Ranked #879

Noir

There are a handful of things that truly stand out from their peers. Sometimes, just occasionally, a series manages to do everything perfectly, pull together all the strands that things before and since have tried and failed to do. Fullmetal Alchemist is one example from the fantasy field; Ghost in the Shell another among postcyberpunk sci-fi; Azumanga Daioh an example from slice-of-life comedy. And, among the fairly niche girls-with-guns proto-genre, Noir is another.

Noir isn't remarkable in its premise, in fact it's quite a patchwork of worn ideas; an amnesiac who is unsure whether her amazing combat abilities or complete lack of remorse is more peculiar teams up with a wronged and vengeful assassin to search for the truth about both of their pasts, and they find more than either of them bargained for. Take one part Luc Besson, mix in equal parts HKBO and spy thriller and a pinch of memory loss, and add anime. As the song says, though, "it ain't what'cha do, it's the way that'cha do it"; none of these various concepts are inherently bad, they each have the potential to be interesting, and Noir fulfils it all. The structure of this 26-episode series works as a perfect blend of the overarching plot and episodic formats, in that almost every episode our heroines have someone new to kill, somewhere new to do it and something new to factor into how they do it and how they relate to one another, but each episode a little more is revealed to them about the power behind the shadows - the pacing is slow, but perfect. Not a single episode is filler or side story, the plot is all. It also keeps you guessing, maintaining the atmosphere of mystery superbly; every new piece of the puzzle being put in place changes the picture a little, goalposts shift and new questions need answering. Noir's story is complex, meaty, demanding of attention and, in the final analysis, highly satisfying; this is by far and away the best assassin flick or secret society yarn I have ever seen, and I don't just mean anime.

The cast is small, and dialogue is fairly spare. Kirika Yuumura, Japanese schoolgirl and amnesiac, is a very reserved, very introverted girl, seemingly all but unable to engage with people. Her initial inability to fully come to terms with her own ruthless, cold-hearted lethality is a feature that her business partner, experienced Corsican assassin Mireille Bouquet, does not share. She is a much more outgoing person, yet in some ways much more vulnerable; their relationship is tense, fragile and fascinating. Terrific acting from Kotono Mitsuishi and Houko Kuwashima does a fantastic job of giving the interactions between these two a highly credible, extremely watchable air. Even this excellent dynamic cannot hope to last 26 episodes, though - so, just when you think it's going to get stale, up pops the knife-hurling, child-voiced Chloe. A completely enigmatic character straight from left field, she shakes up these relationships just right and keeps everything nicely off balance. Aya Hisakawa's ingenuous voicing, her straightforward attitude and her innocence bring her a marvellously odd aura, and scenes between these three very distinct characters are tense and electric. All dialogue seems natural, though scripting is, as mentioned, sparse, but every word resonates, and often what is not said is as clear and significant as what is.

The show adopts a very stylised-realistic look, with marvellous European locations and stylings, keeping things interesting, but art style and actual depiction imbuing the world of Noir with an empty, distant air to almost everything that fits the tone of the show perfectly. Character design is a similarly muted but stylised affair; no super assassin ninja suits or rainbow hair here, most characters, protagonists or enemies, simply look like everyday people (Chloe is once again an exception, with her maroon hair and billowing cloak - but that merely makes everyone else more ordinary). Mechanical detail like guns and computers are very detailed and accurate to reality, although some things such as cars are, while adequate, not quite up to the rest of the series' standards. It all contributes to a sense that this is something that really could be going on somewhere out there right now, a sense that I have never felt as strongly with any other anime. In a way, this seems a perfect candidate for live-action adaptation; but the fact that it is animation, in full control of the look of its world, is one of Noir's most subtle and brilliant tricks. Visually, perhaps at odds with its name, Noir is colour-drenched, from the opening credits to the gorgeous watercolour backdrops, but beautiful and bright though the world might be, it only goes to reinforce the darkness and evil that can dwell inside people. Its characters look like everyday people, but they are stylised enough that the amazing feats of agility and skill they accomplish seem like achievable ends, fully in keeping with the world around them. The sense of a visually familiar world is so well evoked that once the backstory begins to become clear, it slots right into the gap between constructed and actual reality with consummate neatness.

