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Jan 17, 2016
Overall, the anime is not bad. There was definitely a lot that the writers could work with. But I couldn't help thinking that this was very similar to Kokoro connect, but instead of have some random alien mess with you, you have these witches that basically do the same thing. In addition, since there were so many characters and only 12 episodes, I felt like the story was rushed and I wasn't really able to get to know the characters --- I wasn't really able to get into it. The only thing I really ended up caring about in the end was the relationship between
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the two main characters, but even that wasn't too well developed. Also, the flow was kind of confusing at times, especially with all the power stealing from the main character and the number of characters affected by these powers in one given episode. Art and music is good enough, not much to say as it didn't particularly stand out. I probably won't rewatch this anime again, but it's good for if you're looking for something cute and light hearted with a touch of magic.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jan 17, 2016
Ahhh, how nostalgic. Rurouni Kenshin was one of those shows back in the day that I would be excited to tune into when I got home from school. However, after watching it for the third time, I could definitely critique this anime more closely, nostalgia aside.
The story is set in 19th century Japan at the start of the Meiji era, a time of modernization and reform in Japan, where the samurai and the way of the sword has started to become obsolete. Although Kenshin's story is fictional, it is modeled after similar individuals and brings a lot of other elements from that point in
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time that help to set up the story. In my opinion, this anime has one of the best story arcs, the Kyoto Arc, of all the shounen anime I have seen. And its probably the single reason why I continue to rewatch this show. Most of the 94 episodes of the anime are fillers that contribute very little to the story development. Not this arc. It gives out so much in terms of character development and "the feels." We learn more about Kenshin's past, his motivations, and just when we (or at least I) thought he was a nearly perfect being, we get to see him grow throughout this arc. We get to view the most epic fight scenes, as well as the buildup to them, in the anime in this arc. We get to see twisted villains act their worst, but who we can't help but sympathize with. Too bad the rest of the anime doesn't come up to speed.
You can try watching the entire thing, but after watching this three times, I think that the best way to watch it is to watch Episodes 1 - 11 (to get the character intros and to go through the Jinei/Oniwaban arc, 25-27 (there's some good relationship development between Kenshin and Kaoru here), and lastly 28-62 (Kyoto Arc). Everything after those episodes is basically filler. You should watch the darker 4 episodes in Rurouni Kenshin: Trust and Betrayal OVA to get more out of Kenshin's story. I've seen the Reflections OVA, but since its not manga cannon and I'm not too big of a fan of how it decides to end Kenshin's story, I won't recommend it, but you could watch at your own risk.
For an anime that came out in 1996, the animation is decent (although compared to today's standards, is a bit dull). The character designs are pleasant to look at, at least, and the fighting scenes, although are a little choppy, are quite enjoyable. I'm not much of a fan of the music for the opening and ending scenes, I think they're a little too peppy, except for the "Heart of Sword" track which nostalgically gets me pumped to continue on to the next episode. The background music track, "Departure," that is played throughout the Kyoto Arc is probably the most memorable tune throughout the series and so has a special place in my heart.
The characters, especially the main ones, are delved into in the series. And although some are annoyingly yappy, you learn to love. Since the story takes place in a post-war scenario, many of the characters -- the protagonists, antagonists, and anti-protagonists, have some hidden scars that a revealed through the story and through their personalities and actions. This show is definitely character-driven.
Overall, although this series has its flaws, it is still a classic and is enjoyable to watch. There are not that many samurai anime out there, so you should definitely watch this if you're in the mood for some sword fighting, a little history, and a little chivalry and romance.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jan 11, 2016
I suggest you watch this anime on Netflix with the HD turned ON.
The story is a typical shounen format... you have your main cast, a princess who finds this pervy kid (who's actually really old, really powerful former knight who has a bounty on his head for treason), and they go on this journey to find their friends to help them fight and save the kingdom. Nothing new, uses a bunch of things we have seen before in other stories (7 sins, short main character with blonde hair, magical weapons that harness their users powers, fairies, demons, etc etc), but it sure is entertaining
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when you get to watching it. However, I do feel like 25 episodes is a bit short and there was barely any story development since the series seemed to focus more on telling the stories of the characters. If you like legends of medieval England, you'll probably like this anime because of the similarity in the setting, magical element, and characters.
The art is awesome. The colors are very bright, almost felt like I was watching Hunter X Hunter (2011) and the quality is excellent. The background music will make you feel like you are taking a trip to Stonehenge and watching a jousting match in Camelot.
