Note: this is a review of both seasons of Fate/Zero, seeing as it's a singular story that was split into two seasons for reasons not related to the plot.
Since the dawn of mankind, humans have been creating stories. Many of these stories centred around lives and adventures of special individuals or groups of people, legendary larger-than-life heroes who performed superhuman feats on a regular basis, defied the Gods and odds and boldly looked Death itself right in the eye. Both Gods and Fate toyed cruelly with many of these heroes, either for the sake of their own amusement or because these legendary individuals dared to
...
oppose or challenge their divine will. Their heroic deeds, whether real or fictional, made them famous for all eternity.
Thousands of years ago, it was the brave Achilies, a warrior who brought down the armies of the famous city of Troy. It was the cunning Odysseus, who managed to outwit the capricious Gods of Olympus and overcome their ploys to keep him away from home. Later it was King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, whose fame and glory are probably unparalleled in the realm of legends. Today we have numerous comic-book superheroes, from the demigod Superman to the rich self-righteous vigilante Bruce Wayne, as well as the more “traditional“ heroes like Aragorn from Lord of the Rings. Each era has its own heroes.
However, much like in the world of Miguel de Cervantes' literary classic, “Don Quixote“, the modern world is no longer a place for heroes of old. Concepts of honour and chivalry have yielded to the growing cynicism and opportunism, and the ends justify the means for most people today. I wouldn't say it's a bad thing per se, but it ( unfortunately ) results in people largely dismissing or even ridiculing any attempts at display of heroism or nobleness. However, while there might not be a place for them in the real world, heroes are still very much alive and kicking in the realm of fiction. Fate/Zero is a work that connects both those worlds.
An adaptation of the novel of the same name, Fate/Zero is a prequel to the widely popular visual novel Fate/ Stay Night which spawned an anime adaptation of its own back in 2006. Studio DEEN's take on the original game was... not that well received by the fans, and the series didn't do much to bring more fans to the Fate franchise. It's been described as “juvenile“, “mediocre”, “overhyped“ etc. The fans were eager to see their beloved game come to life as an anime series, but were largely let down by it, and the hype they created prior to the series' release considerably raised the expectations of the uninitiated, which in turn caused many of them to be just as disappointed. Seeing how dissatisfied the fans were with the Fate/Stay Night anime by DEEN, Type-Moon, the developer of the game, decided to collaborate with a different studio for the adaptation of the Fate/Zero novel – Ufotable, who already had an established relationship with the company and a good record of adapting their works into anime with their series of Kara no Kyoukai movies. Comparing this series to its sequel, I can safely say that, from the technical aspect at least, the decision by Type-Moon to bring Ufotable on board for this project was an act of Providence.
Made with a budget that can buy a small country, Fate/Zero boasts visuals of near-cinematic quality that greatly enhance the feeling set by the story that this series is something else, and not just your typical run-of-the-mill supernatural action shonen show. From character designs and backgrounds to spectacular fight scenes, Fate/Zero is a feast for the eyes. Whether hand-drawn or CGI-rendered, the backgrounds are all highly detailed and blend in with the character models perfectly. Breathtaking backdrops range from a majestic castle of the Einzbern family in the German Alps to the futuristic cityscape of Fuyuki City, the battleground of the Fourth Holy Grail War. Lavishly decorated halls and drawing rooms, cellars corroded by moist, neon-lit city avenues and thick forests shrouded in mist serve as arenas for the spectacular battles between the greatest heroes of History.
The colour palette is as diverse as the set pieces, but leans more towards the darker tones and colder colours, seeing as most of the battles take place at night ( which is perfectly logical as the whole tournament is supposed to be highly secret ). Black, blue and gold are the most dominant ones, but no colour gets neglected and almost each character is colour-coded for your convenience. Gold as the symbol of royalty and power; blue for calmness and coldness; black as the colour of mystery, sadness, death and evil; white, the colour of purity, simplicity and innocence, red for energy, passion and war – the use of colours goes beyond mere aesthetics as each is assigned to a character in accordance to their personality.
The character designs themselves might seem typically “anime“ at first glance ( large eyes, bright hair colours etc. ), but a second look reveals a plethora of rich designs with a lot of attention payed to detail and harmony. Heroic Spirits are naturally very distinctive, particularly Archer, Rider and Saber, featuring a range of impressive outfits and weaponry. For the fans of the franchise: there is a marked improvement in the designs of recurring characters from Fate/Stay Night, most notably Saber, who leaves a much more regal and knightly impression in this incarnation, and these improvements aren't just budget-related – Ufotable simply has better artists. Their Masters, as well as other human characters, are right behind them, sporting some nice and distinctive outfits, and there really isn't a single character whose design could be considered dull or boring.
As gorgeous and eye-catching as the artwork is, though, the real testament to Ufotable's dedication to this project, and a shameless display of their gargantuan budget for the series is the animation. Not only are all the fight scenes beautifully choreographed and a joy to watch, they are complemented by animation of cinematic quality with absolutely no shortcuts taken. Forget about speed lines or sword-flashes on a black background - Fate/Zero features battles that could give most Hollywood blockbusters a run for their money. Be it one-on-one duels or massive free-for-all brawls, the action in Fate/Zero is a thrilling spectacle that will not disappoint those who're in just for some awesome fight scenes. CG animation is widely used and, thankfully, blends extremely well with the 2D artwork for the most time, allowing for some excellent gimmicks, effects and set pieces that would otherwise be extremely difficult to pull off.
However, while undoubtedly great and high-end, the animation isn't 100% perfect. The CG models are painfully obvious on a few occasions, but it's really only just a few. Also, while the action scenes can make your jaw drop and the studio makes sure you see that they saved no expenses on them, outside the fight-scenes and a few chases, it is clear that this is still a TV series, no matter how high the budget is. There is plenty of dialogue and exposition in the series, and these scenes play out with minimal changes of camera angles and the person talking is often either off-screen or far away, so as to eliminate lip-flaps where possible.
In the end, while a few corners had to be cut, the cuts were placed wisely and where they felt natural, and all these issues with the visuals are really minor, bordering on nit-picking.
But as always, what is a visually impressive show worth without an equally impressive soundtrack? Well, a lot, but a great score raises the viewing experience to a whole new level. The composer brought on board for this tour-de-force of a story is Yuki Kajiura, one of the greatest composers in contemporary anime industry whose vast opus includes the soundtracks for .hack franchise, Kara no Kyoukai movies, Tsubasa Chronicles, Sword Art Online and Madoka Magica. While I wouldn't say it's her best, the score for Fate/Zero is certainly one of the most powerful works she composed.
Music is probably the most subjective thing in the world, almost completely subject to personal preferences. However, I think there are two criteria by which you can easily assert whether a soundtrack is good or not – if it makes you cry and/or gives you goosebumps. There are only a few tracks that could bring tears to your eyes, but the number of times the music will give you shivers more than makes up for this. To complement the nature of the story and the grand size of some of the battles, Kajiura brings us a score full of epic choirs that make your heart race and give the entire series an epic feel during the high points, and make the already intense and dynamic action scenes even more engaging. Haunting female choruses are accompanied either by an orchestra or electronic instruments or both, and this blend of modern and “classical“ music does wonders for setting the tone and pace for each scene. There aren't really any stand-out pieces, but they are all excellent and don't lose any of the quality or impact if you listen to them on their own.
When it comes to opening and ending tunes, Fate/Zero is quite diverse. Since the series is split into two seasons, there are two pairs of opening and ending themes, both of which are pretty good, especially the Season 1 ending theme song, “Memoria“, and Season 2 opening theme “To the Beginning“ by Kalafina. Season 2 has another track by Kalafina, named “Maten“ and featured in ep 18 & 19, which is... well... sung by Kalafina! Listen to it, it's great, even if it's sad.
On the subject of voice-acting, the series hasn't received an English dub as of yet, but if it does this review will be updated. However, the Japanese dub is so good and distinctive that it most definitely warrants a comment. Koyama Rikiya delivers a powerful and impressive delivery as Emiya Kiritsugu, keeping a cool and emotionless voice for the most part, while still successfully portraying many different emotions that occasionally slip through his cold exterior. His main opponent, Kotomine Kirei, is voiced by Nakata Jouji, probably best known for his role as the vampire Alucard from Hellsing. His deep and mighty voice is a joy to listen to; at the same time both fitting for the character's personality and in contrast to his more youthful exterior. But while both these two, as well as Kawasumi Ayako as Saber, do a brilliant job at portraying their respective characters, it is Ootsuka Akio ( Batou from GITS franchise ) as Rider that delivers the most powerful and striking performance, intensifying the qualities of his character several times. The sheer impact of his performance is hard to describe – simply put, without Ootsuka, there is no Rider. Honorable mention goes to Satoshi Tsuruoka as Caster; you can tell in every line he utters that the man is having an incredible amount of fun, and has no qualms about going way over the top with his insane overacting. He's a lot of fun to listen to and when the series is dubbed they should cast Jeremy Irons for this role.
With the technical aspects of the series out of the way, let's have a look at the story.
The word “epic“ has lost a lot of its former weight in the modern Internet generation. Today, anything more entertaining than a dog using a laptop or a cat stuck in a jar can be dubbed “epic“, which results in people largely forgetting what the word originally stood for. It is therefore quite refreshing to see something that really earns the title of an epic. If the inclusion of heroes and legends of old in a tournament for the Holy Grail, and the mentioning of grand and spectacular battles didn't tip you off already, then the themes and ideas presented and debated over the course of the series should illustrate why Fate/Zero is an epic.
Possibly inspired by the ( annoying ) personality and actions of Emiya Shirou, the protagonist of Fate/ Stay Night, the basic idea and main underpinning theme of Fate/Zero is the concept of chivalry and honour and the question of what it really means to be a hero. Selfless heroes are no strangers to movies and books, and they are very much a hallmark of shonen action anime. Noble individuals who never hesitate to sacrifice themselves for the cause; determinators who rarely, if ever, doubt their ideals; goody two-shoes who always endeavour to do the right thing and so on and so on... Perhaps it's needless to say that most of these heroes are rewarded for their goodness in the end and they manage to achieve their goals fully.
But this series was written by Gen Urobuchi.
As the question it poses suggests, Fate/Zero is a deconstruction of sorts of the shonen anime, but it also goes way beyond that in many questions it asks. There are very, very few examples in anime industry ( and I dare say, Hollywood as well! ) of writers that ask the tough questions as cuttingly as Urobuchi does. What makes a hero a hero? What would it take to be a hero of justice? What does it mean and take to stay true to one's own ideals? Are they even worth it? The maturity of the writing and the genius of Urobuchi's storytelling is that the show never pretends to hold any definite and universal answers to these questions. True, he’s better at asking the questions than answering them, but there’s a very good reason for that – I don’t think Urobuchi believes there *are* any answers to be had, seeing as he is more or less a Nihilist with a healthy twist of despair. Various viewpoints and ideas are presented by a number of different characters, and each of their beliefs holds both something true and misguided at the same time, and the ratio differs from character to character and is also largely open to perspectives and judgements of both the characters and viewers. Urobuchi doesn't treat any of the views as inherently right or wrong, or one morally superior to the others, which provides for some great food for thought for those who wish to entertain themselves with some brain work, while not offending or alienating anyone with his personal views and opinions.
The plot itself is tight and very well written, full of twist and turns. Granted, they aren't really on the same level as Death Note, the King of Twists, but it does stand apart from almost every other action show barring maybe Code Geass. Rather than simply throwing the characters into as many fights as possible and resorting to cheap power-up cop-outs when the situation becomes too thick, Fate/Zero dedicates a lot of time to careful planning and strategy, especially in the first half of the story. A battle royale to end all battle royales, it features some quite diabolic schemes, clever stratagems and a lot of conspiracies. Temporary alliances are often created, but more out of necessity or common threat rather than goodwill or nobility. To tell the truth, compared to the elaborate planning of each next move and a hefty amount of character interaction, the fight scenes are very much not at the forefront of the story. Sure, the battles are mesmerizing, but are spread thinly throughout the series, with the natural exception of the grand conclusion. This sets the show apart from its shonen brethren and makes it a much more “intellectual“ story than a strictly action-packed thrill-ride.
However, as rich in substance and breathtaking in scope as it is, Fate/Zero's story does suffer from some flaws in presentation; the storytelling itself.
The pacing is very uneven, and reminded me a bit of Mamoru Oshii's directional style – there's a ( relatively ) small number of intense action scenes separated by long periods with very little action or plot twists, mostly dominated by long and in-depth dialogue. The amount of dialogue is enormous and can take a strain on the viewer, so it's extremely fortunate that the dialogue itself is engaging and interesting in its own right, otherwise the show would have lost its audience. There are a few occasions when an interaction between characters seems forced or tedious, but it's really rare and doesn't detract from the overall quality of the writing. I doesn't bother me if there's endless talking as long as the dialogue is meaningful and relevant to the story and character development, which is all true for Fate/Zero.
Apart from the somewhat awkward pacing and a hefty amount of talking, there is one other problem with the writing. Well, one and a half to be precise. Although it's a prequel to the already popular Fate/Stay Night, Fate/Zero attempts to bring in more fans and thus appeal to the newbies of the franchise. For this purpose, most of the double-length first episode is one big and not very subtle exposition dump on the backstory of the Holy Grail War and the workings of the story's universe. While it can unnerve many an older fan of the Fate series, as someone who was completely ignorant about the franchise I found it to be pretty useful and didn't have any major issues with it ( and I usually abhor force-fed exposition! ). All things considering, the exposition dump was handled rather well, and the decision by the writers to include it in the anime adaptation was a good one.
Less excusable is the episode 10, which revolves around a certain side character that plays a major role in Fate/Stay Night. This episode baffled many a fan, for it doesn't really follow any of the main plot threads and has almost no bearing to the overall plot progression. It seems to be a rather forced attempt at giving some characters much needed screen time and tying things up for the series' sequel. Yes, it's practically filler.
To tell a good story, you need an interesting plot. To tell a great story, you also need a great cast of characters, and this is where Fate/Zero shines the brightest.
I'm not trying to demote the show's other strengths, but I found the characters and their interactions to be the most interesting aspect of the series, partly because this is an intensely character-driven story. Each of the main characters could warrant a lecture and an essay on their own, but since the review is already long as it is and since it would inevitably include some spoilers, I'll try to keep it general and speak in broad strokes.
The seven Mages, called the Masters, are all quite interesting and memorable characters in their own right. The seven Servants are maybe even more interesting – who wouldn't want to meet a legendary hero and see what they were really like? Watching the Masters and their Servants interact with each other and seeing how their ( differing ) approaches to winning the war affect their relationships is incredibly enjoyable and engaging. Some of them are kindred spirits that immediately create a strong bond between them while others get to know and connect with each other more gradually. Some downright despise each other while others develop more one-sided love or hate relationships. Then there's the interactions between members of opposing teams and all the rivalry and confrontation that the Holy Grail War brings with it, all of them displaying Urobuchi's more than formidable qualities as a writer.
Both the Masters and their Servants are primarily defined by their ideals and motivations, which dictate their actions over the course of the story and drive it forward, sometimes in ways you could never have predicted at the outset. They can range from chivalric knights, willing to die for their honour, to the troubled and cynical pragmatists, to incredibly pompous and conceited arrogant douchebags.
Some characters develop and change more over the course of the story than the others, and some inevitably get more screentime and development than the rest, but no one is left unchanged by the War in which they participate, cementing the feeling that this is an event of proportion and importance.
The pinnacle of the interactions between the members of the cast has to be the “Banquet of Kings“ in ep 11, a brazen and unapologetic philosophical debate that, through a more specific theme of kingship, set in its sights the entire world and mankind’s role in it. It is not often that you get to see such a brilliant take on philosophy that manages to overcome elitism or pretentiousness usually fettering such discussions, because it was incredibly direct, natural, pointed and free of BS. Seriously, they should show that episode in university courses for years to come.
Another aspect of character development for which I have to praise the writers has to be just how well researched the backstories of the Heroic Spirits are. Archer's, Lancer's, Rider's and Caster's stories stand out in particular, tying a lot of elements from their legends into their character development during the story, including some very inconspicuous details that can just fly over your head if you're not familiar with their stories. Wikipedia is your friend if you don't want to miss them.
Certainly, the writer took many liberties with the original legends ( Saber being a prime example ), but the effort put into researching the originals, as well as all those details and little things that can go unnoticed, show that these liberties don't stem from ignorance. Rather, one should view the changes made as Artistic License or intentional disregard.
However, while Fate/Zero fields a stellar cast of almost Shakespearean characters that only a few other shows ( like Baccano! ) could match, not all the characters are perfectly shaped or used.
The sheer size of the cast makes it clear that not everyone can get the same amount of development, and that some take more spotlight than others, but there are still some characters that I feel are underused and even squandered, not achieving the potential they had. Namely, it's Matou Kariya and his servant, Berserker. That doesn't mean that they are plain or ineffectual, far from it, but I would have preferred had they played a larger role in the story.
Which brings me to probably the most important part of the story, and the one that ultimately sealed Fate/Zero's fate and final score – the ending. This part might contain some minor, minor spoilers, but I think it might be better for you if you watch the series emotionally prepared.
---
No matter how brilliant Gen Urobuchi is as a writer, no matter how amazing the story he created is, and no matter how great of an addition it is to the franchise, there is one giant flaw that cannot be overlooked, and it's the one that prevented it from being a masterpiece it could have been. That flaw is the unfortunate shackle to the Fate series itself. In the end I think Fate/Zero couldn’t escape the prison of Fate/Stay Night. . Whatever else Urobuchi wanted to do with this story and these characters, he had to point them all at a very specific place and deliver them as advertised.
The ending itself is handled very well, tying up some of the plot threads and leaving some loose ones for the preexisting sequel to tie up. As a prequel, Fate/Zero does the job perfectly and even improves some aspects of Fate/Stay Night, so I have no complaints about that. As a stand-alone work, though, it fails to achieve perfection it strives for, and not due to any fault of its writer or the production crew.
Urobuchi had a misfortune of having his hands tied by an obligation to tie his story to a preexisting one. This severely limited the boundaries of his artistic expression, and it was very obvious during the final episode that his hand was forced and that he wouldn't have ended the story quite that way if it was completely up to him. It's still very much a Urobuchi ending, but no the one I think he really would have wanted to create.
To look for conventional character arcs with conventional satisfactions in an Urobuchi series is asking for disappointment. Heroes aren’t rewarded and villains punished because the universe doesn’t recognize heroes and villains – only those with power and conviction and those without it. That’s why his series don’t tend to emotionally satisfy in the end so much as leave you dazed and bleeding by the side of the road. Existence is suffering – that’s Urobuchi’s fundamental truth. However, a quick glance at the series’ ending and a comparison with his other great work, Madoka Magica, in which he was free to do as he pleases, shows that Urobuchi knows that a good tragedy needs purpose. A good tragedy must be inspiring, not depressing. He won’t give you anything more than simple final hope, but it is that hope that gives meaning to all the darkness and suffering prior to it. He gives a bit of it at the ending of Fate/Zero too, but it’s not really the same fulfilling kind of hope from Madoka, and the series thus strikes me as incomplete and imperfect.