Action choreography is another thing that contributes to Noir's sense of credibility. Most episodes of Noir climax with a gunfight; such a sense for creating gunfights that, working within the stylised reality the visuals provide, are believable, yet remain inventive and exciting, I have never seen with such consistency. Not all are as good as each other, but action in noir is entertaining at worst, and at best among the best fight scenes I have ever seen. The lightning-lit, rain-soaked battle across the rooftops of Paris in episode 20 is nothing short of brilliant. One factor that makes them so enjoyable is held in common with numerous other aspects of the series; they are designed in such a way that what you don't see is as important as what you do. Like blood. While at first glance, the lack of any actual visible blood almost seems counter-intuitive, it ends up seeming a lot more real than the red-steeped approach the subject matter more usually elicits; a truly skilled hitwoman kills cleanly, surgically, without mess. The deaths of opponents, crumpling like automatons, also quietly reinforce the idea of an organisation whose influence is great enough to render people nothing more than its puppets, to be used and discarded.

Noir is not among the best-known anime, but by far the best-known aspect of the series is its soundtrack. While she had composed a couple of anime soundtracks previously, Noir's musical score is essentially the thing that catapulted Yuki Kajiura into the eye of anime OST fans, and on lists of the best anime soundtracks ever, Noir is rarely out of the top ten. By blending electronica, operatic grandeur and solemn church music, Kajiura created a unique sound that for me she has so far never bettered. The haunting massed choir chants, soaring, prayer-like Latin vocals and intricate, piercing violin and expressive piano solos are some of the most evocative, atmospheric music anime has ever known, truly a masterpiece. The opening theme, by Ali Project, is also excellent. Anyone interested in the musical side of anime should acquire and watch this series.

Indeed, atmosphere is something that Noir does phenomenally well. The engrossing story, the excellent visuals and the superlative music all conspire to connect the viewer much more deeply to Noir than mere dialogue could. You get a powerful sense of the lonely, isolated, doom-laden feelings that the characters experience; it's splendid minimalist storytelling of the highest calibre.

Obviously, Noir isn't for everyone. The slow pace and frequent flashbacks will frustrate some. The unremittingly serious and generally bleak tone will fail to appeal to some. The lack of any comedy or more than very occasional and mild fanservice will repel some. The spareness and minimalism will alienate some. The realistic setting will fail to interest some. The lack of explicitness and reliance on implication will confuse some. My experience also suggests that this series does not suit marathon viewing well, being more fitted to watching each episode individually. None of this, however, stops Noir from being a truly excellent series in all respects, worthy of the highest praise. Among its peers, Noir remains a series that exemplifies what outstandingly high quality even a story that, at root, revolves mostly around women shooting people can attain. read more

I initially approached this anime tentatively, having heard mixed opinions on it. Well, I'm glad I gave it a chance.

Noir starts out pretty slowly, but episode by episode the plot picks up pace. The story revolves around two young women assassins, one with amnesia and the other with a troubled past, who together are journeying to find out more about their childhoods. Though I feel like it's a mixture of many plots I have seen before, somehow Noir seems to roll them all up and make it interesting all over again. Once the plot picked up pace it kept me engrossed, and I was on the edge of my seat until the end.

I found myself very attached to the main characters. Initially Kirika struck me as very bland, as she rarely talked at the beginning, but I think that made it all the more enjoyable to watch as she slowly emerged from her shell, and developed a personality as the series progressed. I liked Mirielle as well, for she put up a front of being a no-nonsense and callous assassin who didn't need anyone in her life, but before she knew it was happening found that she had formed an emotional bond with Kirika, whether she wanted to or not. The interaction between the two of them is very interesting, for they balance each other out. Mirielle is outgoing and professional, while Kirika is quiet and very observant. Somehow the two of them really fit together.