The characters I think are the best part of this anime. The seven deadly sins themselves are interesting to try to analyze and watch as the story develops. They are also quite interesting and are not what you would expect given their titles and their roles as knights. You have Meliodas, who although is "Wrath" is actually a pretty pleasant, friendly, and caring guy who rarely gets mad. You start to have all these questions for the other "sins" throughout the story and try to figure out why they got those titles. Elizabeth, who initially I initially disliked since she seemed like she was the epitomy of "useless, pretty, female character in a shonen who only works as a love interest" tries throughout the whole series to make something of herself, for her friends and the kingdom she cares about. The side characters get a lot of screentime as well and you get to know them and their motives. There is also a talking pig. You HAVE to watch it for the talking pig.
Overall, although the story is not AMAZING (I mean...what can you really do for an ongoing shonen series in 24 episodes?), the characters themselves drive the series make it truly enjoyable to watch despite its flaws. Give it a try and don't forget to watch it in HD!
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jan 5, 2016
"I get by with a little help from my friends" -The Beatles
Let's be honest, when I first saw this anime listed on MAL, the title and the poster with all the angsty looking boys kinda gave me the wrong impression, but maybe that's what was needed for me to discover this hidden gem of an anime. Watching this anime was like a riding a rollercoaster of emotions and for the first time in ages I found myself yelling at my computer in fear or excitement for the characters as the story progressed.
The story is about not about the type of "boys love" that
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the title led me to believe but its the type of boys love that makes you all warm and fuzzy inside -- a story about trust, betrayal, forgiveness, loyalty, and knowing that even though life throws you some fucked-up shit your true friends will always be there to take that shit with you or help you kick its ass. Set in the backdrop of post WWII Japan, similar to that in Grave of the Fireflies, the war and its end had taken its toll on its citizens and its repercussions exhibit themselves in the Japanese youth. The pacing is excellent as well, not too long and not too short. I'm surprised that the producers were able to fit a good amount of material in 26 episodes without me feeling like they were dragging the story at all.
The use of a darker color palette was very appropriate in that it helped set the dark tone and the bleak world that the boys were living in. The color scheme also sort of gave it a historic feel for some reason, felt like I was watching Rurouni kenshin. The music, specifically the intro song "You're not alone" by coldrain, which had a style reminiscent of the type of music I listened to in my high school days, I felt captured the teenage angst portrayed by the characters, while preaching lyrics of hope and perseverance. Yes I had to download the song and listened to it many times.
The characters are truly what make this anime special. The 26 episode length does an almost perfect job at developing each character and telling their stories. I can't even explain without spoiling... you just have to see for yourself. Its like you become part of their little group as you watch more and more... you will cry (and/or yell at the computer) when when bad shit happens to them or when someone tries to screw them over, you will cry when their hearts are broken, you will cry when they cry manly tears of happiness. I don't think I can cry for another year. And that's how much I love these characters. The evil baddies are EVIL and YOU WILL HATE THEM.
*Also on a side note --- An-chan and Mario are total hotties, for those of you who appreciate a little man candy.
This anime surprisingly plays up a few different themes -- has a little bit of sports, a little romance, a little bit of music, etc, which made it entertaining to watch. Together with its gripping story, amazing cast of characters, and satisfying ending, I think people should give this anime a chance. Sure there's a lot of adult themes explicitly illustrated to help tell the story (You will likely be disturbed with the amount of violence and sexual abuse), I think that it was necessary to get you (or me at least) to really sympathize with the characters. But with struggles and obstacles, you really get to see the characters shine when they overcome them with a little help from their friends.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Jan 1, 2016
This is the first version of the fate/stay night series that I have watched. I had heard a lot of negative things about the earlier Studio Deen adaptation, so I basically avoided the series until UBW came out. I initially was interested in the premise of the story -- Mages summoning great heroes from the past to fight the holy grail war to obtain an item that will grant its user any wish, so I wanted to see how it would play out, especially considering this story is based on an "adult" light novel.
Basically, the best thing about this anime is that THE ART
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IS SO BEAUTIFUL. From the smoothly executed and finely detailed fight scenes to the wonderful stills, this was probably the most visually stunning anime I had seen all year. Watching this anime was definitely a treat for the eyes and does not disappoint in this department. I literally wanted to watch the next episode every single time just to see what it looked like.