By the fall of the curtain in final episode, almost all of the character arcs have been concluded. The dead are...well, dead, and the survivors have gone through a defining change, especially the two main human characters, Kiritsugu and Kirei. While Kirei’s story continues in Fate/Stay Night, his character arc and gradual transformation in Fate/Zero is definitely concluded. Kiritsugu’s story also reaches a final conclusion, and a satisfying one at that. Gilgamesh, another character from Fate/ Stay Night, remains more or less unchanged over the course of the series, quite naturally seeing as he is the Eldest Hero and an individual who affects and changes others. His adventures shall continue, but his part in this story has also effectively concluded.
But there is one major character whose arc is left unfinished, the only one who is yet to see the conclusion of their story. I am talking about Saber, the heroine of both series and one of the most iconic female characters in anime. She and her Master, Kiritsugu, are the Tragic Heroes of the story, the ones who get to see their ideals and hopes shattered before their very eyes. Both are driven to the point of despair because of their ideals and how their ideals betray them in the end. However, only Kiritsugu gets a conclusion to his story. His character is redeemed and his path completed, whereas Saber’s is not. Her character development takes the route of “Breaking the Heroine“, but she is left only halfway through, in the depths of her despair, and without either a positive or negative resolution. This incompleteness of her character arc is the proof of a shackle that tied Urobuchi's hands. A writer like him wouldn't have left a character's arc unfinished, but was in this case forced to do so, since Saber's arc spans Fate/ Stay Night as well, and is only concluded at the end of that series.
Being a Hero of Justice is never a good thing in a story by Urobuchi, but even though he broke Saber completely in his novel, even though he uncompromisingly smashed her ideals, he never spits on them or finds them morally inferior to either Kiritsugu's or Kirei's. Even though he stated that Kirei and Gilgamesh were his favourite characters in the story, I think that he is much more like Kiritsugu then Kirei, and I cannot but see his sadistic handling of her character development as anything other than a defence mechanism of a man who cannot help himself but adore and hate such idealistic heroes at the same time. I believe he, too, wanted to be a Hero of Justice.
While Urobichi is a bit too cynical and depressed to do so, the writers of the anime did slightly redeem her character at the end of the series although only slightly. Even though he would never say it himself, I believe that Urobuchi wanted to give Saber the same words as a certain character in episode 25. His redemption of Saber’s spiritual successor, Miki Sayaka, at the end of Madoka Magica makes me think so.
In the end most of the satisfaction you’ll get comes from Rider and his master, Waver, who were the leading lights of hope in a hopeless universe. People can change – and not in the way Kirei changes, or because of limitless suffering (caused and felt) as in Kiritsugu’s case. They changed because of their relationship with each other, and for the better at that. And it’s no coincidence, I think, that as characters they didn’t carry the heavy burden of having to confirm to their Fate/ SN archetypes. They could simply *be*, and exist fully as Urobuchi imagined them. And in doing so, perhaps they reveal that Urobuchi hasn’t completely given himself over to hopelessness and despair.
---
Finally, time for me to conclude the review. Both the fans of Fate/Stay Night and those not familiar with the franchise can enjoy Fate/Zero, each in a different way. If you saw F/SN and found it underwhelming, the vast difference in scope and quality between the two series will be very refreshing for you, and seeing how F/Z puts pieces into places left empty by its sequel will be a rewarding experience. The uninitiated, on the other hand, can enjoy the uncertainty and suspense of the series that is largely lost to those who have seen F/SN ( since they already know who lives to fight another day ).
Despite its flaws, Fate/Zero is an excellent series. Minor problems like the pacing could have easily been forgiven, but the unfulfilling and anti-climactic ending stripped it of a perfect score, which is a great shame, as it's a series of exceptional scope and potential - the unfortunate shackle imposed by its preexisting sequel prevented it from becoming a masterpiece that it could have been.
Nothing Gen Urobuchi does is ever less than fascinating, and Fate/Zero is no exception.- its story, characters, animation, soundtrack and sheer scope and enjoyability give it such a wide appeal I can recommend it to almost anyone. A series of such impact and quality only comes about once in a while and really should not be missed.
I can say with much certainty that it is one of the greatest series I’ve ever seen.
8,8/10.
Dec 29, 2012 Recommended
Note: this is a review of both seasons of Fate/Zero, seeing as it's a singular story that was split into two seasons for reasons not related to the plot.
Since the dawn of mankind, humans have been creating stories. Many of these stories centred around lives and adventures of special individuals or groups of people, legendary larger-than-life heroes who performed superhuman feats on a regular basis, defied the Gods and odds and boldly looked Death itself right in the eye. Both Gods and Fate toyed cruelly with many of these heroes, either for the sake of their own amusement or because these legendary individuals dared to ...
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
 0
Love it
 0
Funny
 0
Confusing
 0
Informative
 0
Well-written
 0
Creative
 0Show all 
Dec 10, 2012
Bakemonogatari
(Anime)
add
Recommended
In the year 2009, the otakudom was shaken by a certain creation of Studio Shaft, produced under the helm of one Akiyuki Shinbo. By now, Shaft has become famous as a powerhouse of experimentation and innovation in contemporary anime industry, and Shinbo's career has skyrocketed since then. While their tendency to deploy eccentric and experimental visual styles in whatever material they touched was established many years prior to its release, it was Bakemonogatari that launched them into the mainstream, serving as an important milestone and a valuable lesson for the studio and its most prominent director. Experiences gained and lessons learned during the making of
...
this series ( as well as the huge pile of money it generated, it has to be said! ) were put to good use by Shaft and Shinbo, and eventually resulted in their ( as of yet ) crowning achievement, the 2011 masterpiece Madoka Magica. But does this important work live up to all the enormous hype its ardent fans generated?
Bakemonogatari is a difficult series to describe, at least when it comes to classifying it by genre or trying to explain what it's about, but there *is* one fitting label for it: avant-garde. While the label itself is predominantly used to denote the modernist works of fine arts, literature and film from the first half of the 20th century, it is still widely used by both the critics and general populace to describe the more experimental contemporary works in various media, and rightly so. After all, “avant-garde“ means “vanguard“; it's a term used to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture and politics. It represents a pushing of the boundaries of what is accepted as the norm or the status quo, primarily in the cultural realm, and Bakemonogatari matches this definition in virtually every aspect. The first obstacle one will encounter when trying to recommend or review the series is trying to explain or summarise the plot. This is because there is virtually no plot to speak of. The summary given here on MAL is very short, and potentially misleading. While the main character does indeed find himself surrounded by various supernatural apparitions and creatures, Bakemonogatari is not a supernatural-mystery/thriller/action series at all, certainly not in the usual sense. Saying that the plot is minimalistic would be a severe understatement. The story is split into several arcs, lasting from two to five episodes, each of them revolving around a supporting character who has a problem of other-worldly nature, and how the main character helps them get rid of a supernatural being possessing and troubling them. However, the resolutions to these cases and problems aren’t achieved in the “traditional“ way associated with the supernatural mystery genre, i.e. by finding clues, acquiring some ancient legendary magical artifacts or casting complicated unholy spells. There is something resembling this, but in fact, 90% of this show consists of characters talking. And talking. And talking. And then, if they feel tired of talking, they talk some more. Seriously, compared to Bakemonogatari, Death Note looks like a silent film(!). But while this description might seem negative, the endless dialogue in this series is certainly not dull or stupid, even if it is just a bunch of nonsense. Basically, the dialogue in Bakemonogatari is what you'd get if you took a stream-of-thought approach and then just turned all that monologue into dialogue. Random, nonsensical, aimless, confusing... there's no end to synonyms that can be used to describe the dialogue in this series, for it's basically people bullshiting for 15 whole episodes, and yet, it is probably the most engaging and witty bullshit you'll ever hear. It's filled with countless word plays, puns, Japanese pop-culture references ( for example, a DBZ joke ) and the series can amaze the viewer with the sheer wit and cleverness of its script. By now you are already getting the idea where the “avant-garde“primarily lies in the series. It breaks numerous conventions of story-telling, and there is little point in me trying to further describe the “plot”, simply because Bakemonogatari is so different. Obviously, this unusual nature of the story means it's definitely not suited for everyone and is more of an aquired taste. Not everyone will be amused by the endless nonsense the characters spout, even if it is witty and humourous, and while I'm presenting it in a positive light, Bakemonogatari is not all brilliant and ingenious in its unconventionality. As cleverly written and engaging as it is, the story can take a lot of strain on the viewer, as some of the conversations drag on for the length of an entire episode with no change of setting or inclusion of additional characters. Some of the jokes and gags get repetitive too. Furthermore, the actual explanations and resolutions to the supernatural problems are incredibly tedious and uninteresting, and are spouted more or less text-book style by a particular character in a single scene towards the end of an arc. Whether the supernatural background of the series is actual Japanese spiritual mythology or just something that Nisioisin ( the author of the light novels that the series was based on ) made up all by himself is not important, as the explanations are there just to resolve the “plot“ and conclude the arc, and it's probably the last thing the viewer is interested in. The complete focus on the dialogue over the plot or deeper themes requires the show to field a satisfying cast of characters, and Bakemonogatari does achieve this, but only to an extent, for the aimless dialogue that permeates every pore of the story and the mini-arc format of the “plot” don't come without repercussions. The cast of Bakemonogatari is basically a harem ( one guy + a bunch of girls that he interacts with ), only with sex being replaced with the never-ending dialogue. Not that there’s an absence of fanservice, but I’ll talk about that later. The main protagonist, Koyomi Arararagi spends his days wandering aimlessly, not caring about the upcoming finals, picking his nose and minding his own business. That is, when he’s not busy helping a bunch of girls with their weird problems brought on by various supernatural monsters and apparitions. Also, during his interactions with these girls he never misses an opportunity to take a peek at their breasts or panties or more, depending on what’s on the menu. He’s an OK character, interesting to watch as he switches between being a normal absent-minded teenager, to becoming an over-excited sod, to a creepy child-molester who gropes and fights a 10-years old girl for no adequately explored reason. And I’m not even kidding. The rest of the cast is a bunch of archetypes; girls that serve as baits for different factions of the otaku community and can range from a tsundere, to a slightly nymphomaniac lesbian, to a neko-girl. They aren’t cardboard cut-outs, though, and have as much personalities as their types allow them to develop, with the main star being Senjougahara Hitagi, the heroine of the first arc, the most recurring character of the cast ( apart from Arararagi, naturally ) and the fan favourite. Senjougahara’s sharp tongue and interesting personality make her by far the best character of the entire cast, and her interactions with Araragi make some of the greatest moments in the entire series. She’s funny, she’s sarcastic, and can come across as sweet, witty and as a crazy psycho-bitch in a space of two minutes. Though I have to say I was personally disappointed with the direction her character development takes over the course of the series, as she becomes more an more normal. BUT, again, and as previously stated, the avant-garde nature of the story takes its toll on the character development. The nonsensical content of the dialogue means that almost none of the characters comes across as being natural or realistic, except for maybe Araragi. The sheer aimlessness of the bullshit the character spew means the word “personality“ cannot be used in describing character development in its conventional sense. The dialogue present in the series is not how people talk, not even when high, and therefore the characters aren't real, believable people. Not to mention that they are very underdeveloped considering the amount of dialogue exchanged between them – again, because of the content of their dialogue. Another problem with character development comes from the format of the story. As each arc is centred around a different girl, the characters from the previous ones get left behind in a routine manner, usually not to be heard or seen again, which severely limits the potential for their development. The exception to this is, apart from the protagonist, Senjougahara, whose appearance over the course of the series constantly steals the show every second she's on screen, which is in this case bad - both for the other characters as they lose the spotlight, but for the audience as well, as we want to see more of Senjougahara but the show won't let us. There's also one character who is merely a convenient plot-device with the sole purpose to resolve the supernatural cases at the end of each arc. He also drags the quality of the cast down. Much like the eccentric dialogue, the art style and cinematography of Bakemonogatari are very distinctive and different, however, they are every bit as mixed or “hit-or-miss” as the aforementioned dialogue. Whether it was because the series is based on a novel, or in order to save money they didn’t have, Shaft added a strange feature to the visuals of Bakemonogatari - still, monochromatic images with some little text on them, which are flashed constantly over the course of the entire series. While they can appear at any given time, they are mostly used at the very beginning of each episode and in short pauses between the endless talking. Occasionally, these images hold a more substantial amount of text, but none of them last longer than a fraction of a second, which can irritate the viewer seeing as you don't know whether the text was crucial to the story, and have no time to read it as it goes. This, combined with the fact that during most conversations the camera switches angles every half a second ( probably in fear that you'll fall asleep from all the talking if it doesn't occupy your eyes *somehow* ), can make for a very tiresome and exhaustive viewing experience, and many a viewer was put off by this strange and seizure-inducing editing. While on the subject of camera angles, I should mention one other aspect of Bakemonogatari that also stands apart from its more conventional counterparts, and that is the fanservice. Maybe in a yet another attempt to keep your attention amidst the endless stream of words, or because this series is just one big otaku party, the show goes way out of its way to position the camera in the most provocative angle possible when showing any of the female members of the cast. Such practice is nothing new for gratuitous anime series, but the nonchalant way in which it is carried out is what’s distinctive about Bakemonogatari’s fanservice. It’s as if to say: “Oh, you find this image sexually suggestive? The angle is provocative? Huh. I didn’t notice”. Scenes of ( almost ) full female nudity come out of the blue so suddenly and unexpectedly you’ll be just as taken a back as Araragi. Boobs and bottoms are flashed out while their owners don’t seem to notice it at all or find their provocative behaviour strange or unusual in the slightest. Indeed, the fanservice of this particular kind is hard to find elsewhere. As for the art itself, I’ll just briefly say that, while highly detailed and very colourful, it always felt a bit empty to me, particularly the outdoor scenes and settings. The music, like the plot, is virtually non-existent, opening themes aside. This is completely understandable considering that 90% of the show is composed of dynamic and engaging dialogue – you wouldn’t want the music to distract you from the witty puns and references that are exchanged at the rate of over 9000 words per minute. The soundtrack is therefore extremely minimalistic, rarely employing more than a single instrument per track and none of them being stand-alone numbers. It is also very quirky, utilising mostly electronic instruments and synthetic sounds to punctuate the dialogue. Music’s role in the series is minimal and is completely subservient to the visuals and the character interaction, but it accomplishes its small supporting task adequately. --- Now, while I have sung many a song of praise for Bakemonogatari and its experimental and unconventional nature, there are still many people who will disagree with me, mostly because they didn’t enjoy it. Likewise, the fans will probably disagree with me on issues of character development or visuals, saying that I’m being picky and criticising the show with little basis or consideration. Both groups would be wrong about my opinion on the series. At the beginning of this review, I mentioned that Bakemonogatari was a test, an experiment that the studio Shaft used to learn lessons that eventually resulted in the creation of Madoka Magica. This observation and comparison is included in the review because Bakemonogatari is not a universally acclaimed series, despite its immense popularity – there is no shortage of anime fans calling it overrated or mediocre, and I’d like to create a bridge between the two opposing views by offering a new perspective on its eccentricity. Both the fanatic admirers of the series and the... khm, “less enthusiastic” people, as well as the moderates between them seem to miss a point when thinking and talking about the series, and it is this oversight that results in people failing to give credit to Bakemonogatari where it’s due, or giving the credit but for the wrong reasons. There was another term I used to describe this show - “avant-garde“, which means experimenting, and this is what Bakemonogatari ultimately is – an experiment, testing ground, and to properly appreciate it, you have to view it as such. To see and rate it not at its face value and judge it by the established rules of the medium, but as a work that toys with elements and pushes the envelope so that it can explore things better, find its own conclusions and lessons through this experimenting, so that latter something more meaningful can be created. I'm writing this to show that Bakemonogatari, the experiment, would be somewhat less worthy without its successor, its higher purpose – Madoka Magica. Naturally, this view was impossible to hold for those who watched it when it first came out or over the next year or so, because Madoka Magica wasn't created yet, but I have the advantage of viewing it in retrospect and applying adequate perspective and needed context to review it in as objective light as possible. Yes, Bakemonogatari still manages to stand on its own, but with this perspective its artistic quality is considerably raised and the show can be viewed in a whole new light. This bold experiment with the traditional art styles and cinematography paved the way for Shaft and Shinbo to take an even greater risk than adapting a quirky and unusual light novel, and create a completely original anime creation, in which they used all that was best about Bakemonogatari's style and discarded the parts that “missed”. It is in this way that I appreciate Bakemonogatari the most; not so much as an entertaining display of wit, sarcasm and humour, but as a work that pushes the envelope of artistic visual expression in an animated medium, and paves the way for greater works to come. It is much more interesting for me as a critic to observe how a director and a studio mature in their artistic expression and apply their experiences and lessons in their future works, than listening to a conversation about bugger all, regardless of how sarcastic and funny the main heroine is. --- Time for me to pass my final judgement on Bakemonogatari. Overhyped by its considerable cult of enthusiastic fans, and at the same time underestimated by the number of people who didn't manage to enjoy it due to its very quirky nature, Bakermonogatari is certainly unconventional, and I'd confidently put it in the company of such shows as the Excel Saga, FLCL and Lucky Star.. While the fans say it establishes a completely new genre of its own, I'd challenge that on the basis of Bakemonogatari having very little actual substance to even categorise it as any kind of a genre. A combination of different existing genres ( like supernatural mystery and harem ) makes it a post-modernist creation, while the nature of the writing and visuals earn it a title of an avant-garde work. It doesn't feature “amazing character development, thought-provoking themes... deep symbolism“ as the loyal followers claim; its artistic qualities lie elsewhere, but it still does possess many qualities. It's certainly not a show for everyone, and not a must-see, but it's nevertheless an important work that should be properly appreciated. Unfortunately, the complete lack of substance means I cannot rate it higher than 7,5/10.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Dec 5, 2012 Not Recommended
When a film starts with the main character giving himself a wank over an unconscious girl after he reveals her breasts by accident, you know you're in for a treat.