To me the art appeared to be alternately gorgeous and a bit off. Some episodes are better animated than others. However, on the whole I thought it was beautiful, and I was able to overlook the bad bits. As a whole, I thought that the actions scenes were excellent. The art really reflects the mood of the series, and I think the style suits it perfectly.

The music is really what I felt pulled the series together. It's really gorgeous, and it really creates the mood of the scene. The only thing I ever had a problem with was that the melody from the watch eventually got tiresome after it was repeated many times. On the whole, though, I was blown away by the beauty of the sound.

One of the only things I have to complain about is that I felt that some characters were a little bit lacking. Chloe, for example, felt really out of place in the series. She was the only person that seemed to really stick out in a bad way. I know she was supposed to stand out, but somehow...the character design just looks wrong. Her clothing looked silly as compared to the more realistic or european style of the others. However, personality-wise she is very interesting. Also, the lack of skilled male adversaries was odd, but I don't think it really stood out enough to irk me. Another thing that annoyed me was that in the beginning was the constant flashbacks. Seriously, I thought I'd kill myself if I had to see that scene with Mirielle as a kid one more time. Some of the plot was a bit unclear at times, but it was very good as a whole.

I'd recommend this series to anyone who likes a mysterious plot with lots of action, and alternately a slower paced, more casual atmosphere, as well as a great soundtrack. read more

Warning does contain Episode 1 spoilers

Story (3/10)

The initial premise of the story is actually very good, Kirika wakes up one day not knowing anything apart from a name - Noir, a pocket watch, a , and a school uniform and ID. Oh and a great skill in assassination. She contacts Mirelle, another assassin with whom she makes a pact to find out who this Noir is and what has been controlling their lives. Being a big fan of mafia and spy movies, the premise sounds great, but from an early stage I could feel this early promise slipping through some horrific sub-plots and plot gaps. For example the first thing that Mirelle asks Kirika is about how she found out about her (With Kirika being in what I'm guessing is Japan and Mirelle working in Paris it’s a fair question) to which an answer is never given, thinking we will overlook this as Kirika has amnesia and probably knew in the past I let this first one go.

Secondly, Mirelle promises to kill Kirika when she's done helping her find out about her past since she knows her face, a huge matter of importance for an assassin. However this secret identity swiftly goes out the window by the third episode which has the pair assassinating a crime boss in broad daylight at a party with hundreds of guests without a disguise. Then a couple of episodes later they are worried about a crime boss having seen their face again, consistency is something that this anime is severely lacking in.

Thirdly, I guess I should clear up that this is most definitely a girls with guns anime, not anything realistic or assassin related, men in this anime are confined to the same fate as the red shirts in the original star trek, even when the pair are in a position where it seems unlikely that they could at least not be injured, the incompetent men seem to be able to spray everything around them, even after just taking out their previous target with some nifty sharp shooting. This left any conflict in the anime a joke, you could have scripted in generic mass of men with guns, somehow surround/capture one of our heroines, other heroine kills everyone without breaking a sweat.

All this is actually quite sad, because once you get past the dull storylines and into the proper story (about episode 18), the story suddenly begins to live up to itself. The last 8 episodes merit a much higher score on their own than when included with the previous 17 episodes, with the story actually getting down to the nitty gritty stuff and making headway. Unfortunately this comes far too late in the anime, with over half of the episodes done very poorly, the scoring has to be way down. This could have made an excellent 12 episode anime, with the events until the 18th episode could be summed up in at most 4 episodes in terms of any actual story and scene setting.

Animation (7/10)

The animation is pretty good actually, the backgrounds are especially impressive, Paris looks like Paris and Corsica looks like Corsica. The animation style is typical early 00's so looks slightly dated now, but there’s no problem with that, as it does not hinder the story telling.

My main gripe with the animation is the lack of blood in the anime, not that I think any anime should be smeared in huge amounts of blood, but it does look bizarre when someone is injured and holding there arm like its bleeding, only it’s not... also anyone killed just seems like they are having a lie down, this is further impressed by Mirelle’s flashbacks from her childhood which contains characters with blood, it seems odd to have it there for one scene and then not for the rest of the anime, again consistency is the main problem.

