Beyblade X
Synopsis — from MyAnimeList
At the heart of X City stands the impressive X Tower, an interconnected twin-skyscraper structure that symbolizes the pinnacle of every Beyblade player's dream. The building serves as the official headquarters for professional Beybattles, where competitors strive to ascend all one hundred floors; at its summit, the reigning champions, Team Pendragon, await contenders worthy of challenging their title. Bird Kazami, an amateur Blader, arrives in the city eager to turn professional. However, he and his teammates are crushed in their first qualifying match, prompting his companions to give up and disband their team. Fortunately, Bird is soon approached by the easygoing Ekusu Kurosu. In disguise as "Kamen X" to hide his identity as a former member of the undefeated Team Pendragon, Ekusu wants to climb the tower all over again. To complete their new group, they recruit skilled Beyblade expert and savvy social media influencer Multi Nanairo. Driven by their individual goals, the trio wins their preliminary rounds, launching their careers as Team Persona. Bird and his new friends must navigate the world of corporate sponsorships, earn the fickle public's support, and defeat many formidable opponents—all in their quest to reach X Tower's peak.
Audience Consensus
Audience opinions are sharply divided, with significant praise for its animation, music, and artistic direction, yet strong criticism for its writing, character development, and pacing. Many feel the show fails to deliver on the promise of realistic sports drama and compelling character arcs, particularly regarding the protagonist's constant failures, while others find it charming and entertaining. The series struggles to find a consistent tone, leading to a polarizing reception among long-time fans and newcomers alike.
Strengths
- Outstanding opening and ending songs, and overall 10/10 soundtrack.
- Realistic portrayal of Beyblade as a big sport, even more so than Burst.
- Outstanding art and character design; colorful and well-picked colors.
- Superb animation, consistently great as expected from Beyblade.
- Entertaining show with solid humor, especially involving unique sushi.
- Bey matches involve more realism than previous series, with VR usage.
- Has charm and doesn't feel like a typical Shonen.
- Characters actually have development (disputed, but a pro for some).
Weaknesses
- Animation is a big downgrade compared to previous Beyblade series (Burst Franchise).
- Main character Bird is perceived as pathetic, lacking talent, and not well-rounded.
- Main character Bird hasn't won a battle even after many episodes, leading to boredom and a lack of stakes.
- Characters feel underdeveloped and lack realistic rounding, needing big turning points.
- The show is boring and feels like a snooze-fest, comparable to Beywheelz.
- The show took the great formula of Burst and mangled it with unnecessary filler and social media elements.
- The show has less content than previous series despite having many episodes.
- Show does not pay off character growth; characters claim growth but don't change behavior or gain/lose anything.
- Early promise of showcasing failure and athletes working up has not materialized; characters never get better or worse.
- Show tackles self-doubt poorly, offering platitudes like 'don't give up' instead of validating worth, leading to a depressing experience.
- Poor writing leads to gaps that suggest a bleak worldview unintentionally.
- Lack of new characters leads to repetitive battles against the same enemy teams.
- X's identity is too obvious and unbelievable that others can't figure it out.