'Princess Connect! Re:Dive' Doesn't Have Much Substance, but It's Funny, Pretty, and Relaxing

So, this spring 2020 season, I just watched my very first anime series adaptation of a gacha RPG for mobile devices, and that’s Princess Connect! Re:Dive.  I usually don’t watch this kind of anime series since I feel that they simply serve as glorified advertisements for their gacha game source materials.  However, Princess Connect! Re:Dive turned out being pretty decent.

Set in a run-of-the-mill anime fantasy setting, the story follows Yuuki, an amnesiac, half-witted swordsman who makes up for his ineptitude with his resolve, gentleness, and heart; Pecorine, a super-strong, bubbly swordswoman with a voracious appetite who can cook as extremely well as she fights; Kokkoro, a timid elf who’s skilled in support magic and who has taken upon herself the duty of being the childlike Yuuki’s guide/protector; and Kyaru, a loner catgirl sorceress who’s torn between her mission and the bonds she has developed with her new friends.  Soon after coming across with each other, they decide to form a gourmet guild that goes on fun adventures across the land when not enjoying good food together.

The thing that initially appealed to me the most about this anime was the comedy.  Now, it’s not necessarily brimming with jokes, but when it does deliver them, the comedic timing is impeccable.  And no wonder it is so, since its director is the same one who directed the comedy gem KonoSuba.  The gags are rather wholesome, and thus, mild.  But because of the excellent execution, they can sometimes get as potent as KonoSuba’s darkest joke.  There’s especially this recurring gag in the pilot involving wolves that had me completely in stitches (that’s the best joke of the series, though).  This anime might not be a laugh riot, but humor is definitely one of its positives nonetheless.

It’s also a complete eye candy.  The animation is colorful and exquisite.  There’s attention to detail.  Action scenes are beautifully explosive.  And the character designs are gorgeous.  In relation to this, this anime is a waifu lover’s delight as it features an extensive variety of stunning waifus (it’s based on a gacha game after all).

The hiring of the director of KonoSuba and the dazzling visual presentation can be indications that there’s creative effort put into this project, that it’s not just a half-hearted attempt to promote the game.

That being said, Princess Connect! Re:Dive isn’t exactly great.  You won’t miss anything big if you skip watching this anime.  In fact, I personally am not certain if I will still watch the next season.  It’s because it doesn’t really have anything notably profound or unique to offer.  What it offers are things that countless other anime can also offer – often in much better ways.  While it gratifies in style, it doesn’t have much substance.  Neither its premise nor plot are truly remarkable.

On the other hand, its disposability and lack of weightiness also yields an advantage.  As a result of these, Princess Connect! Re:Dive pleases as an easy-to-digest anime.  It’s quite chill.  It’s something you can easily relax to.  Thus, I may not be sure if I will watch it again in the future (it depends on the quantity of must-see anime I will prioritize over it by the time its second season arrives, and how much I will be missing its moe characters then), but I genuinely enjoyed watching it throughout this past anime season (a stretch that we had mostly spent in quarantine).