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Feb 20, 2018
As the English release is two weeks away and I sit sour, waiting for it, I thought I would take to writing a review for the series thus far and what I expect the ending to be.
Generally speaking, Bloody Mary is not especially unique or groundbreaking. The story borders on predictable, with enough deviation to keep it interesting. Although the plot itself doesn't offer much in terms of twists, turns, and unforeseeable events, the pacing and tone of the story work well to keep the manga a page-turner. The characters have enough complexity to make them interesting and given its genre, they tell a
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story worth reading.
The art is interesting and fits the narrative well. There are a few scenes that feel a bit rushed or unnecessary, but is it really manga if there aren't some garbage frames here and there?
For as much as I can find fault with Bloody Mary, I can't deny a genuine sense of satisfaction as I read through. The relationship between the characters, especially our protagonists, feels genuine. There isn't a rushed revelation of love, no flower-petal love confession, nor the homo-fetishism role play so frequently plaguing queer characters. Their relationship stands delicately on the border between homoerotic and homosexual, neither teasing nor baiting. The point of the story isn't its romance - it's an element and one that's built by the tension of the story. Perhaps that's why I can't help but give high marks to an otherwise above average work - it isn't a love story trying to hide in action.
Bloody Mary is a story of regret, sorrow, despair, forgiveness, and promise, exploring each darker theme through the various shades of love. The narrative is self-satisfying and offers various lenses to look at the author's perspective on each issue. No character is a single glance, no interaction left unexplored. There's selfless love between family, the bitterness and abandonment of scorned lovers, the distant affections of old friends, and the potential for something to blossom in the remains of our selfishness. The story doesn't try to be more than it can with the characters, setting, and genre, but within its limitations, offers a complete, well-framed vision of what the many kinds of love we find can make us and how we, in turn, create love for ourselves.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 30, 2017
Despite a rather simplistic storyline and transparent events, the series as a whole meets everything you're looking for a in a "good vs evil" shounen sort of anime. The narrative begins at an end and continues from there, fulfilling its own promise of an unending battle of hope and belief against anguish and doubt.
A boyhood adventure told through an epic narrative, Chronicle will no doubt disappoint someone looking for a groundbreaking, genre-defining series. It never promises to be that and the first few minutes of the series make that evident. The rogue, the tank, and the fighter, supported by their healer and the feminine
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foil confront a great evil and despite their wholehearted efforts, they fall short. So begins our story, an "Odyssey" rather than an "Iliad". Like the greater epic's narrative that influences this, the writers assume you can tell who the characters are from design. The core characters see face-value development to satisfy the narrative, the trials and tribulations they face as they struggle to face their ultimate enemy are metaphors overcome by the timely arrival of an ally and the heroes' innate heroism. The hero dallies with Circe, overcomes the temptation into nihilism, and returns triumphant with his romanticism restored.
Chronicle delivers on its promise: an action filled, grand-scale story with a satisfying ending. It reaffirms what its audience is told to believe and redemption for those who fall promises the doubters among us are not yet lost. The animation is well-done, the soundtrack impressive enough to carry along the simplicity of the story, and the characters fulfill their roles without fail. Chronicle is a 12-episode romantic narrative, ideals of faith, belief, and fellowship cast into a group of characters we already know without knowing them themselves.
Enjoy Chronicle for what it is and accept, as the writers did, that it is not special, unique, or particularly well-developed. It doesn't need to be. Chronicle retells a story told for thousands of years and does it with enough bells and whistles to keep the audience engaged. Some serious moments fall painfully flat, the dialogue is laughable at times, and the trope abuse overwhelming for those unwilling to lose themselves in its romanticism. For the rest of us, willing to suspend our jaded, postmodern skepticism and need for elaborate, painstakingly contriving magic performances, Chronicle is a satisfying, self-fulfilling stage and worth the 6 hours invested.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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