Well, I just watched the last episode of Punchline and…it was rather dumb. At least for me.
The series was just a huge letdown for me. In the begginning, it was funny, but then it began to hint it was not what it seemed and I was pumped. But it never quite commited, it’s gaudy and absurd style remained the same, and whatever seriousness or drama it tried to pull off never worked for me, since it was either too rushed or too melodramatic. Coupled with the persistent fanservice and overall goofiness sometimes right after the serious parts, it just never went past the line of “this COULD be kinda cool if worked properly”. Some twists just felt like they came out of nowhere and others were painfully obvious.
The last two episodes specifically were just dumb. 5 girls and a ghost taking up an army of superhumans AND the US army at the same time and winning almost flawlessly? Come on. Not to mention the extremely corny drama going on with the three main characters. The last scene between them actually made me laugh, and I’m pretty sure that was not the point.
Unfortunately, this has been a huge letdown for me. Even with Nakazawa at the helm, I don’t see how the game version could possibly be any better. Sure, if you turn your brain off it can be fun…but the problem is Punchline quite clearly wants you not to as it goes on, and it just results in a pretty big mess. And that’s a shame, because there is indeed some potential lurking in the shadows here.