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I'm sorry, I just don't get it. This series has been hyped up so much, and is praised as one of the greatest anime ever made. So when I went to watch it, I was very excited.

Very rarely have I ever been so disappointed in a series. It was so damn BORING. I mean, I guess the fights were ok, but seriously, I was trying to find things to like about the series, and coming up with nothing. Even the characters were all unlikeable (with the exception of one or two). Rei was ok, but Shinji was annoying, and I utterly despised Asuka. I literally ... cared nothing for these characters or their fates, except for the ones I hated (like Asuka and Shinji's dad), who I simply wanted to die just so I wouldn't have to see them anymore. I had to force myself to keep going, thinking and hoping it would get better at some point.

Despite my dislike of it, I forced myself to push on, just so I could say that I had see it since, as an anime fan, it's pretty much a requirement for this series to be seen. But geez did I want this series to end. Especially the episodes towards the end. They dragged for for freakin' ever, even just killing time by replaying the same scenes over and over again. I swear, if I had to hear Asuka say "This isn't the real me!" one more time, I was going to put my fist through the screen. I was beyond relief when I finally finished.

Of course, I was aware that maybe it would have a different impact on me later. So 5 years after my first viewing of it, I gave it a second chance and watched it again. It was even worse the second time through, and no less boring. Seriously, what was it that people liked about this crap? Yeah, yeah, I've read reviews about the meaning and symbolism, yadda-yadda, all that nonsense, and I got/saw all that when I was watching. It still didn't stop me from being bored out of my mind.

This was one of the worst series I have ever seen, and having watched over 1000 series, that's REALLY saying something. It's not that this series just wasn't my cup of tea, it was boring garbage. I know I'm in the minority here, and I'm sorry, but I just don't get what's so great about it. I give it a 2/10, and that's me being generous.

Uch, if I wanted to watch something this perverted, I would have just watched a hentai. I mean, I'm all for ecchi anime and I don 't mind fan-service, but the amount in this series is just so over the top, it literally feels like they're just trying to see how much they can get away with before they get slapped with a hentai label. The story is average, and the characters are fine, but it seems like they're trying to find any excuse to dive into an orgy scene with a new type of fetish exploration. Would have appreciated more fight scenes and more ... of a plot. I give it a 4/10.

This series is absolutely amazing! Unfortunately, it has been mislabeled as a hentai, and bundled with other anime porn. However, it is NOT a hentai. It's an erotic-psychological-drama-romance. There's a big difference between an erotic movie and a hentai/porno. Yes, it does have graphic sex scenes in it, but you don't even see anything other than some breasts. I have seen standard ecchi anime that have been far more graphic. If it hadn't been part of the Countdown series, which WERE hentai, it may not have gotten labeled as one.

The story really draws you in. The plot is very deep and moving. The characters are ... complex and feel real, it contained a lot of psychological elements, and it has a great deal of romance. And the voice actor for the female lead does a stupendous job. You can really hear the emotion in her voice that makes her character feel very realistic. The art is really good, and the director uses it to express beauty, storytelling, and emotion. The only drawback is that half of it is slide-show, but there's a reason for that too, which comes into play at the very end of the last episode, and it is also used to signify important and emotional scenes. Sadly, due to it incorrect hentai label, many people pass over this rare gem, thinking it's just standard anime smut when it's not. It's really worth a watch.

The ending was beautiful too, as Akira was finally able to accept the truth about his sister and escape her abuse, and he finally accepts Kaname's love. Even though he was obsessed with his sister, you could see his developing feelings for Kaname when they were together despite his cold front, because she showed him what real love was, as opposed to his sister, who only loved herself and what she saw of herself in Akira, which was why she forced him to dress as a girl. Akira realized this at the end, and confesses that he viewed his sister as the perfect person, hence why he loved her so much, but finally realized she was a selfish and ugly person, and how horrible he himself had been to people. She really was a terrible person, and physically and mentally abused Akira; it's no wonder he ended up the way he did, but Kaname changed him by showing him real love. I really liked that line he delivered when he realized how horrible his sister was and then thought of Kaname, "She's more beautiful than anything". It was a great revelation for how he saw her as a person and his own feelings for her.

Another reviewer stated that Kaname was the only one he ever kissed out of all his sex partners. I noticed this too. There are a lot of people that find sex to be just a physical act, but feel that kissing is much more intimate and meaningful. This seemed to be the case with Akira. He even claims that when it comes to sex that it doesn't matter if it's man or woman, because "A hole is just a hole". At first when he was having sex with Kaname, he wouldn't kiss her even when she asked, but when they finally got together at the end, he did, and he gave her permission to use his name, which before he only allowed his sister to do, saying it belonged to her. Also, his request to her when he asked her to call him by his first name "Look only at me" was very touching too, as it greatly contrasted what his sister did, seeing and loving only the bits of herself she saw in him. Kaname was able to see through and accept all his flaws, and love him for who he was, even after all the horrible things he did. And that very last scene at the end, when he was looking out the window at the snow, that was pretty symbolic. I saw something similar on another anime where it was stated that when two people were saying goodbye and it was snowing, it meant that God was paying attention. This scene shows how he was finally able to say goodbye to his sister and his feelings for her and move on with Kaname.

Overall, it was a really beautiful and touching series in several ways. It really didn't get the recognition it deserved due to that unfortunate hentai label and the fact that it contained a lot of sex scenes.