EPTNotes: I'll use "Muvluv" to refer to the trilogy as a whole. I might also spoil, though I will try to confine them to spoiler tags.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/oG5kf.jpg)
Synopsis:
The Muvluv trilogy is, as you might guess, a series of three Visual Novels: Muvluv Extra, Muvluv Unlimited, and Muvluv Alternative. Our hero Shirogane Takeru goes from generic-game-loving-slacker-with-a-harem, to dimension-traveling-green-cadet-with-a-harem, to unstoppable-savior-of-humanity.
Muvluv Extra introduces us to the Takeru and the six main heroines in an intentionally banal school life comedy romance complete with an unbeatable cocktease mecha game, humor skirting both sides of so-bad-it's-funny, and copious amounts of completely vapid
Muvluv Unlimited shows us a Takeru who wakes up after the events of Extra to find that his entire neighborhood has been reduced to rubble. On the plus side, what look like remains of giant humanoid fighting robots litter the landscape, much to
Muvluv Alternative is a tale of love and courage.
Review by Attributes
Art
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/KZM67.jpg)
Art
Backgrounds: Most of the stock backgrounds were completely unremarkable and thus nonintrusive. That's fine; we're not here to ingest scenery porn, if we were we'd go to a national park or another country or something. Despite not being flashy, background similarities across worlds/VNs are well done and provide the proper uncanny familiarity when the games reintroduce the front of Takeru's house, a school hallway, or the hill behind the school.
Character Design: Hairstyles for many of the main heroines are unbelievably angular and brightly colored. Superficial and barely relevant, yes, but I would've preferred less exaggerated character design in the vein of Kara no Shoujo. Also I was just as bothered as Takeru by the fact that female Mikoto is almost identical visually to male Mikoto.
Art Quality: All the graphics were fairly detailed, and the engine was great in terms of portraying energy and depth using merely sprites. It truly excelled in battle scenes, but even regular conversations felt more dynamic visually compared to many other VNs.
TSF Design: We only get to see a limited range of the Muvluv universe's robots in the main trilogy: Gekishin, Kagerou, Shiranui, Fubuki, Takemikazuchi, F-22, and the base American TSFs. Maybe I have a bad or untrained eye, but I find the real life counterparts of TSFs (F-4 Phantom, F-15 Eagle, F-18 Hornet, F-22 Raptor) more easily distinguishable than the TSFs themselves. Still, whenever I saw a TSF in action in Muvluv, I thought: Yes. I want to see more of this thing. Takemikazuchi in SRW pleaaaase.
CGs: MLA had enough CGs of the kind that I will never forget. Meiya as the lone lookout. Ayamine with the severed head of a Grappler-class. Yeah.
Overall: 87
Muvluv's art got the job done right. It had room to cater more to my individual tastes but overall told its part of the tale well.
Music
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/Umdvj.jpg)
I'll be concise. Extra's music is shit. Unlimited adds a number of ok tracks but also reuses some shit ones. Alternative has a fucking awesome opening by JAM Project, insert songs by Hironobu Kageyama and Masaaki Endoh, and a beastly battle theme in Storm Vanguard. Regrettably, Takeru doesn't actually spend the entirety of MLA shitting on thousands of BETA, so we are instead treated to the rest of the soundtrack, which ranges from "sure" to "meh" to "please dear god no" *rips out headphones*
Overall: 68
Most of these points are from the songs I pointed out.
Voice
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/fB0zm.jpg)
The voicing was generally solid though only a few characters showed expressive range, whether by skill or design. The voices I enjoyed included Takeru, Mitsuki, Sumika, Yuuko, and Ayamine. As I mentioned, that might be by virtue of how the characters were written + Show Spoiler +
since most other characters never had occasion to be quite as murderous as Sumika or straight furious like Yuuko
Overall: 77
Well we have Jesus Yamato and Kazuma the Shell Bullet. Unfortunately most of the time he's silent.
Characters
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/LjFsz.jpg)
I don't feel like going in depth on this so I'll just give the good and bad on each character.
Shirogane Takeru
Bad: At first he's a weak, whiny, woman-beater who can't win a game of Valgern-On to save his... well there's nothing really to save in Extra so never mind. He's also super fucking dense and slow to pick up on the affections of his harem, though this arguably improves slightly in Alternative.
Good: Hey humanity I heard you have a BETA problem. Luckily + Show Spoiler +
Takeru's waifu loves him so goddamn much her love rips holes in countless dimensions to resurrect him into some godlike super soldier who instead of dying when killed just time travels and resurrects again.
