan, then this all happens kind of fast. And you wouldn’t care as much about Kai and Dizzy because you just met them. So, that’s why the episode starts off with these two because it sets them up as some of the most important characters in the story. And this is where Dual Rulers runs into some problems because its main goal is clearly to offer a story for both new and old fans, but the structure and pacing of the story kind of make it so that it’s not as interesting unless you already like Guilty Gear. For example, while it’s great that you get to see a bunch of the regular characters, some of their introductions aren’t executed that well. Characters like Sin, Kai, and Dizzy get proper introductions. Then you have Johnny, who shows up at the wedding because he’s a friend of the family and used to be Dizzy’s guardian. But they also throw in the fact that he’s the captain of the Jellyfish Pirates, which is good to know for the games, but after four episodes is still completely irrelevant. Later on, they introduce Ramlthal, but don’t really mention any of her relevance in the story, even though she’s actually a member of Sin’s family. But then they give a complete lore dump for Elfelt and even mention that she has her own death metal band. So, when it comes to the characters, it’s not that bad, but it could be better. On the one hand, they kind of just throw the characters into the story, assuming you’re already familiar with them, which if you’re brand new to Guilty Gear, can be hard to follow. But, they do try their best to contextualize the characters, especially considering the whole point of the anime is to promote the games. So, while it might make the story feel somewhat crowded, it does allow for everyone’s fan favorite characters to make appearances in a coherent way. Plus, the team behind the anime, Studio Sons, again, writes the characters, so they’re all consistent with their personalities in the games. Sin is still the same goofy meatthead. Bridget is still the same fun-loving, chill character, Elfelt is just as bouncy and energetic as she is in the games. So, while you might not get a full appreciation for these characters, the anime at least does a good job of making them accurate to the games. Because of this, you do get a good feel for their chemistry, and you can begin to understand why so many people love these characters. But as far as the story goes, that’s really my only praise. As of episode 4, I’m not that excited about the story so far. And this goes back to the issue of balancing lore dumps and plot. This is not an anime like Cyberpunk. That’s sort of its own thing. Dual Rulers ties into the story of the games, so they have to spend a good amount of time catching new fans up to speed. This means that you usually spend a third of each episode explaining some of the lore. On top of that, you typically get about two minutes of recap from the last episode. And with only one core, possibly only eight episodes, that means that the time spent on the actual plot and character development is fairly limited. Now, the upside to this is that Sansigan finds a decent balance between explaining the lore and fleshing out the story and action. You do get some cool scenes like Soul and Sin riding on a motorcycle through the desert. Unica making this big attack against the president. And the newest episode even shows some great scenes between Una and Bridget that flesh out their characters. At the same time, there really isn’t a lot that happens even after four episodes. The first episode is just lore dump. Then Sin fights a bear. There’s a wedding, but then the wedding gets crashed. The second episode follows basically the same formula with Sin and Soul traveling to the US, Unica attacking the president, and the only real fight is between Sin and Una. The third episode mainly consists of the characters investing Unica in her secret plans. And then, while the fourth episode has those nicer character moments, all that really happens is that Sin gets revealed as the new king of the gears while Dizzy is frozen. And this is where I think the anime suffers the most. It’s a fun watch for anyone who likes Guilty Gear. But if you only have a casual interest in Guilty Gear or you have no idea what it is, then this isn’t really the greatest introduction because as a standalone story, it’s not that entertaining. It’s a lot of exposition and dialogue. And especially considering this is a fighting game adaptation, the fights are pretty lacking. It’s the kind of story that’s pretty cool the first time you watch it, but it’s far from something like Cyberpunk where you could watch it again and again. So, clearly a big reason Dual Rulers doesn’t get that much hype is because there really isn’t that much to talk about. It’s cool for old fans to finally get an anime, but beyond that, there isn’t that much to invest in. Unika is a decent character and I can see how she has a lot more potential. But as the villain, her motivation is pretty bland, and we don’t know anything