.hack//Sign

.Hack//Sign is a single part in the Project .Hack franchise, one that combines novels, manga, TV anime and OVA's to form one grand narrative with characters and events happening not only chronologically, but simultaneously as well. The review below is written from the franchise point of view, and as an standalone anime.

The general consensus of Hack//Sign is that the story's boring, there is almost no action and it doesn't make fast progress. While some of these points are quite true, the story is one of character development and interaction. The viewer learn more about every side character through their interaction with the rest of the ... cast, their surroundings and gradually helps move the plot. The plot is one of clashing and matching personalities, driven by mysteries.

.Hack//Sign, The story:
+ It's detailed
- It does feel slow at times

Then, we have the art, fun scenery's and great character designs do give you the feel of an online game world that was actually thought out (see the games .hack//IMOQ and .hack//Frägment). The animation however, is quite sloppy and the characters themselves aren't drawn very detailed.

+ The art does create the illusion of an actual MMORPG
+ Great and original character designs

Then we have the Sound, if there was an option to give it more then a ten out of ten, then I would choose it. The compositions by Yuki Kajiura, are in my opinion, what lifts the anime up from a meagre 7 to a 10. With an enormous array of songs and tunes, Yuki adds depth to the art and the story, giving it time when the characters need time and hypes the viewer when it's going down.

+ Yuki Kajiura's music is truly a work of art

The characters of .Hack//Sign are gamers, and thus some try to act online like someone they aren't. Some take their offline situations into the game and some try to forget them instead.
Complex emotions and double personalities are just some of the things you can find here.

+ Character actually have character progress without it being important to the main storyline

To the many people who play them, video games, can be a form of escapism from the real world. What could be more stress relieving than diving into a fantasy world where you assume the role of the character in the game? It sounds very tempting but if one should stay too long in the virtual world you could lose yourself in it with no way to return to the real world. In the worst case scenario you may forget which world is real and which is fake.

That is the premise of .Hack//Sign. .Hack//Sign is a part of the .Hack series which surrounds the ... MMORPG called “The World” and the different characters who find the mysteries surrounding this virtual land.

.Hack//Sign follows the story of Tsukasa, a Wavemaster (Spell caster) in “The World”, who suddenly wakes up in a dark dungeon with no recollection of how he got there and what he was doing prior to his collapse. While trying to gather his bearings a female Heavy Blade (sword wielder) by the name of Mimiru passes by and strikes a conversation with him. To her surprise Tsukasa instantly warps back to the town leaving her behind. It’s while he is in town that Tsukasa realizes that he can’t log out of “The World”. He is trapped in the virtual world with no way to get back to reality.

If your thinking this will be an action packed show with monster fighting and adventuring you would be mostly wrong. While there is small tidbits of fighting and adventuring this show is very slow paced and mostly revolves around Tsukasa and the people he interacts with. .Hack//Sign also has noticeable dark elements to it especially when the real world is involved. The idea of escapism is really brought out when you see the character’s real life counterparts and the struggles they go through. But that is just a small part as Sign is mostly set in “The World”.

Due to the slow pacing every character in this show has a chance to develop and feel more realistic. “The World” allows characters to express themselves in a way that the real world doesn’t allow. The result of this is that characters are intriguing to watch and thus provide a deep story. However this slow pace does cause most people to drop the show, as the pacing may be a little too slow and sometimes it feels that some scenes drag on. Another problem is the ending which is very abrupt and quick. I won’t spoil anything but let’s just say there is a reason why this is a part of a series of Anime shows and games. Overall the story is solid and enticing.

The animation in .Hack//Sign is a very well done and fits the fantasy setting of “The World”. Every location has its own emotional feel that lends itself well to the slow pace of the show. The uniqueness of each area helps set the tone for the current situation in the Anime, as each area has its own theme and setting that really makes “The World” feel as big as the real world. Tropical forests, barren deserts and frozen wastelands litter the land with vibrancy. While this is true for the virtual world, the real world on the other hand resembles old black and white silent films.

The real world is depicted as bleak and hopeless as text show up to replace verbal sound. This contrast between the vibrant virtual world and bleak real world becomes very important in portraying how “The World” seems to be a perfect escape from real life issues. The character designs are also very well done, since each character has their own design which fit the grander design that “The World” sets up. There are some parts that were a little bit grainy as I would call yet overall the design of this virtual world is truly something to appreciate.

The music and overall sound in .Hack//Sign is where it really sets itself apart from other anime. The opening song Obsession gives off a feeling of trance and emptiness that really fits the mood of .Hack//Sign while the background music has a sense of tranquility and sadness that backs up the visual aspect of the show. The music also has a folklore aspect in a sense that it makes you feel like it’s telling a story or possibly narrating the situation your currently watching. One big plus is the background music with vocals in them. Key of the Twilight is one of the best songs in the soundtrack and really exemplifies how music is able to set the tone of a scene and possibly the show. However there are some points where the music overpowers a certain scene in the show which can ruin the mood but it rarely happens. So my advice is to pay attention the music as it can really pull you into the story and set the mood.

Overall .Hack//Sign is something that shouldn’t be overlooked. The story of escapism gone wrong will leave you wondering if this could happen to you. The animation is compelling and imaginative while the music really sets the emotional tone of the show. I must warn you again that if you hate slow paced shows or want some action then steer clear of this show but for those who want a good mystery with a fantasy setting then.Hack// Sign is for you.

Overview:

Before SAO, before Log Horizon, there was .hack//Sign. This was the anime that started the "trapped in an MMORPG" craze in anime. Although it is far superior in quality to SAO and Log Horizon, it somehow has an average rating almost 2 full points lower. Allow me to explain why this is a great injustice!

