#I'm going to dive into Zeus' route as soon as I post this btw

[shummashum]

Since I first got into this game in Feb 2023, I've somehow managed to watch the story from Season 1 to Season 5, from Elias Goldstein to Mel Glover (thx youtube)

So? I'm going to write some reviews about them

1. 13-day System

The main story, from Season 1 to Season 5 (hereinafter Previous Seasons), takes place during Liz Hart's period as a provisional student at the academy

The story consists of a total of 12 days + 1 ending day, of which Day 11 is divided into 3 parts... Exposition, Complication, Crisis, and Climax — everything has to be done in 11 days

Therefore, the narrative flow of previous seasons is bound to go relatively shallow

This is where problems start to arise

The so-called fateful love or love at first sight tends to occur in a short period of time, and as WH Sekai is a world where magic exists, relatively dramatic developments can happen... But how many people can reveal the backstories buried deep in their hearts to someone they've only known for a few days

Of course, Solmare must have known about this. So what was suggested as the solution was...

"The World of Images" (I mean 心像世界 but I don't know how to translate it properly)

It's simple: it's difficult to unravel the character's mystery and develop the main plot in just 11 days, so let's uncover the hidden truth and emotions through The World of Images — interactable landscapes that reflect the psyche!

I'm not meaning The World of Images itself is a bad thing; if used well, nice and dramatic results can be achieved. But I felt The World of Images of previous seasons was so focused on conveying hidden facts and backstories that it didn't really touch me

That "time travel" in Klaus 1 route was not bad at least. Honestly the keyword itself feels a bit out of the blue, but I'm somewhat satisfied with it because the foreshadowing itself exists (I'm not telling about the quality)

But the way I see it, the problem starts with Azusa

The World of Images began to unfold under the name of 〈Time to explore a parallel world with a mysterious butterfly!!〉, and I guess the writer must have felt that this was really good to use, she(he?) started using it for everything including Joel, Vincent, Leon, Glenn, etc…

Although it disappeared in Season 5, the description of learning all the hidden truths at once in a short period did not change — and it was the biggest problem, dammit

But this isn't the only problem

While the stories of Season 1 and Season 2 progress along the lines of individual desires, the keyword "world destruction" begins to appear in any form from Season 3 onwards. And we must remember that all parts of the story (except the Falling Action) have to be completed within 11 days

Can a story that deals with the destruction of the world in 11 days be of good quality? I cannot give a positive answer to this

Come to think of it, in Season 1 and Season 2, where Luca and Azusa act as villains with their individual desires, the world will continue to run fine even if those two achieve their goals. Even if Luca gets the Dragon Eye / even if Azusa gets the unicorn horn, there will be no change for ordinary people not related to them

But signs of the destruction of the world began to appear and… At this point, I cannot help but think the plot is going too far

(And if it's a matter of the world's survival, shouldn't the Ministry of Magic handle it? Why is Liz, who is just a provisional student, solving everything? Why is the Ministry so incompetent huh)

Aren't these problems ultimately a limitation of the game structure itself, the 13-day system. There are bound to be limits to unraveling the increasingly large main plot in a short period of less than two weeks, and in the end, the backstories are revealed as if running out of time, and it becomes difficult to get immersed in it

Is it not so? I feel somewhat detached

As far as I know, from season 6, it is divided into Chapters instead of Days. Of course, even if it is a chapter system, the amount of story for each character won't be very different from the 13-day system

Still, wouldn't the quality of development be better if the time passing within the story was longer

And I heard that the story of Season 6 continues beyond that, so maybe much deeper developments that require a lot of time will be possible (please tell me I'm right)

2. Reviews for Each Season

Season 1: The Tower of Sorrow

tsundere(tm) + playboy-like + curse/eyepatch/transform… classic classic

Elias was the one I played the first. He was the character at the top of the list, and I wanted to watch the story from the beginning. But it was 100% tsundere from shoujo manga in those days so I was a little freaked out (it's not that I didn't expect it though)

btw why is he like that on his route when he's like a trustworthy friend on other routes. how much pressure did he feel about his grades and so on, I mean it's understandable though

Yukiya was honestly great, I say his story is worth reading. A bit of a cliche, but reminded me why clichés are used: provide a stable taste

However, it is a bit disappointing that the settings regarding his curse are not unified. It's not a curse but just a contract with Seth in the main story, so why did it become a curse in the sequel?

And the villainous, Luca

I interpret him as a character who is unable to withstand the discipline that restricts him in any form because of being locked up as a child, and who longs for freedom but feels only emptiness even in a "freedom state" that arises from ignoring the rules

Okay, this is good... But I was scratched and I don't know why. Luca in Season 2 onwards is a great supporting role, but Luca in Season 1 keeps scratching my mind and that bothers me

Season 2: The Spring of Unicorn

This is my favorite and the reason is clear

Klaus… What do I need to say about him? His story tasted very familiar; the plot goes exactly according to the standard of shoujo manga (It's not that it doesn't taste good though)

Eh… actually I don't have much to say. I liked that there was a bunch of Azusa's villain behavior. Hmm

Randy, I mean Serge, was definitely great, his story is also worth reading

I think the true protagonist of Season 2 is Serge; The tangled events of Season 2 are centered around him, and in the timeline where Liz is connected with Serge, Season 2 comrades eventually find some comfort at least!

