This was a fun album to go back and listen to after a few years. While this is pretty similar to Beyond the Red Mirror, it is less dense because the orchestration is gone and replaced with synths and guitars. The vocal harmonies are still mindblowingly epic, layered, and complex... and still catchy as hell! I honestly don't know how Hansi Kursch comes up with this stuff, it's incredible.

The album in general is quite good, with a strong start and unbelievable finish with the knockout 1-2-3 combo of Bright Eyes (one of their best songs ever), Another Holy War, and And the Story Ends (one of the best album closers ever). The story is ridiculous and convoluted, but as I said previously... I'm here for the music, and it is top-notch.

4.5/5 - Excellent album, almost a classic. Blind Guardian does things with music that no one else does. Cheesy concept album, but that kind of comes with power metal.