Story and characters: 7/10

The story will no doubt seem familiar at this point, because so many series have ripped off .hack. After a computer virus devastates the internet, a new web system is created and shortly after a massive MMORPG using virtual reality is born as the brain child of a ... German computer genius with mysterious motives. A player called Tsukasa finds himself trapped in this fantasy MMORPG and is unable to logout, but is not aware why or even who he is in the real world. This is only a problem for Tsukasa and no other players are effected by this. What makes .Hack unique is that Tsukasa dying in the game world doesn't mean he will die in the real world. Instead, he just respawns and is still trapped, like an eternal purgatory. Tsukasa must discover the mystery of why he is trapped and find out more about this MMORPG and why it was created. The pacing in this series is slow, so it will take a while to get good. However, I appreciate that this series unlike SAO or Log Horizon focuses mostly on character development and psychological drama rather than pointless action and fanservice. Afterall, duel wielding eventually gets a little stale. "Jesus Christ SAO! Duel Wielding isn't THAT cool, tone it down guys!" - John Woo

art: 6/10

The character designs are good, but the animation is sometimes lacking. Most of the time, people are standing around talking and this isn't exactly going to blow you away with its visuals. Hack was made by a small animation studio called Beeline best known for "hits" like Noir and Spider Riders for Kids WB. Yes, there is an anime called Spider Riders, and it is just as bad as it sounds!

Soundtrack: 10/10

Hack is probably most well known for its outstanding sound track that features a new song in every episode. At one point the OST fetched outlandishly high prices on E-bay, but I am not sure what it is worth today. It is still an excellent sound track and comes highly recommended.

Entertainment: 7/10

Yes, I will admit that it can be a bit slow at times. That doesn't mean it is a bad series. The drama and character development make this one worth watching.

Overall: 7/10

This anime does have some issues with animation, pacing, and a few minor flaws. However, it is a LOT better than SAO or Log Horizon! Don't be a n00b! If you watch 1 trapped in an MMORPG anime, make bloody well sure it is this one!

.hack//SIGN is perhaps not exactly what you may think it is, but I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. It has hardly any action, contrary to what it may seem like, and the main focus of this story is on the characters. But it is done in such an appealing way that I personally found myself not wanting to sleep until I found out how it ended. I'll warn you: .hack//SIGN isn't flashy and exciting; but it does have some fantastic qualities to make up for that fact. So let's break this down.

STORY:
.hack//SIGN is about a virtual reality MMORPG ( Massive Multi-player Online Role Playing Game ... ) called "The World." In The World, players determine what class they would like to become, and then set out to play the game however they see fit. Some play in parties, while others choose to play solo. In this game, we meet several interesting and amusing characters - all who are playing the game differently, but whose paths fatefully cross at one point or another. But most notably of these characters, we meet Tsukasa: the ever troubled protagonist of this story. Tsukasa is met with a problem never before seen in The World: he can not log out. Stuck in the game, he is forced to face the fact that he might not even want to return to reality; but the many people whom he encounters during his stay in the game seem to be determined to figure out the mystery surrounding him, and return him safely to the real world.

Now...the story moves slow. Like I've said, there are not any flashy battles nor explosions, and what little action there is is very mundane...So, do not watch //SIGN expecting to be wowed by action scenes. That being said, there are some things that are left unexplained...but all those unexplained things CAN be explained if you read the manga. So, if you like the series and you find yourself wanting to know more about just what in the heck happened, then check out the manga or the novel of the same title.

Alright. The true heart of this story is in the characters. So let's move on.

CHARACTERS:
.hack//SIGN consists of enticing characters; each with their own stand out qualities, motives, pasts, and subsequently, problems. In fact, I must say that every character in //SIGN is extremely interesting - I found myself relating to many of them in different aspects of their personalities, and in how they handled situations...which is a very welcome feeling, as many times, characters in anime seem to be a bit far fetched as to how they deal with certain occurrences.

The character development is suburb; mainly because the characters are the main focal point of the entire story. So much time is spent delving into their hearts, feelings, and minds that one can not help but get attached.

ART:
Its got its quirks and problems, but all around, the animators did a good job. The animators made The World a beautiful place, while also a tad bit frightening in some areas. But I'm not too good at reviewing art, so I'll end this portion here and you can decide for yourself.

MUSIC:
Excuse me while I squee with joy. *ahem* This is one of my favorite soundtracks. Yuki Kajiura at her finest. Every track fits The World to a T; and one can't help but feel like they're inside the game in some parts. Aside from the perfect fit of the songs, they are also emotional, exciting, and just plain fun.

If you decide in the end that you do not want to watch .hack//SIGN, at least go listen to the soundtrack; it is pure enjoyment.

OVERALL:
I loved this series. I'd watch it again in a heartbeat. To me, its only downfalls were that there could have been a little more action, but it wasn't necessary to the story, and that they should have explained more in the anime. But aside from these things, my enjoyment of this series was very high. I recommend you at least give it a shot. You never know until you try! I did, and I am not in the least bit disappointed. And even if you do not find yourself a fan of the story...engage yourself in its soundtrack!

As a former hard core gamer, I had high expectations of this series which has been languishing in my list of stuff to someday get to watching. So I started viewing this intending to finish all the .hack series.

Story/Character

The premise is exciting - one player in "The World" is suddenly unable to log out - why? The mystery gets deeper and deeper as we are pulled into his life and the life of the other characters (in game and in the real world) who either want to help him, want to solve the mystery or have some other hidden agendas of their own.

The set up ... (first 8 episodes) was very well done. Just as I started to get fascinated the series went on a philosophical bent and the plot stagnated. By the time it tried to recover I was frankly pretty bored and was just going through the motions of finishing the series.

The characters are a mish mash. Some you remember and some could actually have been left out of the anime without making any impact at all. It was hard to even like any of them except 1-2 (you'll know what I mean).

Art/Animation and sound

The animation was great for that time. Very cute and I can see where "World of Warcraft" may have copied some of the stuff. Songs were pretty decent but not as good as the art. It's a very pretty anime and as a gamer I was satisfied with both.

Enjoyment

The series starts well, gets slow in the middle and tries to end with a bang but somewhat fails to pull it together. The end is ambiguous which detracts from overall enjoyment, hence the low score.

