Subarashiki Kono Sekai The Animation

One day in the bustling city of Shibuya, a boy named Neku Sakuraba finds himself holding two black pins that enable him to read the minds of people around him. However, these pins also give him the ability to see the "Noise," hostile creatures capable of "erasing" people from existence. After discovering that he is trapped within the confines of the city, Neku receives a message regarding a mission that will nevertheless erase him should he fail.

While trying to fend off a Noise attack, Neku meets a girl named Shiki Misaki who asks him to form a partnership pact with her to fight against the monsters. Shiki explains that she and Neku have become "Players" participating in the "Reaper's Game"—an event spanning over seven days, each featuring a different mission.

As Neku and Shiki both strive to survive each day that passes, they begin to meet other Players and Reapers alike, battle stronger Noise, and learn the truth behind the mystery that this game is shrouded in.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Sakuraba, Neku Main

Uchiyama, Kouki Japanese

Kiryu, Yoshiya Main

Kimura, Ryouhei Japanese

Misaki, Shiki Main

Hachimine, Anna Japanese

Bitou, Daisukenojo Main

Kimura, Subaru Japanese

Raimu Main

Taketatsu, Ayana Japanese

Minamimoto, Shou Supporting

Fujimoto, Takayuki Japanese

Hanekoma, Sanae Supporting

Tsuda, Kenjirou Japanese

Kariya, Kouki Supporting

Katsu, Anri Japanese

Konishi, Mitsuki Supporting

Nabatame, Hitomi Japanese

Miki, Makoto Supporting

Umeda, Shuuichirou Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Aoi, Hiroyuki Producer

Kimura, Yasutaka Producer

Herek, Samantha Assistant Producer

Reviews

Aug 26, 2023

Toh-ka

Recommended

I will make it short, this is a pretty mid adaptation

It feels really rushed compared to the game, and the ending is different and disappointing compared to the game's

However the animation is really good, the artstyle fits the characters well and the english dub, while not having the original VAs is still very good
It's an anime you'd watch for the animation, not for the plot as it's overall not a really good adaptation

It's still some great fanservice for fans of the game like me

Would recommend if you played the game and want to see some sick moves

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Oct 8, 2023

The_Weekly_Jay

Mixed Feelings

The World Ends With You: The Animation is based on the 2007 Square Enix cult classic RPG, The World Ends With You. This came 14 years after the original and seemed to be released in tandem with the sequel game, NEO: The World Ends With You. As someone who played the original game and has it as one of their favorite games of all time, I was utterly excited for an animated take. That being said, I was ultimately disappointed with what was given to us. It would be unfair if this review were based on my feelings toward the game, so I will do ... my best to steer clear of low-hanging comparisons.

Knowing that this was released two months before the sequel game, TWEWY: The Animation at times felt like a mad dash of the first game's events in order to prep the viewer for what was to come next. People who never played the game probably would be unbothered by the show's pacing. If I had to guess, I'd say non-players of the game may take issue with the lack of character development from the Reapers who are the villains of the story, and other characters such as the main cast. To be fair, TWEWY didn't have the most compelling characters to begin with BUT they each had distinct personalities that made them likable or stand out from one another. The animation waters down a lot of the nuances of their personalities resulting in them feeling like archetypes ex: Neku, the edgy and moody teenager. Shiki, the bubbly girlie-girl. Beat, the hothead. Rhyme, the voice of reason. Joshua, the sly and cunning mastermind.

On the other hand, the animation is stylish and colorful which matches the aesthetic of the game really well. Many of the action scenes look good too. The soundtrack is much of the original game's OST with a more updated sound, so it's good to know that the music still holds up. First-time listeners are in for a treat. The character designs are faithful to the game's so there isn't much to say there.

I think my feelings are mixed because I know how much potential this had to be a really good adaptation. There were so many things that they could've expanded on or updated for the sake of the story. Instead, we got a 12-episode recap of the game. I can't completely throw it away because there are some good things about it and non-players may even fall in love with it. This is definitely a case of "If you know, you know" which separates the players of the game from first-time viewers.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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Jan 28, 2022

BenDoverTheBurnr

Not Recommended

The World Ends With You is a game I first played when I was 14 and as I’ve returned to it over the years and thought about the game, it has rapidly shot up to being one of my favorite games of all time. It’s story is amazingly well written and has so many little details that really make you realize just how much thought was really put into the story. The soundtrack is absolutely godly, composed mostly of j-pop, rock, hip hop, and every other genre that was popular in the mid 2000s. It makes the entire game pop and gives it a vibe ... all to itself. The gameplay is a fun and interesting action rpg that basically anyone can have a blast with. My main point is play the game. It’s sequel’s pretty good too. However, I also tell you this to better contextualize my thoughts with the anime. I went into this show not expecting much. I knew that this show didn’t really have near the time it would take to properly convey the game's story, so I went in expecting an anime that hits the basic beats of the original story, but also adds in some cool fight scenes. Somehow, I was still left disappointed.

