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I usually understand the hype around seasonal anime, but this one really stumps me. Have legions of people never seen another shounen before? Are people just watching the OP and then skipping to the water scenes? Do people actually find Zenitsu's non-stop screaming funny? These are all questions I had to grapple with while watching probably the most disappointing series in all of 2019.

Story - It's a fairly standard 'kill the bad guy who killed my family' story, with a bit of Tokyo Ghoul tossed in. It hits several common shounen tropes and executes on them somewhat-competently, I guess: a training arc, an exam, another ... training arc. Not only is the story mildly interesting at best, but the serious moments are regularly undercut with jarring and awkward "comedy" bits or exchanges. The atmosphere of the show is regularly undercut by a bizarre compulsion to insert silly character reactions, goofy voice acting, or a cliche gag.

Art - The art for this series is very polished, and the animation for the fights is top-notch. The character's main attack style has a unique aesthetic for anime. The actual character designs and art style is on the standard side but is distinctive enough to stand out. The look of this show is definitely one of it's saving graces.

Sound - I'll say it now - the Adult Swim 30 second edit of this OP is all you need; there's almost nothing substantial in the other 60 seconds. That 30 seconds is an absolute banger, though. In general, the OST for this series is great, and it likely set the tone better than the writing ever could.

Characters - Make it stop. When I was forcing myself through this show, I would've paid money for a version of these episodes with Zenitsu's constant shrieking cut out. Did the producers actually find this funny? I don't know if I've ever encountered a more actively irritating character in my time watching anime. Most of the other characters are just bland. The MC has almost no personality and basically serves as a vessel to drive the story. The other characters are embodied entirely by the first sentence of their character trope on TV Tropes; nothing else that's memorable or even remotely interesting at all. Even the villain falls flat at first, because the series has no idea how to introduce him correctly.

Enjoyment - There were maybe three good episodes in the entire series, the rest range from skippable to very skippable.


Conclusion - I wish I had some explanation for the absolute explosion of popularity this series had. Is the fanbase primarily 12-15 year olds watching their first anime? Do people just look at the art and not read the subtitles? Is there a waifu in the manga I don't know about? Whatever it is, it should be made more clear, so people like me know to just skip this show, skim the manga, and rewatch Hunter x Hunter instead.

Overhype, thy name is Evangelion.

Since I started watching anime, it seemed that all anybody could do was talk about how amazing this show is. In a sense, they're right. When one watches this show, they must see it through a lens of how revolutionary Evangelion was at the time, and how largely it influenced anime. However, this review isn't about that. This review is about how enjoyable this anime is to watch. Evangelion is well-written, full of symbols, and smartly deconstructs the mecha genre; however, it is pretentious, at its best underwhelming, and at its worst a complete waste of time to watch.

Let me preface ... this by saying that I am not a fan of the mecha genre. However, I was assured repeatedly by fans who swear by this show that this show is a psychological thriller at heart, and that the mecha aspect isn't very important. This is incorrect. Between the lack of cliffhangers, the episodic plot structure, and the fairly predictable mecha fights, I was at times forcing myself to watch the next episode as I so dearly hoped that the next one would become more captivating and finally begin to shed light on why this show is so revered. Unsurprisingly, I was disappointed.

Some would argue that the plot predictability comes from how much this show influenced future shows that I've probably already seen. Even if this were true, it doesn't fix the problem; it only shifts the blame around. Moreover, the episodic plots, predicable or not, still were not compelling in the slightest. This is the real issue, and regardless of what causes these issues, it doesn't change the fact that it makes the show far less entertaining.

Ironically, I liked the last two episodes more than the rest of the show combined. Perhaps it was because the writers couldn't use mecha battles and instead had to write some actually interesting and compelling character or philosophy-driven content. I won't get into detail as to what happens in them, but they were a breath of fresh air and a remarkable improvement to the series (even if their budget was nearly nonexistent at that point).

Evangelion is a tricky case. Yes, the show is filled with symbolism and motifs and other such nonsense, but packing an otherwise mediocre series with symbolic imagery doesn't inexplicably improve the enjoyment of the show. Fans of this show berate others who didn't like it for not "getting" it, and that people who truly understood the show would love it. This variant of the No True Scotsman fallacy is the exact same thing that similar fans use to dismiss those who didn't like FLCL, and it's just as wrong. If you enjoy the mecha genre enough to see a deconstruction of it, and don't mind some predictability, Evangelion will be right up your alley. Otherwise, you are only wasting your time.

After finishing the marvelously written Toradora, I found a void in my heart that could only be filled with other romance-genre anime. I had heard of Golden Time as being another romance written by the same author as Toradora, which immediately had me intrigued. From the first 10 minutes or so, I could tell that this show would be - pardon the pun - a golden time.

There are a few pieces of this show that really stood out. The first is probably the most often mentioned when discussing this show: a rejection of the typical "romance" format (waiting until the last episode for a relationship ... to happen) and instead having the relationship happen early-ish in the series, with the remainder being used to examine that relationship and how the circumstances this show creates changes the relationships in this show.

The other most striking thing about this show is how original the plot is. There are unique circumstances for the main character(s) which makes this far more than just about a relationship. It forces the viewer to ask questions about their own identity and its influence from how others perceive them, as well as many more that I can't quite go into without actually giving spoilers. This gave the show a drive and context in a direction that kept me interested fairly early on, and kept me guessing until the end.