+ Show Spoiler +
00 Unit/Kagami Sumika
Bad: Her Extra character is defined simply by "childhood friend" and "loves Takeru."
Good: For several days the only word she speaks is "Kill", later adding "Massacre." As 00 Unit she shows more developed shame, deceit, jealousy, wrath, foresight, and heroic sacrifice. Her love is supernaturally strong and starts the entire plot.
Bad: Her Extra character is defined simply by "childhood friend" and "loves Takeru."
Good: For several days the only word she speaks is "Kill", later adding "Massacre." As 00 Unit she shows more developed shame, deceit, jealousy, wrath, foresight, and heroic sacrifice. Her love is supernaturally strong and starts the entire plot.
Ayamine Kei
Bad: Trolls everything. Not much of a dynamic voice.
Good: Huge boobs. Trolls everything. Strength and dexterity of a superhero. Interprets Sagiri's poetic letters no problem. Threatens to kill you just for kicks. Gives you all the yakisoba pan. Beheads all the Grappler-class.
Kouzuki Yuuko
Bad: Not into younger men (except for one scene in Unlimited I didn't even know existed until MLA showed it in a flashback.) Keikakus everything, but screws up a number of times. Is known to lecture the shit out of you right before climactic moments.
Good: Genius. Keikakus everything. Explains everything. Morally bankrupt. Is the whole reason Takeru ever has the wherewithal to do shit.
Mitsurugi Meiya
Bad: Rich, royal, ultranationalistic, humanitarian. Is known to lecture the shit out of you but barely delivers any wisdom/plot. Noble confidant.
Good: Rich. Gives expensive lunches. Has katana. Hooks you up with Takemikazuchi. Does actually inject some maturity into Takeru at times. + Show Spoiler +
Great final moments.
Sakaki Chizuru
Bad: Annoying, nagging. Pretends to be strong but crumbles into overt weakness easily. Somehow always occupies leadership roles even though Takeru or even Meiya would be more appropriate. Drags you into that fucking lacrosse thing.
Good: Has boobs.
Tamase Miki
Bad: Loli. Voice and demeanor pretty much always the same. Generally unremarkable.
Good: Best sniper I suppose. Endearing in a cute way I suppose.
Yashiro Kasumi
Bad: Loli. Not an actual rabbit. Russian. Boring voice.
Good: + Show Spoiler +
Impressive devotion to hero and heroine. Idea of building one's personality from the memories of another is interesting.
Yoroi Mikoto
Bad: Is supposed to be a dude. Looks like a dude. Voice almost never sounds goddamn serious. Always fucking beats Takeru in Valgern-On even though Takeru turns out to be better at TSF piloting in every circumstance.
Good: Is a bro in Extra. He's generally skilled and saves your ass a number of times.
Alfred Walken
Bad: + Show Spoiler +
Dies
Good: AMERICA! He also saves your ass, gives sensible orders, and generally agrees that fighting a civil war during a BETA war is bad policy.
Hayase Mitsuki
Bad: Steals the main character of KimiNozo.
Good: Cute, well voiced, shows interesting and effective leadership, is a skilled and mature pilot, + Show Spoiler +
makes her death count.
Isumi Michiru
Bad: Gives her own share of lectures.
Good: + Show Spoiler +
Gives you the best death flag eve of Sadogashima conversation. Also gives the most comprehensive farewell speech that the rest of your squadmates actually learn from. Makes her death count.
Jinguuji Marimo
Bad: + Show Spoiler +
Unfortunately, the game hems her so firmly in a limited mentorship role that her death is literally right after the last service she can impart. No "If only Marimo were here," here.
Good: Wears both the kind teacher and drill instructor faces, as well as a shadow of the last man standing.
Kashiwagi Haruko
Bad: In Extra she feels like some random... extra. + Show Spoiler +
Her death felt kind of wasted.
Good: In Alternative she has the uncanny ability to always be smiling, laughing, not giving a shit, but still be smart and perceptive.
Kazama Touko
She felt too nondescript to comment on.
Koubuin Yuuhi
Bad: Outside the coup d'etat arc she never really does anything. Like Meiya she seems subdued and one-dimensional.
Good: Pretty audacious for a civilian leader: asks to get drugged for the mission and to + Show Spoiler +
Munakata Misae
Bad: Injury/removal from duty felt out of hand.
Good: Gives you a pretty significant lecture that starts this whole noble confidant business.
Sagiri Naoya
+ Show Spoiler +
Bad: Was supposed to get with Ayamine but instead marries someone else, then wants to mack on Ayamine again. Stirs up shit when he should be fighting BETA.
