Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo

Angelise Ikaruga Misurugi is the first princess of the noble Misurugi Empire. The kingdom has seen great power and prosperity due to the advancement of the revolutionary technology known as "Mana," an abstract bending of light that has reduced the world's problems of war and pollution to a timeless peace.

However, not all are blessed with the ability to wield Mana. Those who cannot are labeled "Norma," outcasts of society who are considered a threat to civilization and live under constant persecution, and Angelise herself is one of many who want the Norma exterminated. But as Angelise's sixteenth birthday commences, it is discovered in a shocking revelation that she is actually a Norma. Chaos ensues, the public is outraged, and the once adored princess is exiled to Arzenal: a remote military base where Normas are forced into conscription.

Now, the former royal must adapt to a harsh and vastly different lifestyle; piloting mechanical robots known as "Paramail" to fend off large, devastating beasts referred to as DRAGONs. However, a sinister truth about these savage creatures threatens to change everything.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Ikaruga Misurugi, Angelise Main

Mizuki, Nana Japanese

Schlievogt, Hildegard Supporting

Tamura, Yukari Japanese

Tusk Supporting

Miyano, Mamoru Japanese

Salamandiné Supporting

Horie, Yui Japanese

Vivian Supporting

Kuwashima, Houko Japanese

Embryo Supporting

Seki, Toshihiko Japanese

Salia Supporting

Kitamura, Eri Japanese

Oginome, Momoka Supporting

Uesaka, Sumire Japanese

Chris Supporting

Ogura, Yui Japanese

Jill Supporting

Honda, Takako Japanese

Fukuda, Mitsuo Producer, Episode Director, Storyboard

Ashino, Yoshiharu Director, Episode Director, Storyboard, Key Animation

Yanase, Yuuji Episode Director

Itou, Tatsufumi Episode Director, Storyboard, Key Animation

Reviews

Aug 2, 2026

KatsumataJ

Recommended

Cross Ange is a show that runs you through some very interesting questions.

From the beginning, this show was something I found genuinely interesting to watch. The fights were exciting, the animation had its own charm, and the cast was incredible. However, I think the cast is where this show truly shines, and I wanted to explain why.
Every character felt like they had a place in this world. They were not just there to move the story forward; they helped make the setting feel more alive.

Vivian was one of the best examples of this. She was mainly a source of comedy and warmth, and while she ... did not drastically change Ange or the direction of the story, that was never her purpose. She added something important to the atmosphere of the show. She brought light into a story filled with suffering, and that alone made her valuable.

Then there is Hilda, who was one of the most interesting characters to me. She influenced Ange in her own way, but what I enjoyed most was that Hilda herself did not completely change. She remained stubborn and true to herself until the very end. Her development was not about becoming a different person, but about allowing herself to care while still keeping the qualities that made her who she was.

And finally, there is Ange herself. What made her interesting was that her beliefs did not simply disappear. She did not become a completely different person. Instead, her understanding of the world expanded. She remained strong-willed and stubborn, but the meaning behind those traits changed as she experienced more of the world around her.
There are many more characters that contribute to why Cross Ange works, but discovering them yourself is part of the experience.

Cross Ange was a valuable show in my journey because it reminded me that not every series needs to be perfect in the ways people commonly judge a 9 or 10. A show does not need to have every element perfected to leave an impact. Sometimes what matters is the feeling of depth, the connection to the world, and the characters who make you want to stay.

Cross Ange gave me that experience.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Jun 24, 2023

whiteflame55

Mixed Feelings

The more I think about this series, the more my head hurts. It's not that it's bad because it knows what it is pandering to and that's the lowest common denominator (hell, even in the finale, Ange just had to jump naked, crotch first into Tusk's face), but so many of the motivations are contrived and the villain does not work for me. Most of these characters don't really work for me. It had some decent action and graphics when it wanted to, and some aspects of it were fun enough that I give them some credit, but this was a pretty frustrating watch for ... me. I enjoyed talking about it in a group watch, but not so much the watching of it. It's better in retrospect, but not the kind of thing I'd give a straight up recommendation.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Mar 23, 2026

ReviewMan9174

Not Recommended

Edgy, cowardly, wasted potential, nonsensical, boring. All of these can be used to describe this anime. Here’s why:

1 - Plot & Themes
The plot honestly has an interesting premise, and it starts of pretty strong.
However, this anime quickly turns out to be edgy, and not in a good way. It relies hard on shock value to paint the main world as a very bad place, filled with very bad people. It also has some very edgy and downright uncomfortable fanservice moments. Like Queen’s blade, but not as good as Queen’s blade.

