Chivalry of a Failed Knight is a 12 episode anime based upon the light novel series. It is set in an alternate world where it is similar to reality but with one distinction, certain humans have supernatural abilities and they are called Blazers. Blazers are able to summon soul devices, which take on the form of a weapon. The anime follows Kurogane Ikki, a student at the Hagun Academy in Japan. It starts off with a big media event informing the viewers that the foreign princess Stella is attending the academy and she is a powerful Blazer, using the fire element. She becomes the roommate of Ikki and the two battle it out during a mock battle.
Of note is that Ikki is the "worst one" of the school, having the lowest F ranking in all but one of his parameters. Despite that, Ikki proves that rankings aren't everything as he has worked hard and developed unique skills. The aim for Ikki is to become one of the representations of Hagun Academy to participate in the Seven Stars Sword Art Festival, an annual tournament to determine the strongest out of the Mage Knight Academies. If Ikki wins, he will be able to graduate since the current system prevents him from graduation due to his abysmal ranking.
As Ikki and Stella pair up, the anime follows them as they set themselves on the journey to train and become stronger, overcoming obstacles and fighting their way to the top. Naturally, Stella soon falls for Ikki, which feels forced since there's no real reason for her to. Despite being a princess, Stella gets flustered easily and soon submits to Ikki, plus she does not have any bodyguards at all to protect her. There is plenty of fanservice, mostly involving Stella.
Shizuku is Ikki's sister, whom they heaven't seen in four years. Her introduction makes her seem a bit... peculiar. She has strong feelings for Ikki and fights against Stella for Ikki's attention while Ikki remains clueless. Shizuku is also a competent knight, wielding the water element. Rounding out the main cast is Arisuin Nagi, the roomamate of Shuzuku. He uses the shadow element. He is different in that he is male but identifies himself as female at heart. Nevertheless, he is competent at magic and is a force to be reckoned with.
As the series progresses, we see that Ikki constantly feels the pressure and mockery of his family and other students at his lack of abilities. However, this is what drives him. It also drives the fire in the viewers, especially in battles where his opponent is depicted as petty and one of the worst human beings out there. You can't wait to see Ikki surprise and destroy them. Ikki is too chivalrous tough to actually do proper harm so his opponents don't get what they deserve. Despite mainly relying on his swordsmanship and not on magic like other knights, Ikki has an ace up his sleeve where he can power up for one minute, before collapsing in fatigue. It's a flawed ability and his last resort, so half the battle is when Ikki decides to use it at the best moment otherwise it would be all over for him.
As Ikki shows his formidable powers during the selection process, proving that he did not fluke his previous victors, the attitudes of his fellow classmates towards him changes from mockery to genuine acknowledgement and amazement. During the middle, apart from one fight early on, the focus is more on Ikki's interactions with Stella, Shizuku and other girls rather than the more interesting fighting elements. That being said, the chemistry between him and Stella improves dramatically and there are plenty of great scenes involving the both of them.
Thankfully, the focus once again goes towards Ikki fighting more powerful opponents and succeeding, showing how he uses his powers to identify the opponent's weakness and use that to his advantage. As you near the end, you come to realize that the pairing of each opponent during the selection matches are unfair. This is especially the case when you're paired against a previous candidate of the Festival, knowing that your opponent has proven power and can pretty much say goodbye to your chances.
Even with all the unfairness stacked against Ikki, and a fixed match for the final selection match, it culminates into a spectacular finale. The battle, while short, held a lot of emotions and meaning in it, resulting in an extremely satisfying result. The fact that so much emotion was packed into the word that each participant yelled for their moves is a testament to how great it was. Overall, while Chivalry of a Failed Knight has an overabundance of fanservice, there is a strong and engaging story in here. The fight scenes, when they do come, are great and it ends at an excellent stopping point. You remain hopeful for a second season, even if it doesn't look like it will happen at this point.
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