Sound (9/10)

The sound is another very good part, the soundtrack has won the composer some acclaim, and the title track is really good, however a slight few of the scores really grated on me, especially the tata one (you’ll know it when you hear it), managing to be the most irritating noise in the animation and usually came on in scenes which really would have benefited from the same excellent music in the rest of the anime. Apart from that gripe, the characters are often silent through thought and the music played at these times usually does well to add to the mood of these scenes and enhance the understanding of the characters. The other good point with the sound, is the pronunciation of the French and Italian words in the animation, which is spot on. Recently I have cringed at Japanese attempts at English (Revy in Black Lagoon's English for example), and it’s really refreshing to hear them get it spot on.

Characters (8/10)

I only consider Mirelle and Kirika to be main characters in this anime rarely do any of the other characters which are introduced last more than one episode. The exception to this being Chloe and Altena, of whom I consider to be main supporting as they do not get enough character development on the whole to consider them main characters.

Both of the main characters are well written, and the way in which both of the characters feelings are portrayed throughout the anime, lets you into the characters well and you can actually see their pain about what has happened to them. My main criticism on this point is again going back to consistency, with some of the characters reactions to various situations changing throughout the course of the anime where there has been no character development which would influence them in these situations.

Both the main and supporting main characters could also perhaps have done with a greater look into their pasts, for Kirika – what happened before she got amnesia and ended up in Japan with Mirelle – what she did between leaving Corsica and living in Paris (although this is briefly touched on). For there to be such a small group of main character in a long anime series, it would be expected to investigate all the major time periods that build up the characters into who they eventually are in the present time, which is done to an extent, but at the end I was still looking for more answers about the characters.

Enjoyment (3/10)

Unfortunately this ended up a bit of a slog to watch. The story telling for the first episodes was terrible, and it also took me a while to connect with the characters and by the time I did understand them more, the bland scripting of the first episodes had reduced me to not really caring too much what happened to them and eventually, it was a case of watching because I had started.

Overall (6/10)

There is a very good anime here screaming to get out, the decision to run for 26 episodes was a huge mistake in my opinion, with more than half the episodes being below par in terms of storytelling and enjoyment. As put in the story section, this would make a great 12 episode series, without detracting anything from the story itself. However if you like girls with guns, don’t mind a bit of Character Shielding and can put up with some crass storylines, you’ll be treated to a very good closing sequence with an ending which is the envy of much better told stories.
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Noir is another girls-with-guns anime with somewhat of an interesting plot about an ancient fate, however this is overshadowed by the slow development of the show and also the dull and lifeless action sequences.

Mireille Bouquet is a top class assassin and Kirika Yumura is a mysterious Japanese schoolgirl who woke up with no memory at all. This is an action anime about two female assassins, who happened to encounter each other by fate.

After the exciting action packed first episode, not much is explained about this show. Throughout the first half, all there is to go by are the subtle hints and surreal intro however there’s only one word that can describe this show as it begins, “boring”. It was so boring that people hoping for some form of development, may not be able to continue watching this anime however for those who are patient can enjoy the better half of the show. It is the second half that is somewhat interesting, with a lot of things finally being revealed, like the secret organization behind everything. Though it is interesting it never becomes truly captivating.

The animation style resembles that of “Cowboy Bebop” with the same artistry and fluid animation. This tries to give a little extra by being widescreen format and beautifully drawn characters, nonetheless it losses its greatness once the action kicks in. It isn’t long before you’ll quickly notice the incredibly useless enemies they are up against and the lack of blood. This isn’t an important thing for anime, when it comes to a “Bang! Bang! Shoot-em-up” gunshot wounds are essential and that isn’t found here.

The music is exceptionally great especially when it gets to the action or when it’s building up to it. On the other hand the music lacks variety so it gets tiring to hear the same tunes other and other but what really is annoying is the high pitch watch melody that will pierce through your ear drums whenever you listen to it.