"It's the end of the world Ladies and Gentlemen, and I'm feeling fine". After a huge middle finger to the audience that were episodes 25 and 26 of the TV series Neon Genesis Evangelion, and the not-unexpected outrage and protests by the fans, the series' creator Hideaki Anno fell into a whole new level of depression that was so deep it hit the centre of the Earth, bounced back through its own anus, turned into a hysteric ... hatred towards the fans and shot up right back into Anno's big head, traversing his large intestine on the way back and thereby planting some serious shit into his head. The result was a giant wank in the face and the ensuing skull-fucking that was the "End of Evangelion" movie. And what a movie it is! Films like End of Evangelion are a rarity, and only come about every couple of years. This movie is the anime equivalent of "Dungeons and Dragons" or "The Room"; a movie so epically bad it's a joy to watch. Though, there is one precondition to properly enjoying this film if you have the misfortune of owning a brain ( unlike the people who rate this magnificent turd a 10/10 ); you have to give all your fucks beforehand. The opening scene of Shinji wanking over comatose Asuka should assist you in switching off the "caring" mode, in which case, you're in for a roller-coaster ride through some of the most amazing shit that has ever been animated. I'll say it openly: I enjoyed this movie a lot, only not in a way you'd usually associate with the word "enjoy". You may have noticed by now that this review is already different from my usual ones, and that's due to two reasons: 1. End of Evangelion is in a special league of its own regarding the films in general, let alone the anime I usually watch 2. I just don't give two f*cks. This is a rant and I intend to enjoy it. So buckle up and prepare to go! As the opening scene plainly shows, Anno's single most important objective in this film is pissing the fanbase off as much as possible, and he accomplishes this superbly and in numerous ways. First of them; making the already unlikeable and despised Shinji as appalling and disgusting as possible. There isn't a single person with a sane mind that doesn't loathe and hate Shinji and doesn't want to torture him in the most gruesome, most painful ways possible. If you thought he was spineless and whiny in the series, just wait to see how he acts during the film, and in particular during the first half of the series, when instead of fighting off the enemy in his Eva, he sits under the staircase, weeps and cries for the unconscious Asuka to come and help him. After he gave himself a wank over her just two minutes earlier. OUR PROTAGONIST LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! What he does in the face of an impending apocalypse is even more admirable, but I shall discuss that later. Sadly ( well, for me, fortunately! ), other characters aren't spared either. Remember Major Misato Katsuragi ( which reminds me that Masamune Shirow and Mamoru Oshii should sue someone ) and how she was turning into Anno towards the series finale ( along with the rest of the cast )? You know, becoming all depressed and upset and stuff? Well, mr. Anno clearly doesn't, for she's all tough and fiery at the beginning of the movie. Hell, she basically bitch-slaps Shinji for being such a whiny, spineless bitch, and practically embodies the feelings of the audience in doing so. Shame she doesn't put a bullet in his head, not only would she make the viewers happy, she'd save the whole of mankind from turning into a stale orange juice. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Anyways, her character in the movie, while awesome, is inconsistent with the series, and seeing how this movie is supposed to replace episodes 25&26 as the proper ending for Evangelion, that's a minus I can't overlook. Asuka starts off as being unconscious, then wakes up to be catatonic and scared and depressed - just like she was at the end of ep 24. Then, in literally 20 seconds during which she has a vision of her mother, she makes a 180 degrees turn and proceeds to kick some evil-Eva arse. Great writing there, Anno! It doesn't at all negate and spit on what was arguably the best about NGE! Immediately afterwards, though, as soon as she fulfills her role of a plot device, she's cast aside until the very last scene of the movie. Same with Rei, who is barely present for the first half of the movie ( albeit it's understandable why that is so ), only to saturate the screen for the most of the second half. She's also ripped of her previous personality, uncompromisingly sticking it to Gendo and accepting her destiny as Anno's final plot device in the quest to piss the fans so much you can cover the entire Earth in piss. Even though there was hardly anyone really likeable in the NGE's cast of characters, and even though they were all deeply flawed as people, they were believable and good characters ( until the last third of the series at least ) and End of Evangelion stripped them of everything, disregarding continuity and only making Shinji the most hated fictional character of all time after Jar Jar Binks. Well, the first batch of turds, in form of handling character development, is done with. Onwards, to the plot! Plot-wise, End of Evangelion is rather similar to the preceding TV series; it starts off decently enough ( not counting the opening wank scene ), only to collapse spectacularly in the second half, falling so hard it destroyed the world and liquified all living things in the process. But while decent, the first part was still not very good, and in retrospect, it falls apart together with the rest of the movie. It's riddled with the aforementioned character inconsistency, plot holes, contrivances, repetition of ad-hoc resolutions from the original series ( namely, when Ritsuko stops a massive hack of the Magi supercomputers... AGAIN, and in the exact same way, only much, much faster ), and much more. There's also some ridiculous no brainers like this one: the Japanese military are assaulting the NERV HQ. While their forces are still inside the facility, trying to retrieve the Evas, their own forces DETONATE AN N2 MINE OVER THEIR HEADS, blasting the Geofront into pieces. I don't care if it doesn't have any radioactive fallout, a nuke is still a nuke and you don't shoot it at a target when your own men are inside! While entertaining, the first half is convoluted, full of contrived plot points and generally a fine example of lazy writing that's only done in the first place to prepare the setting for the ultimate mind-fucking-wank-fest-epically-pretentious-mind-numbing metaphisical clusterf*ck that is the second half of "End of Evangelion". To put it simply, if the infamous live-pudding-scene from "Akira" and the Eclipse episodes from "Berserk" had an s&m orgy during a black mass and conceived a baby, which in turn were to be raised by David Cronenberg, than the second half of the movie would be that baby. There's just no point in explaining it, you have to see it to believe it. If the episodes 25 and 26 were mindfuck. then this is an all-out gang-bang orgy of Anno randomly throwing around epically grotesque and random scenes filled with pointless and shameless religious symbolism that very unsubtly screams "ASK ME WHAT IT MEANS! ASK ME WHAT IT MEANS!" What does all that symbolism mean? Fuck all, that's what, and it's so painfully obvious, that the endless and futile attempts by the rabid fans to read some deeper meaning into it causes me, and the creator, that big troll, to laugh my arse off because they've taken the bait and allowed Anno to win. Also, if I may quote from Roger Ebert's movie glossary: "If you have to ask what it symbolizes, it didnt." Albeit the quote goes a bit too far, the point still stands. We also get some of the trademark navel-gazing too, because ep 25 and 26 just weren't enough. What a joy! Anyways, all the spectacular mind-fuckery and endless nudity of the second half aside, there's one remaining and pretty major flaw of the story. Guess what it is. If your answer was: it's not conclusive, then CONGRATULATIONS! Yes, despite being promoted as a proper and cohesive conclusion of the series that's supposed to tie up all the loose ends and provide answers to countless questions that were raised over the course of the series, it fails to achieve that. As previously mentioned, many of the "resolutions" were either contrived and unsatisfying, or were drowned in the sea of random grotesqueness and symbolism of the second half of the movie. And to top it all, the ending only raises some more questions, leaving the story without a proper and complete conclusion once more. Well done Anno, there aren't many people with the ( lack of ) skill to do that. I'd take my hat off for you if I had one. Now, the few good things about the movie. I gave it 3/10 not 1/10 after all. The visuals are very good throughout the movie, with the exception of a short period of live-action stock footage near the end of the film. In that one scene, a person with a low budget camcorder randomly wanders around town, filming things like empty movie theatres or city streets. This comes as quite a shock midway through and manages to come across as exceedingly ugly. The point? A pretentious and futile attempt to make the movie relevant to the real world and probably further connect with the audience. Well, it failed. Again towards the end of the movie, there is a horrendously long sequence in which thousands of still frames are flashed across the screen at a mind-numbing rate. People suffering from epileptic seizures are warned. This warning also applies to the people without such medical conditions. It's very tiresome. The music does a pretty good job of setting the mood even as the story is falling apart, and voice acting is still excellent. Sound effects, particularly in Asuka's battle, are nicely done. Obligatory pretentious tracks ( namely J. Sebastian Bach's music ) are obligatory. The climactic scenes of apocalypse are played to the sounds of a pop song "Komm, Susser Tod", a bright and upbeat piece that could be played at parties and weddings if its title weren't "Come, Sweet Death!" and if its lyrics weren't about suicide and the end of the world. I'll give you three guesses as to who wrote the lyrics. Well, that's it! The end of End of Evangelion. And what a steaming pile of dick and cock it was, yet I absolutely loved it! The main reason why I loved is because, unlike NGE, which was an extremely mixed bag with some very good stuff and lots of very bad stuff, End of Evangelion was just plainly horrible and I could just indulge in pure, justified hatred that my rational and objective mind didn't allow me with the original series. This is the film that turns everything it touches into shit, and yet dances around pompously, demanding attention and critical recognition in the most trollish manner possible. Its story fails at just about every level imaginable - truly, a movie of such epic and total badness only comes around once a while. In every aspect; plot, characters, dialogue, style, themes... it was such absolute rubbish it reached a Nirvana of Bad and moved to a higher plane of existence. An incredibly entertaining movie if you watch it with a certain mindset. If not, you're either going to smash your TV/computer, or become even more depressed than Anno after pondering the fact that the humanity has been destroyed and turned into a giant orange soup by a character so spineless an disgusting, he makes Werther and Jar Jar look like appealing characters.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Dec 4, 2012
Shinseiki Evangelion
(Anime)
add
Recommended
I do not consider myself fully qualified to review this series.
I do not consider ANYONE to be fully qualified to objectively review this series. Why? Because even though Neon Genesis Evangelion may or may not be the most popular anime of all time, it may or may not be the most important anime of all time, and it most certainly isn't the best anime of all time, one thing's for sure; it is the most controversial anime to have ever been created up to this day. No other anime has created as much controversy and sparked more debate than this one. No other anime has split the ... opinions of critics and fans alike like NGE has. Even at the time this reviews was written, 17 years since the original airing of the show, anime fans across the world argue, fight and throw shit at each other ( figuratively speaking, of course ) over whether Evangelion is a masterfully done work of art or a mediocre, pretentious piece of piss. There's also a small minority of people standing in the middle, not subscribing to either of the two extremes in opinion about the series, who mostly end up getting covered in shit that the others throw; either from the haters who complain that the moderates give the show too much credit, or from the rabid fans who explode on the mere mentioning of a possibility that Evangelion might, just might not be “the best anime EVARRRRRR!“. I happen to belong to this moderate minority, but I do confess to be leaning more towards the “hating“ side than the other way. Why do I think that I'm not qualified to review Neon Genesis Evangelion? Well, whenever I review or at least think about a series or a film or a book, I manage to almost completely separate and differentiate between what is objectively good or bad in it, and what is my subjective preference or taste. I can tell the difference whether something is genuinely bad or if it's just me not liking it, because every person has a different and particular taste. Just because I don't personally like something about the story doesn't mean that it is objectively bad; just because a character is unlikable doesn't mean that they are badly written. A good critic manages to put his subjective opinions and preferences aside and judge a work on its own merits. And this is where a problem with reviewing NGE arises. There is no consensus in the anime community about any of the elements of Evangelion. Some things are certainly more controversial than the others, and there is at least some agreement among the vast majority about some things being genuinely good, but there's nothing, nothing that is universally acclaimed or consistently good about this series. There are such huge discrepancies between different parts of the series as a whole as well as its individual elements, and such conflicting views and opinions on it that seeking a second opinion will only additionally confuse those who are already confused and confounded after watching it for the first time. Therefore, it is practically impossible for a reviewer to use the opinions of others as a reference or a guideline in forming and presenting their own thoughts. Where some see brilliant writing and ingenious story-telling, others will see the exact opposite. Where one person sees great philosophical underpinnings, another person will see pretentiousness and shallow symbolism. And the biggest problem is that there's very little solid evidence to base your claims on and argue them, because the story itself is one giant ( and I dare say, contradictory ) mess no matter how you look at it ( some fans will claim that being a mess is the point of the story and that that's precisely where the genius lies, but a mess is still a mess ). --- Neon Genesis Evangelion is described by virtually everyone as a ( brilliant ) deconstruction of the mecha genre. I personally dislike this genre and have almost no interest in it, seeing as it largely revolves around giant robots smashing and blasting each other to bits; not that there's anything inherently wrong with this, and many mecha series are very entertaining to watch, but I'm not really the target audience for the vast majority of these shows. Naturally, hearing that Evangelion is a deconstruction and a subversion of the principle tropes and themes of the genre piqued my interest, and the first few episodes and the final third of the show are certainly different from what you might expect from a mecha show. I do, though, confess to be relatively ignorant about the genre, having only seen the Patlabor films and a few episodes of Gundam and Code Geass. Most of my knowledge is “second hand“, i.e. from the internet ( wikipedia and TV tropes were my principle sources of information ), so I won't talk too much about which particular tropes were deconstructed and how ( not to mention it would probably be impossible to avoid spoilers in doing so ). The principle point of its deconstruction of the genre in the latter third of the series was in switching the focus towards character development and thorough examination of human psyche and the implications of what effect would violent fights against monsters have on the minds of teenagers. And herein lies one of the main problems. Evangelion is largely lauded for its superb exploration of human psyche, and in particular the dissection and analysis of clinical depression and complete character breakdown. And I have to agree with this opinion, but only to an extent. Yes, Eva does a good job of exploring the psychology of its characters, but the way it does that and ( to a degree ) the content it handles are of questionable quality, to say the least. Why? Because it doesn’t do so through dialogue and by incorporating these examinations into a cohesive and meaningful story ( like Paranoia Agent does ). Instead, it opts for the “stream-of-thought” approach. Stream of thought is not an easy method of narration to handle and is not well suited for a visual medium like anime, for it takes a great writer to execute it properly and incorporate it in the story that's being told. It should be pretty obvious to everyone why it is so: SHOW DON’T TELL! Anime is a visual medium, and the point of a visual medium is to show, not outright spell out for the audience what's going on inside someone's head. The "stream-of-thought" approach is not bad in itself, and while it works best in a written medium ( i.e. books ), there are numerous films and even anime that managed to pull it off brilliantly, but it completely destroys the flow of Eva’s story whenever it's inserted. There's basically two different ways to incorporate a monologuing "stream of thought" into a visual medium: a bad one and a worse one ( when it comes to weaving them in a story ), and Evangelion deploys both, much to its demise. First way is having a character go around, narrating their thoughts. Needless to say, these thoughts are mostly chaotic, random and the character spends a lot of time pondering things that are either some mundane everyday occurrences, or plot-related stuff that has already been made clear to the audience by their previous actions, which in turn makes these introspections completely redundant and annoying for the audience to sit through. If you want a stream-of-thought anime, make it 100% stream of thought, with a minimalistic plot and as few characters as possible, and focus exclusively on exploring the psyche of a single character. Granted, the narration and the story being told will suffer a lot, and the end product will not exactly be a thrill-ride, but it will have integrity and actual quality. "The Tatami Galaxy" uses this approach and the end result is much better than Evangelion. The second way of employing a stream of thought is the navel-gazing in a void. This method is much more difficult to pull off than the first one because it requires the writer to justify halting the plot completely and abruptly moving the story inside a character's head. Evangelion fails to adequately justify its sudden shifts to a world of nothingness inside which the characters talk with their own subconscious. There are several examples earlier in the series, but the last two episodes are the epitome of why this approach fails in Eva. These moments don't come across as natural, on the contrary; it's painfully obvious that the writer isn't interested in the story at all, and that he only wants to screw around his character's heads. Now, there's nothing wrong with picking the characters apart and exploring the depths of their mind, but endless navel-gazing is not the right approach - a good writer does this through dialogue; dynamic and exhaustive character interaction. Even if it’s awkward ( like in Ghost in the Shell ), it’s still infinitely better than having a character’s subconscious chat with him for half an episode. But the greatest downside in Eva's approach to analysing its character's psyche isn't even what or how, bur the content itself, what it persents: these introspections and analyses are written TEXTBOOK-STYLE. Again: "Show don't tell!". The show doesn't know whether to treat the audience as mature and intelligent adults or as less mature and averagely intelligent kids/teens who have to be taught the basic workings of a human mind. We are repeatedly told things that are painfully clear to everyone older than 14 ( “I am formed through my interactions with others...” – well, fuck-a-doodle-do, thanks for telling me that show, I never would have known! ), we are told things about the characters that *we already know* because of what they said/did earlier, in the real world. We learn nothing new about the characters in this void, as the show keeps going in circles. But maybe that's the point - maybe it's not about the audience learning anything new, maybe it's about the characters learning something about themselves? But once again, we hit a brick wall, because the characters keep going in circles for episodes and episodes and episodes. They aren't 100% consistent, the changes in their personalities are sometimes too abrupt and sudden to be natural and they often react unnaturally to some situations. Case in point: when Shinji's navel-gazing during the last two episodes, he is apparently shown a scene of Misato having sex with Kaji. To this her spirit/Shinji’s mental projection/whatever reacts not by blushing and averting her eyes, not by trying to cover Shinji's eyes to prevent him from seeing it, not by trying to justify herself. She breaks down into tears and sobs violently. She feels deeply and completely ashamed of herself. Why?! Unless she was engaging in extremely perverted s&m activities or something similar, why would she be so deeply embarrassed? I get that she would feel very uncomfortable if someone were to see her in such intimate and delicate moments, but sex is a natural thing and doesn't cause people to feel like lowliest scum for doing it. If she were a promiscuous nymphomaniac trying to fill a void in her heart by sleeping with an army of men, then I would understand. But she herself says that she only ever slept with Kaji, so what the hell?! No matter how good or exhaustive psychological analysis of characters in Evangelion is, they ultimately lead nowhere, because the characters ( and in particular, Shinji ) fail to learn a valid lesson out of it all, and never make a stand for anything. The conclusion/solution/whatever that Shinji finally comes to at the end of ep 26 is bollocks ( if you would pardon my French ). The "answer" he finds is that objective reality or external perspective is meaningless, and that all that matters is "how he feels about himself". This brings me back about my statement about characters running in circles, and it perfectly shows how ultimately pointless all that psychology is; without proper philosophy ( instead of post-modernist existentialist bullshit we get ) to justify it and give it a purpose, Eva's endless digging in the pit of psychology is meaningless. The main problem with general characterisation in NGE is that is shifts so much and so often, and that it is executed so confusingly at times, that I honestly can't tell whether the characters were lazily written or perfectly formed. The shifts in personalities and sudden revelations of their mysterious pasts and present motivations are not completely natural, with almost zero foreshadowing that would make the transitions more natural and believable. Still, I am willing to give NGE the benefit of doubt, and credit where it’s due; the focus on Shinji and the decision to keep digging deeper and deeper into his and others’ mind is probably just how Anno honestly thought, and what he genuinely felt was worth exploring, and I can see that and appreciate it. Obviously many people must have found something true and worthwhile about it, or Eva would have never been such a milestone in both Japan and the rest of the world. However, while Anno is a smart man and knows quite a bit about psychology, he's just completely incapable of incorporating his characters and their deconstructions into a consistent and cohesive story. His depression and the chaos that was destroying Gainax from within only served to exacerbate the problems in the series, resulting in a mess that was the last third of the series ( and subsequently, the End of Evangelion movie ). --- The problems of executing character development and exploring the psychological troubles of the cast also translate to the plot. There's the aforementioned halting of the plot for the sake of navel-gazing, but the circumstances leading to these monologues and the events causing the break-down of certain, if not all, characters, are incredibly contrived, and the “plot“ in the last third of the series is terribly rushed, convoluted and doesn't add up in any way. The series starts as dark, edgy, and a lot of time was dedicated to flashing out different characters and showing just how stressful and dangerous piloting a mecha actually is, and the events do take strain on the main character. Shinji's angst and the occasional quasi-scientific babbling aside, they were good. Starting with episode 5/6, NGE temporarily discards its dark tone and focus on the implications of having children pilot giant robots and fight huge monsters with a killer instinct, and instead transitions into a much more “generic“ and familiar mecha show of a monster-of-the-week-format, while introducing some new characters along the way. And to tell you the truth, this is actually the best executed part of the entire series. As I said, with episode 5/6 Evangelion takes a turn for the monster-of-the-week style, and it definitely works to its advantage. Almost every new episode features a new Angel attacking the city and the Eva pilots and their NERV commanders having to find a