Being that this was the first adaptation of FSN I have seen, I was a little confused about some of the roles of the characters and their importance in the overall picture. So I have to confess that I had to do a little research in order to really understand the plot and character relations. Characters such as Sakura, Ilya, and Kotomine have such as underdeveloped and minor role in this series, despite their importance in other arcs to the point where I almost didn't really care about and see the point of these characters being there.
Despite the flaws in the plot and the character development, I do like how the relationship between the leads, Shirou and Rin play out (since this was basically a big focus of the series) a lot better that the relationship between Shirou and Saber in the Studio Deen adaptation of the Fate Route. Rin doesn't depend on Shirou too much to save her and Shirou lets Rin do whatever the heck she wants for the most part because of the trust between them.
Although the ending felt kind of abrupt, I thought it was still somewhat satisfying compared to other anime I have watched.
So as a whole, I thought this anime was very enjoyable despite its flaws and I think that the visuals that this anime has to offer definitely makes it one to check out.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Dec 30, 2015
Anyone who is into the shoujo and slice of life genre will probably enjoy this anime. The art and music are so-so, and the plot is cliche and pretty predictable, but its the character growth and interactions -- the story of how the main character and those around her reach their goals that makes the a fun anime to watch.
The heroine is a likable female character -- strong, independent, and friendly to those around her and her contempt for her friend who dumped her is realistic and relatable to anyone who has had someone betray their trust. Even though her revenge against the friend
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who "dumped" her was an initial motivation for her to pursue her career, I liked that this man wasn't too much of a focus for her character's growth and that she was able to find other, better things that could keep her going.
I'd say the worse part about this anime is the fact the the ending left me hanging and wished that there was more. Oh well, time to read the manga!
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Dec 26, 2015
I watched this anime not having read the manga, so I personally have no biases about the anime in comparison to the manga, like some others who have rated and reviewed this show.
The story is pretty fast-paced, and quite a lot happens in all 24 episodes, for characters that I liked a little more, sometimes I wished that the pace could have slowed down a little to get me to understand and appreciate them a little more. There were multiple accounts where it was too fast to the point where I didn't really understand how certain relationships would have realistically developed given the interactions
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portrayed within those set amounts of screen time. Ehh.. you'll see when you watch.
The tone of the show constantly shifts from being dark and ominous (you know, blood and slashing people and all) to being somewhat light and comedic, which I found pretty nice. Definitely a lot of different feels while you go through the show.
The art is definitely a plus - the animation is done well, the fight scenes run smoothly, and I enjoyed the details, such as with the character weapons.
I'm not too thrilled about the way the show ended, I thought it was too abrupt and I kind of didn't see it leading in that direction. You can judge for yourself, but I wouldn't deter it from watching the anime (unless you've read the manga, you'll probably hate it).
Not the best anime, but not too bad.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Dec 26, 2015
Before I watched Hunter X Hunter, the last shounen I completed was DBZ (and that was more than a few years ago) and I'm honestly not a fan of having to watch anime that are more than 50 episodes long, but many people recommended watching this show so I gave it a chance.
And boy am I glad I gave this shounen a chance.
Despite its length, I think that this show's strongest features are the variety in the individual arcs as well as the depth the characters are portrayed. I could never really get bored with this show, since it felt like I was
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watching a different show each the time the arcs shifted. I can be watching a light-hearted story about the journey of a young boy searching for his father and meeting new friends along the way, then later shift to watching a dark sci-fi show about ants devouring people. Along with the variety of arcs, the character development and the relationships between them, allows for the viewer to really "care" about them and invest time in getting to know their story and following through how the characters decide to pull through their issues.
I expected the animation quality to decline after a while, but the animation was spot-on every single episode so I was pleasantly surprised and very impressed that the quality was consistent. The colors are vibrant and the fight scenes play out smoothly for an excellent viewing experience.
Lastly, although the manga is incomplete, the anime ends itself without cutting off at some random point in the show where you feel like you just watched a hundred-some episodes and you're like... what the heck?! It finishes itself off at a point where it feels satisfying to the viewer and most people I think would definitely not feel disappointed after investing themselves in 148 episodes.
Overall, this is probably the most mature and well-written shounen out there. It takes a few episodes to get into it (I had to convince myself to stop cringing at Gon's short shorts), but once you're there you'll be glad you got pulled in. I'm so sad that I can't currently find another anime to replace this hole in my heart after completing Hunter X Hunter.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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