Overall

This is one of those polarizing anime. You either love it or you hate it. There are a lot of similarities to "Serial Experiments Lain" (which I hated) but I scored this a lot higher due to the effort it took to make the gaming world realistic, which I really appreciated. Overall I gave this a 5 -- there was much more that this series could have done that they didn't do, and the slow pace really made this less enjoyable than I would have liked.

This is a review compiled by the many members of the VIA (Value In Anime) Graveyard Division. All members who have worked on this review are mentioned at the bottom. In addition, this review will also contain a “Value in the Anime” section detailing life lessons and values that make this anime worth watching.
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.hack//sign isn't exactly new. Known for it's slow pace, it has a reputation as a poorly paced, often boring show. While this is true, to an extent, there is still value in this anime--life lessons that make it worth the time you're willing to invest in it.

Story: .hack//sign is a slow ... anime with an episodic format and plot to match. Often, you may feel that you might have to go back and re-watch an episode or two because might have missed something in the last scene.

The pacing was bad and would have been much, much better as a one cour (12-13 episodes) series. The impact of the plot was lessened by the postponement of the primary conflict, which was not introduced until about halfway through. The ending ultimately lost impact because of the story telling, which was more or less average.

Understandably, there are also some parts, especially prevalent in the OVAs, where you had to have prior knowledge for full understanding. The OVAs themselves added little to the story, mostly giving a sense of "all's-well-that-ends-well." It does try to be realistic in it's approach, though it doesn't always succeed.

Art: The animation style is decent, but outdated, and doesn't quite manage to hold up to today's standards--though this is to be expected. The character designs were varied and distinct while the backgrounds, though predominately dark, were aesthetically pleasing. For the most part, the animation was smooth and the jerking and stills were kept to an acceptable minimum--problems consistent with many other older anime.

Sound:. hack//sign's music and sound fit well. The OST complimented the mood while the OP and ED were catchy, though otherwise unmemorable. At times, the background music was a tad overbearing-- a fault that often resulted in a ruined atmosphere. Standing alone, the music can be drab at times, but proves to be sufficient overall.

Characters: This is .hack//sign's focal point. Character development is initially slow, but speeds up later on in the anime. The characters are interesting, and almost all of them contribute to the plot at some point--one of them receiving extra development during the first OVA. No characters appears similar to another, and they are easy to relate to, though they can be dull at times. The villain is good, but suffers from a lack of impact as the episodes draw on.

Enjoyment: In essence, this is a slow anime with poor pacing that often left us wanting more. It's worth a try if this appeals to you, but it will not keep everyone who watches awake. Because of how slow it is, it would probably be best if you watched this anime over a long period of time. Try watching as a substitute for pills or lullabies.

The soundtrack is nice to listen to, but gets a little tiring after a while and the art is worth a look, even if it isn’t the best. The characters deserve more than a passing glance, being the primary draw of the show.

Values in the Anime: There is value in this anime that makes it worth watching--certain life lessons that we can all learn through anime.

Accepting Reality: This anime shows us how dangerous it is to get absorbed in entertainment. This is an issue especially present in today's society, where everyone is on their phone or computer at almost all times. It’s good to have fun and get absorbed, but also important to stay grounded in reality as well. Recognizing that line between entertainment and reality is paramount.

Games are a way to express yourself; they are a way to act as someone you’re not. No matter what though, remember that these things should stay in the game; they are exclusive to the laws of the game for a reason. Accept reality for what it is, and know the difference while maintaining a balance.

Respecting Others: Respecting others is important in real life, but can be equally so in a game or online. The main character is initially rude and unlikeable, but finds the value in those basic concepts throughout the development of the story and improves themselves as a person. Connecting to other people, and observing how it affects you is of the upmost importance, and is a message strongly conveyed in .hack//sign.

Story: 5/10
Enjoyment: 4/10
Art: 6/10
Sound: 8/10
Characters: 8/10

Overall: 6/10 (-not an average-)

VIA (Value in Anime) – Graveyard Division

To find the true gem’s in anime!

Vigilate et discite!

Officer “Kami_no_Kage”
Agent “Haysti”
Agent “Hitsuzen24”

I came into .Hack//Sign with mixed reviews and no knowledge of the characters or the plot / setting. I was pretty skeptical because a couple of my really good friends said it was very boring. Then again I had friends that said it was amazing. With that being said, i just had to see for myself.

Right off the bat I need to address one HUGE CON of this anime. The use of flashbacks and how many episodes they used. The large majority of .hack//sign was used having flashbacks. But not even stuff that we haven't seen yet. There was one scene (that was several ... minutes long) that was played AT LEAST 10 times in the series. Not to mention for a WHOLE episode they did a review of everything that had happened thus far. When you are dealing with an anime that is only 26 episodes long there is no need to do a 20 minute recap of everything that happened in the first 14 episodes! I can understand if you are on episode 150 and want to recap what has happened, because a lot of information can be forgot... but not in 14 episodes.

It is my personal opinion that this anime could have been finished in 12 episodes. There were moments when the anime was boring as all Hell. Where I wanted to just say "screw it" and go to the next anime or skip that episode. There is tons of pointless information that could have been left out or scenes that were just not necessary. But in the end, within a couple episodes it had my attention again.

Now for some Pros. There was many times in the series where I was very into the series. For example the Grunty scene where Su Casa was searching for the purple berries. It was very emotional and kept me on the edge of my seat. I did find myself yelling at the characters from time to time, At how stupid they were or in anticipation of what would happen next.

There were many characters that I connected with. For example Sora. Sora was by far one of the greatest characters on the anime. His use of humor and whatnot was unparalleled.

In the end the anime was good. It had its cons and pros. But evened out the anime was good. even Though it was good, the chances of me watching it again are not too high.

I recommend watching it at least once and come with your own conclusion.

OVERALL: 8 / 10
Rewatch value: Low

In early 2004, 3 1/2 years before my foray into anime, I bought a PS2 game called .hack//Infection. I didn't particularly enjoy the game that much, and it became lost behind the newer games that came and were added to my ever-growing video game collection.

