Birdy the Mighty: Decode 01 - 6/10
As I said elsewhere, the main problem with Birdy is that it does nothing to distinguish itself. The story is straightforward and unoriginal, the characters are uninteresting, and the central conceit of two characters sharing the same body is not exploited at all. I didn't want a show dripping with angst, but the lack of any emotional response from either Birdy or Tsutomu as they seamlessly adjusted to their new lives was disconcerting. Not only that, but it rarely served any purpose for the plot, as the generally useless Tsutomu never had much to contribute.
It has other problems too, though, such as a smarmy antagonist who pops in and out of the show, doing not much other than be make cryptic comments. It's not until the last few episodes that his true intentions become known, and it's those few episodes that salvage the show to some degree, mainly thanks to a cliché but nonetheless sweet romance between Tsutomu and school friend Nagasuki. Those last few episodes were the only time I had any emotional investment in the show whatsoever, and I thought the ending was handled quite well.
The main selling point of Birdy is its kinetic action scenes, but the truth is there isn't that many of them. It's a slow series, derailed by filler and episodes where not enough happens, and it's clear that this is where the budget takes a big hit. Rarely have I seen faces as deformed as those in the dreadful episode 6. The music, on the other hand, is more understated; in fact I can honestly claim that most of the time I never even noticed it.
So very disappointing =(
even if he is the protagonist.