way to repel the attack and destroy the Angel. Each of these alien monsters is very unique, both in their designs and their special abilities and attacks, and the human forces always have to come up with a new ingenious plan to defeat them. Angels can range from humanoid monsters similar to Evas themselves to a giant floating diamond to extremely abstract and unconventional forms like shadows or nanobots. The fights between Evas and Angels are very entertaining to watch, and are played out in many different and interesting ways; battles can range from synchronised dancing to fighting the Angels in cyber-space. Character development is not forsaken during this period, though, on the contrary – many characters who were introduced over the course of the first few episodes, as well as some of the newcomers, get their chance to shine. Almost all of the battles are used to further develop the main cast of characters, several of them being “token episodes“ during which the focus on the story clearly shifts to a particular character rather than following Shinji, the protagonist. Development is executed either through long and revealing dialogue or the more tedious “let me tell you my life story“ moments ( okay, I'm exaggerating it a bit here, but the point still stays ), and occasionally we get a flash-back or two revealing their pasts and providing some more information ( and questions ) about the cataclysmic Second Impact and the character's involvement in the story. The technical aspects of the show were also at their high point during this period. Aside from the recognisable and original designs of Evangelions ( even if they were very impractical and unrealistic ), the art was average, but the animation was of the highest quality at the time, and it still looks decent today. Intense and clever battles between the Evas and the Angels were a joy to watch, always dynamic and consistently good. The soundtrack is not particularly special, but it sets the mood and tone for each scene perfectly, using a combination of eclectic and/or minimalistic pieces for more personal and mundane scenes, and employing epic ( and even a bit pretentious ) orchestral pieces and choirs for the awesome fight scenes. And there's the.. greatest opening theme song of all time. However, while it is technically the strongest part of the show, with some decent character development and beautifully choreographed fight scenes, this is also when Eva's ( potential ) problems start to become more apparent. For starters, the repetitive and episodic monster-of-the-week format visibly slows down the plot. There is next to no sense of urgency or impending doom and the tone is never really dark. With each Angel that Evas defeat the feeling of threat or danger is further eroded and the fights, while entertaining, are not that suspenseful, as you know that they're going to defeat it in the end and that everything will be fine. It is possible that this was intentional seeing as the show takes a turn in the opposite direction in the latter episodes, but that's also debatable. The second problem that arises is also plot-related. While the plot itself almost stops, the build-up does not. Every now and then a new mystery is introduced or hinted at, more cryptic clues and plot points are brought up, the secret background of the Eva Project and the existence of both NERV and their enemies, Angels, are slowly revealed, a micrometer at the time. This keeps the audience interested in the story as we expect the show to eventually deliver on its promises and expose the hidden truth behind everything. And this is where Evangelion's ultimate sin lies. It doesn't deliver. In any way. Reasons for the complete disintegration of the story and its characters in the last third of the series largely lie in the real world: by episode 16, which signaled a shift from a conventional action-oriented mecha series towards a psychological deconstruction of the genre, Studio Gainax was in disarray. They were way behind schedule, quickly running out of money and the tensions between the staff started to effect the series itself. In a way, the break-down of the characters and the story mirrors the break-down of the production crew, most importantly the writer, Anno. Even after it starts its gradual downward spiral in episode 16, and even when it gets positively disturbing in episodes 18 and 19, the show never manages to build upon the shock factor and deliver in an even remotely satisfying and logical way. Questions keep piling up and virtually none of the old ones are answered, at least not fully or satisfyingly. Plot twist and sudden revelations are so rushed and contrived they aren't believable or convincing at all; just cheap and convoluted cop-outs by the writer who at this point clearly has no idea how to conclude the story. Episode 24 in particular was a spectacular mess, and even though ep 25 & 26 were horrible, I personally consider ep 24 to be the worst one in the entire series. It introduced a completely new character out of the blue, 2 episodes before the ending, tried to build up a deep and strong relationship between this new character and the protagonist in under 10 minuted, only to ditch him in the end of the same episode. "Mess" is the only word that can describe these last 10 episodes. The visuals weren't spared either. Somewhere between ep 16 and 18, the previously high ( I dare say, impressive ) production values nosedived, resulting in (in)famous elevator and Eva scenes, although there were dozens of other long still shots as well. It is pretty clear that the studio was in complete disarray, and when the production crew are fighting each other, being way behind schedule and broke, you can hardly expect even a half-decent story. And if all of this weren't enough already, Anno decided to give the audience a middle finger in episodes 25 and 26, which at this point are so infamous they have probably created a rupture in space-time continuum, allowing Anno to recreate his pathetic mess of a story over and over. --- It is time for me to sum up the review and pass my final judgement on Evangelion. All in all, Eva is not a bad anime. But it's not a very good one either. There's some good parts and elements in it, but there's also plenty of crap in it as well, and due to the nature of the downsides, the series as a whole is less then a sum of its parts. The first two thirds were quite enjoyable, and I'd take the action packed monster-of-the-week episodes over the philosophy and introspection of the last third of the series any day. After a strong start and a decent progression, Evangelion slowly spiraled into a incomprehensible mess after episode 16, culminating in the historical mind-fuck that was the series' “finale“ in episodes 25 and 26. All that was good and had potential in Evangelion was pulverised and thrown in the gutter by that last third of the series. The plot was left almost completely unresolved, the characters disintegrated, animation followed the pattern, the soundtrack tried to compensate by becoming even more pretentious than before, half the time was spent navel-gazing and philosophising in the void... everything became a giant mess that largely undid the previous good parts. I won't even discuss the pointless and shallow religious symbolism that was prevalent throughout the series. Again, I'm not saying that Eva is bad or that its psychological aspects are bad, for there is a lot of good stuff there that was just handled bad.. Which is why I'm so bitter with Eva - it had such a load of promise and potential for greatness, but it ended up shooting itself in the foot and screwing everything that was good about it. It could have been brilliant, and in the end turned out to be mediocre, and that's what bugs most people about it. I’m not even giving it a final average score, for as I said, I don’t consider myself fully qualified to give it an objective mark. What I will do is give you a recommendation, as the themes and gimmicks of Eva have been done before and after, and they've been done better. - If you want an entertaining mecha show, watch "Rahxephon", which is basically a carbon copy of Eva, only with a protagonist that actually has a spine, angst replaced with a good romance and with an ending that doesn't have its head stuck up its own arse. You can also try "Code Geass". - If you want a show about existential questions and unconventional answers to them, involving a move to a "higher plane of existence", try the 1995 movie "Ghost in the Shell" or the "Serial Experiments Lain", both of them being immensely smarter and more consistent than Eva - If you want a thorough psychological examination of the human mind, watch “Paranoia Agent” by Satoshi Kon - If you want a dark, psychological deconstruction of an existing genre, "Puella Magi Madoka Magica" is infinitely better than Eva could ever hope to be. To put it simple: everything that Eva does wrong, Madoka Magica does right, and then some. “Madoka” is everything that Evangelion should have been, but sadly, isn’t.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Nov 29, 2012
Ibara no Ou
(Anime)
add
Recommended Spoiler
“...did Sleeping Beauty even want to wake up?
Wasn’t she happier when she was fast asleep?“ King of Thorn provides a fresh and intriguing spin on the old fairy tale “Sleeping Beauty“, using it as a frame to tell what is on the surface a relatively original apocalyptic survival horror flick, but underneath which lies a complex web of religious fanaticism, science fiction crossed with fantasy, and ultimately, a personal story of two sisters. Does this unique combination of an old children's tale and a modern horror show, of psychology and fantasy, of action and thrill deliver on its premise? Yes and no. While highly action-packed for ... the most part and entertaining and interesting throughout its entirety, King of Thorn does suffer from some massive flaws that unfortunately drag down the score of what might have been a benchmark creation for the survival horror genre. Does that mean that the movie is bad? Definitely not, and while far from perfect, it's still a very enjoyable flick with relatively high rewatchability and certainly one of the better ones in its genre. King of Thorn is an adaptation of the 37-chapter manga of the same name by Yuji Iwahara. The film adaptation takes many liberties with the original material, but I'll do my best to keep the comparisons with the manga at minimum, and judge the movie on its own merits. Sunrise, an old and established studio that has produced a multitude of different shows over the course of its 40 years long history ( shows like Mobile Suit Gundam, Gundam SEED, Visions of Escaflowne, both seasons of Code Geass and the legendary Cowboy Bebop ) brings us this on-the-edge-of-your-seat thrill ride about deadly viruses and fantastic monsters, all to the background of a sci-fi research facility located underneath an enchanting and enthralling Scottish castle. Every background is highly detailed and there are several set pieces that are just jaw-droppingly gorgeous in their size, content, detail, superb colouring and they really leave a strong impression of being crafted with a lot of effort and care. Machinery inside the research facility and the architecture of the castle in which it is situated are meticulously drawn to the tiniest minutiae, giving it a believable and realistic look that manages to immerse the viewer into the story superbly. Particularly praise-worthy are the few short scenes set in New York City and a couple of shots of a deserted Scottish town, both of them at the beginning of the movie, and it's scenes like these that show just how much effort was put into it by the art department. Rather than being some generic depictions of how an average Japanese might perceive them to look like, streets of New York are incredibly realistic and detailed, with several examples of real-life architecture to complement more random but still very faithful art-deco and modernist buildings. And it's not just the architecture that's detailed and realistic; clothing, vehicles, even the railings surrounding the entrance to a subway station are crafted carefully to enhance the realism of the setting and make it as convincing as possible. Same goes for the Scottish village and countryside, which are featured for less then a minute, but the attention to architectural styles, shop fronts and signage is on the same fantastic level. The camera angles, shading and colouring are also excellent, making the visual experience cold, gloomy and ominous, and effectively conveying the sense of an impending doom that permeates the majority of the story, while still not sacrificing any of the realism by going overboard in any of these areas. The character designs are very good too, well-coloured, realistic and aesthetically pleasing; some of them like Marco ( with his extensive tattoos ) are even quite memorable. While they are far less detailed than the surroundings in which they move, the contrast between the character models and the backgrounds isn't that jarring, and the 2D elements all blend extremely well with each other. As previously said, the art direction, backgrounds, character designs and even the cinematography are all top-notch, but the animation itself is a very mixed bag and this significantly lowers the overall visual quality of the movie. The traditional 2D animation that is present throughout most of the movie is nothing spectacular, but it's still of high quality and very fluid, and there is hardly any cases of it going off-model. However, for some reason, the studio decided to render most of the monsters, and occasionally the characters as well, in 3D. The CGI models themselves are actually pretty good; they mostly move naturally and are quite detailed and well-shaded, but the contrast between the 3D CGI models and traditional 2D characters and backgrounds is so obvious, irritating and stark that it damages the viewing experience during those scenes. Some of the vehicles are also computer-generated and clash with the setting almost as strongly as the monsters. The problems in blending the 3D animation with the 2D backgrounds and character models are not easy to overlook and thus the visuals fail to get a perfect score, despite being overall very impressive, which is a great shame. The music, composed by the experienced Toshihiko Sahashi ( Full Metal Panic!, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED ), compliments the visuals well and even though it may not win any awards, it's still pretty well-written and well-used. The highlight of the soundtrack is the untitled main theme, featuring a beautiful combination of powerful, haunting and melancholic vocals accompanied by great instrumental performances on the strings and the flute. A very touching and emotional piece, it fits the general atmosphere and the underlying story perfectly. Other tracks are mostly instrumental and vocal variations to this main theme, with an odd electronic piece or an organ thrown in here and there. The ending credits song “Edge of This World“, written specifically for the movie, was performed by the popular Japanese singer Misia. The song is also a stand-out, along with the aforementioned main theme, and its lyrics are very fitting and poignant, a refreshing change from the practice to just put something that fits the movie or show tonally with little regard for the actual content. Overall, the music was very good and the quality of the tracks made up for the lack of diversity. Unfortunately, I cannot discuss the qualities of the dub as opposed to the subbed version, since the movie was only localised by Funimation a few months prior to the writing of this review and I haven't had the chance to watch the English version. What I will mention is that the director of the English dub made a wise choice of using various ethnic accents for the diverse cast of characters, from British ( Marco ) to Italian ( for the corrupt senator who manages to survive the initial slaughter ). The Japanese seiyuu did a very good job at portraying their respective characters and the vast emotional stress that they have to go through. Whether you prefer the English or the Japanese version, you won't be let down. Sadly, as much as I'd like to say that the story of King of Thorn is on the same high level as the technical aspects of the movie, I simply can't. There are some major problems with the execution of the story, and these problems largely stem from the limited running time; the movie doesn't have enough time to adequately cover all the plot points and finish the plot threads while still leaving an appropriate amount of time for the revelations and emotional impacts to properly sit in for both the audience and the characters. Adapting a 37 chapter long manga into a 105 minute feature is no small feat, and even though the writers decided to narrow down the focus of the movie by dropping some of the subplots and characters from the original manga, I still believe it would have been better had Sunrise opted for a 10-12 episode long TV show or an OVA series, even with the narrower focus of the anime adaptation. The more personal and emotional nature of the adapted story still needs time to unravel naturally and the audience needs time to allow for the drama to sink in, and the movie would have really benefited immensely if it had at least additional twenty or so minutes of running time. The plot can be roughly split into four acts, each act about 25 minutes long; the first act covers the initial outbreak of the Medusa virus which causes worldwide panic as the national and international organisations are powerless in the face of this deadly and extremely mysterious pandemic. A private corporation comes forth with a solution: they have managed to master the science of cryogenic suspension ( which they call “Cold sleep“ ) that will allow 160 lucky individuals to remain alive and safe from the virus until a cure can be found. The first act ends when the members of this “Noah's Arc“ are put to sleep. This first part is very well executed, managing to provide a large amount of exposition very naturally, mostly through a montage of television reports dealing with the outbreak and spreading of Medusa. The viewers are also introduced to the main cast of characters and everything is set for the second act in which the sleepers awake to find out that the world has ended. Or so it appears. The main problems of the movie and the principle flaws in the story-telling are present in the second and third act. By the end of the second act most of the 160 people that were put to sleep have been killed by the strange monsters roaming the castle that has in the meantime been covered in huge thorns. It is inferred that the noble motivations of the corporation that initiated the project weren't so noble after all, and during the third act the truth behind the Medusa virus is finally revealed and the remaining survivors manage to escape the thorny prison of the huge castle. These two arcs are extremely fast-paced giving no time for breathers neither for its characters as they run away from monsters while trying to find their way out of the maze of the underground complex and the castle's dungeons, nor for the audience that has to connect all the plot points and grasp the situation after several info-dumps which are extremely confusing on the first watching. Needless to say, this part of the movie puts a huge strain on the audience as it jumps from tense action scenes to the expository dialogue/monologue dealing with the backgrounds of some of the characters and the mysteries behind the current apocalypse, both of which are in turn regularly interrupted by the the main character Kasumi's flashbacks that gradually reveal her relationship with her twin sister, Shizuku. There's a lot of good stuff in this part of the story, primarily the development of Kazumi's character and the relationship between the two sisters, which turns out to be the main underlying plot thread around which everything else revolves. The background and the nature of the deadly Medusa virus is also very interesting and thought-provoking, even if the idea was already explored in some other sci-fi works [ sort of SPOILER ALERT], the best example being the 1998 psychological thriller “Sphere“ [END OF SPOILER]. As I said, every minute of the movie is very entertaining and attention-grabbing, however, the fast pace and condensed story come with a heavy price. Those unfamiliar with the original manga will have a hard time digesting the revelations and the main plot twist, partially because they could have been worded a bit better and partially because the movie gives the viewer no time to digest the data before hurrying to move your attention to the next action scene in which the characters fight for their lives. The plot also suffers from numerous contrivances and the revelations can feel pretty convoluted, revealing potential plot-holes under the closer look. Character development is yet another victim that falls prey to the inadequate running time. The main cast consists of seven survivors of the initial onslaught. Apart from Kasumi and the ruffian Marco, who get the majority of screen time and are very well developed ( especially Kasumi ), the rest receive minimal character development. That is not to say that they are just cardboard cut-outs or plot devices. Even though they might not be very developed as characters, they all have personalities and feel and act like real people. Some of the characters had their backstories from the manga scrapped, but their backgrounds are still at least hinted at, and given the screen time they get and the fast paced nature of the story, character development was handled as best as possible. The real gold of the story, though, comes in the final, climactic arc, where the last, underlying plot line is finally resolved in a surprising, but ingenious and satisfying manner. King of Thorn draws the parallels between its story and the fairy tale Sleeping Beauty from the very start. In the hands of a less competent writer, this would just be a pretentious and futile attempt to add depth to a story centred around graphic violence and cheap thrills, but King of Thorn actually makes these parallels and comparisons meaningful and relevant to the story it's telling. As already mentioned, the anime adaptation did away with some of the plot lines and characters from the manga in order to focus on the relationship between Kasumi and her twin sister Shizuku, and it can be safely said that this was a very good decision that raised the overall quality of the film. Their story is well written and well presented, slowly building up towards the climactic finale, and it toys with the questions about true feelings and wishes of the Princess from the original fairy tale. Unfortunately, this beautiful and touching story has to carry around with it the baggage of the survival horror story that it's tied to. I believe it would have been wiser had the writers decided to take even more liberties with the original material; once they decided to significantly alter the original, they should have gotten rid of all the elements that weren't completely necessary for the central story of the two sisters. Namely, the “survival“ element of the horror story should have been toned down to the barest minimum, with the story focusing even more on the psychological effects of the catastrophe that has befallen the castle and the world. Nevertheless, the underlying narrative and its parallels with the tale of Sleeping Beauty are definitely the strongest and best executed part of the story and they make the movie stand out among the other works in its respective genre. Ultimately, King of Thorn is a good movie. Not a great or a perfect movie, but a good one none the less. The personal nature of the underlying story and some very intriguing themes and concepts that it brings up make it distinctive and certainly much, much better than other anime horror shows like Highschool of the Dead. It's a very mature and serious film that never stoops low to please the lowest common denominator. The action scenes are tense, entertaining and occasionally very gory but never gratuitous. While nothing spectacular in terms of animation, it features some gorgeous artwork and beautiful music that greatly add to the viewing experience. What prevents it from getting a higher score are the horribly used 3D CGI models, extremely fast pace for the largest part of the movie and the numerous contrivances and convoluted plot points. Combined, they make the story less enjoyable on the first watching and can unnerve the less resilient viewers to the point where the good stuff ( namely the Kasumi-Shizuku relationship ) just flies over their heads, making some of the plot twist feel more like something from M. Night Shyamalan's kitchen ( although he can only wish to create plot twists this convincing ). Overall, 7,1/10.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Nov 23, 2012 Recommended
Jin Roh is an anime adaptation of a part of the long-running multimedia series called Kerberos Saga, whose author, Mamoru Oshii ( director of Patlabor 2 and Ghost in the Shell ), was the main driving force behind the production of the movie, having previously directed two live-action adaptations of the same saga. Oshii was responsible for writing the script, but the direction was handed to Hiroyuki Okura, the animation director of “the big two” – Akira and Ghost in the Shell. The sountrack for the movie was composed by Hajime Mizoguchi ( who also wrote the soundtrack for the widely popular Escaflowne series ),
...
with a guest star appearance from Gabriela Robin: aka Yoko Kanno ( whose name should more than ring a bell- her works include the soundtracks for Cowboy Bebop, Escaflowne: the girl in Gaia, Wolf’s Rain and GITS Stand Alone Complex series ). So, it’s got a big budget, lots of big-shots are involved with the production, and it’s an adaptation of a large and successful multimedia franchise –a formula for a Holywood-style cash-cow blockbuster. But Jin-Roh is not that. It’s a carefully constructed and complex story of love, political rivalries and social upheaval. In every scene it is clear that the movie was made with a lot of love and care for every detail, from the story and characters to the setting and visuals.
