The Ambition of Nobuna is another girl-ification of major political figures in a historic setting. However, unlike some previous attempts at this genre, they decided to throw in a time traveling protagonist- who happens to be an expert at a game about Oda Nobunaga's conquests. So this slightly political, warfare-centric harem is a strange mix between Zero no Tsukaima, Saiunkoku Monogatari, and Ikkitousen. Throw in a fairly engaging plot and a pretty good climax and you have the makings of a surprisingly good seasonal underdog.
Compared to the aforementioned other shows, this lacks the political and relational depth of Saiunkoku Monogatari, the bustiness of Ikkitousen, and the overly-youthful appearance of Zero. It attempt to make up for this by blending elements quite nicely, if you can deal with the fact that they never explain how our mysterious time traveler arrives in the Sengoku period with his iDevice. Do not watch this show for any historical relevance, as you'll soon conclude that all previous wars should have been fought by pretty girls.
Animation:
While the overall look of Oda Nobuna is pretty good they do use a lot of CGI, specifically in the many scenes with hordes of unimportant, marching men. CGI aside the show is comparable with other current series; I particularly like the coloring (under saturation of certain elements with over saturation of other elements for emphasis). As for character designs, I think Nobuna's war outfit borrows a bit too much from Edward Elric. Otherwise, you have lots of super-powerful girls beating up hordes of lowly male soldiers. There seems to be a strange emphasis on little girls with more supporting lolis than I can count on one hand. As Nobuna is conquering Nippon, expect an overwhelming number of temporary supporting characters. Note that the protagonist (as in Zero no Tsukaima) seems to have a bottomless stash of modern school uniforms.
As for the action, it's fair overall. Choreography isn't anything to brag about, and the camera pans away from many of the more brutal hits. To be honest, the animation is really more shonen than seinin. There are a few scenes with a bit of blood and an equal number of ecchi/fan service scenes.
Sound:
The series has a fitting rock OP and a less intense ED. The BGM is fitting with lots of traditional Japanese drums and some pretty epic tunes.
The VA staff is pretty strong with Kanae Itou leading as Nobuna. There are a lot of dialogues in this series (only outdone by Saiunkoku) and I'm happy to report that I didn't fall asleep through any of the longer ones.
Story:
The story is about an alternate past where great warlords are almost universally replaced by cute, female warriors who seem to be able to fight off entire armies by themselves. Oda Nobunaga is replaced by a blonde tsundere Nobuna, who gains a time traveler, Yoshiharu, as an advisor. Since Yoshiharu is an experienced gamer in The Ambition of Nobunaga, he is well versed in innovative techniques for both trade and war.
There is a lot of confusion early on in the series as the viewer is spammed with a non-stop plot progression coupled with endless character introductions. It really boils down to Nobuna taking over regions of Nippon and assigning a lot of people to her staff and to protect our time-traveling protagonist, who is promptly named Monkey. One annoyance is the fact that Nobuna spares all, often recruiting her foe to her core staff. You'll have to suspend your disbelief as opponents are magically wowed into believing in Nobuna's vision of a united and free Nippon. It's also a bit annoying that Monkey is gifted with unbelievably luck, somehow surviving many battles by the skin of his teeth despite having no combat training whatsoever.
The series is pretty arc-based, with each opposing warlord taking the role of the antagonist. Around halfway through the series, the true antagonists are introduced and the plot builds to a final, epic climax. The resolution is fair and believable, though the use of magic late in the show sort of derails any lingering hopes of realism. The only major complaint I have against this enjoyable story is the fact that the viewers (unless armed with historic knowledge of the actual battles and conquests of Nobunaga) are literally just along for the ride- you really don't know what's coming next, just a suspicion that Nobuna will continue to win battles.
Character:
Unfortunately there isn't much depth to most of the characters. Other than Nobuna and Monkey, there isn't really any background given so expect cookie-cutter supporting characters including fearless warriors, furrow-browed strategists, and somewhat random ninjas. The Nobuna/Monkey relationship develops as you'd expect, while other girls also mystically fall for him after he bellows a few phrases or holds their hands. As previously mentioned, expect shonen-level stuff here, there are no real serious relationships and pretty much static characters throughout the show.
Value:
While this obviously won't be prized for its historic value, The Ambition of Nobuna may be remembered as "the series that wasn't as bad as it could have been", sort of like the US economy... Politics aside, this series has an interesting mix of politics and character interactions that keeps the viewer wondering how the time traveler will change the course of history. Huge plot holes aside, the series delivers an entertaining watch with a solid conclusion that still leaves open the possibility of a successor. If you're disappointed with some of the other supposedly better shows this season, give this one a try.
