World Trigger is a top-rated series among Japanese audiences, though not so much among the English audience. In TV Asahi’s Manga Sosenkyo 2021 poll, in which 150.000 people voted for their top 100 manga series, World Trigger ranked at 14.
The reasons for the lesser popularity among the English audience vary, mainly blaming the supposedly ‘bad’ anime adaptation. But read on our World Trigger anime review to find out why you should give it a chance!
World Trigger Anime Review
| Title | World Trigger |
| Animation Studio | Toei Animation |
| Genre(s) | Adventure, Sci-fi |
| Director | Mitsuru Hongo |
| Episodes | 99 (3 Seasons) |
Exciting Setting and Plot
The setting is – In Mikado City, a “gate” to a different world suddenly opens one day. Monsters called “Neighbors” start appearing from the gate. Humans are overwhelmed when a mysterious organization called “Border” takes over and destroys the monsters using weapons called “Triggers.”
The Plot revolves around Osamu Mikado, a secret C-class Border trainee, who meets Yuma Kuga, a humanoid Neighbor that happens to join his class as a new student. The series is one of the softest shounen series with friendly characters and a battle system where nobody dies. But what makes it so great is its tactical team battles, realistic world-building, and grounded character developments.
Well-Thought and Fleshed Out Characters
Everyone likes characters with hidden powers or potential and main characters that go from weak to strong. But the main character of World Trigger is nothing like that. He’s probably one of the most frustrating main characters you have to deal with but let me tell you beforehand that it is worth it. He’s a character that shows a unique realistic side of humans. His growth is genuinely worth watching.
The other main characters are strong and unique and bring a fair share of contributions to the story. Despite the vast cast of characters, World Trigger does a beautiful job of handling them. In fact, all the characters in World Trigger have unique personalities which are brought to light so wonderfully that you won’t have a chance to think twice before coming to love them.
Amazing Soundtracks
Many people begin watching anime because of the opening or ending songs or the singers who sang them. World Trigger has a beautiful collection of music that makes it such a good watch.
There are many grand openings from incredible artists like “Force” by “TomorrowxTogether,” “Ashita no Hikari” by “AAA” and “Time Factor” by “Kami Wa Saikoro Wo Furanai.” The other openings and ending songs were equally excellent to listen to.
Splendid Overall Animation(?)
Toei Animation did an excellent job on the animation overall. Still, it does not erase the fact that the first season was adapted very poorly, causing a bad reception and first impression of the series.
The reasons mostly are the awful animation of the scenes and the significantly less substantial amount of source material covered in an episode compared to other animes. The remaining time in an episode was covered by the opening and ending songs and exceptionally long recaps that would bore any audience.
But pay attention to the fact that this would be boring to a weekly viewer; as someone who can binge the series and easily skip the recaps, watching the series is still enjoyable.
From the second season onwards, the animation and storytelling improved immensely. The animation was fantastic, and the action scenes were brought to life immersively.
The best way to understand the true worth of this series is by watching it yourself. So, give it a try! And even if it’s boring in the beginning, hang on! World Trigger is an underrated series for a reason.
