It never ceases to amaze me just how anime can make me feel like I’ve crossed lines that I shouldn’t have, regardless of the subject matter.

There's absolutely no way this could be taken out of context. Nope...

Thus, we have To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, a series that thus far has managed to make me run the gamut of reactions from “Oh my, did she do that?” to “Wow, that’s really awesome”. (I should start by noting that I haven’t read much of Majutsu no Index, the main installment from which this series is spun-off. I know a bit of the specifics, but not enough to review this as anything other than a standalone anime.)

The series is set in Academy City, a town which seems to alternate between utopian and Orwellian – everything is bright and cheerful, yet at the same time sprinkled with a small dash of Big Brother-esque elements. The city is policed by Judgement, a group composed of students with psychic powers who act as the city’s moral committee. A lot of the characters and themes are appropriately enough carried over from Index, yet Railgun manages to branch into something all its own.

Those aren't Tachikoma. Honest.

That being said, and as I’m sure many are already aware, the part of this series that speaks loudest are the (ahem) mature overtones between leading ladies Mikoto and Kuroto. Mikoto, for the most part, plays the straight man, albeit in a very laid-back manner. She’s very focused on what she does, yet at the same time attempts to be as normal as a middle-school girl with psychic powers can be. Kuroto, on the other hand, is where the fanservice comes charging in. She’s got a decidedly underhanded determination to get in with Mikoto, and even in the first two episodes implements this in a variety of ways. The members of the supporting cast, at least thus far, make a conscious attempt to display personalities of their own, which is uncommon in a lot of series these days.

Saten, in a bold attempt to stamp out piracy.

The first two episodes, oddly enough, almost directly contrast with one another. The first episode is the standard introductory episode, replete with your standard stage-setting, pantsu (of course), and mixed with a fight that’s visually impressive at the end.

The second episode, however, eschews any sort of action in favor of an almost-puzzling amount of exposition in relation to the relationship between Mikoto and Kuroto, as well as some windows into their personal history and (of course) Kuroto’s twisted fantasies. It comes much too early in the series to call it a welcome change of pace; in fact, I hope to see a little bit more balance between the two extremes of story plot vs. personal plot on future episodes. Of course, knowing what I know about To Aru in general, that may be a bit too much to ask.

The second episode DID contain this almost painful-to-watch gem, however...

All things considered, the opening paces of Railgun are more than worth a watch if you’re willing to approach its considerably bipolar attitude towards its storyline and characters with nothing less than an open mind. This isn’t something I say often, but I’m actually looking forward to the next episode.

-Dave