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Came here to watch one of the "very dark takes on the Mahou Shoujo genre"? In for a psychological drama? Spare yourself the trouble, ignore recommendations, I can't think of one reason why this would be worth your time. This is an unexciting slice-of-life series that has a mystery lurking in the background - we're talking maybe 10% of each episode's duration - and plenty of uncomfortable, pedo-fanservicy shots at the body parts/underwear of underaged female characters - just so you could, on top of being bored and unamused, also feel utterly disgusted.

Uta-Kata, as we may expect from its premise, is mostly episodic in nature. ... It's always a different story that has our main character use the power of Djinn to resolve a certain arising trouble. The problem is that the Djinn Trials in question... are executed without any substance and contribute very little to the plot. They are neither preceded with interesting drama buildups (or, in some cases, *any* buildups at all), nor actually feature any interesting aspects themselves. The circumstances surrounding them that lead Ichika into using a Djinn are low stake (in both physical and emotional sense) and forgettable. The theme of "using powers has consequences" is in fact almost absent. There is no real payoff for sticking to the show if you don't like it early "because it gets darker", it doesn't really. As for the mystery and its reveal, it is - ironically - paced much faster than most of this show and severely underwhelming.

Uta-Kata, in my opinion, will not generally meet the expectations of someone who would decide to watch it based on the recommendations section (Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica, Shoujo Kakumei Utena, Princess Tutu, Mai-HiME). As mentioned before, it leans more towards slice-of-life, there's far more laid-back character interactions about nothing and beach episodes than there is psychological content, dark twists, emotional drama and so on. Throwing in a scene of mysterious black haired lady watching Ichika and playing ominous music once per episode isn't really it, sorry.

◆ If there is one show I really have "mixed feelings" about, that'd be Narutaru

Any connoisseur of genre deconstructions, or happy-go-lucky shows that unexpectedly turn grim/disturbing, will likely at some point stumble across Shadow Star Narutaru and ponder whether it's worth giving it a go despite its low score and mostly negative reviews. I'll try to brief you on what you should and shouldn't expect as you make your decision.

Shadow Star Narutaru has an interesting premise, but unluckily in the already limited time of 13 episodes it's been given, it tries to go in different, disjointed directions, and never seems to reach any destinations.
It raises ... more questions than it gives answers. The lore behind dragonets, the nature of relation between them and their owners, remain practically a complete mystery. Most of the owners themselves, who reappear throughout the whole show, are explored only on the surface or not at all. Although multiple subplots are introduced, only the mini-arc at the end can be deemed somewhat "completed", leading us to the conclusion that the real story and better characterisation supposedly only kick off in the manga, making this anime to be a sort of (convoluted) build-up.

◆ But there are also things that Narutaru does right:

+Tone
The overall uneasy atmosphere in the majority of the show, supported by some good soundtrack choices. For those that yearn this kind of setups it should be a pleasant experience.

+The last mini-arc.
Pretty dark, gripping, goes beyond the so far estabilished boundaries in earlier episodes and gives us an idea of the direction in which the manga might be heading. Also contains an answer to why many considered Narutaru to be so disturbing.

+Mystery
While the word "mystery" might be a bit of a stretch, it has to do with what's been mentioned earlier: the anime doesn't reveal much lore, certain characters that appear are only presented quite vaguely, but you do wish you knew more. For those that read manga where incomplete adaptations leave off, the lack of information can play the role of an incentive and not be considered a flaw.

◆ Not horrible, not a hidden gem

Although the execution leaves a lot to be desired, the overall experience can be summed up with "I wish it was done better" rather than "I wish it wasn't so bad". In my case, the ending only reignited my interest in the story (even if certain early episodes attempted to kill it off), to the point I'm willing to give the manga a chance.

I like my reviews informative. Here is a rather brief summary of the factors that should help you decide whether you'll enjoy this show or not, without delving much into the story.

‣ 1. Correct expectations

Most of anime horror fans have probably seen this statement at least once in their life: "Anime is not a good medium for horror." While this is true by the definition of horror we're intuitively used to from live-action series, I also think most of us are aware we don't come here to "be scared". We come to experience the eerie, dark atmosphere, watch *the characters* being frightened and put ... under mental pressure as they are forced to deal with constant danger, finally there are also viewers who specifically seek the presence of violence and gore - the tools that every horror anime appears to make use of, be it excessive or not.

Dark Gathering checks all the aforementioned boxes. If you've come here for those things, suffice to say you will get them.

You will also get the opportunity to listen to an amazing OST by Kohta Yamamoto (best known for composing the soundtrack for Attack on Titan) that contributes to the overall atmosphere just perfectly.


‣ 2. Tolerance for comedy

I don't like comedy in anime, I specifically don't like the presence of gags to 'lighten the mood' in otherwise serious shows because they're immersion breakers.