Fast forward to November 2007, and I stumble across .hack//SIGN while flicking through the channels one night. I decided to watch it, and I became immediately hooked.

One of the strong points of the .hack video game was the story, and the story to SIGN was also brilliantly written. I also loved the art and the characters were a lovable motley crew, ... of sorts.

The music fitted in well with the atmosphere of the series. The celtic influence was notable in both scenery and music.

A lot of people say this dragged on, "They've all got weapons, but there's no fighting." Ah, well. So what? I didn't care. I'm never one to care about the pace of a telly programme, film or video game etc.

I really enjoyed the series, and it pulled me in further into the world of anime.

And, because of the series, Infection was pulled out from behind the newer games, and played once again. (And was completed this time around.)

First impressions of "Hack Sign"... stunningly good animation and excellent music.

Unfortunately there's not much more to it. This is an anime with a weak story line that contain more holes than Swiss cheese, and tries to make up for it by pretending to be deep. What they don't seem to realise is that there's more to being deep than having the characters do little more than stand around looking thoughtful and utter the occasional grunt whilst elegant music drifts past in the background. You need GOOD dialogue and storyline to be deep, and as hard as this anime tries, it doesn't have either. "Hack Sign" ... is a prime example of how to make a dialogue heavy anime that is dull (for an example of a good dialogue heavy anime, look no further than "Crest of the Stars").

One of the main problems is that nothing ever happens in "Hack Sign". They would have had difficulty making this into a decent 13 episode anime, let alone a 26 episode one. What kept me watching was mainly the aesthetic pleasure that's derived from the gorgeous animation and music. Also, at the end of several episodes along the way, it does show flashes of brilliance with some chilling scenes that promised much... but ultimately delivered very little, if at all.

Characters aren't much to be remembered by. I found myself spending a lot of time wondering why they were all so serious... they're playing a game ffs. People like to joke and play about in games. These guys on the other hand, prefer to stand around talking about their real life issues... in total, they must have spent a whole five minutes or so on playing the actual game! No wonder most of them seem really low level! And what's the big deal about about player killing? Having played these kind of games myself, I know it's an integral part of the gameplay, but this anime makes it out to be some sort of bad practice, and kicks up a huge fuss over it, even though people can just respawn afterwards. The accumulative result of all of this is that it didn't feel at any point that they were playing an MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online RPG).

Throughout the anime, especially in the beginning, I often found it hard to understand the motivation behind a lot of the character's actions, which made the story and characters of "Hack Sign" feel very artificially driven. For example, if something serious happened like a player could not log out and is stuck in the game, wouldn't that make the game potentially very dangerous? You would think that it would get shut down at this point, but apparently no one cares about such a trivial matter, and players carry on playing the game as usual, as though it's no big deal. At least not all the characters are devoid of charm though, and after a while (a long while, admittedly), I did start to warm up to a couple of them like Crim (who is quite cool, and actually seem to be interested in playing the game).

The ending... what the hell was all that about? They dragged the anime through 20+ episode just to reach THAT kind of conclusion? It was almost getting exciting towards the end, but the extremely anti-climatic "climax" just brought my ratings for this anime crashing back down again. I think that must have been the worst conclusion ever. After spending the majority of the series hyping up the "mystery", it barely explained anything. Throughout the anime I kept waiting for things to become clearer, and they never did. And also, "Evidence" must be the sh*ttest recap episode I've ever seen. All it did was sum up all the the parts you don't understand and make you realise that there were even more of them than you remembered. It pretty much encapsulates contents of this anime - a royal mess.

Have you played online games where the social component is important? And did you have the feeling that you will live your life in this game, find your love, ignoring the conventions of the game? If yes, then .hack//Sign will seem very close and familiar to you.

This is the story of people who want to believe that the game is more than just a game. And literally, story lives on this faith. The characters here are not just invented images. First of all, these are people who control their avatars. At any moment they can leave the game, and for them it will cease ... to matter. And their actions should be regarded from the position that they are trying to abstract from reality, but not get out of it. They don't feel the pain, or the warmth of their close player - but they want to believe it.

However, the composition of this anime is more complex than I described above. After all, there is the main character of this anime - Tsukasa.

Tsukasa doesn't know how he got into this world of the game. The mystery of its origin will hold until the very end. Unlike the players, he feels pain and warmth. However, this feature makes him the loneliest person in this world of illusions. The closest thing that can be cited as an example is LIMBO. And throughout history, he will face a choice - to close himself off from everyone remaining in the twilight world, or to try to return to reality?

Perhaps the period of indeterminacy in the characters is the most boring, but at the same time the most interesting moment of the narrative. After all, as they move forward, their worldview will change.

It is because of the process of character development in such an unusual composition that I think this anime is a damn masterpiece. Perhaps not one anime of this genre has not revealed this so plausibly, at the same time presenting itself as a techno-fantasy fairy tale. And if the director was faced with the task of revealing the social element of online games, then he coped with his task COMPLETELY.

This is one of the most underrated anime I've ever watched. But there is a reason for this - it is very boring. Seriously, in some episodes nothing happens except the characters' dialogues (sometimes with themselves), but at the same time it is... Quite naturally. After all, this story is not meant to entertain you. This story happens naturally. For example, "mushishi" a boring narrative did not prevent you from getting audience love, which suggests that sometimes you can get pleasure from watching only when you overpower yourself. Try to think about what this anime is trying to convey to you.
And then, perhaps, you will come out on your own special wave, "connection" with this story. Yes, even in anime there is catharsis!

But in the end I want to say that you should not be afraid of this catharsis. Entering this twilight, you will probably get the most unusual experience that you have ever received.

