English Dub Season Review: Date A Live Season Three

A opposed to what, Date a Dead?

Overview  

Shido Itsuka is one of the only humans with knowledge of Spirits, a race of superpowered alien girls who come to Earth periodically to wreak havoc. In order to prevent the destruction of Tengu City, Shido must date each Spirit, make her fall for him, and seal her power inside himself. Think Lilo & Stitch the Series, but as a dating sim!

In this third season of Date A Live, Shido contends with Natsumi, a sexy, witchlike Spirit with deeply held insecurities. When Shido catches sight of her childlike true form, Natsumi swears vengeance, disguising herself as one of Shido’s friends. If Shido can figure out which one is Natsumi by the time three days are up, she’ll concede his win—otherwise, Shido’s friends will disappear forever.

Five years ago, Origami Tobiichi watched as a Spirit murdered her parents. Now, Origami agrees to join the AST, an organization dedicated to eradicating Spirits, to get her revenge. But when Origami discovers a dark secret about her past, she plunges into despair. In order to save her—and Tengu City—Shido teams up with rogue spirit Kurumi to travel back in time.

Our Take (Spoilers Below!) 

It’s hard to know what to make of Date A Live because its tone vacillates so wildly. On the one hand, there’s the overdone fanservice tropes, the cheesy humor, the extreme sexualization of underage girls. Ten minutes later, girls struggle with depression and poor self-esteem, satellites threaten to destroy the Earth, and epic battles commence. When I focus on the plot and characters of this series, I find myself remembering it fondly. When I recall the time Shido dressed as a pimp and put a bunch of elementary-school-aged children—dressed as playboy bunnies, no less—in cages, I find myself souring towards Date A Live considerably.

While the dialogue is often genuinely funny, other jokes rely heavily on clichés. There’s nothing new or exciting about watching Shido force himself to eat a badly prepared stew because his girlfriends made it for him with love. Serious issues like sexual assault are made light of, and half the “humorous” moments in this show are simply excuses to put young girls in bathing suits or furry fetish costumes.

Yet there’s genuine heart to be found in Date A Live. Shido’s goal of winning over each Spirit is based on the idea that there’s good in everyone, that everyone deserves a second chance and a loving found family. The climax of Origami’s storyline—where Shido literally breaks down the walls she’s put up around her heart in order to be there for her—is heartwarming and satisfying. Origami’s anguish feels real and earned, and the various twists throughout—that she killed her own parents, that in the new timeline she joined the AST to avenge Shido instead—are chilling and intriguing.

Still, the best of intentions don’t always translate into stellar execution: Natsumi’s storyline, while it hints at an admirable moral of how you don’t need to change yourself to find acceptance, also undermines itself at every turn. Shido suggests that Natsumi should alter her appearance with makeup and clothing rather than magic, and even when she finally gets it into her head that the Spirits will love her no matter what she looks like, Natsumi continues to transform into her sexualized magical form at every opportunity, meaning that her arc is never really resolved. While this storyline could have been a powerful commentary on the way young girls feel forced to sexualize themselves in order to prove their worth, the nuance needed to explore the issue fully just isn’t there. Instead, the show sexualizes children again and again.

Other characters present opportunities for more positive messages, such as when Shido assures Tohka that she’ll be attractive to him even if she eats out an entire buffet. The friendship between Natsumi and Yoshino is adorably innocent, and it’s refreshing to see the frankness in Yuzuru and Shido’s relationship, as Yuzuru reveals that the thing she wants most from a boyfriend is just honesty and clear communication. But Yuzuru’s frantic love confession to Shido is never given any kind of follow-up, and while I’m very glad Shido ended up romantically involved with Tohka, their happy ending is rushed enough to be ambiguous. When Shido is in the habit of dating approx. seven girls at once, it’s a little unclear what any of them mean to him—and especially confusing why none of them seem to care that he’s so unfaithful. Speaking of plotlines that could use more follow-through—what’s going on with DEM? Are we just cool that they tried to raze a city by crashing a satellite into the Earth? What are Woodman and James up to now?

The mystery presented by Natsumi, though, is excellently executed, with high suspense and a rewarding conclusion. The dates Shido goes on are generally fun and quirky, and the concept behind them—a roomful of people advising Shido by voting on dating sim dialogue options—is delightfully silly. Battles are exciting, if a little drawn-out. And the animation in this series is generally successful. Spirits wear elaborate outfits with bright colors and poofy skirts, and we get to see every major character as an adorable little kid. The art department here is especially well-versed in the creation of pretty sunset backdrops. Plus, Go Sakabe’s score raises the series’ stakes with its sometimes jazzy, sometimes classical, always heart-pumping tunes.

Other than the egregious fanservice, most of my gripes about this show are in the details—little interesting plot elements that are brought up once and never again, short confusing sequences that don’t make much sense. Why did Shido decide to use Yud Bet to save Origami’s parents exclusively? How does negative energy affect Natsumi’s powers? What really made Origami change her mind so that she’s suddenly dead-set on killing all Spirits?

If you can stand the grating, pervasive sexualization of teen girls, I’d give this show a try. The battles are exciting, the Spirits likable, and the messages generally wholesome. Despite inducing some frustration, I do think watching it made my happiness levels rise.