This had the potential of being a great anime, but it took so long for anything about the plot to be revealed that only the second half of the show was enjoyable to watch. This is the major downfall of this, plus other little annoyances like time wasting techniques and the constant, pointless flashbacks. This anime was predominantly filled with gun-battles which were usually great but it didn’t change the fact that the enemies they faced were so rubbish, with a gun, that they couldn’t even hit a parked car. It’s only till the finally 2 episodes when something spectacular happens, but by then this decent show is over, with a BANG!

If you enjoy the odd action packed anime and don’t mind censorship, then by all means check this out.

^_^ read more

looking for a great anime? well your search is over!!noir is the best anime i have seen,heard or even made up in my head!! i am not kidding!!the story follows threw with no second quessing. the art work in it my seem a little dated but i do not see that as a fault at all. the sound from the begging theme to the end is well done and not sound like it came from another anime.you will love each character in it as well!! my favorite is chole! she uses knives and has a steady head on her shoulders. i have never meet any one who has seen noir who did not like it!!!it is just too good of a series!! read more

First off, you must know that "Noir" deserves its name (Noir means black in French). It is a very dark story which only shows real glimmers of hope and sanity toward its very end. So if you intend to watch this, you had better be patient.
I have given an overall rating of 6/10 to this animated series because I am not much of a fan of bleak drama that is not quite sure whether it is realistic or symbolic. There are however quite a few things of worth in this anime so I would not discourage people from watching it.
I shall try, in this review, to explore all the aspects of this series that I feel capable of commenting upon. Beware, however, as this analysis will contain a certain amount of spoilers, though hopefully not enough to discourage you from watching the show!

Story: 6/10
In my opinion, the story deserves no more than 6/10 because it has a few major flaws.The first of these being the existence, in the world of "Noir", of a mysterious organization called "Soldats" (soldiers in French). This strange cult-like organization supposedly underhanddedly controls pretty much the whole world. This ridiculous idea reminds me of the myth that was once built about the "free masons", painting them as a secret society which ruled the occidental world. Conspirationnist theories such as these simply cannot be made to fit reality and the fact that this is the basis of the whole plot makes the story very unrealistic. Another flaw is the choice of having two teenage girls being assasins. It is quite obvious that the choice was made so as to satisfy a "girls with guns" fetish. Indeed, it seems that phallic women are a turn-on for many males, though I have no sufficient knowledge to analyze this to any depth. I must say, however, that no convincing reason is given for the choice of maidens as the elite assasins of the "Soldats" and that contributes to making the story that more unlikely.

The plot, however, is not altogether unninteresting, far from it. The "Soldats", though fictitious, reminds me of many criminal organizations having actually existed. The most obvious being the "Assasin's sect" which was born during the dark time of the European "crusades" in the middle east. Indeed the "Soldats" are supposed to have appeared in times of war and terror when warriors and civilians alike were murdered. The "Assasin's sect" like the fictional "Soldats" were a group of fanatics that thought to fight the "horror of mankind" by killing those they viewed as sinners. The "Soldats", however were apparently not born in reaction to an invasion by a foreign power. Though they are clearly mystical the "Soldats" are not religious, while the "Assasiyoun"clearly were. The "Soldats" aimed to cleanse society of evil by the practice of targetted murder and in that aspect seem very much like the "Red brigades", that Italian organisation that killed high ranking politicians and businessmen in a attempt to bring down capitalism. Though the power gained by the "Soldats" in "Noir" is unrealistic, the appearance of such a group is not unlikely as people will often turn into fearsome monsters in an attempt to overcome the horror around them. The fact that as they gained power the "Soldats" grew further and further away from their original ideals (such as they were...) is also quite realistic as this has been seen to happen in almost every single organization ever to have existed.

The story's end is one of the best there could be considering what led up to it. It is indeed a relief to see people turn away from a path that madmen had built for them. It is however insufficient to lighten the sadness and horror felt before.The overall bleakness of the plot makes it quite depressing and for that final flaw, I have decided not to rate the story above 6/10.

Characters: 7/10
The personnalities of the main characters, namely: Kirika, Mireille (that, btw, is a VERY old-fashioned French name), Chloe and Altena, are all very dark but well-built and rather interesting. Each of these characters has had a horrific childhood and each of them has turned to a form of madness to overcome fear. The most monstrous of all is Altena while the most pitiful is Chloe.

