Anime Review: Argevollen
When Tokimune Susumu’s sister Reika is killed in a mysterious “training accident”, the boy decides to join the Arandas military as a Trail Krieger (basically walking tanks) pilot to work his way up the ranks in hope of eventually having enough access to learn the truth about her death. He’s still very green when he is assigned to the 8th Independent Unit under Captain Ukyo Saimonji. The unit is swiftly mobilized when the neighboring country of Ingelmia mounts an invasion, breaking through a previously impenetrable fortress.
On the way to the front, the 8th stumbles across a convoy that was ambushed by Ingelmian forces. Tokimune is ordered not to reveal himself, but charges into battle when he sees there is a survivor of the convoy. For his troubles, his mecha is shot to bits. The survivor, rookie engineer Jamie Hazaford, decides to have Tokimune use the convoy’s cargo, a prototype war machine codenamed Argevollen. Despite Tokimune’s inexperience, Argevollen is so advanced over the enemy mecha that he is able to defeat them easily.
Due to the emergency field activation, Argevollen now requires both Jamie and Tokimune to operate, and the shadowy Kybernes Corporation instructs their employee to stay with the 8th so the unit can be tested without having to rip out all the activation hardware. Tokimune must learn to work with his machine, Jamie and his fellow soldiers if Arandas is not to go down in defeat. But dark secrets abound, and Argevollen may be more connected to its pilot than was the intention.
Shirogane no Ishi Argevollen is a 24-episode anime series by the Xebec studio, and as of this writing, can be watched on the Crunchyroll website.
This series tends to come across as very generic for the mecha subgenre, especially in the first few episodes. There are some notable features, however. The first is that the series takes place in a world where aircraft were never invented. This is never explained in a satisfactory manner, but does justify some of the military tactics used. (The first episode has Ingelmia unveil Trail Kriegers that can jump over walls, the first time this has ever been done in history.)
While Argevollen is a “wonder weapon” it is made clear that it’s not a total game-breaker. It’s like having one 21st Century tank in a World War Two setting, really effective when it works, but where are you going to get spare parts and a mechanic who can fix it? Worse, when the production model is developed, Kybernes Corporation withdraws their software support.
The Ingelmian military are not the villains of the series, as such. They’re mostly well-meaning soldiers obeying orders, told by their leader that they are “liberating” Arandas from its dictatorial king. (“Just like they liberated my homeland,” notes one officer cynically.) Even Richtofen, who becomes Tokimune’s self-appointed nemesis, is a pretty decent chap at first. The real baddies are international arms dealers, a coalition of whom have been secretly exacerbating conflicts world-wide and convincing countries to start wars so they can sell weapons to both sides and test their latest creations.
Most of the characters are stock mecha anime types, for good or ill–this works least well with Jamie, who often comes across as much younger than she actually is, and best with Saimonji, whose stoic determination to spare the lives of his fellow soldiers leads him on a dark path, and an alliance of inconvenience.
The ending is rushed, with several plot threads brutally cut off, and a clear sequel hook; the series is selling poorly, I’m told, so we are unlikely to have that sequel.
Mecha fans are likely to find the show too generic for their tastes, with the fights somewhat downplayed. Several episodes have little or no giant robot action at all! But the more sober take and slower-paced episodes might appeal to viewers reluctant to watch more flashy mecha shows. Parents should be advised that a couple of episodes have scenes where the characters are undressed (but tastefully blocked) and there is of course some bloody violence. Probably not suitable below junior high.
