Dantalian no Shoka is a bizarre show which paces between the mundane and surreal at a huge speed.
Dantalian no Shoka is the story of Hugh Anthony Disward, a man who inherits his relative’s mansion and library. He is excited to go see the supposedly amazing library. It is said to hold many wondrous tomes, but he finds many regular books presided over by a strange girl called Dalian. He is oddly at ease with the girl even though he has no idea who she is, and is a rather strange person at that.
This show has been compared to Gosick, because parts of it are extremely boring. Fortunately it picks up later, unlike Gosick.
After boring us to tears with some tea and light slow conversation, things finally pick up. As it turns out there is trouble nearby and Hugh is soon attacked by many bizarre opponents. In short order he is attacked by an assassin and a dragon, all within the confines of a seemingly ordinary mansion.
The action picks up quite a bit when they are attacked by story book characters.
Dalian gives him the key to survive these encounters, introducing a major plot point and saving his life. She is the keeper of books of great power, “Phantom Books”. However many people in the world inadvertently or purposefully release this power, having disastrous effects.
Just an average day.
As far as this series goes, the art is absolutely beautiful throughout. However the story jumps between plodding and exciting, without proper pacing. If they would work on the overall flow of the show some more it would be much better. As far as it goes, it’s worth a watch as an average show. It’s not amazing nor horrible, but a good time killer.
There is also a trippy, surreal aspect to some scenes which is a good break in pace.