Altena, the root of evil in this story, was originally a lost child in a terrible war. It is made clear, in one of the last episodes, that she was the victim of rape at the hands of a soldier when she was but a child. Clearly traumatized by the horrors of her past, she seeks refuge in blind faith in the fascist ideals of the "Soldats". She is convinced that a pair of skilled, emotionless assassins will serve to make the world a better place. She carries out the "Soldats'" tradition of abducting and brain-washing children so as to train them into becoming murderers. The scenes where she is seen to hug Chloe or smile gently are truly scary because Altena is absolutely convinced of doing what is right while what she is doing is so obviously wrong. One of her pet phrases (quoted from the "Noir manuscript") is: "Hatred can save people".

Chloe is the only child to remain with Altena and is the weakest of the main characters. Though a very dangerous assassin of skill greater than that of Mireille, she has an obsessive attachment to Altena, the woman who stole her childhood and made her into a murderer. Chloe also has a twisted but boundless admiration for Kirika whom she sees as the perfect assassin and a role model. Her admiration verges on desire and she is in fact seen kissing Kirika during a "purification" ritual. Chloe is a frightened teen who accepts all the lies she is fed because she cannot bear the thought of being abandonned. All in all, she is a character that inspires pity.

Mireille, the daughter of a Corsican crime-lord, was trained as an assassin since her very childhood. She claims to have chosen her lifestyle though that couldn't be further from the truth. Under the wrong guidance, she became very much alike to the people who brought tragedy into her life. When Kirika asks her for help, she can only accept her into her life by promising to murder her when she is no longer of any use. Love and life are completely absent in her world except for her ambiguous friendship with Kirika.

Kirika is the third "Noir" candidate and apparently the most skilled assassin. Kirika was initially a brainwashed child craving the life of a normal human and is very grateful for the almost-friendship she shares with Mireille.

There are many other characters but none explored in as much depth as the above four. All in all, the work done on these is quite good and deserves 7/10.

Music:6/10
I am no mucisian or music critic and while I find the music in "Noir" not really to my taste, I must admit that is seems quite appropriate. I give it 6/10 because it does what it is supposed to do and no less.

Art: 7/10
The animation seems quite good to my untrained eye but I will not be a judge of it as my knowledge in the matter is quite limited. The art is quite good and most scenes be it in Paris or elsewhere are rather well rendered and pleasant. The characters do not always have the appearance that suits their age and that is a minus. The fact that despite an incredible amount of deaths, blood and gore has been kept to a strict minimum is a plus. 7/10 from me.

Enjoyment: 5/10
Noir is not a show that entertains but more one that sometimes makes one think. It was interesting enough not to make me want to stop watching but it hardly was a joy ride.

Overall: 6/10
Many qualities, certainly a little more than there were flaws. An anime worth watching despite its shortcomings.
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Noir is a fairly decent anime to watch, but nothing stellar, and therefore should be taken as the superficial “girls with guns” anime that it is. The story is centered around two young women with mysterious pasts tied to some secret mafia-type organization known as the Soldats. There is a great deal of violence in this series, expect lots of shootings, stabbings and poisonings but for all that,the action and scenes are surprisingly not gory and practically bloodless. This is but one of the many things I found peculiar with the series apart from the generic vanilla plot and the emotionally static characters.

~ Art
The art and animation is good but considered standard, as is the color palette for this show. This appears to be a regular 2D anime series with no CGI that I could notice. However, there are some minor [but cool] animation f/x like when there is a face-off between assassin [i.e. Mireille and X] the camera gets kind of jerky, which adds to the “panic” of that moment. The action scenes are decent, nothing flashy, but still suspenseful and well-executed.

~ Sound
Ten points. And I'll tell ya why! 3 things:
1. ALI Project
2. Shelley Calene-Black
3. Hilary Haag.