Good: Guess if Japan's government was really evil, he got rid of some of that? Meh.
Good: Guess if Japan's government was really evil, he got rid of some of that? Meh.
Suzumiya Akane
Bad: Never really does anything important.
Good: Is generally cute, friendly, agreeable with a minimum of drama.
Suzumiya Haruka
Bad: Barely ever does anything important. + Show Spoiler +
Tries but instead gets herself and a bunch of footmen killed by Warrior-class.
Good: Valkyrie Mum... is a funny... callsign?
Tsukuyomi Mana
Bad: Can be heartless in removing Sumika, slapping Tama (in the manga she slaps Tama so hard she goes flying several meters and lands prone on the ground), and generally calling Takeru a dead man.
Good: Beasts anything and everything in TSF battle, plus comes out with essentially zero damage or maintenance required. Saves your ass, cheers you up, and hooks you up with FOUR Takemikazuchi. Oh I guess she's also kind of your personal ninja maid in Extra.
Overall: 90
Muvluv's cast is pretty expansive, and even though some of them were unimpressive, I really enjoyed the development of my favorites. Only Chizuru was so tiring as to warrant dislike.
Writing
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/PWJnO.jpg)
Thematically: Ecael tells me MLA is a straightforward work but I still enjoyed thinking about the range of discussions it asks of the reader.
Small Group Status Quo vs Conflict: This dichotomy is highly common in anything Japanese and we see it here too in varying intensities. The desire to ease conflict vs the desire to speak one's mind is allegedly the crux of Tama's character growth, at least according to Cpt. Isumi. Of course we also see this even in dumb shit like lacrosse, where Takeru goes from watching on the sidelines to getting up in the team's face and telling them to man up and stop being faggots. Muvluv seems to encourage challenges to the harmony in small groups, with one significant exception: the harem. Whether out of consideration to the mission or to Takeru's delicate romantic pursuits, the heroines overwhelmingly hold in their romantic advance whenever they're not targeted. Only Meiya and Sumika have the balls to challenge this, and only in some circumstances.
The Military Order: Follow orders. Resistance to this is a common discussion in anything military, and Muvluv first covers it in the lighter setting of Extra with the Chizuru vs Ayamine dynamic. The dynamic persists with different circumstances in the world of Unlimited/Alternative where actions and outcomes can now be measured in human lives. I enjoyed Ayamine's backstory but I felt like the conflict was never really resolved, just kind of... dropped. Takeru's chief order defiance comes in the coup d'etat arc where he refuses to drug Yuuhi but that conflict is complicated by MLA turning his retrospection into a question of resolve and by the fact that Walken is an American. Conveniently but disappointingly enough, Takeru barely has to worry about any real order conflicts thereafter in MLA.
Tiers of Reasons: Throughout MLA the game spends significant time discussing how soldiers tend to, or should have both great and personal reasons for fighting. Takeru comes into MLA with the great reason of stopping Alternative V and saving humanity, but only solidifies his resolve when he embraces more personal reasons of + Show Spoiler +
protecting Sumika and honoring the deaths of his comrades.
I don't know if this is necessarily better or more interesting, or simply slightly more realistic and complicated. Every real or well-written person operates on multiple motivations of varying strengths. Tiers of reasons for fighting approaches this, but ultimately I think it a separate issue from writing good characters. Single-mindedness isn't even a bad thing + Show Spoiler +
(see Sumika's "Kill. Kill. Kill.")
Degrees of Resolve: Similar to the idea that one cursory reason is not enough to risk one's life, MLA illustrates that neither is a weak resolve. It also pounds into the reader that no matter how much resolve you think you have, you probably don't have enough. One thing that bothered me here is that resolve is almost never a question for any of the Valkyries + Show Spoiler +
risking or giving their lives
, so all we are left with is mourning and respect of the deeds
What You Take for Granted: The reader may think shades of this in Unlimited, with the world-building of a strange and foreign place where food is synthetic but entertainment is handmade. Indeed, Takeru's normally innocuous GameGuy becomes some sort of unhealthy aberration in Unlimited. But the fact that his peaceful world is so exceptional only hits home in MLA when Takeru+ Show Spoiler +
first teleports back to the world of MLE and its branches
Who Am I?:
+ Show Spoiler +
Takeru, Sumika, and Kasumi are all cluster-fucks of other people, memories, identities. In his PTSD flight, Takeru merges with MLE branch Takeru, but our narrator soon realizes that he is some unnatural scourge on his universe. Well we later find out that our narrator is some super Takeru archon made from the merging of innumerable fragments of Takeru templar across the multiverses. OK what the fuck is that I don't even-
Unit 00 Sumika is some sort of quantum psychic robot borne from Takeru's memories of Sumika (indirectly of all the Sumika's of all the world's he was built from), Kasumi's memories of Takeru's memories of Sumika, and a thoroughly disembodied brain and spine whose only thoughts for several years were "I want to meet Takeru-chan" and "I want to kill [BETA presumably]"
Kasumi assumedly has such a suffering past that she too wants to get in on all this personality amalgamation by taking memories with her psychic hijinks.