else about her yet. If you’re brand new to Guilty Gear, this anime isn’t going to be nearly as exciting as something like Fire Force or My Hero Vigilantes. Now, it is worth mentioning that Sans again actually does a great job with the animation. Sans again made their name after this great AMV they did a while back. And just like that AMV, they go for a balance of 3D and 2D animation. And while it looks much better in a twominute AMV, they do a great job with this style of animation in the anime. Obviously, because it’s 3D, it’s not going to look as great as your typical 2D anime, but it’s way more polished than the CGI in any anime, and the characters are just as expressive as any other anime. And like I said before, Sans again does a great job of explaining the story to fans and making the characters accurate to the games while also trying to present an original story. So, do I think Dual Rulers is this underrated gem? No. As much as I love Guilty Gear, I don’t think this anime is for everyone. But if you love the games or you’ve always wanted to check them out, but you’re not sure if they’re for you, then Dual Rulers is the perfect show. It’s a decent story, and while it does have its flaws, there’s still potential for the story to pick up in the next few episodes. So, while it’s not the perfect story, I think Dual Rulers is a perfect show for anyone who likes the games and really just wants more Guilty Gear. But what do you think? How would you rate this show? What do you think are the pros and cons? Share your thoughts and see what everyone else has to say down in the comments. I’ll pick my favorite and share it as comment of the week on my community tab. And don’t forget to become a channel member. You’ll get badges and emojis. You can pick which series I cover next, and you can even get credited in future videos. Also, check out my other recommendations, which you can find in the playlist linked right here. Until then, thank you for watching, and I hope to hear from you soon.
Guilty Gear Strive: Dual Rulers is the perfect show for everyone, but nobody is watching.
#guiltygearstrive #manga #anime
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Music credit:
Guilty Gear Xrd: Give Me a Break
Editing: Sol
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33 Comments
My personal reason for passing on it was the cast they decided to use. Guilty gear is home to some of the coolest freaks in fighting games and showed NONE of them in the promotional advertisement.
I think its just indicative of the series at large
Guilty Gear is just a niche franchise, even with Strive's success. It is what it is
I really wish that we got a proper adaptation of the games all the way from the first, the stories are so rich with so much going for it so an anime adaptation would have so much potential.
Not to mention being more of an accessible way to experience the world of guilty gear
Just goes to show that strive really did burn a massive hole in the guilty gear community
I haven’t watched the Strive story. Normally I’d just skip it but GG lore is too peak to skip any material.
Is Millia in it
Fighting games usually struggles when it comes to story even in games.
I dont even whats canon in some of them.
Though guilty gear has a story mode that is canon but even in that they barely squeeze all of the characters in, if I remember correctly rams story was a dlc.
The only things I disagree in this video are the positive things said about the anime
As someone who has a moderately passable understanding of Guilty Gear lore. The first few minutes of episode 1 were so confusing to me as it explained everything necessary to understanding the plot for the show I just couldn’t after I finished the episode
As an anime, Dual Rulers is a well-made Powerpoint presentation. The game is better animated than that.
I forgor
I buy food whenever a new episode gets out just to watch it while I eat, just that it ain't promoted that much since I didn't know it was coming out until I saw a ad in ggst
I knew it was coming, but didn't know it had started and to be honest I haven't finished season 2 of strive so, it would be all spoilers for me. I do find Bridget, the husbando waifu finding herself a waifu husbando adorable however.
Imma be real, I knew it was happening but I didn’t know it was even out
Let alone having 4 episodes released already
How does Sol have his powers back?
People just either hate on it since its strive relaxed and people discipelen strive but like is it that bad as some of the bs xrd had plus promotion was weak af but more I wont get on about since i feel like thers alot to name
Yes… i kinda dont care…
it would be nice if the game had Instant kills
I think the anime is fuckin amazing, but they lack marketing imo
But imo it is performing alright considering i tought LITERALLY NOBODY WILL WATCH IT
Finally I came across someone talking about this show.
I've only ever gotten excited for it the moment it was announced but never had any of my attention focused on it right after.