My main gripe is with the story and how it’s told, so let’s save that for last. First, I want to talk about the music. It’s still pretty great. The show was composed by the same man who composed the games, Takeharu Ishimoto, and the soundtrack is still great. There are a lot of absolute bangers in the soundtrack. My favorite is probably walls. My only main grip is the lack of songs from the games. There are only a few songs from the games present. I think they play “It’s so Wonderful” and another instrumental track I can’t remember the name of in the background a few times, but that’s mostly it for music from the games. The only 2 other songs from the games are “Twister” which is used as the opening for the anime and “Calling” used for fighting montages in two different episodes. The funny thing is that those two were probably not supposed to be there at all! The band ALI was supposed to give the anime it’s intro, called “Teenage City Riot”. I don’t know if this was a fan edit or leaked footage, but the opening fight sequence of the first episode, which used calling for said fight sequence, also fits very well with that track over it, which makes sense since that was the opening for the episode and animes do that sometime, where they play the episodes theme in the background of the intro episode. The only other 2 pieces of music from the original I can remember were probably only there as last minute replacements! This means that certain scenes lack the oomph they had in the original, as they are missing their iconic scoring. This is probably most egregious in the fight scene with Minamimoto, where they don’t play the song “Transformation”, a song so synonymous with the character that the first scene where he’s introduced in the sequel, they play the song. This might just be nitpicking from an autisticly devoted fanboy, but I feel like the lack of music from the original robs this anime of the original experience.

My next point is with the animation and art, which I actually think is pretty good. A lot of people complained about the usage of CG in the fight scenes, but I actually don’t have a problem with this. I think the usage of CG fits the artstyle of the anime mostly well and I think it allows for some very interesting camera angles and battle choreography. The usage of pins from the game and seeing them put into action outside of a gameplay perspective is very interesting. I expected the fight scenes in the anime to be one of my favorite parts and I was right. At the very least the show is cool to look at.

So now we get to the story. Now considering that this was my favorite part of the original game, it makes sense that this is the part of the anime that I would have the most problems with. Now, I realize that expecting a 12 episode anime to accurately retell the plot to an entire jrpg down to every detail is ridiculous, but this anime takes it to a whole new level. The basic plot follows a 15 year old boy named Neku Sakuraba as he attempts to survive a death game (or I guess a post-mortem game) for 3 weeks and tries to return himself to life. The overall story is the same as the game, but the anime just misses so many small details from the game that makes the game so much better. The biggest example I can think of is Neku’s characterization in the early days of the first week. In the game he is a complete asshole, acting as rude as possible to Shiki and even actively sabotaging any attempt she makes to collaborate with other teams in the game. The anime basically removes anything that makes him look like too much of an asshole. One scene has him ask Shiki what she knows about the situation, but starts off with “Hey, you” which causes Shiki to correct him by saying her name. Was that supposed to establish him as a bad guy? In the game, actively refused to call her by her name and referred to her only as “Stalker”. This scene just makes him look like he forgot her name, which is totally understandable considering that he got caught in a fight for his life and passed out only to wake up with a whole day having passed. He was probably a bit too tied up in the situation to remember a girl's name. Another grievous example comes when Neku force chokes Shiki at the end of the second day. In the game, a reaper tells him that Shiki is a spy for the reapers and that, if Neku kills her, then he can escape the game. Neku then attempts to murder her without any real hesitation. This scene is pivotal in establishing Neku’s character at the start of the game and how little he really values any human life other than his own and how he’s a missive self obsessed dickhead, which makes his later character development far more meaningful in how it echoes back to who he was at the start of the game. In the anime, he just gets possessed and then tries to kill her. Then he’s fine once the noise leaves him. This completely scrubs away him learning about valuing other people's lives and just goes to show how the show butchers his character development. The last scene I’ll bring up is Neku’s pep talk to Shiki. In the game, Neku tells Shiki that she needs to appreciate herself more and, rather than compare herself to her friend and talk about how she's not as good as her, take pride in who she is and what makes her unique, because Shibuya has room for all kinds of people. In the anime, this scene is essentially just boiled down to “Be Yourself.” Be yourself? Uh… Yeah bellend! That’s what she’s fucking complaining about.

I know all of the examples I use are from the first week, but that’s because I feel like it’s the best example of how these changes unintentionally ruin the character’s later development and in a story where the main character’s development throughout the entire story is the main focus, that’s kind of a big deal.

Overall, The World Ends With You: The Animation is a show that I can only recommend to people who’ve already played the first game and either need a refresher or just want to see some cool fight scenes with the characters and pins. If you’ve never played the game before, play it. You can get it on switch or buy it physically or emulate it on DS. If you either can’t or don’t want to play the game for whatever reason. Then look up a let’s play or cutscene compilation on Youtube, because the animation just doesn’t live up the original at all in my opinion and is probably my least favorite video game to anime adaptation I’ve ever seen. There are probably worse in terms of animation, story butchery, and in other ways, but this one holds a special place in my heart for how I can see a world in which it could have been great, but the lengths with which they go to fit the story in 12 episodes completely and utterly ruins it.

Also, Beat doesn't speak like what a 40 year old, white, Christian mother thinks people who listen to hip hop speak like in the show, so it's automatically garbage.

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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