But one thing I can't agree with is his catchphrase, "There is no failure or right or wrong answers in magic." Isn't it a bit weird for someone who lost his best friend to a "fail" of magic to say something like that

Erm… I don't know

And another villainous, Azusa

This must have happened:

A: Now let's make up Azusa's route

B: But isn't deceiving and taking advantage of Liz a pattern that has already been used with Luca

A: Hmm… now that I think about it, you're right

C: They say young kids these days like spiciness! If we add some capsaicin, it'll be good

A: Let's fucking go

But they fumble while rolling the dice

To be honest, I don't like this kind of shallow salvation. I like the flow of emotions colliding with each other, but smashing "twisted love愛 built up over years" with "romance恋 built up about 10 days"? Well…

And Solmare, please, why are you eager to justify him okay I got it I understand he has his own reason (and I like the reason) but please please don't I don't want this asshole to be labeled as "just a poor guy with a broken heart" please??

oh well

Season 3: The King of Fairies

A: I'm tired of one of the romanceable characters being a villain. Let’s make the main antagonist a non-romanceable character!

So the fairy king Oberon appears

Joel was honestly quite good… I like that kind of damn personality. The argument between Joel and Eress was very funny, I really like it when those with a damn personality fight childishly

btw his concept was the forgotten childhood friend, he's bound to lose every time a new romanceable character comes out then... he suits BSS so well omg

In my personal opinion Vincent's visiting student concept is fucking ×3 unreasonable and stupid... In other stories except Season 3 (as far as I know), he appears as just a Ministry of Magic agent 1. And it was much better that way honestly

And Liz is so helpless in his route!!

okay, it might have been to highlight Vincent's attributes as a knight… but I don't like it

and raising a baby dad? What the fuck is this It's fucking ×3 creepy omfg

If there's anything worth noting in Season 3, it's related to Leon: All of the events in Season 3 happened because of Leon's actions, but he doesn't act as an antagonist

Personally, I'm not a fan of those "teaching emotions" stories, but his happy/unhappy endings are fuck dammit Those saved his whole story I dare say, his ending was the global maximum of the previous seasons

Season 4: The Princess of Crystal

Season 4 feels similar to Season 1 and Season 2? There was quite a bit of the story that unfolded in the classroom, providing glimpses into the narrative of a Season 1 comrade as well (such as Yukiya being despised by his classmates), and the formula of a romanceable character taking on the role of a villain was applied too

Cerim was, well, I thought he had quite a damn personality because he stabbed Liz in the neck with a wand in the preview… I was a bit surprised that he was nicer, milder, and more normal than I expected

But! I don't agree with making him confess, kiss, and propose first while giving him that insensitive attribute

Guy was quite good, I enjoyed it

But on one hand, it feels like the full potential of his story was not revealed because he was with the positive queen Liz??

I mean, a genius pretending to be an ordinary person ← This is a very good element to stimulate feelings of inferiority you know... Liz just thought "Oh he's awesome!" and moved on, but think about how he would interact if paired with an ordinary person with an inferiority complex

Yeah?

But!! I was very, very disappointed in Glenn

I honestly had really high expectations for this story, but why the fuck did the story unfold like shit. Why did that fucking rabbit suddenly jump out, why were they recklessly delving into his backstory with the necklace he dropped without his permission — besides it's just ridiculous, it was revealed so hastily. Why on earth do they let me know nothing until Day 10 and then say it all at once on Day 11-1 hello??

And I was dumbfounded watching Aster vanished with that fucking song

wait what WHAT Is this the end? Seriously? What will happen to Guy if we get rid of Aster like that? Oi? You guys are taking away his chance to untie the knot in his heart like that? Is this right??

Uh… Anyway, it was a bit disappointing, I didn't expect the climax would be this unremarkable

Season 5: The Sol Maiden's

Looks like Solmare made a big decision… because in Season 5, the main instigator behind all this only appears in the final route

Leslie was easy to watch, he had no hidden story at all, plus I like his damn personality

But all the stories were Leslie is amazing~ Leslie is awesome~... eh seriously

Sigurd was, actually, I saw a review about him before starting his route: "The writing is sick, but the plot is shit."

After reading the whole story, I really understood what it meant… I really don't have anything more to say than that

Mel was, what can I say… Wasn't he a nerd? Why is he acting so sly

Mel's route provides an answer to the question of why the villain did not appear in the other routes in Season 5. Kate, the villain in Season 5, was gathering power from all worlds, and her plans were foiled by Liz in other timelines so she couldn't reveal herself… that was the case

I didn't think Kate was a villain because she appeared with too much villain vibe. Since Mel showed an uncooperative attitude in Sigurd's route, I thought Mel would be the antagonist and Kate would act as a helper... But she WAS a villain (duh)

What? She has the ability to cross alternate realities? You just throw such a big fact without any foreshadowing? Are you insane Solmare

Well, I did like the twist that the voice of the magic tree that was continuously heard was actually created by Kate (I saw through it in advance though — I didn't trust the tree because it didn't teach me how to help; it just fucking complained about needing assistance)

And please stop with that damn transformation gimmick PLEASE why do you guys keep changing Liz's clothes like a magical girl, dammit it's not cool at all, it's just stupid as fuck

3. Overall Review

I really think these stories in previous seasons have potential. They could definitely become a highly stimulating and delicious story if it were done a little more… but it doesn't work out that way

And why the FUCK are they already getting engaged after just meeting each other. Is this how all Gen Z live these days? Or am I just fucking narrow-minded

Erm... I decided to look forward to Season 6. It'll definitely become more interesting since the cataclysm occurred. Right?