Mainly cause I've passed my GG phase, lack of interest in what comes after Strive cause I thought the story concluded, and Sol wasn't the MC
I know he's always been since its inception but the MV has made me want to watch him as the focus while doing cool stuff and having fun banter with the GG cast
Watching this show as a Ram player 😭
Hope she gets a bit more
They dropped the anime in one of the worst seasons for anime. This spring was stacked with awesome shows everywhere
im waiting 4 the whole season to release
DID YOU SEE EP 5 BRO
Nobody cares because they keep slapping Bridget on all the marketing and most GG fans have Bridget burnout, so they think she's gonna have a lot more importance than she actually does and decide it's not worth it.
I don't really care about the anime because I genuinely find strive boring af from a artstyle, gameplay, and ost (pretty much everything from strive).. Hell Guilty Gear XX had a cool animated intro and that would've been so much cooler. Xrd had a more fun artstyle that would've worked for an anime. I tried watching the first episode anime it just looks so boring and clunky. I realize I am not the audience for it (same applies to the games since they took all the things I like from the franchise with the latest installment so I just stick with the old games mainly xx) which sucks because this is something as a longtime fan wouldve been peak if it was in any other era of gg instead of strive…
As an outsider to GG, to me this this anime is unappealing because it seems to have been made for a younger demographic, everything that happens on the screen is basically always being explained to you either by the narrator or the characters always just shouting their beliefs at the top of their lungs, Unika basically gives a speech to the president while trying to steal the Mcguffin, all that to make sure you know what's happening even if you're not really paying attention, you even have the MHA style character introduction where they stop the entire scene just to introduce you to them. Idk, it's just kinda mehh
I enjoyed the show… A lot
Even I'm barely getting into Guilty Gear (especially Strive but I'm not there yet that made me love the game as SF6 & T8 when it comes to gameplay) and even not into the insane lore of what Guilty Gear has presented as Strive developed
I think this show is perfect, Idc what sorta story and lore dump they're throwing out in a mins. As long as you give ACTUAL character like in-game. Even w/ Strive own 3D that looks like 2D for that being adapted perfectly into the anime. I'm on board
This might be my favorite fighting game turn into adaptation of media entertainment. This is speaking from someone likes a lot of these characters and what they look and do… But what do they presented on screen? And tbh, I think it's well awarded. Bridget is literally one of my favorite character both in-game and in anime like wtf. It's so good
And Unika is going to be a huge set to when she's play going from anime to DLC in Strive (not mention funny uou said Cyberpunk Edgerunners when Lucy is next to last as the guest character in the game)
And tbh, if I had to compare to any of the Fighting Game done right about its story telling from SF, TEKKEN, FATAL FURY, and Mortal Kombat…. It's this one easily. Yes it isn't perfect or say it's fair. But the consistency has not been that far great when you think about it from all compared to Guilty Gear (especially in Strive)
Street Fighter has a bunch a retcon that you might as well read into SF6 World Tour to know what each of your favorite characters fun fact. TEKKEN continues to be the most anime and goofball insane bats""" crazy game that still tells inconsistent story and inconsistent developed characters (even to some that has decent story). FATAL FURY… Well they're staying true to the arcade, that's that I supposed but it is a fast forward and quick turn of event sequel of just "oh. I guess that's it, we're carry on!". And Mortal Kombat… Bro the story was going elsewhere and became a legend and now going from MK9 to MK1 (2023) in retrospect has been story inconsistent and unfair amount for what game and story they're adapted from the arcade to 3D era (and almost none of it executed or stick around for long except DLC)
So yeah, after watching this Anime. I feel satisfied and crown this as the perfect adaptation to get the non fighting game player into the game. I approved of this anime work, shame I wish they should marketed more 😢
(I only been seeing a lot of folks who are fan of guilty gear and a artists too that loves the game watches and reacting to the anime online via Twitter and I think it's a blessing to see it all live… For better and for worse?)
Its not the perfect anime adaption the story sucks and amazing characters are wasted doing the most pedestrian just cause GG finally got an anime doesnt mean your long awaited desire is the same satisfaction…
Just cause its GG+Anime does not make it "Good" the show is mid and dissapointing. Very dissapointing
For me the problem is that the show despite it making some efforts by explaining the lore for newcomers, is still missing something to get you hooked, also I think maybe the phasing is a by slow, needs more action and great fights
they made a show?
Guilty gear is just still too niche. It's cursed by its weirdness
If the dub was out I would have watched it by now