English Dub Review: Tower of God “BALL”

https://youtu.be/2Z9bcI_RlsM

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Tower of God exists in a universe where an ultra-gigantic Tower is the be-all-end-all relic of the world. The Tower consists of hundreds of levels of grueling challenges, but whoever is able to reach the top is granted their greatest desire. When Bam, an intrepid boy with a simple life see’s his best friend Rachel head off into the Tower, he follows after her and gets ready for the adventure of his life. Upon entry into the Tower, Bam learns a lot about himself and the other warriors that he’s up against. Bam has a lot to understand about the ways of the Tower and what’s truly at stake here, but in spite of his naivety to his new surroundings he’s still able to befriend some helpful allies before he gets too deep into this. Bam doesn’t even have the chance to properly gather his bearings before he’s already thrown into the first test of the Tower and faces the danger of elimination.

Our Take:

Shonen anime always face an uphill battle. It’s a genre of anime that often turns out some of the most popular series of all time, but it also has a high return rate for long-running programs that are just derivative of better series. Tower of God is a series that’s built a serious reputation over the years as an online webcomic. It’s a story that people hold in high regard and Crunchyroll put so much stock in it that they announced that they’d be turning it into an anime for one of their first original productions. There’s a lot of pressure on a project like Tower of God, but this first episode is a real success. Tower of God is very familiar, but it also stands out and feels fresh in a genre that’s bloated with content.

Tower of God revolves a fantastical Tower of unbelievable proportions and even though the spectacle of this prison is important, this show is more curious about the vast fantasies that push people to enter the Tower in the first place. The things that drive people in life, whether it’s honor, pride, revenge, riches, fame, or freedom are all valid motivations to push someone forward. However, what makes Bam such a fascinating protagonist in this series is that he’s driven by something much simpler, but equally important. Bam’s quest is for the companionship of another person that truly understands him. He seems to have found that in Rachel and when she abandons him to head into the Tower, Bam—who’s never shown interest in this challenge before—is now ready to rush in to be reunited with her. Bam argues that life is not worth living without Rachel and even though it’s too early to get a real sense of these characters yet, Bam’s commitment is clear.

What’s also so interesting about Bam’s mission here is that it seems like it could be an inherently misguided venture. Right from the start Rachel tells Bam to not follow after and that he should forget about her. Obviously there’s no series if Bam listens to her, but it should be very intriguing to see how all of this comes to pass once Bam and Rachel reunite or if he does reach the top of the Tower. It’s one thing to be gifted riches or fame, but when the prize you seek is another person, that adds a complicated element to all of this. Bam’s mission, at its core, is to be with someone who seems like she was actively trying to avoid him. That’s a very compelling light to portray the protagonist in and it seems like this series will be just as much about Bam getting over Rachel and learning that there’s more in life as it will be about him reaching the top.

Tower of God has a giant world to introduce, but it handles the task surprisingly well. “BALL” does a good job at establishing the baseline of the Tower’s important and how to build the legend around it, but without drowning in exposition or slowing down the pacing of this first episode. It knows which details are the right ones to throw at Bam and the audience in order to provoke questions rather than frustration. There’s such a personality to this world and touches like the use of “turtle” as an insult really go far.

A lot of this world-building is so easy to digest because of the excellent cast of supporting characters that Bam encounters once he enters the Tower. Rak is the first to really take Bam under his wing and he’s an effective guide to how the Tower operates. Most of Bam’s time is spent with Headon, who operates as the Tower’s guide and administrator. It doesn’t take long for Bam to get shown the ropes before he’s left to mingle with others. Yuri is already a very complex foil for Bam and there’s a good chemistry between them. There are some other character entrances that are reserved for the final minutes of the episode, but they still make an impact.

Another satisfying aspect about “BALL” is that it actually allows Bam to do the first test, whereas so many other shows would have ended the first episode right as he’s introduced to the test. Right from the start it shows that Tower of God doesn’t want to jerk its audience around. Hopefully this is an example of the pacing that the show regularly moves at and that this anime prioritizes action over large stretches of filler. It could really go both ways here since Tower of God has years of content available for the anime to pull from, but the decision to hit the ground running with this first episode is a smart strategy that already makes Tower of God’s structure feel addictive.

What also really works with this first episode is that the test that Bam and company face is an actual riddle of sorts that takes some ingenuity on their parts, rather than just some enemy that needs to be punched hard a bunch of times. It gives Tower of God an escape room-esque quality that’s a lot of fun. It’s unclear if every episode will place such a focus on the tests, but there’s already something addictive about the idea of a new test each episode that challenges a totally different skill set. Many of the best episodes from other shonen series like Dragon Ball, Yu Yu Hakusho, or Demon Slayer are when the challenges they face think outside the box and extend beyond action. Tower of God may be a series that’s made entirely out of that idea, which is very exciting.

There’s plenty of action and attractive fight choreography on display in “BALL,” but what’s even more exciting is Bam’s solution to this White Steel Eel and Ball test. The task seems simple enough: Bam just needs to break the ball that’s being guarded by a ferocious white steel eel. Before Bam even begins this challenge he learns that he’s someone that qualifies as an “Irregular,” which means that he’s someone that’s weaker than the “Regulars” that have entered the Tower.

Bam immediately gets swallowed by the eel once his test begins, but this seems to actually be the secret to the challenge. The ball is inside the eel’s mouth and even though Bam wails away at it, he doesn’t make any progress. It’s only after the Black March that he’s been gifted by Yuri activates that he’s able to shatter it and complete the challenge.

Bam succeeds, but he somehow loses consciousness and wakes up on the next level in the middle of disarray. It appears that there won’t be any kind of reprieve before the next challenge and that this one is going to be a lot more dangerous and bring even more competitors into the fray. The number of people needs to be reduced from 400 to 200 in this round and the level of chaos that’s present makes it seem like that won’t be difficult.

Tower of God’s story and structure do a lot of things right, but the show’s aesthetic is another area that’s going to stand out to audiences. The show’s animation style is quite unique in the sense that its use of lines sometimes seems rougher, but it works in the show’s favor. There’s a clash of styles at play, but it creates a distinct look that’s full of tiny details that stand out. It may take a second to get used to, but it becomes oddly comforting. There are also certain other stylistic flairs featured throughout the episode, like the crayon-like sketched style that’s used for the expository scenes on the Tower. They’re gorgeous and help add a fable aesthetic to all of this. Hopefully the series will continue to break from form in exciting visual ways as the season progresses.

Crunchyroll also appears to have gone all out when it comes to the series’ dub cast. It’s always a delight when Johnny Yong Bosch is involved with a series and even though he’s solid as Bam, it seems like he’d be better suited for the more proactive role of Khun, rather than Bam who can be quite the stoic and introspective hero here. Kira Buckland is intimidating and inspiring as Yuri, Valerie Rose Lohman seems to be a promising Rachel, and although his appearance is brief, Chris Hackney brings a mysterious energy to Khun. The rest of the cast also excels and features people like Christopher Swindle, Jeannie Tirado, and Cristina Vee, who should get some nice opportunities to show off this season as they all get higher up the Tower.

Tower of God makes a fantastic first impression and it’s an encouraging effort from the new Crunchyroll Original slate of content. “BALL” effectively introduces this expansive world without overwhelming the audience and already builds a thrilling sense of adventure. Bam is still somewhat passive as a main character, but his supporting crew look to be an entertaining lot that will probably steal the show a lot of the time. Between these enjoyable characters and the unconventional obstacles that they face, Tower of God feels like appointment viewing and like it could easily be one of the year’s biggest hits.

On to Level 2, turtles.