The point is: what makes a personality? What makes an identity? Muvluv seems to imply that memories play a key role in the identity. Otherwise Unit 00 would be... thoroughly unstable. On the other hand, Kasumi remains essentially different from Sumika, aside from borrowing a few habits.
Muvluv also offers the social answer: that we are who we are remembered as. This is delivered both in the pseudo-quantum-babble concept of a person existing only while remembered, and in the heroic concept of a man (or woman in the case of Muvluv) becoming his legend.
Unit 00 Sumika is some sort of quantum psychic robot borne from Takeru's memories of Sumika (indirectly of all the Sumika's of all the world's he was built from), Kasumi's memories of Takeru's memories of Sumika, and a thoroughly disembodied brain and spine whose only thoughts for several years were "I want to meet Takeru-chan" and "I want to kill [BETA presumably]"
Kasumi assumedly has such a suffering past that she too wants to get in on all this personality amalgamation by taking memories with her psychic hijinks.
The point is: what makes a personality? What makes an identity? Muvluv seems to imply that memories play a key role in the identity. Otherwise Unit 00 would be... thoroughly unstable. On the other hand, Kasumi remains essentially different from Sumika, aside from borrowing a few habits.
Muvluv also offers the social answer: that we are who we are remembered as. This is delivered both in the pseudo-quantum-babble concept of a person existing only while remembered, and in the heroic concept of a man (or woman in the case of Muvluv) becoming his legend.
The Inevitable Selfishness of Man: MLA shows us the humanity of an apocalypse on the brink of destruction. In an ironic twist of the supposition that many reasons are needed to fight, MLA shows people clashing to advance their reasons, even slaughtering each other for them. We have Yuuko using everyone around her like game pieces, we have American policy focused on domination of some hypothetical post-BETA world, and we see even Takeru initially focused more on jumpstarting his squad's combat skills than their social bonds.
The Indomitable Selflessness of Man: Muvluv constantly beats into your head the glory of heroic sacrifice in battle. I've heard people complain about this theme, likening it to Imperial Japan's ultra-nationalism and kamikaze spirit or some shit. Well fuck that. The game pretty much stops giving a shit about the Shogunate or the Imperial system after the coup d'etat arc. When I talk about selflessness I mean + Show Spoiler +
that Admiral who moved his fleet right next to the laser infested shores of Sadogashima to screen his allies. I mean those nameless mechanized infantry platoons that tried to hold the main shaft of Yokohama base. I mean the Captain of the Lafayette who body-blocked all the lasers of the Original Hive to get the last hope of humanity on the ground.
Delivery:
The writing almost never impressed with sheer elegance, style, or wit. Figurative language was limited, though there were few moments like the "tsunami of BETA" that gave me pause. Overall there weren't really any points when I thought "That, language-wise, was actually a brilliant way of putting it." That's probably a result of Muvluv being dialogue-heavy. It had such sparse exposition that it read more like anime subtitles or a play script than any sort of novel. The quality of visuals and SFX made that a fine choice.
Overall: 94
I really enjoyed what I read, even if the writing itself wasn't mind-blowing. I especially liked how everything connected.
Pacing
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/pN0se.jpg)
I'll make this quick. Muvluv's main flaws are that it forces you to endure several hours of intentionally trite slice of life plus another several hours of unfulfilling training arc to even begin the story proper. It also has problems being concise in its lectures. All the mandatory lectures have information that enrich the story, but I feel they somehow take longer than necessary. If I wanted more lecturing I'd go to graduate school or some shit, not read a tale of love and courage. Even in the story proper I was sometimes bothered by how long it took Meiya to tell me to man up or for the Valkyries to discuss formations and teamwork or for Takeru to explain combos. Conversations overall felt very long as if the writer was compelled to go into comprehensive detail for each one.
Overall: 47
I made this a separation section since Muvluv's has such unique problems, but it shouldn't be a deterrent. Most of the content is placed with purpose, even if it can be laborious to digest.
Final Rating: 93
"But Echo the composite of-" No. Fuck math. I don't care if parts of this game had problems. This is what I'm rating it.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/n2LBy.jpg)