But in all seriousness, the whole English cast was great. Monica Rial and Tiffany Grant are also pretty big names in the anime industry. As far as music is concerned..., well like I said AIL Project is at the top of my list. Coppelia's Casket, like all their music, is fresh and unique with it's quirky lyrical flow and addictive beat. But this is one of the few series I've seen where I can say that all the music throughout the show was great, even the music for the pocket-watch [and the remixed version] were cool sounding. I would say the soundtrack is worth getting.

~ Story
If you like shows that fall into the “Girls/Babes with guns” category then you will like this show. I'm reluctant to say Noir has a strong plot because it's the “Girls with guns” gimmick that will tempt you to pick up this title and it's the action scenes with all the shooting that keeps you watching. But the plot isn't weak either. Maybe a good word to describe the story style would be formulaic or generic which is to say that Noir uses the somewhat tried and true, paint by numbers method of narration. They start out slow, giving you glimpses of the underlying theme through flashbacks and other such tactics, and then they [unnecessarily] stretch this out across 20 or so episodes then drop the supposed bombshell....that most people probably had figured out long before then. On the whole I don't have too much to say about the story because it's kind of simple and straightforward even for a mystery. I take greater issue with the characters and how credible they are.

~ Characters
I think that if they had done the “big reveal” a little earlier then it probably would have helped the show a little better because in this way that particular “big revelation” element could have been used for character building purposes [which I think they kinda needed....desperately] Both Mireille and Kirika seem only half developed, let's see:

First, we have Mireille is this beautiful, leggy assassin right? But her beauty seems purely incidental [OK there was that ONE salon scene....and even that was to gather intel for an operation.] She never once uses her looks or sex-appeal to her advantage for anything and even if you say, “OK she's a hitman” you still never see her enjoy her femininity on her downtime. The only thing that seems to preoccupy her mind is figuring out who killed her parents and why. And while this is completely understandable on the one hand, you then have her gunning down her own uncle [and only remaining family member] with little or no remorse, with the other hand. And what do we get? Just a slumped shoulder [when she killed him....which was really to trick the viewer] and a paltry flashback. She [the character...NOT the actress] needed more emotions so we can connect with her on that human level. That said, she is still the best character of the series.
OK so the other emotionally deficient character of the hour is Ms. Kirika.....and I mean severely so! With Kirika, we are to take into consideration the fact that she has no memory and I'm not a brain surgeon so I'm not sure if and how that ties to a person's emotions. I guess that it could be possible so we more or less just have to tolerate her silence and her inability to fully express herself emotionally as part and parcel to whatever mysteries she keeps locked inside. Personally I can't accept it though. It's like a stretch in character for there to be such a person to not have any memories and yet be so cool and calm about it. There are no questions about parents or siblings, school or even about favorite foods or color...Not to mention the glaringly obvious fact that she's Asian with a supposed Japanese school uniform and ID card in the middle of France! Nope, she just seems kind of complacent about it all and is equally complacent about being a killer.

The rest of the characters...forgeddaboutit, they are all under-cooked and underdeveloped, strictly 2-dimensional.

The one last thing I have an issue with is the fact the fact that Kirika [and Chloe] APPEARS a whole lot younger than Mireille, They seem to be mid-teens [Kirika even has a HS uniform] and Mireille seems to be early twenties so I would say roughly a 5 – 6 year gap right? So explain to me how during the flash back, they are all the same age not to mention the whole toddler-assassin thing? Is that what they teach in preschool these days?

~ The Verdict
Like I said...a decent show overall. It could probably have been cut to a 13 episode series and still have the same value. There is lots of action and therefore you won't be bored however if you are looking for sympathetic characters you might be disappointed read more

There are a multitude of things that mark an anime as particularly terrible. Bad music, medicore art, clumsy and slow reactions, clumsy and slow emotional reactions, a cumbersome plot, a repetitive plot, an immature plot, and cheap attempts at thrilling the viewer are all bad things that Noir accomplishes remarkably well! Not a single episode of this is 'filler' because every episode has the same clumsy plot execution and, at least in almost every episode, a bad shootout, and, sorry to spoil a bit, nearly every shootout involves one of the two messing up in some manner and barely getting saved, but not, of course, without an absurd pause to allow the barely getting saved to occur. If you want a deep plot with great characters and any intellectual thought, then avoid this series at all cost. If you want a series with exciting action scenes, then avoid this series at all costs. The only reason I finished this was because I am depressed about going back to school tomorrow anyway, so it was actually a good time to waste my dour mood on something awful rather than something incredible!

