Date A Live is a 12 episode anime based on the light novel series. It is the first season to adapt the light novels, and there is also an OVA. The anime is set in a world where a natural disaster known as the spatial quake regularly happens. It is similar to an earthquake with effects that is more akin to a bomb or explosion. It is able to be detected right before it happens which allows everyone to evacuate underground. We are introduced to Itsuka Shido, who lives with his sister. He is a normal high school student but during a spatial quake incident, he ends up not going to a shelter and remained above ground. As a result, he finds out the cause of the spatial quakes… as the appearance of spirits. The spirit that appeared takes on the form of a girl wearing armor and wields a gigantic sword.
What naturally follows is that Shido is formally introduced into the program and learns about these spirits. Currently, the plan is to attempt to kill these spirits by firepower, with a dedicated task force of girls wearing flight gear. However, he learns that there is another way to eradicate the spirits’ destructive power and that is by making them fall in love with him. Then he will seal off their powers with a kiss, no explanation is given on why this works but it just does.
After sitting through a few of the spirit appearances, it would seem that the task force causes more collateral damage than the spatial quakes. Although the problem is that the spirits disappear and reappear without control which is what causes the unpredictability of the spatial quakes. This is the reason why they are to be eliminated. As interesting as the premise is, the anime quickly devolves into a romantic comedy filled with misunderstandings as the girls vie for Shido’s affections. Since Shido needs to kiss the spirits (who are all female by the way), this is the cause of most of the jealousy and envy that happens. Hidden at the back of this are Shido’s mysterious abilities and why he is the only one (so far) able to do this.
After two or three episodes, Date A Live gives up all semblance of making the events plausible or able to be kept shrouded in secrecy from the general public. Destruction happens everywhere, there are passages underground, towns instantly changing layouts and large scale explosions. It lost the “spirit from another world” angle really quickly. This isn’t because the mystery was solved, but rather because it was just never touched upon again. New characters are constantly introduced. Naturally, they’re all female characters and they are either another romantic interest for Shido, or some sort of relative. Everyone seems to want to involve Shido in some way or another, whether this is just because he is building a harem or there is a deeper reason remains to be seen.
There are copious amounts of fan service but as far as fan service goes, it’s pretty tame. There are a lot of teasing and typical anime romantic comedy misunderstandings. It feels like the season started out serious but then gives up with an “anything goes” attitude almost immediately. As the season progresses, the amount of sexual innuendo also increase. The amount of well worn tropes being used should not surprise you, especially since it has the typical triple date with Shido scrambling around to keep everyone happy and multiple episodes featuring hot springs and swimsuits.
The anime tries to throw in a few surprises but it’s more like they are sorting out inconsistencies rather than true revelations. Shido’s familial relationships are confusing and not very well explained. This becomes a light plot point later on. It can lead to cringe-worthy events with Shido’s self sacrifices, and other characters falling for him because of that. When it tries to create tension it doesn’t work since you are not invested in the characters. The OVA is a date between Shido and the first character he ever asked out. Despite the second half of the season starting to become stagnant, the OVA is surprisingly good. It is funny and the events that happen suit the characters well.
Overall, the first season of Date A Live feels a bit generic. It had the potential thanks to its intriguing background of where the spirits come from, but then it completely ignores that aspect and goes with the well trodden comedy harem genre. There are some good moments and standout characters, but on the whole, it’s fairly average.
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