I think this is one of the best Animes, amongst many others. .hack//SIGN intrigued me, and actually made me wonder. Not to mention the occasional chill sent down my spine. While it may be confusing it beats most clichéd RPG-Based Animes and Fantasy base Anime out there. The cliff hangers leave you waiting and wanting more. Even though it doesn't have so much action in it I think it is great. Beats the crap out of Pokemon, and Final Fantasy. What I love about this is it's so mysterious, and dark, and unpredictable. Unlike with Final Fantasy, Zelda, Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh and so on. The music ... is great to. The acting was great, the best I have ever seen. This is one of the bests in my opinion. In Fact .hack//SIGN is the first Anime I have seen, that was actually dark. With the many surprises in there, I have never been the same. There are many great characters in this series, some goofy, others serious, and just plain lovable. Tsukasa is a highly emotional enigma. Subaru is a personal fav. of mine. She's sweet, and cute. And they didn't try to hard to make them funny, or make their jokes funny. "Tsukasa, let's play red light green light!" -Sora. That was the best gag I have ever heard. David Whittenburg did wonders for Sora. And the Chrimson Knights. And A-20 is an adorable character

Very wonderful animation by Bee-Train along Yoshiyuki Sadamoto, Minako Shiba, Satoshi Oshawa and others. They have tone, to their bodies, and the EFX are wonderful. There is some cell shading, but it's light, and doesn't stick out like a sore thumb.

Wonderful songs by Yuki Kajiura (FLCL, Fiction, Boogie Pop, NOIR, MADLAX) wonderful blend of Ambiance, and Orchestral sound. And mix of pop, and classical, makes it just right. I have two sound tracks to the show, and one to the game. And it's just wonderful. The songs are memorable, and greatly composed. Music is very important to me, and Yuki pulled it off nicely.

Great voicing. Brianne Siddal, Amanda Win Lee, Kim Guest, and many others, including the man Dave Whitenburg (WHR, Speed Racer, Digimon 03) as the malevolent, yet goofy "Sora" My favorite Quote from Sora "Tsukasa! Let's play red light green light!" And Valiery Arem as "The Voice" Morgannah. "I need you, as much as you need me. As long as we walk together, I shall protect you." Kim Guest, plays the sweet Subaru, and she brings her out very nicely.

Who would have thought up such a novel of a story? It is brilliant. It's so mysterious, and not predictable. Full of dialog yes, but still. Fighting isn't everything. There comes a point when fighting gets ridiculous, and takes away from the story. And it's told across this show, the games, and Manga books. Truly the largest story I have seen in an Anime. (Not counting Pokemon)

Like I said, seeing .hack For the first time was chilling. When you are watching light comical Pokemon all the time, plus G® Rated Cartoons and you see something with that strong of thematic elements, you get chills. During one episode, when Aura, stabs Tsukasa, and who can forget, wasn't expecting that. And who can forget, "Data Drain." This was a rare treat for me, because I hadn't (and still don't) seen that strong of Thematic Elements in Cartoons before. .hack is truly my Gate-Way Anime, to much better Anime.

This is one of my favorite shows because it didn't go overboard with Violence, but it remained dark, and just unknown. It really bugs me when people give this show poor reviews. If it were just another type of it's Genre, fine. But I see this as a rather unique show. Not by it's Genre, by everything else. Stuff I had never seen before, prior to this. Imagine my reaction to Mimiru ;) Plus when they give it a low score just because it's full of dialog. Not everything has to be violent to be good! I hate it when Violence is so extreme, that I can't bare to watch it. (Inuyasha, Read or Die Wolf's Rain Cowboy Bebop) Because it's just distracting. Violence doesn't make for good story telling. But you don't see me giving those 0's or lower than 7, because of that. I gave Read or Die, a 8/10 over all. I can understand if you have ADHD, and you can't sit through it. Fine that's fact, doesn't mean you have to give it a low score. .hack//SIGN is more on thematic elements than combat, and more on mystery, than action. You want action, play the .hack GAMES, or watch something else You'll get your action. One of the best Anime I have ever seen.

The soundtrack for .hack//sign is one of Yuki Kajiura's early works, and it is absolutely amazing. When it came out, it was unlike almost anything else. (Noir is another early work by YK, and also very good). You should absolutely buy the soundtrack. Don't bother watching the anime.

The music is especially noticeable, because there is almost nothing else that will grab your attention on screen. The background art is decent, but most of the animation simply reuses the same sets over, and over, and over again. The first few episodes make you think that the anime is going to ... turn into something really cool, but it never pans out. The plot is entirely uninteresting, and the characters are either really annoying, or really boring, and often both.

The anime is supposedly set in an online MMORPG (kind of like Sword Art Online), but it has got to be the most boring game ever made, because we almost never see any of them actually play the game. Instead, they mostly sit around waiting for things to happen. Of course, nothing ever does.

All that would be okay if we had great characters and dialog, but the characters are entirely meh. The authors attempted to make the dialogue deep and mysterious, but nothing of importance is ever said or revealed, because nothing of importance ever happens in the plot, and the characters don't develop in any meaningful way. There's a little bit of action at the end, but after 20-something episodes of just waiting, I had long since ceased to care.

Generally, depending on the person, .hack//sign can be either extremely boring and a drag, or the best mix of story/sound/character that they have seen. Personally, it qualifies as one of my most favorite animes. When i first ventured into it, I wasn't expecting much. After all, the games for ps2 sucked. Soon, I found the character development and color of Tsubasa and her peers to be interesting. True, at times, the droning music and dull colors may make people fall asleep, but this tone is what characterizes .hack. It is meant to be in a dark environment, making it ... unique.

.hack//SIGN, the MMORPG anime that dares to break the mold and challenge our preconceived notions of the genre. Prepare yourself for a journey of dialogue-heavy, action-light storytelling that will either intrigue you or bore you to tears. Forget about the generic shounen anime tropes of annoying kids and unrealistic teenagers taking games way too seriously. This anime has bigger ambitions.

Now, don't get too excited, while the premise features players being stuck in a video game, this is not like Sword Art Online or other average VRMMORPG anime, so don't be fooled by the setting. If you're seeking fast-paced action and epic battles, you've come to ... the wrong place.