The show really tends to pull its punches in the moments where it would ... actually matter, which makes it feel like they want to be dark, but are too cowardly to actually commit to any consequences. Major characters magically come back after “dying”, and the show doesn’t even bother to give a proper reason. Pair this with the inconsistent tone (fanservice), and it becomes hard to really feel any emotion when things are supposed to get tense. The final couple of episodes are where this really starts to hurt the show, there is basically no reason to take it seriously. You already know what will happen. Edgy, but cowardly.

As for the story, the first act sets things up pretty well. The worldbuilding is very onesided, but not necessarily bad. The second act has important some “plot-twists” and big reveals. It’s good enough to keep you wanting to watch how the story unfolds, but not excellent in any way. Things get pretty absurd and sometimes kind of confusing in the third act though. It’s a sci-fi/mecha anime, so I suppose that’s to be expected. The general plot is still easy to follow, but there are a lot of things that suddenly happen that are not explained properly, if at all.

2 - The characters
The major characters in this anime are one of its stronger points, and their development throughout the show is mostly pretty good. Visually, they all look distinct, and their designs are mostly pretty cool. The way the characters interact with each other also leads to some interesting situations and dynamics. There are, however some exceptions, and those exceptions happen to be pretty important characters.

2.1 - Male character
This character seems to be pretty much the only “good” male character in the show. And, as this is an ecchi anime, this has some pretty predictable consequences. This guy is basically a generic isekai slop self-insert protagonist, turned into a boring side character. He also hardly has any personality or development. And of course, he is the main love interest for Ange. Even though their interactions throughout 90% of the show are almost exclusively those kind of ecchi “accidents” where the characters, in some way or another, get into suggestive positions. That is 90% of their “romance”. The romance doesn’t make sense, and it also brings down Ange as a character, when she develops feelings for this guy. It almost feels like the writers regretted not having a male protagonist. They could at least have made him visually interesting, but no, they even gave him the generic isekai protagonist design.

This relationship is horribly underwhelming, and potentially even the least interesting one in the whole show. Despite that, the ending of the show suddenly pretends that the romance is incredibly important, and it doesn’t feel earned. It really falls flat. If I had to name a single worst thing about the anime, it would probably be this relationship.

2.2 - Villain
The main villain of the series, appears to be a pretty interesting character at first. His design is cool. He is mysterious and scheming, pulling the strings from the shadows. He thinks he is better than everyone, and he turns out to basically be a god. He is also a a huge simp for Ange. His writing feels inconsistent and he turns out to be shallow and honestly kind of generic. Wasted potential.


3 - Visuals & Music
Honestly, the animation is pretty decent. The fight scenes are not terrible, despite the CGI. As mentioned previously, the character designs are good. This also includes their animation and expressions. It’s not perfect, but it could have been a lot worse.
The soundtrack is epic and over the top, and it definitely contributes to the enjoyability of the fight-scenes.

4 - Conclusion
This is a show that tries very hard to be dark by relying shock-value, but often chickens out of the things that would have actual consequences. The plot is further brought down by a terrible, underwhelming romance that the writers suddenly pretended to be important at the end. The show aims for emotional weight, but doesn’t put in the effort to build it properly.
It is full of fanservice, which is sometimes edgy, and ranges from cringy to downright uncomfortable and painful to watch.

For pretty much anything you would want from this show, there are better alternatives. Would not recommend.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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	Cross Ange: What if it becomes an all male cast? SomaHeir - Apr 27, 2015	4 replies	by Sasori56483 »» Sep 16, 11:41 AM
	Poll: Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo Episode 25 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Stark700 - Mar 28, 2015	340 replies	by TRI_Mike »» Jun 11, 8:51 AM
	Poll: Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo Episode 22 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Stark700 - Mar 7, 2015	287 replies	by TRI_Mike »» Jun 9, 3:38 PM
	Poll: Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo Episode 19 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Feb 14, 2015	123 replies	by No_One_Yet »» May 28, 10:07 AM
	Poll: Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo Episode 10 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Dec 6, 2014	136 replies	by No_One_Yet »» May 23, 5:16 AM