Ranked #64

Gankutsuou

When I first browsed through my friends shelf of anime I didn’t pay Gankutsuou much mind, he had told me how good it was and that I would like it but I thought I had better things to do than watch it. As it turns out, I was completely wrong. I eventually picked it up and began watching it and at the end of the first episode I was hooked on it. It was like a drug that I needed to continue pumping into my system, and even now that it is over I crave for more. So now I shall take an in depth look at the anime; Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo
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Art
In most reviews I’d start with perhaps the characters or the story, but now I must truly start with the art. The art itself was disorientating to me at first, I looked at it and found it hard to concentrate too long on the screen, things blended together so well that at times I found it hard to believe the entire scenery wasn’t part of the character I was watching. But after the first few episodes the art was something else altogether, it seemed to take a new life. I watched it and was captivated by it, at times I even had to rewind because I had missed several lines of text because I couldn’t tear myself away from it all. The art simply leaps off the screen and at first it may seem a little jarring but eventually you’ll ever wonder why you questioned the design of it all. While the art itself is beautiful there are some places it lacks, although the rest more than makes up for it. Some of the characters I found to be too plain in certain situations, however it was a miniscule thought, it did not detract from the visual experience of the show in the least.

Story
Now for the proverbial meat of it all, story. The anime is a loose adaptation of, what is called by some, the greatest story of revenge ever told. Coming in to that there are many expectations that must be lived up to in order for this story to truly hold it’s own and it lives up to them beautifully.
As I stated the drive of the story is revenge, everything else within it are simply unfortunate souls that get caught up in the bloody, sadistic revenge of the man known as the Count of Monte Cristo. But although The Count is what the story revolves around it is told from the perspective of the naïve, and often downright foolish, Albert Morcerf. The story begins with a meeting of destiny between our protagonist Albert and someone I can’t quite call an antagonist, The Count. With his charming words, devilish smile and warm eyes he quickly wins his way into our naïve Albert’s heart and becomes an important figure in the boys life. He continues to pursue his friendship with The Count despite the nagging of the, obviously smarter, Franz Epinay, Albert’s best friend. As the story continues the happiness of our hero is bombarded by the darkness and despair brought about by circumstances that might have been prevented.
Story is everything for an anime such as this, if you lack it you’ll produce a piss-poor adaptation of a great piece of literature. Being able to make your heart break one moment and your blood boil the next, able to leave you breathless in your seat with your heart pounding in your chest, these are proof that you’re watching something amazing. It is clear that Gankutsuou, if not at least meeting your expectations, it will blow them away and leave you speechless.

Sound
This will perhaps be the shortest section of the review, simply because the sound played no part in my heightened or lessened enjoyment of the show. Do not mistake my words, the music within the show is very fitting and very well done, however it does not simply jump out and grab you. It does not make you stop and go “I have to listen to that once more.” However that is within the show itself, the opening and ending themes are a different matter. It was almost strange to see them both, it honestly seemed as if someone had goofed and mistaken the ending for the opening. However after two episodes I was humming along with the tune to both and even downloaded them to put on my mp3. The songs themselves are so good I’ve almost started singing along with them out in public. There really is nothing more to say than, the music worked well, it was subtle, let you know it there but didn’t make any bold statements.

Characters
I’m tempted to simply write “flawless” and call it a day here but that would be an insult to the greatness of each. I will not list them all here, of course, but I shall list those that I think play an important role and need to be looked at in the spotlight. But let me state that although I do not talk about all the characters, I believe none are truly “secondary” for they all have their own role that drives the story, they all have their own flaws and a depth you wouldn’t expect from characters you rarely see. Now, onto the spotlight

The Count: Was everything that he needed to be and then some. He could be the hero of the piece or the villain, whichever role he was playing at the time all eyes were glued to him. Charming, subtle, seductive and kind he played them all so well and then there were times where we all saw the darkness he brought with him. He was a strange maze of understanding, never knowing what he was going to do next simply because he didn’t know what role he’d slip into. The Count is truly one of the most dark and captivating characters I’ve ever laid eyes on.

Albert: I have a desire to scream idiot here and be done with it, but again that is not true. He is not an idiot, he is simply naïve and often childish in his decisions. He refuses to see the bad in people, which can be good but not all the time. He’s hard headed and stubborn, but he’s a character that you feel for, he bears the most humanity of them all and when his heart breaks, so does yours.

Franz: The best friend that everyone wants, loyal, caring and willing to do whatever necessary to keep his friend safe. He’s stubborn as well but he is the voice of reason in Albert’s and his relationship. He is the first to be skeptical of The Count and one of the first to pursue information about the mysterious man.

While there are other characters that perhaps deserved the spotlight I felt that, mostly, these three characters were the most important simply because they were around for almost every single event that drove the plot. The others characters, however, are not to be dismissed, they each have good character designs as well as wonderful personalities and even flaws. Some even evolve throughout the show, which can be rare for a character deemed “secondary.” But they all fit together and play off each other so well it would take too long to praise them all.

Enjoyment
I truly doubt there is a single thing I did not enjoy throughout my entire watching of this show. There are a few minor things but they’re so miniscule when compared to the good things that they’re just overlooked and swept under the rug, still there but completely forgotten. I found myself completely captivated by this show, every emotional twist made me feel what it was supposed to, every mystery kept me guessing and theorizing and wondering. I ranted and raved about things that had happened when I wasn’t watching, I sometimes found myself balling my hands into white knuckled fists at the more infuriating scenes and crying like a child at others, I truly believe I went through almost the entire emotional spectrum while watching this show. And that is truly a mark of my enjoyment of it.

