REVIEW: ‘Chained Soldier’ Season 1 Delivers

Yûki Wakura (Yuya Hirose) was living an ordinary life as a teen whose world is besieged by monsters. Beings known as Shuuki randomly appear on Earth, threatening humanity. Protecting the people is the Demon Defense Force. Individuals who eat a magical fruit gain special powers to join the DDF and protect the world. But only females can gain these powers. This leaves Yûki and his dreams of being a hero behind. Until a chance encounter with Commander Kyôka Uzen (Akari Kitô, Birdei Wing: Girl’s Golf Story) gives him the chance he’s wished for in Chained Soldier Season 1 from Seven Arcs.

Yûki’s chance to become the hero he’s always dreamed of being stems from Kyôka’s power. She can make a pact with a person. When she does, they can transform in battle and serve as an extension of the commander’s already formidable strength. In the past, Kyôka has always brought errant Shuuki under her will. Yûki’s arrival during a perilous battle creates a new opportunity. With nothing to lose, she bonds with the strange boy she’s just met. Yûki’s powers vastly exceed what Kyôka has seen from others. This opens the opportunity for him to join her Seventh Squad.

Chained Soldier Season 1 follows its protagonist from these opening moments as he grows accustomed to his new life. Yûki must deal with overcoming threats, learning to harness his powers, serving as his squad house’s caretaker, and mingling with his new squadmates. While there are plenty of challenges ahead, the biggest one often comes when the fighting ends.

After every time Yûki transforms, Kyôka must reward him. Kyôka is compelled to fulfill this reward. Yûki’s subconscious chooses the reward’s form. And as it turns out, his subconscious is pretty kinky. The sexual nature of many of his rewards is the core focus of the extensive fan service that litters the series. As each battle demands more of Yûki, his rewards get more intimate.

While it is central to the fan service throughout Chained Soldier Season 1 it is by no means the only source. Living in a dorm with only girls, accidental mishaps abound as Yûki finds himself in one awkward situation after another. And in case you read sarcasm in the previous sentence, they are truly accidental. Yûki never goes out of his way to perv on any of his compatriots. This is important for the character.

As one might expect from the setup, over the course of the season, many of the ladies in Yûki’s life come to crush on him pretty hard. The shenanigans and innocent plots some of the more enthusiastic admirers hatch range from humorous to eye-rolling. Chained Soldier Season 1 mostly approaches this element with levity, allowing the silliness to take over. There are a few moments of genuine feeling between Yûki and one of his would-be suitors. These moments deliver well enough.

While the fan service and harem qualities in Chained Soldier Season 1 are too big to ignore, the show makes a point to keep them in their lanes. Awkward camera angles don’t interupt important character moments are not interrupted by. Neither is combat undercut by needless battle damage to uniforms that conveniently show off the girls’ large chests. When the series gets serious, it stays that way.

While the show makes sure to give the serious moments their space, it still only manages to get so much out of them. The characters are fine. Their arcs follow well-trodden paths that anime fans will be familiar with. From the outcast who struggles to escape the judgment of her family to Yûki’s quest to be a hero, fans have seen everything here before. And they’ve probably seen it done better.

Much like the narrative and characters, the action is always fine. There is a good measure of unique abilities at play here. These provide variety to the combat that action series sometimes lack. Even with this variety though, the combat in Chained Soldier Season 1 rarely wows. Seven Arcs provides a solid presentation that allows viewers to follow along cleanly, but rarely truly pulls you in.

While Chained Soldier Season 1 manages to deliver some enjoyable elements, it never breaks out into something exceptional. Combine the mediocrity of its best elements with a level of fan service many will find off-putting and you have a passable series.

Chained Soldier Season 1 is streaming on HiDive.