Produced by Studio I.G., who also worked with Oshii on his previous films Patlabor 2 and Ghost in the Shell, Jin Roh is nothing short of spectacular when it comes to the quality of its visuals. Interesting fact here – Jin Roh was the last major anime feature film made using traditional hand-drawn cel animation only, with no CGI whatsoever, causing the production to drag on for three whole years. Thankfully, the end product was worth the time. Due to the subtle use of brown in almost every scene, the movie leaves an impression of being shot through a sepia filter ( giving it an “aged” look to complement the historical setting ) while not actually sacrificing any of the colours as would be the case if it were really made with a sepia effect. Use of colours and shading is superb, and together with the highly detailed and realistic artwork that brilliantly depicts the turbulent streets of the late 50s/ early 60s Japan, the art direction manages to immerse the viewer in the movie to such an extent you’ll forget you’re watching an animated, and not a live-action movie. The setting of the story is an alternate reality in which Germany, instead of America, occupied Japan after the end of WW2. Because of this the country is filled with Germanic influences, fashion and technology ( for example MG-42 machine guns and Volkswagen Beetles ). All of the weapons, vehicles and uniforms are very faithful to their historical real-life models, and the street scenes are meticulously drawn and incredibly well animated, making the setting one of the most atmospheric yet at the same time vibrant and realistic, in any animated movie I’ve ever seen. But if I had to pick a single highlight of the visuals, it wouldn’t be realistic backdrops or the fluid animation; it would be the character designs. Anime is notorious for its unrealistic, albeit distinctive, character designs ( not that the majority of Western animation is much better, often opting for a “cartoonish” look, i.e. caricatures ). While there are many exceptions to this rule, even the shows that have very realistic art ( e.g. basically anything from Studio Madhouse ) tend to feature at least some stereotypical anime elements in the designs of their characters, like the eyes half the size of the face, crazy hair colours, spiky hair, disproportionate limbs etc. Feature films are on the more realistic side when it comes to character designs, especially those made by Studio Madhouse ( e.g. Millennium Actress ) and studio I.G., but Jin Roh: the Wolf Brigade wins hands down when it comes to realistically portraying people in anime, especially the native Japanese. Every character, from the main cast to the regular mooks, are given a detailed life-like look, with a lot of attention payed to conveying their emotional reactions in a natural and realistic manner, which is of great importance given the emotional nature of the story. Combination of realistic character designs and highly detailed and well animated set pieces and backgrounds creates a unique and truly mesmerizing viewing experience and the film’s level of immersion in its world can only be matched by a handful of other anime movies, like Ghost in the Shell and Princess Mononoke. All in all, the visuals get a perfect score, which is to be expected seeing as they were made under the supervision of the man who brought us the visual orgasm that is the Ghost in the Shell movie. However, to set the atmosphere and enhance the impact of the emotional moments, the movie needs a good score, and it has to be used it properly. As a yet another testament to the love and care that was put into this film, the soundtrack more than achieves this, setting the tone for every scene brilliantly. From the violent clashes between the protesters and the police to the intimate moments between the two main characters, the music is always spot on, and the opus ranges from minimalistic pieces that only play a supporting role in setting the tone and atmosphere for the particular scene, to large, dominant and memorable orchestral pieces for the few grander events. Of particular note is the song played over the ending credits, performed by Gabriela Robin ( which is 99,9% confirmed to be just an artistic alias of Yoko Kanno ), and one of my personal favourite pieces in all anime soundtracks. The vocals are both haunting and very melancholic at the same time, sung in a language Kanno made up herself ( several pieces in the GITS SAC series also feature this “language” ), and the song fits the mood of the movie perfectly. Recommended for repeated listening. As for the voice acting, you can really go either way, as both the sub and the dub are equally good. Ocean Studios have to be commended for the quality of their English dub, especially since most of the dubs at that time were not that good to say the least. The adapted script is extremely faithful to the original, especially since a significant portion of it consists of third-person narration. The casting is spot on and the voice actors manage to keep the essence of their characters as they were portrayed by the Japanese seyuu, while still bringing something distinctly “English” in their performance. Another reasons why you can try either the sub or the dub ( or both ) is that both have a distinct advantage and at the same time a shortcoming compared to the other. Both the themes and the setting are essentially Japanese, so listening to the characters in English takes a little bit away from the atmosphere. On the other hand, reading the subtitles moves your attention a little from the gorgeous art and animation, so opting for the dub will allow you to better immerse yourselves in the movie’s visuals. As opposed to the universally acclaimed animation, art and music, the story and writing have been splitting the opinions of both critics and fans alike ever since the movie’s been released. And, to an extent, I can understand those who criticise Jin Roh, as it’s a film that makes itself a bit hard to like. The pacing is very slow and deliberate for the most part of the movie, the plot can occasionally be hard to follow and some of the plot twist can feel a bit forced. But are these few flaws in story-telling detrimental to the overall quality of the story itself? No. Jin Roh combines the narrative of the traditional works of literature and a plot of a political thriller to discuss the themes of democracy, power struggle, social upheavals and is ultimately a harsh and cynical critique of Japan’s modern history and problems plaguing its people to this day. The entire movie is basically just one big allegory for the real-life Japan of that time, and the film’s nature as a fictional allegorical critique of the present day’s issues and problems is strikingly similar to the Wachowski brothers’ film adaptation of “V for Vendetta”. In the movie’s timeline, after the end of WW2 Japan wasn’t occupied by the Americans, but by Germans, and their influence on the country is strongly felt even years after their withdrawal. While it is highly unrealistic to say the least, replacement of the US with Germany as the country who occupied Japan serves two important purposes. By taking the Americans out of the picture, the movie makes its setting more alien and enhances the feeling of this being an “alternative” reality in order to make the allegory at least a little more subtle ( similar to V for Vendetta which is a criticism of Bush’s America despite being set in the UK ). But more importantly, aside from its role to obfuscate the fact that the movie criticises the US involvement in Japan’s domestic politics during the post-war period, replacement of America with Nazi Germany of all countries ( instead of more realistic candidates like China or the USSR ), is an allegory in itself. The references in Jin-Roh to Germany taking over Japan parallel the political fears of the time, where many left-wing political factions thought that the ultra nationalists and militarists were returning to power. These fears were exacerbated by the assassination of the head of the Socialist Party of Japan, Inejiro Asanuma while he was addressing the Japanese Diet on live television. Fears were further exacerbated by the current head of the Japanese conservative Liberal Democratic Party Nobusuke Kishi who was a convicted war criminal. The turbulence and uncertainties of the real-life Japan in the late 50s and early 60s are mirrored in the movie but are exaggerated and exacerbated to bring the point across more easily. This Japan is a land of great economic disarray and violent social unrest, brought on by the fragility of its political system and very aggressive economic policies of liberal capitalism that aim to achieve rapid growth and allow Japan to rejoin the developed world, regardless of the human and social costs. This results in frequent and violent clashes between the various militant groups ( who latter rally to form a single group called “The Sect” ) and the authorities, who set up a paramilitary force of their own, the “Capitol Police”, whose Special Unit becomes notorious for its ruthlessness and violence in dealing with the insurgents. The Capitol Police are an analog to the special police forces that were set up in response to the Article 9 of the 1947 Constitution of Japan, which prohibited Japan to deploy any offensive military force, as well as the political pressure from the US to be prepared to fight the threat of Communism. By the 1960s Japan had set up a virtual military under the title of a police force to circumvent this law. This form of military is exaggerated through the Capitol Police and its Special Unit in Jin-Roh. The protesters are all in reference to the anti-ANPO student groups of the 1960s, who primarily protested against the 1962 “Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan” that allowed for tens of thousands of American soldiers to be stationed in Japan even after the end of US occupation, but also fought for improved labor conditions and changes in economic and social policy. The final piece of allegory is in the form of the main character, Kazuki Fuse, a member of the Special Unit who finds himself in the middle of a conflict between various government organizations in their struggle for power ( namely between the Special Unit on one side, and the leadership of the Capitol Police as well as other security and police forces on the other side ) after he fails to prevent a terrorist girl from blowing herself up, which thwarts the Special Unit’s security assignment during a large clash with protesters. Fuse is sent back to training after a disciplinary procedure, but the thoughts of a young girl killing herself in front of him continue to haunt him, so in order to find a peace of mind he decides to visit her grave. There he meets a girl who introduces herself as the deceased girl’s older sister and the two gradually form a romantic relationship. Their relationship is central to the plot of the movie, but also, and even more importantly, to its main underlying message. I’m going to spoil things just a bit here and say that their relationship ends tragically. As previously stated, Jin Roh employs the traditional tales to better frame and narrate its own story. While the nature of the relationship between the two has parallels with the classical tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, more important to the film’s allegory is the old fairy tale Rotkappschen ( Red Riding Hood ), a traditional oral tale which was written down by Jean Baptiste Victor Smith in 1870. This interpretation predates the popular version by the Grimm brothers, and is the only one in which the protagonist visits her mother instead of her grandmother, and features the "clothing made completely out of metal" as found in the Jin-Roh version. The movie keeps bashing the viewer with this tale to the point where Kei Amemiya, the terrorist girl’s sister, literally takes the book out of her bag and gives it to Fuse. The film’s lack of subtlety in drawing the parallels between itself and the fairy tale is jarring in comparison to its other allegories and messages, and there’s a reason for it – obfuscation. The lengths to which the story goes to make sure you get that Kei is the Little Red Riding Hood and Fuse, or rather the Special Unit, are the Big Bad Wolf, are taken to cloud the main point of these parallels; that the main focus of this story isn’t Red Riding Hood, but the wolf, or more precisely, the pack of wolfs ( Special Unit ). The entire story of Jin Roh, and primarily its parallels with the political situation in Japan in the late 50s and early 60s is an allegory to the current state of Japan which was ruled by the LDP continuously from 1955 to 2009 with very little political opposition. This lack of opposition is shown by Fuse's inability to break from the "pack" in which he belongs, thus criticizing Japan as an overly conformist society unwilling to accept change even when times warrant it. This brings us to the end of the review, which means it’s time for the final verdict. A superb achievement of Japanese animation, Jin Roh is a work of art in every way. Crafted with love and dedication, it excels in visual, musical, narrative and thematic departments. Slow pacing turns out to be a positive element in hindsight, and the occasional forced plot twist is easily forgiven once you watch the movie and realise that the political games only play the secondary role to the well written and even moving relationship between the main characters and the allegorical meaning behind it all. A sadly under-appreciated movie considering its quality and importance, largely due to the fact that it requires a substantial knowledge of the Japanese history to fully appreciate it. Nevertheless, watching Jin-Roh is a very rewarding experience and I highly recommend it to anyone and give it an 8,8/10.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Nov 9, 2012
Mouryou no Hako
(Anime)
add
Recommended Spoiler
This show appears to be quite controversial - on one hand people praise it as a brilliant murder mystery, and on the other hand, many call it convoluted, confusing, unconvincing etc. So which one is it? Or does the truth lie somewhere in the middle? Well, I find most of the flak that this show gets to be unfair and undeserving. Certainly, Mouroyu no Hako isn't for everyone, it targets a rather small niche audience, and its confusing narrative can unfortunately put off many a potential fan. But that doesn't make it bad by any means.
As I said, the narrative of the story is confusing ... - very confusing actually, at least in the first half of the series. During the first half ( the line can be pulled anywhere between Episodes 6 - 8 ) we are presented with all the data and events pertaining to the mystery ( or rather, mysteries ) that are then solved during the second half. Apart from the main events and aspects of the cases in hand, we are also shown some important backstories and seemingly unrelated side-stories that are later revealed to play a crucial part in the unfolding chain of events and are essential in understanding the causes and motivations of the perpetrators of the crimes, as well as the actions of some of the investigators. The relatively large cast of characters is also introduced during this first half, but not all at once over the course of an episode or two, but very gradually ( it's not until Episode 7 that we've met all of the protagonists ), and there really isn't a central character, a single protagonist. Rather, the focus of the story switches between several different characters; some of them are the investigators, some suspects and some future victims. This two-halves format of storytelling is very effective in a murder mystery, as it first fully introduces us to the characters and the mystery before proceeding to gradually solve it through investigation and deduction. However, the way the first half is executed is what turns most people away from this show. The events of the first half are not told in a linear fashion. Instead, bits and pieces of the story are thrown around practically randomly. The first episode is relatively straightforward, but after that, the narrative dissolves in a series of backstories, flash-backs and flash-forwards ( the latter two often in a sequence ), as well as many surreal and seemingly inexplicable scenes. This completely destroys the feel for passage of time, making it extremely hard to grasp the true sequence of time and events in the story. The second half is almost completely linear and straightforward, with only a couple of short scenes that feel surreal or non-linear. Because of this, I strongly recommend re-watching the first 6-7 episodes once you've watched them for the first time - it will help you to better grasp the things that happened and give you extra time to put the events in order. Needless to say, Mouryou no Hako requires your full attention and at least some thinking ( you don't have to be a genius or a super-computer to understand the story ) in order to properly enjoy and comprehend it. Apart from the non-linear storytelling in the first half, there's another reason why many people might be alienated by the story, and it's also the main reason why this show wasn't localised in America - Japanese spiritual mythology ( and there's A LOT of it, it plays the central role in the story ). The show's title - "Mouryou no Hako" ( roughly translated as "Box of Goblins", or "A demon's box" ) is a direct reference to a particular branch of Shinto/Buddhist/Tao(?) mythology; Mouryou is a kind of an evil spirit that possesses the mentally distraught and psychologically disturbed people, finally pushing them over the edge. The show dedicates quite a lot of time to explaining, in fine detail, the history and nature of the Mouryou and some other mythological spirits and priests that fight those beings. Some may find the explanations tedious and the scenes in which they take place not that well visually conceived/executed, resulting in them being boring. Also, I feel important to mention that this "supernatural aspect" of the mystery might seem a bit like "cheating"; I mean, if it's the evil spirits that make people commit crime, then it completely takes away from the moral, emotional and psychological implications of the murders, right? Well, that would be correct, but the spirits in the story aren't "exactly" the real perpetrators, and they are never directly confirmed to even really exist. It's not easy to explain, but essentially, you can easily interpret these "Mouryou" as nothing more than metaphors. Several characters in the show are clearly mentally unstable or even downright demented, and many others, including several protagonists, do not believe in evil spirits - indeed, the show takes a very realistic and empirical approach to the cases at hand, and the spiritualism involved is often criticized as being a hoax or trickery. Hence the spirits that supposedly possess already disturbed people, Mouryou, can be seen as nothing more than a superstitious explanation of genuine psychological disorders and mental breakdowns of these people. On the other hand, one of the main investigators is definitely confirmed to be clairvoyant, so the supernatural forces clearly do exist in the story's universe. Still, even if they *do* exist, Mouryou aren't active forces of evil. They do not force otherwise normal people to commit heinous crimes out of the blue; they only seem to possess those that are already under severe emotional and mental strain, and only give them that final push that makes them commit murder/suicide/etc. Due to this limited nature of supernatural interference, the story manages to keep its sense of realism despite a heavy amount of spiritual elements. However, I haven't said anything yet about the most important issue of the story: is the mystery any good? Well, I can't prove it to you without major spoilers, so you'll have to trust me when I say: yes, it's pretty good. The story gives you enough information to form some solid theories by the half-way point, but non-linear presentation of this data means you'll find it hard to be confident in your theories. During the second half some extra info is given and new events put the previously ( relatively ) passive investigators into action. The ultimate resolution of the case is given in the last two episodes, and it is a bit confusing, especially if you aren't paying your full attention ( again, this is not something you can watch casually and still get it ). I do have some minor issues regarding the time frame; couple of events and plot points happen a little too shortly after each other for it to be feel 100% natural and believable. [ MAJOR SPOILER ALERT] Kubo meets Amemiya on the train on September 1st, a day after Kanako's kidnapping, and only a couple of days later he has already recruited his father for his serial killings AND made all those boxes custom-made to hold their limbs and fit perfectly between buildings ( measurements and construction of these boxes alone would take at least a couple of days ) AND tracked down at least one girl, abducted and dismembered her... [ END OF SPOILER] So, all in all, the mystery is well conceived and executed, and ultimately adds up, which is the single most important thing in such stories. Now, what about the characters? Sadly, but not unexpectedly ( seeing as this is a short and complicated murder mystery that rightly puts the focus on the plot ), the characters are mostly not very developed and forgettable. Yoriko and Kanako, two teenage girls and classmates, who are introduced in Episode 1 and play a key role in the story, are probably the best developed characters in the show, especially Yoriko, whose relationships with her mother and Kanako not only develop her character a lot, but are also crucial in unraveling the mystery. Other relatively developed characters include Kanako's relative Yoko Yuzuki, another key character, and one of the investigators, Tatsumi Sekiguchi, a freelance novelist and the closest thing this show has to a protagonist. While I stated that they are underdeveloped, there are only a few who can be classified as nothing more than plot-devices disguised as characters. They are only as developed as the plot necessitates, meaning that we only get to see one or two traits or quirks in each character, but that's OK and each character has a purpose and role in the story. Overall, while they aren't thoroughly developed as persons, the cast of characters is satisfying and the characterisation and casting mostly manage to stay away from cliches or caricatures. As for the visuals, the series was produced by Studio Madhouse, so the high quality and consistency are a given. Of course, the backgrounds are all detailed, and the colours used well, blah blah blah, but the best way to describe the visuals, and the series in general, really, is with one word: atmospheric. Indeed, be it mundane street scenes, or emotional dialogues between Yoriko and Kanako in the moonlight, or discussions on the nature of Mouryou in the secluded village in the countryside, or even the strange dream-like sequences in the beginning of most episodes, the audio-visual experience is consistently atmospheric and very surreal. However, although I say surreal, and this show really leaves that impression on the viewer a number of times, making it feel more like a dream or fantastic experience rather than a dark murder mystery, and even though the first half is extremely confusing, I cannot describe any part of the story as "mindfuck". Mindfuck would mean that the scene, episode, or the entire story is just randomly thrown in, makes little to no sense whatsoever regarding the past or future events, and leaves you feeling violated. Here, no matter how strange or surreal or confusing the scene might seem, in the end they can be perfectly justified, either by virtue of hindsight or as bizarre behaviour of mentally deranged people. Despite the occasional painfully obvious CGI vehicle thrown in and atypical character designs for a Studio Madhouse show ( they were actually designed by CLAMP ), the visuals are very beautiful and enhance the feeling of the story. The animation itself, even though scarce seeing as this is a mystery thriller ala Death Note ( meaning lots of talking and little action ), is pretty good, keeping the characters in model and preventing the show from feeling like a slideshow. The music only has a supporting role to enhance the mood and atmosphere set by the visuals, and is therefore largely unnoticeable and forgettable. The soundtrack is minimalistic, relying heavily on soft piano pieces and violin solos. OP and ED are also nothing spectacular, but they fit the series well. The opening is bright and upbeat, showing most of the cast and offering some nicely animated and even artistic shots of the setting and characters, all to the tune of a somewhat generic yet appropriate J-pop song. The ending is much darker with more simplistic visuals, as is the case with most endings. The song featured is very distorted both in an instrumental, vocal and lyrical sense. Both the ED and OP are representative of the series, as it switches its mood from bright and relaxed scenes of tranquility to disturbing insights into the morbid killings and dismembering of young girls. There's really no point in discussing the voice-acting; since the series was never localised in the US, there's no dub to talk about and the Japanese voice actors are well cast and fit their characters' personalities, as is expected of seiyuu. To conclude, Mouryou no Hako is not a show for everyone and even the fans of the mystery genre will not universally like this. The distinctly Japanese spiritualism that underlines the story might alienate the more casual anime fans, and the confusing non-linear narrative of the first half of the series can also put you off the entire story. Nevertheless, the show remains a rewarding experience for those persistent and keen enough to see it through to the end. It's a heavily atmospheric and even surreal story about insanity and obsession, and ultimately, a well-constructed mystery that delivers on its premise. The setting of the story in post-war Japan is an extra plus for the fans of historical settings. All in all, a somewhat flawed ( lack of character development ) and quite confusing, but still a very good show. 7.8/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Oct 5, 2012 Recommended Spoiler
Dragonball Z with swords. This is how I've seen many people describe Claymore.