Some may find .hack//SIGN slow and boring, but that's merely a testament to its dedication to story progression and character development through dialogue, emotions, and background information. Instead of mindless battles and defeating antagonists, .hack//SIGN sets its sights on solving mysteries and delving into the psyche of its characters. It's a role-playing game where growth occurs both inside and outside the virtual world. Who needs action and excitement when you can have long, yet meaningful, philosophical conversations and emotional introspection?

'Don't take it too seriously; it's just a game'.

.hack//SIGN is generally gloomy, but not completely devoid of lighthearted moments. We have Mimiru, the young and slightly childish character who provides some much-needed balance to the show's serious and depressing atmosphere. And then there's Tsukasa, the cynical loner with trust issues. Together, they embark on a journey of character development and slowly but surely, Tsukasa learns to trust and open up. It's heartwarming, really.

'Do you know the story of the Little Mermaid? The princess who reveived beautiful legs...but lost her voice so she could see the prince. But the prince married someone else...and the mermaid disappeared in bubbles of light.. She shouldn't have wished to leave the sea. Don't you think so?' — A short tale from the anime that perfectly captures the essence of the protagonist's inner struggles. It's deep. It's meaningful. It's... well, you get the idea.

The animation, despite its age, holds up fairly well. The character design and use of colour are commendable. Sure, there are some moments when the animation feels a bit fast and funny due to a lack of in-between frames, but hey, the occasional shortcomings in animation are compensated by the beautiful background art. I suppose that's a fair trade-off.

Combined with the intricate background art, the lovely background music deserves a moment of appreciation for the work of the great composer Yuki Kajiura. The beautiful and fitting music adds depth and atmosphere to the series and is one of the highlights that truly elevates .hack//SIGN above the generic MMORPG anime crowd. This comes as no surprise, given Bee Train's exceptional sound directing.

In the end, .hack//SIGN is not a successful anime for the masses. It's an anime that appeals to a niche audience or gets mistaken for another run-of-the-mill isekai anime. It challenges conventions and delivers a unique experience that may not be everyone's cup of tea. So, if you're looking for a typical MMORPG anime, you might want to look elsewhere. But if you're open to something different, something that dives deep into character psychology and offers a thought-provoking narrative, then .hack//SIGN might just be worth a try.

.hack//Sign was a prequel to the .hack// video game series made by CyberConnect2 and released by Bandai about a decade ago. If I'm right, .hack//Sign and the rest of the series garnered a bit of popularity back in the day, though nowadays they are a bit aged and are becoming more and more forgotten. Despite being a prequel, .hack//Sign can work as a standalone product for the most part, and as such it can even be looked at on its own.

.hack//Sign is a slow moving anime, mostly focusing on character relationships and for the most part not showing much sign of a story for the ... first 10 episodes. In that time, we learn that Tsukasa, the main protagonist, is for some reason or another stuck in the game known as The World, and his being stuck there may have some relation with a legendary hidden item within The World called the Key of the Twilight. Other characters want to help Tsukasa leave the game and go searching for this hiden item. As a mystery anime, .hack//Sign throws out a lot of red herrings. It tries to get the viewer to latch onto ideas that serve little relevance to the main plot. And that's one of the problems: Almost all of the dialogue in .hack//Sign is unimportant and uninteresting, and it does little to move the plot forward. Other characters constantly find themselves trying to figure out what's going on with Tsukasa. They want to help him, but each episode just leads to more false information or no actual progress in helping him. It waters down the story and cuts the enjoyment of this anime down by a lot. Don't get me wrong, I like .hack//Sign, but it can be pretty hard for many anime viewers to watch I suspect due to all of the pointless talking. Its unnecessary, and the show could have been cut down considerably in the number of episodes and still tell the main storyline. The main story itself though is told in a way that still leaves the viewer interested. What is the Key of the Twilight? Will Tsukasa and the others find it? Why is Tsukasa stuck in the game, and why does he keep running away? What are all these flashbacks to the real world? Speaking of that, Tsukasa is worse than Shinji from Evangelion when it comes to running away and moving the story forward. It seems like Tsukasa being stuck in the game is a plot device, as its the other characters that actually work towards solving the mysteries and moving things forward for a good while. The story IS interesting however, and the setting of The World grants it a lot of mysteries, some of which admittedly go unsolved within this anime. You want to know what's going on. Its just that the execution of the story is problematic, and while the story is interesting, the story is also relatively short and simple. Its something simple told in a rather complex and somewhat realistic, somewhat dumb way.

The characters of the anime are a mixed bag. Most of the characters come off as dull and near lifeless, and the constant talking references their personal lives. While this may seem like good characterization, since the characters start off initially bland, the viewer may already be uninterested in learning about the individual characters lives. Added to this, most of the information about their personal lives that is mentioned in the anime, which takes up much more of the anime than it should, is really pointless and uninteresting. Do we really need an episode dedicated to a character's dislike of lettuce? That said, it is a unique thing that it goes so in depth on the characters, its just that it wasn't well executed in .hack//Sign. Still, none of the characters are hateable, and Tsukasa himself and a girl by the name of Lady Subaru are legitimately interesting. Tsukasa himself from the very beginning sparks interest in the viewer. Why does he keep running away, and why is he so unwilling to be social? .hack//Sign uses Tsukasa to explore one of the main themes of the show: Escapism. The whole show focuses heavily on the concept of escapism and how it affects the one running away and those around said person. (themes of escapism also show in how the real world is depicted)Tsukasa may be another Shinji, but he is his own character in just how far the show takes it. Then characters like Sora, a silly yet powerful player always searching for new information help keep things fun. And while it takes a long while for him to seem interesting, Silver Knight, a lawful knight who enforces the rules of the game, becomes interesting after some added characterization late in the series. But that's one of the problems with the show: It takes too long to move the story forward, and it takes too long to make most of the characters worth caring for. Only Tsukasa and Lady Subaru (who shows great interest in Tsukasa's situation) really start out interesting.