If there's anything bad (in the eyes of likeminded fellows) to say about Dark Gathering it's that it has comedy. The good news is, it doesn't throw it at us randomly. Most of the time the show follows the rule of "Screen time for comedy & screen time for serious business is mutually exclusive". In addition, they do limit its amount later on, so you mostly need some patience to look the other way in the first couple of episodes - and that leads us to point three.


‣ 3. Patience

Some anime are said to have checkpoints - the episode number the viewer must reach for the quality of the show to increase, sometimes significantly. For Dark Gathering, it is believed the early introduction episodes of monster-of-the-weekish nature end with E08.

Personally, I call E08 the soft checkpoint and E11 the hard checkpoint. It is E11, the first multi-episode story, that successfuly sold me on the show. It is also then that I got the impression the amount of comedy was significantly reduced, the story gained a stronger direction, and my interest in the very world, its lore and its characters started increasing.

This by no means indicates that early episodes provide nothing of value. They introduce us to the characters and lore, but are generally agreed to be weaker than the latter part.


‣ 4. Positive attitude towards adventure battle shonen story structure

Not the notorious shonen dialogs or power of friendship, no.

What I mean is just the design of the story progression. The main character strives to get stronger in order to beat a certain opponent and follows a plan with that purpose in mind. We eventually get to know major villains, we gradually learn more and more about the spirit world and its rules as we witness our main cast engage in different, increasingly more difficult spirit encounters that are themselves a mixture of puzzle solving and pokemon battles, all while staying within the frames of an eerie horror anime.


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Initially skeptical, I'm definitely glad I ended up completing Dark Gathering. I hope this instruction will help some undecided souls resolve their doubts as well.

This review is only targeted at the audience that, like me, decided to give DT a go based on that:
- it is often described as an example of a deconstruction of the monster genre with a darker approach to the subject
- it is hinted the latter part of the show explores some psychological themes and interpersonal relationships
- the MAL recommendations section contains NGE at the top

My tl;dr take would be: Remember it's first and foremost a kids show and don't expect too much.

While it is clear that Tamers took inspiration from some of NGE's elements, these are mostly visible in the setting or lore. ... The show arguably scratches certain psychological concepts here and there, but not only aren't they the focus of any arcs (the "darker" ones towards the end included), they are also treated in a way that will likely leave you with a feeling of insufficiency and disappointment.
lt felt to me like every plot point with potential for more in-depth exploration of characters' personal conflicts and dilemmas, learning of what's going on in their minds and what led them to be who they are, is skipped or ends abruptly. If I were to name a show that does not underdeliver in these areas - despite being a PG-children rated show as well - that would be Dennou Coil, which I recommend by the way.

(Some Digimon Adventure 01 spoilers)
In my childhood, I was a big fan of Digimon Adventure 01. Perhaps it'll come as a surprise to some other Digimon fans, but I still feel like the last 2 arcs of DA are darker than most of what DT offered. It has way more casualties among the good Digimon and it definitely puts more focus on the characters and their personal struggles. The 'wrong' evolution episode and its aftermaths leading to Tai's fear of repeating it (in my view explored better than a similar theme in DT), Demi-Devimon interfering with the Crests of virtues activation, the rivalry of Tai and Matt and its peak in Puppetmon's episodes, to name a few.

All things considered, I still enjoyed DT for what it is: a Digimon show with a moderately interesting plotline.

This show has a special place in my heart as it's the first anime I've seen in TV at around the age of 6. I have rewatched it once or twice as a teenagaer - and now again, as an adult.

Do I still love it, would I recommend it? Yes, with a 'but'.

I believe the strong part of Magic Knight Rayearth takes time to reach. The early episodes (or, perhaps, the majority of S1) may be difficult for newcomers to consider captivating enough to continue watching. Season 1 is an adventure story that defines its goal outright, progresses a bit in every episode, has ... its share of seriousness and comedy, but only becomes special and begins to stand out - in my opinion - towards the end, from episode 16 on. In these last 5 episodes, as we're heading for the season finale, the atmosphere becomes darker, drama increases and the resolution of the story is absolutely tearjerking.

The above is the reason why my previous rewatches of MKR always started around that point. To me it's the moment when the show becomes good, shifts into a darker, more grim setting and remains in it for the entirety of next season (which is my personal favorite) as it explores the consequences of events from S1.

Overall: 7/10 (arithmetic mean of 6/10 and 8/10 for the respective parts)
If early episodes make you skeptical about the show, it gets better, especially if you're in for the drama.

P.S I find music another strong point of the series. The opening song is outstanding and most soundtracks are beautiful & fitting (Zagato's theme, Emeraude's theme as well as many others).