Witch Hunter Robin

Witch Hunter Robin is one of those animes that, while I see many of its faults, I can't help but enjoy it. The plot and character development are interesting and draw you in, allowing you to overcome the somewhat less enticing art/ animation style.

The anime is somewhat of a noir/ supernatural, though it is definitely more toned down than others. I'd say, for me, this is a very much character-driven story. Robin, the main character, is an interesting lead shrouded in mystery. She is not the typical weak main character, but she has plenty of room for growth. The side characters are interesting ... though some could have definitely been more developed! In general, the characters remain mysterious and yet likeable enough to build the story.

The art style and animation are not the best but they get the job done, and the character design for each of the characters is unique and adds to the story. While the animation is a bit dated, it does not distract from the story at hand.

Overall, if you enjoy supernatural action, badass female leads and some mystery, check out Witch Hunter Robin!

The only saving grace of this show is the overall aesthetics and atmosphere. The character designs have that early 00s / late 90s look that makes me feel nostalgic. The characters tend to have this blend of gothic/witchy 80s cyberpunk aesthetics that is very muted and I found that enjoyable. The environment art is typically lacking in detail, but often paints an interesting perspective of what life is like in this world. In general, everything is very muted and dark, which I find enjoyable. There are a lot of scenes with the main characters hanging out in their workplace or at a local restaurant, and ... I really enjoyed those more relaxing scenes.

The animation is minimal, there's nothing here that will impress you. The music is oftentimes awkward and amateurish, but adds to the unique atmosphere of the show in a campy sort of way, though I'm not sure that's intentional. There are frequently abrupt scene transitions that feel unnatural. The voice acting in the dub is well done for the most part, though I feel either the writing is weak or a lot was lost in translation. There's many conversations that feel unnatural, and when exposition occurs about finer aspects of the plot, it sometimes doesn't make sense.

The characters are all a bit one-dimensional and there's not much character development that occurs throughout the show. The plot is a bit of a mess. At times, it really drags. Some lore and exposition is kind of glossed over, while some other points are repeated so much that it feels like the writing either forgot itself, or doesn't respect my intelligence. There are a few moments where bombshells are dropped, and they typically fall flat.

In summary, the aesthetics and ambiance of Witch Hunter Robin is interesting, but in all other regards the show falls flat.

19 years after its release, I came across Witch Hunter Robin while looking for a mystery anime. I wondered why such a series with a striking female lead and catchy summary had so little popularity and decided to watch and see.

Beautiful music and animation, classy and intriguing character design. It has been a serious while since I have come across an anime where every person has their own look, style, attitude, and even facial features. Lately, I have been doing an experiment by imagining each character without their hair. Usually, this proves they are all drawn in the exact same way and their differences ... hang by a hair (sorry, could not resist). Well, in Witch Hunter Robin, this is not the case – appears actual care was taken when each character was created and animated.

The series’ Goth-steampunk-y reality gets an additional boost by its great soundtrack. The opening and closing songs are amazing and so is the music used all around the scenes. It is strong and beautiful and, at the same time, melancholic, alluring and mysterious – just like the lead character should be.

Unfortunately, somehow this is all wasted. The anime fails to provide any background and any chain of events, but rather stays in the dubious genre of an action slice of life and this is a paradox on its own. The development is so slow that I had to watch on double speed. Even then, I would still get bored while waiting for people to turn their heads while speaking. This is not the full-of-details-and-context atmospheric slow of Akira Kurosawa. This is just pointless, annoying slow.

There are no relations built between the characters. They appear to have feelings towards one another but there is no reason why and how.

In the second part (starting with episode 15) the series’ creators try to introduce some conflict, but it is too little too late, especially in the crumbled mess of events slowly and gradually spread out during the previous 14 episodes. It seems like they had an individual story in mind for each character, then quit on each one of them, leaving multiple loose ends for the story to trip on. Seeing this, the creators probably got annoyed and, taken over by hopelessness, decided to quit on it altogether leaving us wondering about basics such as who and what’s behind each clashing side.

All in all, we have a great setting and promising characters but no story. The team behind the series fail to even develop such simple and basic conflict as the torment and doubt when hunting your own kind. The anime ends up being the longest build-up in history without ever reaching a point. And anything that does not have a point is just pointless.

I give Witch Hunter Robin a 4, as it is living proof of how difficult it is to create original content.