But the truth is, the only similarity between these two shows is that they are both action packed power-up series ( however, the power-up element in Claymore is absolutely nothing compared to DBZ ). It would be much more accurate to compare Claymore with Berserk. In 1998, Berserk came to define the violent, graphic dark-fantasy genre in anime, and Claymore took its mantle for the first decade of the 21st century. Both share many similarities - from medieval-style settings, serious and dark tone to giant swords and plenty of uncensored gore. Indeed, with ... its huge count of severed limbs and fountains of blood gushing from the torsos being cut in half, Claymore seems determined not to let the spirit of ultra-violent action shows of the 90s die out in the sea of all the harem, moe and bishonen shows that seem to dominate the anime industry nowdays. Yes, there are other ultra-violent anime being released today, like Hellsing Ultimate, but the difference between Claymore and most of these shows is that Claymore is much more than just mindless violence. Claymore is good on many different levels. Actually, it's not just good, it's very good. One of the greatest things about Claymore is that it took a pretty weak premise and turned it into a story that should serve as a benchmark for all the action-oriented series. When I first heard about Claymore, I wasn’t very thrilled to say the least – an all-female cast of warriors fight monsters with giant swords. “Great, this is gonna be just a bunch of gory, mindless violence and A LOT of fan service. Kinda like Witchblade”. However, all over the internet, reviews were almost universally positive and my hopes were somewhat raised. But I still only expected an action series that, while by no means stupid and too gratuitous, won’t be particularly deep either. Quality entertainment, yes, but entertainment at its most basic level. Well, I am happy to inform you that I was very wrong. That is not to say that Claymore is some kind of masterpiece or without flaws – there are flaws, some of them only minor and some of them quite apparent ( which is why I rated it 8 instead of 9 or 10 ), but the positive aspects far outweigh the negatives. Although it’s officially classified as a shonen series, Claymore walks the fine line between the shonen and seinen categories, as do some other shows ( like the Death Note ). The ( traditional ) shonen elements present in it are actually the show’s weakest points. There’s plenty of prolonged and tiresome dialogue in the middle of otherwise intense fight scenes, and gravity is not merely defied, but often completely ignored, which is a shame as the choreography of the fight scenes, whether they are duels or group battles, is very good, are there are no boring or pointless battles, although there are some can feel somewhat drawn-out. Another element that draws the quality of the fights ( and thus the entire series) down a bit are the power-ups. Granted, they are much more subtle than in many other series, mostly feel natural and logical, and the sense of proportionality is kept in relation to the power of other Claymores and Yoma/Awakened Beings ( unlike the bullshit we often got from DBZ, which is best described by a joke from Team4Star’s DBZ Abridged: “Power levels are bullshit!!!” ). However, there are one or two places where the power up of a certain character feels far-fetched, to say the least. I won’t name them because I want to avoid spoiling the series for newbies, but in order to back my claim with evidence, I’ll just say that you’ll find some examples in episode 14 and episode 25, during the climactic fight scene. Consequently, while most battles are well-written and a joy to watch, some of them do go over the top, but thankfully, such fights are few, they don’t go that much over the top, and the battles are of reasonable length and don’t suck the life out of the audience ( unlike the battles in other action shows, where climactic fights against the main antagonist can last up to five millennia ). All in all, while it does suffer from some rather typical problems, action in Claymore is very entertaining, mainly because every single fight has a point, and the main battles are crucial to both the plot, and, more importantly, character development. Apart from great action scenes, another one of Claymore’s strongest points are its visuals. The studio behind the series is Madhouse, and the name I believe speaks for itself. Their resume of beautifully animated features includes shows such as Death Note, Trigun, Paranoia Agent, Hellsing Ultimate, as well as some great movies like Satoshi Kon’s Paprika. Needless to say, Claymore looks great, despite being a relatively low-profile franchise, which shows the studio’s dedication to each of their shows, regardless of the original manga’s popularity. Madhouse’ trademark style is spot on for Claymore, creating a realistic, yet also a dark and depressing atmosphere of the story that is kept througth the series. Bleak and somewhat dull medieval fantasy setting serves as a perfect backdrop for the story of Claymores and their tragic existence and fate. The art is simply gorgeous; from generic towns and villages to mountain lakes, art is highly detailed and the colour palette is used superbly. The shots are never made too dark or monochromatic, which would make them dull and boring – the artists create a balance of grey, green, brown etc. and then spice it up with some red, purple or blue in just the right way. One example of smart use of colours is the hair of Claymores – in the manga, they are left uncoloured, white, and the reader can only assume that they all have the same shade of blond hair. In the anime, the artists gave each Claymore a slightly different hair colour, ranging from almost white ( Irene ) to warm yellow tone of Priscilla’s hair. This, along with many variations in details of their uniforms, makes it easier for the viewer to differentiate between various Claymores that are introduced over the course of the story. Still, there are some occurrences, like the major battle in the last episodes where there are two dozen Claymores assembled in one place, where it can be quite difficult to tell which Claymore is which. While the style and the graphics are both top-notch, the same unfortunately cannot be said about the animation itself. That is not to say that the animation is bad, hell no! However, you cannot but notice that Madhouse was on a budget a bit. The show was released in April 2007, relatively shortly after the Death Note and the feature film Paprika, and at the same time as Hellsing Ultimate III, so you can guess that the studio decided to spend more money on the more popular and marketable titles. Thus, the producers of Claymore had to make-do with a limited amount of money, and thankfully, they utilised it to maximum effect. The cuts were made where they felt more natural, and when they needed to make it look good, they made it look good. To save the money for action scenes ( and there are a lot of them ), many dialogues and expositions were shot with the person talking not facing the camera, or by having the random people in the background either staying still or moving as little as possible. Many shortcuts were taken during the fights scenes too – seeing as the show is set in a medieval setting and the primary weapon used in combat are swords, and since many Claymores are capable of wielding their swords much, much faster than any human, flash-lines are often used for sword strokes, but this doesn’t usually detract from the quality of the battles. Another major shortcut that was used very often, and this is not exclusive to Claymore, is animation of blood. Although there are many scenes in which it was animated pretty well and the flow of blood looked natural, for the largest part, and particularly when it came to chopping the monsters into pieces, the blood bursts out in your typical two-dimensional streams that NEVER SEEM TO STOP. Seriously, do the animators even know how much blood can a body hold? But, again, this is still a minor issue, seeing as this is just a TV series, and besides, the visuals as a whole are fantastic. The writing’s mark is less mixed than marks for the action or visuals, which are predominantly great, despite some flaws ( namely the animation shortcuts ). By "mixed" I don't mean that the writing is bad, and the issues I had with it are much more subjective than the objective issues of the previous categories. The show is perfectly paced, with the story’s slow unfolding mitigated by the action scenes and dynamic character interaction. The show never gets boring, which can partially be attributed to the fact that, with only 26 episodes of running time, there are no filler episodes. The threat escalation keeps the viewer worried about the main characters, and the character development is completely intertwined with the plot – the main heroine, Clare, keeps the plot moving forward, and each new battle adds not only to her fighting abilities, but also reveals her personality. This works infinitely better than if the writers decided to develop the characters through “token episodes”, like so many other shows, with plenty of time on their hands, do. Another element in pacing adds greatly to the quality and enjoyment of the story, and it’s yet another thing that separates Claymore from most action shonen series. Apart from the first two episodes, which serve as an introduction to the basics of the Claymore universe, the story is split into several arcs, 3-4 episodes long on average, which leaves much more space for action, character development and advancing the plot than if the episodes were all stand-alone, and this also prevents it from becoming a “monster of the week show”. I’ve just praised the pacing, but the actual writing varies greatly. On one hand we have some ham-fisted exposition and unnatural/pointless talking in the middle of the battles, and on the other hand some of the best executed character development I have seen in anime. The fact that most of the exposition on the workings of the Claymore universe and the story behind it is spouted with no concern about how natural it would feel is a big let down, not only because the whole story is otherwise very mature, serious and “realistic”, but also because this exposition could have easily been handled much better, and the writer often displays great writing skills in other areas ( aforementioned pacing and character development ). Younger audiences won’t mind this kind of exposition, but since Claymore is very mature and dark, and more of a seinen series than a shonen one, the older, more mature audience will most likely see this as a big minus. After this complaining about the exposition, I feel obliged to give Claymore’s writer(s) credit for character development. Claymore features a relatively small cast of main characters, although there’s a plethora of supporting and side characters, many of whom only appear in one arc. The story is completely centred around Clare, and all the other characters, while well-developed and interesting in their own right, serve to both reveal and shape Clare’s personality, as she goes on in pursuit of her revenge. I shall say a bit more about the characters themselves in a minute, but right now I want to say a few words about HOW they are developed. Practically all shows rely on flashbacks in order to shed light on the certain character’s motivation and reveal their back-story. Some shows utilize them well, using just the right amount and integrating them into story naturally, while others go into overkill, dragging the pacing down and revealing that the writer has no idea how to otherwise develop their characters. Claymore uses flashbacks in a smart and ( relatively ) original way. Many characters have tragic pasts that determine their course of actions in the present, and these pasts are presented in very short flash-backs, and I mean “flash”-backs, not “the-whole-episode-long-retelling-of-life-stories-backs”. These are only a couple of shots or one short scene, merely flashes of memories, and they reveal just enough for the viewer to get an idea about what happened. Simply put - they provide ( a lot of ) information in as little time as possible. The one big exception is the “Teresa Arc” ( Episodes 5-8 ) that is essentially one big flashback, revealing Clare’s past prior to becoming a Claymore, and is also crucial to understanding not only her motives, but also her relationship with Raki. Dedicating an entire arc to Clare’s past, rather than a couple of flash-backs, does wonders for developing not only hers, but several different characters. It is one of the best arcs in the entire series. However, the best example of character development is the “Ophelia Arc” ( Episodes 12- 14 ). This arc is both a watershed and an important step forward for Clare, and while the “Teresa Arc” revealed her past and motivations, this arc shows much more of her personality than any other. And the interesting part is, over the course of three episodes, she only has about two dozen lines of dialogue and monologue. So how does the writer develop her character if she barely talks during that arc? Simply – by juxtaposing her to the characters of the two other Claymores she interacts with ( one of them is her opponent, and the other one an unexpected saviour and tutor ), and then highlighting the differences between Clare and each of these two Claymores. The writing reaches its best during these episodes, and along with the underlying message and theme, this is the show’s highest artistic point. Oh, and one last thing about the writing, more specifically, the dialogue. I’ve already covered the exposition and the talking in the middle of the fight, so I’ll add just one more thing, and it’s also one of the show’s main flaws. While it’s a beautiful story, with lots of tragedy and very emotional at times, occasionally the show is too cheesy or sentimental for its own good, and the main character responsible for this is Raki. Which brings us to the characters. Claymore’s greatest strength is its beautiful character-driven story. And it’s actually a pretty small story. Unlike Berserk, where the actions of characters determine the future of kingdoms, or Lord of the Rings, where the fate of the entire world hangs in the balance, there’s not that much at stake here. It isn’t an epic struggle filled with huge battles, although there are many battles in it. It isn’t a great quest or adventure, although there are quests and mysteries. Claymore is ultimately a human story more than anything else, and that sets it apart from most shonen series, and most anime series in general, really. It’s a very personal story, the story of Clare and how she struggles between her wish to remain human and her thirst for revenge against the person who took everything from her. So the only thing at stake here is Clare’s humanity, and I’d argue that that’s a far greater stake than the fate of Middle-earth. Clare is not exactly your typical action hero. For starters, she’s a woman ( as are 90% of characters in this story ), meaning that, unlike other shonen shows like Naruto, Bleach and DBZ, the teenage male audience cannot identify themselves with her, or see her as a role model. She’s also not exactly a cool unbeatable bad-ass like say, Selene from Underworld or Revy from Black Lagoon. That’s yet ANOTHER great difference between Claymore and many other action shows – unlike Goku who is basically a god, and cannot possibly lose, Clare is actually the weakest of the Claymores. Of course, she has the potential to become the strongest of them all, but the path to obtaining the power to exact her revenge is a difficult and bloody one, and each step forward requires a bit of sacrifice ( at one point Clare even loses her dominant arm! ). She often gets beaten and injured, either by Yoma or some of her fellow warriors. The viewer comes to sympathise with her, you are concerned for her and don’t want to see her become one of the monsters she’s fighting against, which is a very realistic possibility, to say the least ( because the power the Claymores use to fight Yoma has its limits, and using too much of it can cause them to turn into complete monsters themselves ). She starts off as cold, distant and unemotional, which is completely understandable given the nature of Claymores and the Organization that controls them; Claymores are half-human and half-monsters, and as such are feared and detested by humans, who see them as a nothing more than necessary evil to fight Yoma, so you can imagine they don’t have much of a social life or human contact. Claymores are lone wolves, merely fighting tools in the hands of the Organization that treats them as completely expendable and whose actions are pretty sinister and dodgy ( they have no qualms about disposing of insubordinate warriors or taking exorbitant fees for killing Yoma from civilians ). Thus, when Clare first meets Raki, she is very reluctant to even tell him her name, let alone allow him to accompany her on her journeys. As the series progresses, she starts to regain some of her lost humanity and emotions, which she lost over the course of many years of painful training and lonely missions, as she was fixated only on her revenge. A good example is when she and Raki set camp and throw an animal on a spit – as famished Raki digs into the meat like there’s no tomorrow, Clare ( who can go on for days without food ) watches him with nostalgia, saying it’s refreshing to see such a “human” thing for a change. Raki, Clare’s companion through most of the series, is often bashed by the fans, especially male fans, for being “useless”, “whiny”, “annoying” and so on. Most of this bashing is caused by a complete lack of perspective. Yes, I find him annoying at times too, but to complain that his character is useless and pointless is to completely misunderstand the whole story. Clare, a cold inhuman warrior who lives a solitary and dangerous existence, would never, ever take him with her if he weren’t as helpless and naive as he is ( at the beginning of the series at least ), and if he didn’t remind her of herself before she forfeited her humanity for the sake of vengeance. He gives her a new reason to live, and is essential to her latter decisions, decisions that old Clare would probably never make. I can’t dwell much more on his character without going into the spoiler territory, so I’ll just say that, despite somewhat gary-stuish morals and propensity for crying, he’s a good character and is crucial to the story and Clare’s character development. Other characters I cannot discuss without spoilers, apart from Priscilla, the main villain. She is an Awakened Being ( a creature, much more powerful than Yoma, that is created if a Claymore uses too much of their power and thus transforms into a being with no remains of their old human self ) that is the main cause of Clare’s tragic past and her decision to become a Claymore. She is, naturally, very powerful, so it takes the whole series before Clare can take her on in a final, climactic fight. And funnily, enough, she’s not actually a “proper” villain. As an Awakened Being, she was formerly a Claymore, and has a tragic past just like Clare. Her awakening is a result of her unstable mind and lack of experience as a Claymore, rather than some inborn vice or evil intent, so she’s not really an evil entity that you can, and should, despise. This is reinforced during the last half a dozen or so episodes during which we get to see more of her character and realise that her fate is a tragic outcome of many unfortunate events in her life, and not really a fault of her own. She is a great character and her condition is crucial to the show’s outcome and message. All the other villains/monsters are pretty good too. While Yoma are very generic looking and ( relatively ) easily defeat-able, the Awakened Beings, and particularly the Creatures of the Abyss ( incredibly powerful Awakened Beings that were once #1 Claymores ) have great and very original designs and a wide range of personalities. Designs for these monsters range from insect-like beings to giant beasts and “tentacle”-monsters, all of them pretty unique and interesting. While the normal Awakened Beings are mostly just primitive monsters whose only motivations are search for human food or fighting the Claymores to survive, some particularly strong ones have distinct personalities and are in the service of the Abysmal Ones, who retain much more human characteristics than the other monsters, being quite sinister, scheming and sly individuals, with much more ambition than just hunting humans for food. Overall, even though Claymore is primarily focused on fighting the inner demons in order to maintain humanity, the monsters and villains are distinct and original, providing us with great, quality action and lots of blood. What’s left to say...? I swear I’m forgetting something important here... Oh, right, of course – the music. Sadly, as opposed to Claymore’s above-average visuals, the soundtrack is quite underwhelming. It features a variety of styles, from bagpipes and large orchestral pieces to rock music and even some techno beats. There aren’t really any noteworthy tracks that could stand alone and find themselves on your iPad playlist, since the soundtrack mostly has a supporting role. For the most part, the music complements the visuals well, and sets the mood for each scene, be it an emotional, intimate moment, or a major fight scene. However there are more than few occasions where the choice of music is... questionable, even if the theme that is used fits. It’s just a shame that there aren’t some kick-ass numbers like those character themes from Death Note. Thankfully, there is a special music CD, that is not a part of the official soundtrack, that makes up for this. Titled “Claymore Intimate Persona”, it features 10 character songs, performed by the characters’ original Japanese voice actresses. While it’s up to debate how well do the lyrics fit each character, the songs themselves are very good pieces of music in their own right, with styles ranging from metal to pop. I’d warmly recommend them to all fans of Japanese music. Like the original soundtrack, the opening for the anime is underwhelming. The song, “Raison d’etre” by Nightmare ( same band that performed the 1st opening and ending for Death Note ) is solid, and fits the series, but the animation is average at best. While most anime TV series put a lot of effort and budget into their openings, which often results in animation that is much, much better than the actual show, the visuals of Claymore’s opening are really nothing special. Not bad, but underwhelming compared to the overall high quality visuals in the series. The ending, on the other hand, is great. The musical piece “Danzai no Hana”, fits the series perfectly, making the dark and tragic atmosphere of the show almost tangible. The art is also gorgeous, atmospheric and brilliantly coloured. It’s one of my favourite endings of all time actually. As for the voice-acting, I really have to recommend the sub over dub version. Even though it’s usually hard for me ( and everyone else who doesn’t speak Japanese fluently ) to objectively evaluate the performance of the Japanese voice actors, the Claymore was an exception. The seiyu ARE the characters, their voices fit their respective characters’ personalities perfectly, and they convey their feelings, moods and attitudes brilliantly. The English dub, on the other hand, is a mixed bag, and this is more due to the poor casting choices than the lack of talent. Some actors, like Christine Auten as Teresa and veteran Todd Haberkorn as Raki were chosen well ( although many complain that Todd only increased Raki’s annoyingness ), but others, like Stephanie Young as Clare, were not. Clare is supposed to be 17-20 years old, and Young sounds not only much older, but if you compare her voice acting to that of Huoko Kuwashima, you’ll see that “Japanese” Clare and “English” Clare are two different people. Many English voice actors come off as radically different from their Japanese counterparts, and in a negative way. As I said, I recommend the subbed version, but feel free to watch them both and make your own judgment. Which brings us to the end of the spoiler-free part of the review. In this next, and penultimate paragraph, I shall discuss one thing that divides the fans of this series – the ending. Those of you who haven’t seen the show, you should just skip it and go to the final summary in the last paragraph as this contains MAJOR SPOILERS. This discussion is meant for the Claymore fans who seek a second opinion on the ending of their beloved series, and you.can come back and read it after you’ve watched the show. --- Now that it’s just us fans, I’ll make one thing ( two things actually ) perfectly clear from the start – I loved the ending for the Claymore anime series and find the anime to be far superior to the manga, and the latter is BECAUSE of the ending. Allow me to explain. Most of the people who hate the ending ( khm!... whining fan-boys... khm! ) present these arguments: “It deviated from the manga!”, “The last episodes were filler!” , “Clare should have killed Priscilla!” and “It’s inconclusive!”