Overall
In the end this can only be summed up as something that you need to watch, that is said a lot in reviews but it is truly something that will be appreciated (even if you haven’t read the novel). It’s compelling story, beautiful artwork and in depth characters will drag you into the world and never let you go, even after you’ve finished the final episode The Count of Monte Cristo will still have you under his spell.

-To those who vote "Not Helpful" if you could message me to tell me what you disliked I could improve on this and future reviews, thank you.- read more

When I decided to watch Gankutsuo, I didn't know what to expect. I've read Le Comte de Monte-Cristo (the novel it's loosely based on), but I wasn't going to presume that it would stick to the original material - after all, this series was done by Gonzo, the same studio that brought us Romeo X Juliet, which didn't turn out to be much like the actual Romeo and Juliet. Anyway, so I picked it up, hoping to at least be entertained....and man am I ever glad that I did.

Art
I can't review this series without first mentioning the art.
Firstly, I must admit that this didn't make a good first impression on me. Yup, I had read before about the unusual artistic style used for this series (which is a combination of 3D and photoshop textures) but I was still unprepared for what I saw, and totally thrown out of my comfort zone. Instead of focusing more details into character designs, more emphasis is placed on background and props. Everything is colorful, cheerful, and festive. The clothing especially is saturated with so much color and texture, that at times its hard to tell exactly what you're looking at. The patterns used seemingly jump right out at you, in some instances they don't even seem to be "in the show itself" but rather like something "on the surface" of your screen that you can reach out and touch.
Now while I said there was less attention paid to the character designs, this is definitely not so for the hair of the characters. The art used to illustrate their hair is just as texturized as the clothing and other backdrops, that it is easily the most impressive part of the characters physical characteristics. Apart from that, a majority of the characters have pretty bland physical attributes, such as faces and limbs. It's just not as sharp as everything else around them, but I get the impression that it was intentionally done so to draw you into the overall setting. I realized this after the first episode, and I think it was a good way to go about it.

So while this artistic style took some time to get used to, I did eventually come to appreciate it, and even got a kick out of it. It was a good "visual" experience.

Story
Gankutsuou is about revenge, revenge, and more revenge. It's a tale of lost love, unrequited love, friendships, and betrayals. It does a very good job of portraying the actual novel, even with a setting so vastly different from the original. The story takes place in the future, in a period where people take vacations on the moon and aliens may very well be your next door neighbor. However, it doesn't go too overboard as the cars don't really fly, the household is still run by maids and not computers, and life really doesn't look that much different from what we experience now. In keeping with the actual story, we are still in an era where nobility has the upper-hand, and this is determined by birth, power, and money - pretty much in that order.
We are taken through the series of events that unfold after the protagonist, the young and naive Vicomte Albert, is befriended by the mysterious, rich, and handsome (even though he's blue) Count Monte Cristo. Monte Cristo charms his way into Albert's life, and soon the two become close friends despite the warnings ushered in Albert's direction by his best friend the Baron, Franz. Unlike Albert, Franz becomes skeptical of the Count from their first encounter, but he is initially unable to find any evidence that will reveal the stranger's true intentions. It is not long before Albert and his friends get caught up in a series of unfortunate and dire circumstances.
Bit-by-bit, things are revealed, and as the lives of all characters involved are shaken up, as a mere onlooker I could only sit back with my heart beating rapidly as everything comes together...and falls apart.

I loved it. The story itself may not seem very original at first, but as we get deeper into things we see that there is more to everything than meets the eye.

Sound
The music used is absolutely fitting, the opening and ending songs are very in keeping with the actual storyline, and although they may sound strange at first - especially the opening song- they had me humming along in no time. The scores used within the series was actually very appropriate. For those heart-breaking and sad scenes, if what is transpiring on the screen isn't enough to make you shed a tear, the music surely won't let you off that easy. The scores used for climatic moments and suspense really did their job as they stirred emotions even more.
There was nothing outlandish or over the top, no big orchestrated pieces, but the music worked and it worked well.

Characters
I have to go ahead and give a great for characters, as they were indeed that.
Every main character has some depth, and everyone had a part in the storyline - there are no wallflowers. The most intense ones to watch were the Count, Franz, Albert's dad and Albert.

The Count was wonderful. He was charming, seductive, kind, and yet...very dark and even scary at times. One moment you think that you understand him and his intentions, and then the next you aren't so sure.

Albert's naivety was at times frustrating, but it was good because it enabled a great chance for character growth. He is far from perfect, and at times he is a bit unbearable, but still I could not dislike him.

Franz was by far my favorite character. His dedication to Albert, the passion in his voice and actions, all made him simply wonderful.

Albert's mom - Mercedes - and Haydee were perhaps given the most detailed artwork, so it was always a pleasure to look at them because they were so darn gorgeous.

The parents of the three friends whose lives are deeply affected as the series goes on, was a pleasure to watch.

The only character design I disliked was Eugeine's. Her emotions never showed in a majority of her actions, and the story may have had a bit more impact if she would have actually done something worthwhile throughout all 24 episodes. She had a tremendous part in the storyline, but a majority of her screen time had her sitting behind a piano while everything was going to hell in a basket for those she supposedly cared about.

Enjoyment
I really enjoyed this series. There was a slight period in the middle where things seemed to drag on, but i think that was more due to me being overly anxious. I could not tell from watching the first few episodes that I would soon be so caught up in everything that certain events would have me bawling my eyes out later...repeatedly. I liked the fact that secrets still lingered very close to the story's end, even though things had continuously been revealed.

Overall
This is definitely a series that I plan to own as I can watch it repeatedly. I'm very happy that I didn't give up on it after the first few minutes into the first epsidose because of the art.
It's filled with drama, very little (but some) action, and a lot of heartbreak. A real gem.


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