Jul 17, 2013
Well, this is my first review on MAL so il try to keep it simple and I apologize if my review is not that great and goes off track a bit so i'd appreciate the feedback. This review will try to stay away from as many spoilers as possible so my descriptions may be a little vague. So lets get started, for those of you who are familiar with Shakespeare, this anime alludes to his works Hamlet, a bit of Romeo and Juliet and The Tempest heavily but you dont have to worry about knowing these works to well to follow the story.
Story:
I found the
...
story to be strong throughout the show, as told in the synopsis this story revolves the protagonists trying to save the world from certain destruction while on their revenge quest. Revenge is the driving factor of this anime, using magic and logic to support these themes. As the show contains many references from Shakespeare's plays it does not heavily rely on them, the story hints that it could end in a tragedy(based on Hamlet and R&J) or have a happier ending(The Tempest) and so that leaves the viewer wondering how this tale of revenge will end. Most of the show maintains its serious tone, however towards the later half the series it draws attention to the relationships/romance of the characters but this doesn't affect the story negatively. Overall the story kept me wanting more and had me on the edge of my seat.
Art/Sound:
I dont have much to say in this section of my review, overall the art and soundtrack nicely complements the anime, the artwork is nicely detailed, the quality is very nice as well and the mood is appropriately set by the soundtrack.
Character:
All of the main characters are nicely developed and each of them are strong in their own ways and intelligence compliments their attributes as well.
Both of the female protagonists are strong female leads, Hakaze and Aika are both very confident in their abilities and are accepting of their own fate/destinies, however Hakazes personal emotions can get in her way at times and although Aika has been murdered she still maintains a very important part throughout the series.
In terms of relation to Shakespeare's plays Hakaze is based on Prospero, the main character from Shakespeare's play The Tempest, who just like her, is a magician betrayed by his servants and left for dead on a desert island, and Aika based on Sycorax, also from The Tempest, which is a deceased character who appears in flashbacks and defines several of the relationships in the play, and Ophelia from Hamlet whose brother gets crazed by his drive for revenge after her death.
Both male leads have an interesting chemistry together, Mahiro is based on prince Hamlet and Laertes as well who doesn't care about anything else in order to get his revenge for his murdered sister, when it comes down to fights Mahiro is more experienced and takes the role of protecting Yoshino, he can also be quite reckless and tends not to listen to Hakaze. Yoshino nicely contrasts Mahiro and keeps him in check, he is based on Romeo as he had to keep a secret relationship with Aika and also Horatio as he is the more thoughtful of the two and is Mahiro's closest friend, he seems like a very nice character but he can very deceitful and manipulative when the need arises.
Enjoyment:
Zetsuen no Tempest is clearly an enjoyable anime and I do recommend that you do watch this show, it will not be a waste of your time. Although the show is set in a serious tone, there are the occasional comedic breaks throughout the anime that alleviate the seriousness of the show to prevent the audience from being overwhelmed.
Hopefully this review helped you in your decision to watch Zetsuen no Tempest, but please read some other reviews as well as this is my first review and the quality of the review is not top notch. I hope to improve my skills and quality as a reviewer and so constructive comments would be most appreciated,
Thanks,
Ken.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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