. First two arguments are just plain bulls*it, and the latter two I strongly disagree with. Why? Firstly, the fact that the anime deviated from the original material means bugger all. Not only is there no obligation for the animators to remain faithful to the manga ( and they WERE faithful for the vast majority of the time ), but making the anime adaptation faithful to the letter does not equal better quality. Secondly, “filler” means that an episode is there just to prop up the running time and there is of no direct ( or even indirect ) consequence to the advancement of the plot, or even character development. Filler does not mean “original material not found in the manga”. There are NO filler episodes in Claymore. Which brings us to the third argument, Clare not killing Priscilla. And, you see, that’s the whole point of the entire story. Claymore is a story of revenge, but it is also a story about losing/regaining humanity, a story about human condition and a fight against the animal/monster inside. Over the course of the series, Clare, a person who lost everything and only had a thought of revenge to cling on, comes to realise that she can find other reasons to live apart from her vengeance. She meets Raki, in whom she sees her old self, and he reminds her of her relationship with Teresa. She meets Miria, Deneve and Helen. She befriends Jean after saving her life. The themes of camaraderie and friendship permeate the story, and once Clare finds a prospect of new life with Raki and her friends, her quest for revenge becomes... meaningless, in way, I can’t exactly find the right word. Forfeiting her humanity and even life for the sake of revenge was fine when she was a lonely warrior, but once she’s not that anymore, her revenge, something that will cost her her humanity, becomes hollow and even selfish. We don’t want her to become a monster just so she can avenge Teresa because we’ve come to love her and care for her and don’t want her to let go of things and people she has gained for the sake of taking revenge on behalf of someone who not only cannot gain anything by this ( since she’s dead ), but would never even wish for it. On the contrary, Teresa explicitly says she wishes for Clare to live a normal and fulfilling life as a human being, knowing fully what it means to live a tragic and lonely life of a Claymore. And it’s not only about Clare. While the last two episodes were completely original material, there were other changes over the course of the last 6 or so episodes, which skewered the series towards its final resolution, and these changes completely debunk the claims by some fans that the last 2 episodes were “plastered on”. One of the changes was when Raki found out that Priscilla is an Awakened Being. Priscilla’s entire character development over the course of these few episodes, as well as her behaviour during the final battle, is meant to show the viewer that, while a monster, she’s not evil. Her condition is an extremely tragic one, and these few changes are supposed to get the viewer to understand her and realise that she is to be pitied, not hated. Raki serves as sort of a proxy for the audience here, and it’s through the eyes of his character that we are to fully grasp the meaning ( or the lack thereof ) of the final battle between Clare and Priscilla. He gets to watch two people, who he has grown to love/like and sympathise with, turn into monsters trying to rip each other’s guts out. Two persons, kindred spirits, turn into monsters ( although for different reasons ) and fight for...what? And the best part is, even Raki’s pleas cannot turn Clare back. It takes guilt. Only after she kills Jean, her good friend, does Clare realise the pointlessness of her fight and how much could she lose if she doesn’t let go of her revenge and revert back to human. Stricken with guilt, she stops and cries over the death of her friend, coming to appreciate that the people she has now are at least as important to her as is the person she lost, Teresa. As she leaves Jeane’s grave with Raki, she also comes to realise that this is what Teresa actually wanted for her all along – not forsaking her life in pursuit of something that will ultimately cost her everything, but to lead a happy life that Teresa never could, but died to allow Clare to do so. This ending is just brilliant, filled with emotions and realisations, it is here that all of Clare’s actions and relationships are finally given their true meaning and purpose. Without this final resolution, the story wouldn’t hold that same depth and message. Yes, the ending doesn’t resolve all the plot threads, actually most of them remain unresolved. Yes, the fates of other characters like Miria, Deneve and Helen remain unclear. It’s an open ending, but also not an open ending. The main story – story of Clare and her revenge is finished, so in a sense, the story is over. You can complain about the story not being completely resolved, you can be personally unsatisfied with this ending, but you cannot call it bad or inconclusive, because it is most definitely not. There are several reasons why I think anime is better than the manga, and the absence of this resolution is the main one. --- Well, I’ve never thought I’ll ever write a longer review than the one on Ghost in the Shell, but it seems I underestimated myself. Sorry for dragging this for so long, but, like in GITS, I wanted to cover all of the story and give a proper insight into all individual aspects of it. So, time to sum it up. Claymore has some flaws – ham-fisted exposition, ( a bit of ) animation shortcuts, underwhelming soundtrack, a few over-the-top action scenes and power-ups and occasional cheesiness. However, as I’ve said before, the positives far outweigh the negatives – it’s got great visuals, great story, great characters, entertaining action scenes and a lot of heart. It’s a beautiful kind of story that is hard to come across these days, not only in anime but in Western cinematography as well. Even if the franchise gets forgotten in several years, Claymore will always remain here as a little gem of a story, waiting to be discovered by a wandering anime fan, searching for a deep and meaningful story in the world of series mostly devoid of these traits. I whole-heartedly recommend Claymore to everyone, and give it a solid, well-deserved 8.1/10.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Jun 23, 2012
Koukaku Kidoutai
(Anime)
add
Recommended
For a film that had such a groundbreaking impact and huge influence not only on Japanese animation but also on Western cinematography, you'd think that there would be much more reviews on this site, but there's only 15 or so in total, and only a handful of them are of significant length. So I'll try to do the movie justice and file my own review, and I have to warn you, it will be very, very long.
P.S. I should also warn you that there will be spoilers, as this review is mostly aimed at those who have already seen this film and are looking for ... somebody else's opinion on it. If you didn't see the film, I'd recommend you to watch the movie anyway, even after I spoil it for you. First thing that should be said about GITS, no matter how cliched it might be, is that it is a classic. It's a work of art. And being a work of art doesn't mean that it is absolutely perfect in every aspect. No, GITS does have its shortcomings, but after you properly think about the film, none of these shortcomings are crucial to the film's message and aims. Being a work of art means that the movie is perfect in the way that matters, and that it achieves its set goals and purposes. You won't hear anyone talking bad about, say, Crime and Punishment just because there isn't a thrilling plot or some great mysteries, because the book isn't about that. And even though it does have an interesting and suspenseful plot, in the end Ghost in the Shell isn't about crime fighting or counter-cyberterrorism. No, Ghost in the Shell is, first and foremost, an ode to transhumanism and a philosophical work that centres on issues of identity and finding an answer to one's existential questions in a world where you can't be sure that your identity is even "yours". But before I dive into the real substance of the movie, I'd rather take care of the technical side of things. One of the more important things that should be stressed when reviewing GITS, is that it's largely a visual experience. Indeed, this is one of the most atmospheric, most visually stunning movies EVER, including all Western animated movies. What's so special about GITS's visuals? Well, for starters, every single shot in the movie was made with great care and effort. The amount of detail on most frames is amazing - even when we're in the middle of an intense action scene ( where most other animated movies tend to cut corners on backgrounds, features etc. ), the movie keeps the same level of detail and clarity that's present in the more artsy and slow paced scenes. Newport City, where the story takes place, was modeled after Hong Kong, and the production crew made a trip to Hong Kong and shot a bunch of photos which they later used to create a setting that is not only extremely cyberpunkish in appearance and style, but also quite realistic, making the whole future setting of Ghost in the Shell much more believable and "real" than the setting of such movies as Akira or Blade Runner ( which was a clear inspiration not only for the visual style of GITS, but the cyberpunk genre in general ). In the middle of the movie there is a whole scene, several minutes long, with no dialogue or plot whatsoever, just a number of sequences and shots depicting a depressing, somewhat run-down, claustrophobic and oppressive place in which the story takes place. The scenes immerse you in the futuristic world where extreme poverty and depravity are juxtaposed to the shiny, glass-covered and a bit surreal corporate world of office towers, neon signs and luxurious shops. Just like the style, the animation and graphics of GITS are top-notch. Keeping the sense of realism established by the style and graphics, the animation team has put a lot of effort into making the motions and effects as realistic as possible - objects fall or fly so naturally, you can almost "feel" their mass, human motion is fluid and natural... I'll give you an example of how much thought and effort was put in this movie - there's a scene in which Motoko confronts a criminal while wearing her termo-optic camouflage ( invisibility cloak ). The scene takes place in shallow water, and while she is invisible, her shadow can be seen on the bottom; her camouflage only deflects the light, giving an illusion of invisibility, but there's still a physical object blocking the sunlight. Character designs are great, fitting the personalities of each of them; Motoko and Batou, who are both cyborgs, mostly have an expressionless, robotic appearance. This is especially true for Motoko, who has a fully cybernetic body, with only her brain remaining biological. It is important to note that there's a large difference in Motoko's movie incarnation and her appearance in the manga and Stand Alone Complex series. Here she has lifeless, pale green eyes as opposed to red in the manga. Also, she has a somewhat androgynous face and a masculine body, and both these characteristics are essential not only to her personality and character development, but also to one of the underlying themes of the film, which I will discuss later. Batou, while mostly a cyborg, still retains much more of his biological body and thus more humanity than Motoko, which is reflected in him showing much more emotion than the Major, and having more facial expressions. All the other characters also have detailed, interesting and memorable designs. Overall the visual aspects of Ghost in the Shell deserve a perfect score, and it would be worth seeing this film for the visuals alone. But the superb visuals alone are not enough to create a truly mesmerizing experience that completely immerses the viewer into the world that you have created. In order to make the viewing experience complete, you also need a well-made and a well-timed soundtrack, and Ghost in the Shell is just as brilliant in the audio department as it is in visuals. While all the little things like gunfire, random chattering of people in the market or splashes of water are very important in creating a realistic and vibrant setting, it is Kenji Kawai’s brilliant soundtrack that gives the movie its second layer, that of a gloomy and eery future where technology warps and changes the very essence of our society and our identity. The real jewel in the sountrack’s crown is the song “Making of a Cyborg”, a haunting choral piece played during the opening credits, where we can see Motoko’s body being built and her brain placed inside of it. But this song is a lot more than just a nice-sounding piece of music; like many other things in this movie, there’s a deeper meaning and symbolism in it. As the opening credits roll ( in form of a “rain” of green letters and numbers that was copied by the Wachowski brothers in the Matrix movies ), we see Motoko’s brain, her ghost, being lowered into the skull of her cybernetic body, her shell. After that, skin, hair and fat tissue are added to the body, and by the end of the credits, her body is fully complete. During the procedure, there are several shots of her in a fetal position, and the whole process is carried out in a way that very much resembles a birth of a human. The entire scene is meant to represent a symbolic birth, but also a kind of marriage. The song I previously mentioned, “Making of a Cyborg”, is in fact a marital chant that is supposed to protect the newlyweds from all the evil influences and temptations. Thus, by considering both the visual and auditive aspects of the scene, we can see that it is meant to represent the “marriage” between Motoko’s mind/ghost and her body/shell. With hindsight, it can also be interpreted as foreshadowing of the union between herself and the Puppet Master. The idea of rebirth is one of the main underlying concepts during the film, and is most obviously represented through the merger of Motoko’s mind with the Puppet Master, which results in a creation of a new, higher entity, that is at the same time both Motoko and the Puppet Master – their union changes them, but also allows them to retain all of the characteristics and traits that make them who they are ( “We will both undergo change, but there is nothing for either of us to lose” ). Being “reborn” should not be taken literally, as neither of them physically dies and is reborn, but should be interpreted more as a change. Motoko is “reborn” in a sense that she becomes a new person ( her mind/ghost changes ), just like her “first rebirth”, in which she was given a new body, changes her physically, from a biological human to a complete cyborg. The need for change is stressed on several occasions, and it is pointed out by the Puppet Master that it is in the essence of human nature to constantly change and adapt ( Motoko: “Can you guarantee that I will still be my old self?” Puppet Master: “I cannot. People change, and your longing to remain “yourself” is what ultimately limits you.” ). The idea of change is expanded upon by both Motoko and the Puppet Master asserting that the strength lies in diversity. Early in the film, Motoko explains to one of her co-workers, Togusa, who is the most biologically human member of Section 9, that she brought him to Section 9 from the local police force because they need diversity; no matter how technologically advanced and capable the cyborg members of the unit are, a skilled hacker could theoretically incapacitate them all with a single virus, seeing as their cyberbrains all function on the same operative system. Thus, by having Togusa among them, they can retain operational capacity even during such emergencies. The Puppet Master’s motives for wanting to merge with Motoko and create a new entity, rather than simply copying himself, are quite similar. He ( or she ) fears that a single virus could destroy all of his copies, since copying gives no originality and diversity, and opts for a union with a human instead. Search for answers is the second main theme present in the film, and is interwoven with the ideas of rebirth and change. The pursuit of the Puppet Master changes Motoko’s psyche further, and she starts to question her own identity as a human after seeing to what extent can the person’s memories and feelings be manipulated and fabricated. While the idea of tampering with memories and the existential questions that arise from that were directly inspired by/taken from the 1982 movie “Blade Runner”, and as such aren’t as original, Ghost in the Shell provides a completely different answers and resolutions to them. While the replicants from Blade Runner yearn to become human and live longer as ordinary people, Motoko’s quest to find the answers to her own existential and metaphysical questions results in her embracing the change and pursuing the alternative means to define her own identity. During the opening credits Motoko unites with her cybernetic body, and we see her body in all its detail and complexity. During the film we can also witness all the stunning abilities of a cybernatically enhanced body – improved reflexes and perception, superhuman strength and agility... But during the climactic fight scene, Motoko is unable to defeat the armoured tank. In an attempt to open the hatch and disable the tank, she overloads her body and it gets torn apart. She falls down from the tank, broken and helpless. Her body is completely destroyed and her invisibility suit is split apart – in the beginning we saw her being built, and now we’ve made a full circle to see her broken and vulnerable. Fortunately, Batou saves her from being killed by the tank, and even though her body has been severely damaged, she remains alive. From this we can extrapolate that it isn’t her body that defines Motoko, it’s her mind, her determination to pursue her own goals and answers. She then boldly steps into the future, becoming what can be described as the next step in human evolution; she no longer needs any physical means to identify herself. This concept of humans transcending their fragile physical bodies and becoming something “more” is the essence of philosophical thought called “transhumanism” ( look it up ), and while some people might be alienated by this, it should be pointed out that the movie doesn’t shove this message down the viewer’s throat. The whole idea of the film is a quest for answers and questioning your core beliefs about what makes us human; is the essence of being human being completely biological? Maybe it’s only the brain that matters because it holds our mind, our thoughts and memories? Or maybe we should go a step further, maybe it’s only our mind, our ghost, regardless whether it resides in neurons or in the vastness of the Net? The movie merely presents its own answers to these questions, and leaves it up to the viewer to agree or disagree with them. The answer that Motoko finds does not necessarily have to answer our own questions, especially since we are not ( yet ) cyborgs and therefore cannot fully empathise with her. I’ve already mentioned several times that the movie deals with the issues of identity, but it goes a step further than that, and also focuses more specifically on the issues of female identity. Yes, this movie has a subtle feminist message, and before you roll your eyes thinking “how can a movie with so many scenes of female nudity have any kind of feminist message?”, please allow me to elaborate. Yes, there is a number of scenes where Motoko is nude, but if you take a closer look, you’ll see that none of them are meant to be erotic. Let us return to the opening credits; the scene opens with images of Motoko’s body still being merely muscles and bones. We can see all the complex machinery that powers the body and keeps her alive. After the body is complete, Motoko is standing nude and bare-breasted and the wind is sweeping her hair. But how can you look at her as an erotic figure when you know that under her soft skin lies the cold reality of a machine built of metal and wires, and when just a moment ago she had no eyes, skin or hair? The same goes for the final fight scene when her body breaks down – as she’s desperately trying to open the hatch, her body goes from its normal slender figure to an overly muscular one. After that her body is broken and parts of her are literally flying through the air. Coupled