As to the art, every character has unimaginative hair, a facial structure that is blocky, and utterly lifeless eyes. The music is repetitive like few other series. My assumption is that the creators of the series thought this would be a good way to indicate when you should be excited, but all they do is further ruin nearly every episode of the series with the same already obnoxious music. read more

All possible spoilers will be in white font so you won't read them by mistake. Oh and sorry for bad grammar.

Story:
Story is pretty good. Well, the beginning is rather strange. Mireille recives an e-mail from Kirika inviting her to take "a pilgrimage to the past". They met, kill bunch of guys and end up together. The only reason why Mireille didn't kill Kirika and decide to take her with herself was because of pocket watch Kirika has that reminds Mireille of her parents murder. But she's planning to kill Kirika after they'll find their answers and Kirika agree with that. Story development is rather slow and little boring but at the end of a show it's getting interesting and very good.

Art:
Well I never considered art as an important factor in rating anime so I'll just say it's very good but I've seen better.

Sound:
Sound is definitily the best part of Noir. It's outstanding and I just can't find other words to describe it. Only known to myself anime that can compete in terms of music with Noir is Elfen Lied.

Characters:
I neither like them nor dislike them. I'm totally indifferent about what will happen to anybody in Noir. Two main characters call themselves assasins but I really wouldn't call them that way. Assasins should make their job clean killing only the target. But they are usually killing the target and every person in range of dozens meters from the target. The only one capable of real assasin work is Chloe and later changed Kirika (whose look more like being drunk rather than serious/evil/vengful/somethink like this :P) but I suppose they are to lazy to do it that way :P.

Enjoyment:
Unfortunately it's not that good. Although in every episodes someone dies there is absolutely no blood unless it's totally insignificant scratch or it's necessery to locate the wounded trace. Main characters are fighting with totally and utterly blind people whose reflexes are 10 times slower than any avarage human, with useless granades that can't cause any injury to a person who is at most 2 meters away from the granade. And when they catch one of the "assasins" they are only aiming at they prey peacfully waiting to be shot from behind. Of course aims of main characters are perfect in every way unless the very end of the show when they screw up their accuracy rating during a fight with each other. There are rarely any headshots but still nobody thinks of wearing bulletproof vest (not even army and cops). Oh, sorry, there actually is one person with this great idea at the end of the show but fighting with the sword against two guns and one knife she is killed from behind (no headshots of course :P). And Kirika is capable of some insane tricks like reading the course of swinging/stabbing knife from 100 meters and shoting so the tip of the knife flies in the skies causing swing/stab be totally useles. When Chloe starts sprint in order to stab Mireille, she starts sprint (she was few meters away from Chloe and the tree of them were placed in stright line in order - Mireille-Chloe-Kirika) about 2 meters to the right to take fork from the ground, then overtake Chloe and stab her in the heart. I know it's anime and not the real world but come one, it's not a science-fiction.

Overal it's not a bad anime but it could be way better if it was little more interesting an more realistic. read more

In the end Noir does have some interesting elements, such as sound and art but the story and its presentation is lacking, which makes the anime less engrossing as it could have been.

The Good:
Interesting individual stories in the episodes as well as the european settings. As aforementioned the OST is fantastic. It's rare that an anime has so many good tracks in an OST. No fan service, which keeps the series on the reflective side as opposed to simply big boobed girls running around and killing tough big guys.

The bad:
While the story seems somewhat interesting - it's slow. For the 26 episodes its way too big, that is there are some scenes that play the same thing over and over again and it just becomes tedious. The flashback sequens in particular seem to be overused. The plot itself seems a bit shallow, with no suspense, read "everyone dies, but the assassians do not get so much as a scratch" nearly 100% of the time. read more