The art itself in the series is pretty to look at, though admittedly sometimes a bit simplistic, especially in backgrounds and fields. The age of the show shows, but nice character designs from the same person who did the character designs in Neon Genesis Evangelion make the characters interesting to look at. Occasionally close ups give added detail to the artwork, making it extremely impressive to look at, even to the point of making this show a great source for desktop backgrounds. The animation however, is usually pretty minimal. In the Monogatari Series, characters talk to each other for long periods of time, often with lots of crazy and silly yet good animation being shown on screen to keep things interesting. That isn't the case here. Most of the time, the animation is minimal and very boring. Occasionally however, when its really important, the animation takes vast improvements by leaps and bounds and everything moves really smoothly, however this is rare and is used for the most important scenes.

Now the sound is what I call a 10/10. The music was done by Yuki Kaijura, known for such soundtracks as the Sword Art Online soundtrack and the soundtrack to Puella Magi Madoka Magica. And while those soundtracks were good, .hack//Sign has by far some of the best music in any anime period, and the music outshines the music in SAO by a long shot and PMMM somewhat. Much of the music is comprised of what sounds like a violin or something similar, an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar, and pretty English vocals with lyrics often somewhat fitting to the storyline of the show. Its often very relaxing to listen to. Tracks like "The World" and "Key of the Twilight" really shine. I don't know how good the acting is in the Japanese voice track, but the English dub is pretty mediocre. Nothing too cringe-worthy or bad, but with the writing in this show, which is somewhat poorly written, things sound really weird being heard. It'd probably sound less weird reading it than listening to it. The acting itself is pretty mediocre too. Tsukasa sounds fine, Subaru's voice seems to fit the character well and Mimiru does a fine job, however the rest of the cast is varied. Some of which usually are entertaining to listen to while others are boring and lifeless or downright have bad acting.

Overall, .hack//Sign is a show that really shines in its music and artwork. It has plenty of character development if you're patient enough to wait for it, however ultimately that's what this show requires: Patience. If you don't like slow moving shows with lots of dialogue, stay away. If you're here because you liked Sword Art Online and wanted another MMO anime, just know that this show is VERY, VERY different. Ultimately I don't think I could recomend this anime for most anime fans. If you're patient or are a .hack// fan, go for it. Otherwise, .hack//Sign isn't the anime for you. Don't let that deter you from watching other .hack// anime however. Not all of them are the same. If you want .hack// but want something a bit faster paced and more fun, then .hack//Quantum or .hack//The Movie might be better suited for you.

Ah, .hack//SIGN. I might not be finished with it yet, but I am enjoying this series sooo much. It is my top priority right now, along with Sukisho and Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro, to watch this, I just love it that much.

Story (9): This is basically about a video game called The World and the characters that play this game. It's focused around Tsukasa, a male character that can't log out of the game. There are some things that have happened in the beginning that I still don't understand, but it's things that I can overlook. I find the story to be quite original, because ... I haven't seen anything like this yet. The first four episodes, I thought, 'Yeah, this is alright, I guess.' Thankfully I ordered the next four episodes of it, because that was when it caught me. The whole thing just makes me wonder what's going to happen next.

Art (8): Hmmm... I've seen some points in the anime where the art just gets kind of ugly. Don't get me wrong, it's got good art, but it's not the greatest that I've seen.

Sound (9): I refuse to watch dubbed when subbed is an option, so I can't tell you much about the dubbed, but the subbed voices are, in my opinion, phenomenal. The voices fit perfectly with the characters. But there's one voice that I can't stand sometimes: Bear. I like the voice, but sometimes it gets annoying.

Character (9): Oh, how I love some of these characters... I'm a pretty big Tsukasa fan, because he just, in one word, pwns. XD Sora is one of my favorite characters, too, because he's just so funny at times! He's a jerk in a happy-go-lucky kind of way. (He makes me think of Sakamochi from Battle Royale at points.) All of these characters, with the acception of one: Subaru. I really don't like her. I don't really know why... There actually is some character development! It's amazing! You never see character development anymore...

Enjoyment (9): This keeps my attention pretty well. There are some boring parts mixed in there with a bunch of talking with Subaru. But that usually stops pretty soon and goes back to the interesting stuff. I really do enjoy this anime.

Overall (9): I could quite possibly give this a ten, but I don't feel like I would be being honest. I will very rarely give a ten. So a nine is a big compliment, along with the fact I'm actually reviewing. .hack//SIGN is a great anime, but I feel like you will either love it or hate it. I happen to love it. It's interesting and actually surprises me at some points.

So go watch it. Right now. ^-^

Kudos for being one of the first few animes with the topic of MMORPG. That is the only positive i can say of this title. Having recently finish season one of Log Horizon and still being in the mood for more anime with this genre,i decided to watch this series. Thinking that it would be of similar mold to Log Horizon,i went into this series having some what of a high expectation but was extremely disappointed. Even though,the artwork was not spectacular given that it came out in 2002,i was hoping that the story line would be interesting enough to compile me overlook this particular ... flaw. Sadly,the story line was worst than it's artwork,it was just 26 episodes of characters talking to each other. There were little to no action sequences at all throughout the either series. Even the conversations between the characters were boring as they use a lot of scientific sounding jargon that i think were probably made up for the series. Now,i pride myself as only watching animes with its original Japanese dubbing,but after three to four episodes,it became too tedious and i had to switch to the English dub. That did not help as the series continued to be dull,wanting to finish the whole series,i labored through the remaining episodes. Overall,if you are the type who likes animes with a lot of dialogues,than this series will suit you but for me,i would rather die than have to ever re-watch this series again. 2/10,re-watch Log Horizon if you have to instead of this title. (this rating is only for .Hack//Sign,i have not watch the other variations of this series)

Well I almost don't know what to say about .hack//Sign, there was so much I loved about this show and then so much that made me want to claw out my eyes. Lets just dive into this.

STORY:
.hack//Sign takes place in a virtual reality MMORPG called "The World". Players in the world have different classes and play styles that they choose from and play. They all can play the game differently. We focus in on a player named Tsukasa who is trapped in The World, unable to log out. Tsukasa doesn't know why this is happening and neither does anyone else. The story progresses as Tsukasa ... meets other players who all become interested and worried about why Tsukasa can't login. They embark on and EPIC journey to find out the mystery behind this... they don't seem to be in any rush what so ever because they seem to like sitting around talking....

