There was Heaven and there was Hell, but now remains only Orpheus. Takt Op Destiny Episode 12 marks the final episode of the show and the final performance by Takt and Destiny. Let’s find out how it turned out in this review!
Takt Op Destiny Episode 12 Overview
Takt Op Destiny is a collaboration project by two of the biggest studios currently operating in the anime industry, Madhouse and MAPPA. Studio Madhouse is known for creating several classics such as HunterxHunter, Death Note, and the recent Sonny Boy. Meanwhile, Studio MAPPA holds the entire industry’s attention in the palm of its hands with behemoths such as Jujutsu Kaisen and Attack on Titan under its development wing.
Takt Op Destiny is a multi-media project between Bandai Namco Arts and DeNA, which comprises a mobile game and this anime series we are talking about. Yuuki Itou directs the series, and Kiyoko Yoshimura serves as the primary writer of the show’s script. You can go back and read our review of the eleventh episode of the series right here! The episode is also stylised as Takt Op. Destiny Episode 12.
– Takt Op Destiny Episode 12 Review does not contain spoilers –
Takt Op Destiny Episode 12 Review- The Final Performance
Starting this review off on a positive note, the finale of takt op is some of the most fun one can ever have while watching this show. The previous episode set up the final confrontation between Orpheus and Destiny perfectly, and set in motion the events that put an end to the series and a lot of lives. On that front, the show delivered the goods spectacularly. There was a lot of great action in this episode, and the anime should receive a ton of nominations in relevant awards because of it.
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The scene was also scored perfectly, giving the confrontation some gravitas that was lacking from what is supposed to be the final arc of the series. Music and animation have always been strong points of the show, and Takt op Destiny Episode 12 didn’t upset the apple cart in that regard. The show has consistently been one of the best looking on the screen, and this episode was a fine addition to that particular collection.
With that out of the way, keep in mind that the show didn’t provide any discernable reason for the existence of Orpheus in the last episode, and we don’t get an explanation here either. She just appeared out of the blue when Hell and Heaven merged, which wasn’t even something Musicarts could do before that point. Talk about creating a problem just to solve it later!
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Sagan, and by extension Heaven, Hell, and Schmidt, are the weakest set of villains that I’ve seen in quite a while. Their motivations and personalities don’t make sense, which would have been fine if the steps that they took and the actions they performed were sensible and logical but I guess that would be expecting too much of the show. If that wasn’t enough, this episode also revealed them to be the most generic characters you’ll ever get to see in an anime the calibre of this.
While, in a better anime, this would count as breaking the no spoilers rule, I would argue against this applying here. I am about to reveal Sagan’s motivations for doing all that he did- he wanted to save the world! Yup. That was his motivation, exactly what everyone saw coming four episodes ago and perhaps the most generic character motivation for any villain that ever existed. Of course, the bad guy thought what he was doing was good. Of course, he did.
The confrontation ends exactly the way you would imagine it to, and then the series makes another set of inscrutable and confusing decisions that don’t seem to make any sense within the context of the story. From what I’ve heard, it was done to make the show make more sense within the continuity of the mobile game, and the less we talk about that, the better. Takt Op Destiny Episode 12 was a disappointing end to the series, made even worse by the fact that the anime makes references to its actually promising beginnings. Why in the world would you end with a blatant reminder of your failures?
Verdict
Takt Op Destiny Episode 12 was yet another profoundly disappointing despite being a visually stunning outing for the show, which is an apt way for the series to go out if you think about it. To think that this show started with so much promise sounds like a fever dream.
Click here to read the full review of the show!
I think your assessment is very spot on. I really love this show for Takt and Destiny and Anna. The entire Sagan, Heaven and Hell could have been left out and it would have strengthened the anime . I would have preferred to watch them kick more D2 butt. However, I feel more satisfied with the ending now that Takt’s song has dropped as part of the OST and honestly I don’t think this took as big a nosedive as something like Wonder Egg Priority. At the end it felt rushed and was obvious they were trying to shore it up with the mobile game lore but I recognized that and could deal with it.
This wasn’t as unashamedly commercial and sequel-bait like Wonder Egg, but it still felt like the showrunners gave up on trying to make a good show somewhere in the middle. I loved the dynamic between Takt and Destiny, so Anna’s kiss during the last episode and her turning into Destiny at the end didn’t sit right with me either.
I think the ending seemed like a set up for a season 2 or at least a possible movie depending how the game does. There are so many unanswered questions and possibilities that a season 2 could take care of. I’m not a big gamer so me playing the game is unlikely. But maybe I’ll check it out when it comes out. Maybe they’ll answer the questions that I have in the game.
From what I’ve heard (I’m no insider), there’s just this season and then the game which comes out in 2022.