with the fact that she has an androgynous face and a muscular, manly figure ( thus taking away from the notion that she’s supposed to have the appearance of a playboy model to entertain the male audience ) , but also a deep and complex personality ( evident in her thoughtfulness and emotional strength ), as well as there being a few scenes like the one in the boat where Batou averts his eyes when Motoko undresses, the movie forces us to think: “Should I really be seeing her merely as a lustful figure? Isn’t it a bit misogynistic to reduce her to a mere object of sexual fantasies”. I was already asking myself these questions when I first watched this film, and after I read/heard several opinions of other people on this film, I became confident that I wasn’t reading too much into this. You are free to disagree, but for me, the movie sends a subtle message that we should see women for who they are as persons, rather than judging them merely by their appearance. There are several other metaphors and symbols in the film, expressed solely through visuals. Probably the most apparent of these is the wall relief from the tank-battle scene. During the scene Motoko manages to dodge the tank’s fire, but the tank continues to shoot and destroys the relief on the wall behind Motoko. The relief is in form of a tree depicting the evolution of fish ( I think ), and the tank destroys almost all of it, but the bullets run out just before it blows off the word “hominis”. The word is a genitive singular form of the latin word “homo”, which means “man”, or “human”. The metaphor of the machine destroying every other species except man can be viewed in two different ways. One way to interpret the metaphor is as a subtle environmental message; the tank destroys all species on the relief, which can be seen as a criticism and a warning of how our technological advancement and growing economy endangers and destroys our environment, pushing many animal and plant species into extinction. The second interpretation is much more in the spirit of the movie and was probably director’s true intention, rather than the somewhat less likely environmental message. The fact that the gunfire stops just before the word for human can be seen as a warning that our technology poses just as much of a threat to us as it is to our benefit. The idea that our technology, if not kept in check and handled responsibly, could be our demise is presented more directly by the tank itself nearly killing Motoko, but also by the actions of the Puppet Master; an extremely powerful rogue AI that is able to rewrite people’s memories and manipulate them at will. The whole technological aspect of the movie is supposed to show the viewers the infinite positive possibilities that the future holds ( after all, Motoko finds her answers in technology, sort of ), but also that there exists the other side of the coin and that while we shouldn’t restrain our technological advancement, we should also handle the technology wisely and responsibly. Another metaphor expressed through visuals is the recurring motif of falling/sinking and jumping/emerging. The examples include the opening scene in which the Major jumps off a building, and the scene in the middle of the film where she goes scuba-diving. The motif of her sinking and then emerging to the surface is essentially the theme of rebirth I already mentioned, and the notion that one has to sink, abandon a part of their old self, before they can emerge and be “reborn” as a new person. The jump part of the motif(s) can be interpreted as a leap of faith that Motoko has to make before she merges with the Puppet Master. If you are still with me on this review and haven’t yet been discouraged by its preposterous length, then bear with me for just a little longer, the end is near. After all this praise on Ghost in the Shell’s technical aspects and all the intellectual sustenance, I should point out some of the shortcomings, and these are mostly related to the plot and the pacing of the movie. The greatest problem in this film is its relatively short running time – the whole movie is only 82 minutes long. While this wouldn’t be such a problem if the movie was merely an action thriller, the fact that a large portion of the movie is made of philosophical dialogue and action scenes means that there is relatively little time left to resolve the plot points. This results in a somewhat awkward pace of the film, with short scenes of expository dialogue followed by long scenes of intense action which are in turn followed by equally long scenes featuring no plot at all ( the aforementioned sequence of cityscapes and streetlife in Newport City ). Another problem with the plot is that the technological aspects of the world in which the story takes place ( i.e.the cyberbrains ) are not directly explained, and unless you’re familiar with the manga you have to figure these things out for yourselves, which can be difficult seeing as the plot progresses very quickly during the first half of the movie and you can’t afford to dwell on such thing for too long if you want to keep up with the plot. Likewise, the philosophical dialogue can feel unnatural given the scene and circumstances, and it takes away from the overall feeling of realism. However, this doesn’t bother me as much as it should, probably because of the nature and general atmosphere of the movie, so I can forgive them for dropping the sense of realism in order to properly frame and express the philosophical message. Probably the greatest problem with the plot though, isn’t the pacing or the heavy philosophical dialogue, but a certain plot point that isn’t satisfactorily resolved. I’m talking about the scene where Chief Aramaki orders the Section 9 SWAT team to storm the safehouse of Colonel Malles. In the manga this scene is much, much longer and it explains the motives and aims of both Colonel Malles and the Puppet Master during this affair, thus concluding the entire case. In the film, however, they cut the scene just as the Section 9 is about to storm the place, and what happens is never explained. While the outcome of the case isn’t crucial to the second half of the film or the ending of the story, it still leaves an impression that the case in the first half is incomplete, and it confuses the viewer, who has to extrapolate what happened for himself. And last, but not the least – the characters. Many reviewers complain about the supposed lack of character development in the film, but I find the main characters very well developed for a movie that only lasts 82 minutes. I have already covered much of Motoko’s character over the course of the review, so I’ll just add a couple of minor things. One interesting thing about her is that she appears to be an adrenaline addict; she frequently puts herself in risky and dangerous situations like jumping off the building backwards or fighting tanks on her own rather than waiting for support ( there’s also a bit of stubbornness in that ). Her hobby, scuba-diving, clearly shows this addiction to adrenaline. It’s a very dangerous pastime considering her cybernetic body has a titanium skeleton and therefore weights hundreds of pounds, and if the floaters she’s carrying break down, her body’s weight will pull her to the bottom and she will drown. She also appears to have a somewhat laid back attitude towards her nudity, having no problem taking off her diving suit in front of Batou, although it might be that she only allows herself such freedom in front of him, since the two seem to be very close. Batou is, after Motoko, the most developed character in the film, and serves not only as her trusted companion, but also as a contrast to her inhuman, somewhat cold and unemotional persona. While Motoko seems to have a knack for philosophy and is quite thoughtful, Batou is much more down-to-Earth and pragmatic. Even though his body is also largely cybernetic, it doesn’t make him insecure in his own identity, unlike the Major. He is much more confident in himself than she is in herself, and repeatedly has to remind Motoko that she really is human. This contrast between the characters of Motoko and Batou really plays off well and gives the movie some much needed dynamics in interactions between characters. It also appears that Batou has feelings for the Major than aren’t merely that of a colleague or even a friend, as he shows subtle signs of affection and care for her on several occasions. And even though he’s all tough and confident on the surface, when it comes to his feelings for Motoko he comes across as shy, hesitating to explain why he accompanied her on the boat when she goes diving, and then hesitating again during the final scene when new Motoko decides to leave. He also seems to have great respect for Motoko, averting his eyes when she undresses, as he respects her too much to objectify her. In fact, Batou’s character may be more developed than the Major’s. Finally, it’s over. I apologise for dragging this review for so long, but I wanted to make it as complete as possible, and Ghost in the Shell is a movie of such scale and depth that dissecting it properly takes a lot of time. I don’t think that there’s anything more to add, so I’ll just say again: Ghost in the Shell is a work of art that every anime fan, no, everyone who likes movies and visual media in general should see. There really is no other animated movie quite like it and it deserves its rightful title as a timeless classic. If you haven’t watched it yet - what are you waiting for?
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Feb 10, 2012
Ergo Proxy
(Anime)
add
Mixed Feelings Spoiler
Ah, Ergo Proxy - an anime so promising, the only thing greater than its potential was its downfall. Anime that could have been among those few elite series that just leave you stunned with their superb quality and sophistication, turned out to be just... "good". And if there's a thing about a show that I can't stand more than poor quality, it's a waste of potential. But enough of this preface, let's dive into "Ergo Proxy"
P.S. I feel I should warn you that if you don't like reading long reviews, you should drop this one right now. As a very pedantic and analytical person, ... I tend to write almost obnoxiously long reviews. P.P.S. I shall also write several spoilers, for its hard for me to thoroughly review the story without giving some things away, especially when discussing the plot. But I promise I will warn you each time a significant spoiler is incoming. "Ergo"'s greatest potential turned out to be its greatest weakness. You must have already read the synopsis, so I won't repeat it here. I came across Ergo Proxy on this very site, and the premise of the show had me so intrigued, so much interested, that I downloaded all 23 episodes immediately, impatient to see more of it. And the very first episode had me hooked up completely. The quality of the art and music, the interestingly designed characters and the environment, the show's dark and stylish visuals, and most of all, its on-the-edge-of-your-seat plot brimming with mystery and suspense... I couldn't wait to start the next episode. The second and the third episode were just as brilliant, as the story brought more and more ( but still not too much ) mysteries, and the plot captivated me completely. And it continued to be good, albeit paced a bit slower, until episode 7. This is where the show lost it, and even though it tried from time to time, never managed to find it again. Apparently, the Manglobe's producers of the show approached the director Shukou Murase with "bare-bones vision for a futuristic detective thriller, which included the title, a plot outline for episodes 1-3 and a design concept for Romdeau." And, unfortunately, they allowed him to do as he pleases from there. What did Murase do? He threw the concept of a "futuristic detective thriller", that could have challenged Death Note for the title of the best suspense series, and decided to make it a more "philosophical" show. This forfeiting of the already established genre and plot, and opting for something else altogether would be disastrous in itself, but the story might have survived, had the replacement been better ( or, a cynic inside me would say, good at all ). Now, many people who have reviewed this show praise it for its "philosophical issues" and its "depth", and good for them if they see any depth in this series, but I, and I flatter myself to be a very rational and objective person, can see none. Make no mistake, Ergo Proxy is no "Ghost in the Shell" ( and I'm talking about Mamoru Oshii's feature film, not the S.A.C. series ). The philosophical "questions" are neither new, well presented or debated, or have any real depth. We have Vincent's search for his memories and finding his real self, but apart from ( SPOILER ALERT ) his nature as both a human and a Proxy, it's nothing new or particularly mind-stimulating. ( END OF SPOILER ). The director also tried with the symbolism and metaphors about Romdeau's slow decay and final demise, but it ends up more confusing than though-provoking, and is not built upon enough. There are many more "metaphors" and shallow symbolism present throughout the series, but the problems with them is that they aren't elaborated enough and that the show tries too hard to show you how "deep" it is, whereas the golden rule is that the depth is in subtlety, and this show doesn't have as much as it should, given all the questions and issues it tries to address. Probably the only highlight of the "philosophical aspect" of the show is Re-L's search for the truth; her determination to seek and face the truth no matter how ugly it might be adds a lot to her character, and she does advance the "plot" more than most other characters, and I give the show the credit where it's due. Unfortunately, this isn't enough to save the overall story. After episode 7, the plot became incoherent and confusing, with the show refusing to ( at least partially ) solve its already established mysteries, instead piling up more and more of them, and had neglected its existing plot lines ( like the origin and spreading of the Cogito virus ). There were also several completely unnecessary mind-fuck episodes that did nothing to advance the plot or develop the characters, as well as a couple of episodes that went beyond conventional mind-fuck, and just left you asking: "What the hell is going on? I mean, what the hell is going on?!!" I'm talking, of course, about the ( SPOILER ALERT ) episode no. 15, the "Quiz-show episode", and the ep. no 19, the "Disney episode" ( END OF SPOILER ) In the end, the show tried to redeem itself by pulling a Deus-ex-machina that was supposed to tie up all the loose ends, but ended up opening more questions than it answered. The ending scene(s) is epic, though. Overall, I find Ergo Proxy's cast of characters satisfying. Re-L Mayer, one of the two main characters, is the granddaughter of Donov Mayer, the regent ( or, as his official title is, Administrator ) of Romdeau. She's bored with the sterile utopia that the city is, and sometimes wishes for the city to come to an end, just for the sake of breaking the routine of her life as an inspector for the city's Intelligence Department. She's portrayed as somewhat of a loner, barely communicating with anyone except her Entourage, Iggy. Hand in hand with this comes her independence, individualism and strong will. She also possesses great emotional strength, displayed in her determination not to run from the reality, no matter how harsh or dark it might be. On the other hand, as a granddaughter of the regent, she's quite spoiled and arrogant, and has little concern for the emotions or the needs of the others. She's also something of a badass, being quite handy with guns, especially the shotgun, her trademark weapon. Vincent Law is also quite a good character, albeit not as interesting as the Gothic princess Re-L. He's much more realistic in that regard, having very little impressive skills or extraordinary psychological traits. He's inner struggle to come to terms with his past and ( SPOILER ALERT ) double identity as both Vincent and Ergo is psychologically convincing and interesting, but could have been less drawn out. ( END OF SPOILER ) His character changes a lot over the course of the series, from being a timid man ( and, if I may say, a bit of a coward ), always bowing his head down and obeying, to become a determined individual that comes to terms with his nature and realises that it's who he is now, and not who he had been prior to losing his memories, that defines him. Pino, a self-conscious Autoreiv and arguably one of the cutest anime characters ever ( especially considering the realistic style and animation of the series, with no chibi ) could have been way better developed, and used to explore the concept of a machine gaining a heart much deeper. She does little for the plot after episode 3 when she helps Vincent escape from Romdeau, and is basically there only for the cuteness and keeping Vincent company on his journey. Raul Creed is one of the most interesting characters in the story, and the one that changes the most over the course of the series. A law abiding model citizen of Romdeau, he's the new Chief of Public Security at the beginning of the series. Pino was his surrogate daughter, and his wife was also given a human baby by the city's authorities. ( SPOILER ALERT ) In the ep. 2 both his wife and baby are killed in the shopping mall by Monad Proxy while chasing Vincent Law, and Pino is infected with the Cogito Virus. ( END OF SPOILER ) After that, he gradually becomes obsessed with Vincent and the Proxies, and simultaneously becomes destructive and strives to break the humanity's shackles of dependance on the Proxies. He wants to see humanity free of any gods determining their fates, and conspires with doctor Dedalus Yumeno in order to biologically enhance humans in Romdeau so that they can survive in the outside world, thus no longer being dependent on the Dome created and sustained by the Proxy. Dedalus Yumeno is the Chief of the city's medical center and Re-L's personal physician. He's supposedly a child genius, appearing to be only 14-16 years old, but already a renowned doctor and scientist. It is gradually revealed that he's obsessed with Re-L, and wishes to posses her. He's also quite a schemer, changing sides when it suits him best and repeatedly withholding information from people if it doesn't serve his interests. He's also revealed to be psychologically unstable and destructive, and is ( SPOILER ALERT ) later manipulated by Proxy One into destroying the dome protecting Romdeau ( END OF SPOILER ) There are three categories that, combined, give a final score for the visual aspect of any animated series: style, graphics and animation. The style alone gets a full score of 10. The beautiful style is one of Ergo Proxy's highlights, and its mostly thanks to great character designs and, most of all, interesting and meticulously drawn post-apocalyptic environments and cities. Character designs were clearly given much thought and work, and all of them are unique and memorable, especially Re-L, with her resemblance to Evanescence's leading singer Amy Lee. The graphics don't get the same high score as style. While they are top quality for most of the time, especially for the show that was only meant to be released on DVD, every now and then the graphics are strikingly sloppy and cheap, lowering the otherwise high visual quality of the show. Normally highly detailed characters and backgrounds can get downgraded to being painfully simplified and plain, with most of their features and clothes barred to the bones, not to mention getting anatomically incorrect and/or inconsistent ( mostly it's the angle and the length of the nose, shape of the face etc. ) So the graphics get 7/10. The animation is somewhat better than the graphics, but still not worthy of a straight "A" like the style. Again, it's fluid and high-quality for the most part, but the motions occasionally get a bit weird or unrealistic. The show is a bit static, but seeing as it's a suspend, and not an action series, it's not relevant to the animation's final score of 8/10. P.S. The opening for this series is one of the best ones I've ever seen, combining the staggeringly detailed images with well-chosen music in what can only be called visual art. The soundtrack is very good, serving its relatively limited purpose of setting the mood, due to the lack of more epic scenes. It achieves this with a combination of haunting vocals and modern instruments to paint the both grim and sterile world of Romdeau and desolate wastelands outside of it. Combined with stylish and dark visuals, the music delivers the almost sublime feel that really gets you immersed with the post apocalyptic world of Ergo Proxy. The opening and ending theme songs are both great; the OP is "Kiri", a song in English performed by the Japanese band "Monorail". I was surprised to find out that the band is Japanese - the singer's English is that good ( far from your typical "Engrish" ). The ending theme is a popular song "Paranoid Android" by "Radiohead". Both songs suit the opening and ending, as well as the series as a whole. Voice-acting is very good in both the Japanese and English version. Both the seiyu and the voice actors in English do a great job and each voice feels like it's made for the character. The greatest achievement of the voice acting, though, is Pino, who manages to be cute without having the annoying high-pitched voice those types of characters are usually graced with. I could go on with each category ( and add some more ) and go into more detail, but that would require lots of spoiling and besides, I think the review is long enough as it is. So I'll wrap it up. Ergo Proxy had the misfortune to be assigned a director that was probably high for the whole time the series was made, and screwed the story that could have propelled it the prestigious club of anime classics. Instead, much of the show was pure mindfuck that left me almost angry at it for wasting my time. Does that mean Ergo Proxy is a bad anime? Of course not. There was still enough good bits of the plot ( mostly in the first 7-13 episodes ) for viewers to get some top-rate suspense, as well as high-quality visuals ( for most of the time ) and a number of great characters who just had the misfortune to finding themselves in such a shit-storm of a plot. Overall, Ergo Proxy gets a median rating of 6,4. Would I recommend this anime to you? Not really, at least not watching all of the episodes, because if you're a reasonable person with a capacity for critical thinking ( unlike the people who gave his show 10/10 ) you won't enjoy the show because of the awful plot. Sci-fi and cyberpunk fans could like it ( to a degree ) and should give it a try, and as for everyone else, stay away from it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all |