LogFAQs > #969430988

NOTE: This has a sequel movie, but I haven't watched it yet because it's apparently going to be a six movie series. Rather than wait years at a time between them, I'll just wait a decade until it's all done.

29. Princess Principal
https://myanimelist.net/anime/35240/Princess_Principal
Summer 2017 (12 episodes)
My Score: 9/10, MAL Score: 7.70/10
Best Character: Ange le Carr

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QjqkATvH9M

Premise: At the height of its power, a revolution split the Kingdom of Albion in half. A large wall divides the city of London, and spies like Ange le Carre work in the shadows.

The Good: Princess Principal is a spy anime set in an alternate history steampunk setting. The main divergence is that Albion, the alternate version of Britain, discovered a technology that let them alter gravity. A fleet of airships made Albion the undisputed world power, at least until the lower classes rose up in revolution and split it in half between the Kingdom and the new Commonwealth. A large wall divides the city of London, and spies regularly operate on both sides. Ange is a top spy for the Commonwealth, and her team often gets difficult assignments. She has also managed to recruit Princess Charlotte, who is fourth in line for the Kingdom's throne.

I really enjoyed Princess Principal. It isn't flawless, and I'll talk about a few problems in the bad section. I just really liked all five of the main characters. The serial liar Ange was my favorite for reasons I'll cover in her write-up, but everyone on the team was fun and had unique skills. Dorothy is the driver and seductress, an adult pretending to be in high-school. Beatrice is a mostly normal girl but she can mimic anyone's voice, which proves useful. Chise is a samurai who is monitoring the conflict in Albion for her master (I guess at least one character needed to be Japanese). And, lastly, there's the princess Charlotte who joins the team for her own reasons. All of them are great, and I like their team dynamic.

The stories are mostly episodic with each covering one assignment, but theres also an overarching spy plot building up in the background. I really like the animes tone. It stars five high-school girls, but this isn't a cute girls anime. While it isn't devoid of comedy, the focus is on the serious spy action, and it gets pretty dark at times. Another spy anime I ranked really low was Release the Spyce. That one was ruined because it tried to be a cute girls spy anime while still having serious stuff, and the two conflicting tones ruined each other. I was glad Princess Principal chose the serious side and stuck with it, because it did a great job.

The Bad: The episodes are out of order chronologically and I'm not exactly sure why. It doesn't ruin the anime or anything, it's just baffling. I can see arguments for some of them, but one episode heavily features Chise and then the next episode introduces Chise. Why did those need to be out of order? There are also a few times when the story creates drama seemingly just for the sake if it. I preferred the conflicts that were more logically rooted in the spy assignments.

Overall: Princess Principal was an excellent spy anime. It had occasional lighthearted or comedic moments, but for the most part it was serious. The characters were all unique and they had a great dynamic. My biggest complaint is the episode order, but thats a nitpick overall. The story between Ange and Charlotte was more than good enough to outweigh any flaws.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/5/9/8/AAcDcBAAD4b-.jpg

CHARACTER: Ange le Carr (Princess Principal)
https://myanimelist.net/character/150943/Ange_le_Carr%C3%A9
Voiced by: Imamura Ayaka
TOP 100 RANK: 15th

SPOILERS FOR PRINCESS PRINCIPAL (First season only)

VIDEO LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OITlDCssAww

Ange is an excellent spy. That much is clear from the beginning. The video I linked is from the first episode. She all but admits that nothing she says is true, and some lies are obviously like her being from another planet. She's still so great at lying that I believed a lot of the little things she said. She expertly figures out the defector is a double agent thanks to clues anyone else would've missed. Then she bluffs him into dropping a loaded gun by telling him it was unloaded. And, just to confirm this won't be a cute girls spy anime, Ange shoots the guy dead. The only happy part about any of this is that Ange also took out insurance on the guy to help his sick little sister.

She has a clear soft spot for the children who have been orphaned and forgotten by the horrific state of the world. Eventually, the reason why becomes clear in a really awesome reveal. Ange was actually originally the princess Charlotte. She befriended a commoner lookalike, and they had switched places on the fateful day of the revolution. Ange was forced to find her way in the unstable Commonwealth, and she became a spy mostly to reunite with Charlotte. Ange once had a dream of becoming Queen and fixing the broken world. Now Charlotte is the one dedicated to making it happen. I really like the dynamic those two have.

Beyond all of that, Ange is also just a cool character. She carries herself with such quiet confidence, and she has the skills to back it up. Her gravity-altering C-ball leads to lots of neat action moments. I also like her background with Charlotte. Ange can act happy and vulnerable with her, the one person in the world who knows the truth about her. And Ange is dedicated to keeping Charlotte safe. Towards the end, even if Ange hadnt been set up as a liar, I would've known she was lying when she agreed to kill Charlotte. The last few episodes get a bit too dark for my tastes, but I was glad the two of them were able to get through together.