Mar 28, 2019
Hello friends! I usually don't make any MAL reviews but for my current obsession which is everything TPN, I want to make an exception. Please bear with me as I'm not used to writing these and excuse me for any grammatical or spelling errors.
This review will not contain any big spoilers, and "compare" both my anime and some of my Manga experiences up until episode 12. (TLDR at the end)
When I found this anime, it immediately peaked my interest. Note that, at that time, I hadn't touched the Manga yet. After the first episode aired, I was sold. Why? I think it was a wonderful
...
pilot episode that really combined all good things: tension, suspense, incredibly eerie atmosphere, and the mesmerizing soundtrack.
Perhaps it's not exactly right to call this anime (or Manga) horror, though. Rather: psychological horror/thriller. And this is where the Manga comes in. After watching the first 3 episodes, I figured I loved this series so much, I ended up reading the Manga and woop, before I knew it, I had finished reading vol.3 and was ahead of the anime. I quickly noticed the differences between the Manga and anime, and decided to put my reading on hold to enjoy the anime first and enjoy the Manga afterwards.
Of course, the next few episodes in the middle (let's call them mid episodes) were "known content" for me. I found myself thinking these were weaker BECAUSE I knew what was going to happen. But, after giving it some thought, I'm not so sure anymore. Here's why:
While there's definitely some horror elements, (and the anime surely managed to keep me on the edge of my seat), this story actually focuses much more on strategy, the monologues, inner thoughts... Mind games. A huge part of this story you'll spend inside the minds of the kids and their enemies, trying to predict each others' moves. This was an important difference I noticed between anime and Manga, because the anime didn't adapt this so well (I believe it's really well done in the Manga, however): they decided to change these "monologues" to eerie silences (so, where the characters are supposed to be thinking, instead it's kind of up to your own interpretation). This added towards atmosphere, but took away from the depth of the characters and story (as it's a pretty huge part). Not having these monologues sometimes would give the impression that things were progressing too fast. I think the fast pacing was a consequence of leaving out these thought processes, rather than being adapted badly. In fact, I think they did a great job on the adaptation. The expressions on their faces, the soundtrack... Even the lighting on a cloudy day. All of these details made the experience so much more intense, which I enjoyed a lot.
Moving onto the last episodes, which, again became new content as I stopped reading the Manga. Things got intense again and strategy then became action. I think this is where the anime had the strongest points. Combining that atmosphere, soundtrack, and turning things into motion... The last episode truly left me speechless. It was so intense in the best possible way it almost makes up entirely for those "weaker" episodes in the middle. A nice addition: we finally actually got to see some (touching!) backstories in these last few episodes. I thought they were going to leave them out entirely, cause they seemed to do so in the beginning. I actually think that throughout the season, the anime has become better/stronger (and maximizing the use of these stronger points).
That's why I have pretty high hopes for the Season 2 that got announced. I feel like they can definitely improve their working points, as I personally felt like they already did near the end. Phew, I don't know if any of this makes sense to you all, but this is my personal experience.
-----Recap (tldr):-----
The first 3ish episodes, along with the last 3ish episodes, were the strongest and most intense. The mid episodes felt a little weaker, as they relied much more on monologue and strategy (which is present in the Manga but not as much in the anime).
--Best points of the anime:--
soundtrack, atmosphere, expressions, tension.
--Best points of the Manga:--
the depth added to the characters by letting us explore their minds, expressions, atmosphere, art, suspense.
--Working points for the anime as Manga adaptation:--
pace and characters. Adding more backstory and thought processes would be the perfect way to do this, in my opinion. (I also think they made up for that in Episode 12.)
--My final conclusion, based on my experience and feelings only:--
10/10 for the Manga and 9/10 for the anime (as there's still room for improvement ;))
Thanks for reading - I hope this review is helpful and not too chaotic. Again, this is just my own experience. I hope yours was or will be as wonderful as mine.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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