This has to be one of the WORST paced stories I have ever seen in anything ever. I get that the writers wanted to make the story and places feel real but this anime could have easily been around 14 episodes long, but it is dragged out way to much. It had such a great and interesting premise, but it just lacked any since of urgency. There were times were I could have easily just dropped the show but....

CHARACTERS:
The characters in .hack//Sign are very very well done and flushed out. Despite the horrible pacing of the shows story I didn't drop the show because the characters are just so good. They are all very real, I've played MMORPGs before and I would have to say I have encountered basically someone who is like each and every character in .hack//Sign in a MMORPG. I found myself very attached to the characters because the way they interacted with each other felt very real. They all have their own reasons for wanting to help Tsukasa, and most of them felt very believable.

SOUND:
Yuki Kajiura... that is all. What an absolutely beautiful soundtrack! It made the moods of the show feel more passionate. It gave The World a feel of mystery, fantasy and scale. If I go on anymore I'll be rambling. I watched the English dub of the show (shut up you Elitest and Weeaboos) and I have to say I was fairly impressed. Brianne Siddall did an suburb job in portraying Tsukasa and Paul Mercier smooth fatherly voice was a perfect fit for Bear. Every time Mimiru talked I thought that Rei Ayanami was on crack LAWL (share same VA) A solid performance from all the English voice actors. Oh and I'm sure all the Japanese VA's made reading the subtitles just "grand" For as much talking as this show has you owe it to your eyes to watch .hack//Sign in English plus it was a good dub.

ART:
The art in .hack//Sign was kinda meh. They made the world look nice, but nothing really stood out to me as WOW THAT LOOKS AWESOME. Same thing on the animation side, since they don't move much it was hard to really judge the animation quality, but for the few times there were "action scenes" it looked almost out of place. Not much else to say, it works but nothing really to brag or complain about.

ENDING:
I just had to put this in don't worry there are no spoilers. The ending of .hack//Sign ranks as the all time worst ending to any anime that I have ever watched. It just sucked and offered no closure at all. The story was just building up and up and up and the it ended in kind of a "LAWL NOPE CTRL ALT DEL" fashion.... I don't care if it's a lead into the games THE ENDING IS PARAMOUNT!! So yea that pissed me off. Don't get me started on the filler OVAs, an anime should be able to stand on its own without having to have OVAs or movies fill in the holes.

OVERALL:
Despite my hatred for the ending and the pacing of the show .hack//Sign was actually rather enjoyable. The story does pick up in the last 6 episodes and there is enough interesting aspects of the show to consider watching it. The music is great, the voice actor spot on and it is easy to relate to the characters. I enjoyed .hack//Sign but honestly to someone who wants something fast paced and action heavy (I.e SAO people who want to see more of SAO like stuff) I would pass on .hack//Sign. It's a great watch for someone who is wanting really a character drama and for those people, you will enjoy .hack//Sign.

Okay, I generally cannot watch anything Studio Beetrain produces, Most of the stuff they put out generally is uninteresting or boring, I watched both Noir and Madlax completely through, Noir was boring, but Madlax was fantastic. The .hack series is a major major letdown, I personally feel that a series like this has way too many complicated terms and sometimes stops people from trying to follow the story, Maybe the story was just ahead of it's time but I feel that it needed to be stronger and unfortunately it is very easy to get lost, but I wish the story was put into a language ... everyone can understand.

In my youth, I watched .hack//Sign and understood little of it. I've rewatched it recently and found that a lot of the themes, namely about growing up and coming out of one's shell, are spot on. Sign remains my favorite in the series, primarily because other entries are more adventure plots whereas this one is much more about character interactions and an overarching mystery about how to help Tsukasa.

Most criticisms of Sign that you'll hear are valid; It's slow, the characters can be pretty insufferable from time to time, and its success has caused spiritual successors or follow-ups that one might like better. The score ... is really quite good, though I could see where over 26 episodes, one might get tired of hearing the same music cues. Further, in spite of the brilliant watercolor backgrounds and hand-drawn nature of the show, I'd not defend Sign as being visually dynamic or particularly exciting artistically.

Where Sign stands out is in drawing you in to its world (helpfully enough called 'The World') and its conflict. The music work and backgrounds are a start, being in and of themselves works of art that can stand alone. The characters interactions and bonds are vital and develop organically in ways that make sense given the individuals' psyches and goals. Leads towards fixing what's wrong in The World normally take an episode or longer to mature, so when the party does strap on their adventuring boots for a plot-relevant dungeon romp, the payoff seems greater.

There's a lot of good character work here, with Tsukasa being so divisive and annoying because he is the up-his-own-ass woe-is-me Shinji Ikari that perhaps we all had a phase of being. Everyone in the show is vulnerable, though those vulnerabilities are what drive them towards their noble (or sometimes ignoble) ends. Dropping hints on each character's trauma takes place at a pace that might be seen as too slow, but at least avoids the trap of seeming like a rushed exposition dump.

There are some flaws here that can't simply be handwaved as a matter of taste, hence why I don't think it's a masterpiece and or that anyone who objects to it is a philistine. There's some filler and fluff to pad out the methodical pace the show wants to go at, characters will swap loyalties readily to the point it can be hard to track what characters are working towards, dialog can sometimes be more accurately described as a whirlpool than a back and forth towards a point, and elements of the plot that are played up as really important may not get a commensurate amount of screentime.

All that said, Sign is a work that speaks to me a lot. It is without doubt a bit of bias on my part that its flaws are ones I more readily accept and its virtues and potential are things I normally thirst for in anime, making for a perfect storm where such an obviously imperfect show can be so dear to me. Give it a watch yourself; even if you're not sucked in by it, its shadow stretches long across the MMO anime genre, making it as much a cultural piece as a show in and of itself.