As a side note, the comedy in this show is most definitely better than average. The show was outright brilliant at times with it's comedy and made me laugh out loud on my own at least twice, which is a rare occurrence for me. The voice acting was marvelous

Of course, the show was not without its flaws. The characters (mostly just the main character) sometimes reacted to a situation in a way not consistent with their age (them being college students). Understandably this adds some characterization, and not everyone can react maturely all of the time, but I still found myself frustrated at times. Moreover, parts of the ending are confusing at first until you realize what's symbolism and what isn't. These are all small imperfections in an otherwise marvelous show.

This show surprised me from the first episode. It kept me engaged throughout the series, and made sure that I felt the emotional anguish the other characters felt when things got dramatic. Much like Toradora is commentary on the difference between love and infatuation, Golden Time is commentary on how powerful love can be, and the struggle of facing our problems for someone we love. I can certainly assure you that this is a message that I will not soon forget.

After watching (and enjoying) A Certain Scientific Railgun, I was very excited to start this show. Railgun is meant to be as a spinoff for one of the side characters in Index, so I was very curious to see what the main story actually is. To my dismay, however, I learned that Index, despite being the main story, is overwhelmingly average and mediocre compared to Railgun. I doubt I would have enjoyed this at all if there weren't any of the side characters from Railgun to keep things somewhat interesting.

Much like most anime that I have gripes with, my main two issues are the story ... and the characters. Let's begin with the story: in a single word, I would describe it as disjointed. The story is split into several small arcs that feel like they have very little to do with one another; in addition, none of the arcs are particularly interesting (aside from the one that featured the MC from Railgun). The "magic" side of the show feels generic and offers absolutely nothing new to anyone who has ever seen any show like this. Overall, most of the episodes failed to keep my interest.

The characters are my other biggest problem, or more specifically the character motivations. The main character is basically copy-pasted from any other superpower harem anime and he has a martyr complex to the point of attempting to sacrifice himself every chance he gets for a character (usually a girl) that he literally just met. And of course, on the other side of this, every girl he meets ends up inexplicably developing feelings for him because he seems to care so much and because fuck it he's the main character. Almost none of the characters are developed and the majority of them are not interesting.

This series ultimately serves as a far inferior complement to the much more enjoyable and well-written A Certain Scientific Railgun. If I hadn't enjoyed Railgun so much I likely would've dropped this fairly quickly. Although an anime doesn't need to have complex/interesting characters to be enjoyable (see: Hataraku Maou-Sama!), nor does it need to have a particularly original story, not having either ends up only further exposing the flaws of the show. And this show certainly had many flaws exposed.

As I read through these reviews, I become more and more convinced that the people writing them are confusing this show with Afterstory. Yes, Afterstory very rightfully has a special place in most of our hearts for being a compelling and emotional ride (starting from episode 8). However, this review is not about Afterstory- it's about Clannad. For all of it's amazing reviews, season 1 of Clannad is a piece of work so overwhelmingly cookie-cutter that it may in fact be the most overrated romance story of all time.

First, let me discuss what I liked about Clannad. Comedy is undeniably the best feature in this ... otherwise lackluster show. The comedic moments were scattered throughout the series, and were generally centered around either the MC liking to mess with people, the MCs sidekick friend doing something stupid, and Nagisa's dad being Nagisa's dad. Any scene with Nagisa's dad (Akio) is automatically gold, and that's a fact. Overall, the comedic antics in this show helped bring life to the otherwise stale and overplayed plot.

Now let's get to the plot. The plot of the show feels like a poorly paced adaptation of a bland, generic harem visual novel. Look! The MC is a delinquent and nobody likes him. Except for the girls who keep showing up in his life and inexplicably falling for him. I wonder which one he will choose! Aside from there being nothing original nor interesting about any of the characters (except Akio), the entire story itself is weak and poorly paced, attempting to develop the girls in his harem but ultimately rushing through development and not even attempting to explain why most of these girls like him.

I cannot begin to count how many times I rolled my eyes at this series, especially during the second half. The anime had spent so much time attempting to give backstories to side characters that it completely neglected the arguably most important girl until about episode 20. Until then she can literally be characterized as "she's there in the background somewhere".

And that's where my other main issue with Clannad is - the character motivations don't make sense. People tell me that things are explained better in the visual novel, but this isn't the visual novel. I should be able to understand why a character feels a certain way about another character after watching 23 episodes of a show, especially when those feelings are the entire premise to Afterstory. And yet, due to poor (or nonexistent) character development and pacing, I find myself having a hard time believing any of the feelings that these characters have towards one another, causing their actions to make little sense. Viewers have to so boldly suspend their disbelief just to accept things that should be second nature to any well-written show.


To summarize, Clannad is absolutely nothing special. The only reason this show is ranked so high is because season 1 rides on the coattails of the success and acclaim of Afterstory. However, the show isn't outright terrible. It may be cliche and underwhelming, but it certainly could have been worse in many aspects. The primary reason I write this review is because of how grossly overrated Clannad is. The best way to see this show is as a necessary evil to those who want to watch Afterstory. Attempting to get more out of this show than that will leave you dissatisfied.




Side note - for those who want to watch Afterstory, I recommend watching the recap episode of season 1 and then starting Afterstory at episode 8. I guarantee that you will not miss anything.

I've seen many people compare this anime to a novel or another work of literary art. In a sense, they are correct. I found this anime to be very reminiscent of some of the books my english class had assigned in high school: well-written, full of symbolism and poetic imagery, but not engaging/captivating.

Story - My biggest issue with this show is the story. The basic plot (which you can read in the above synopsis) seems simple enough. However, there are many side stories, background stories, and things that are hinted at that are never resolved, explored, nor explained. Many times an episode would end with ... a very interesting turn of events, only to have the next episode hand-wave it away and pretend that nothing had happened, in favor of focusing on the "main story".

The story in general felt unfocused, like several different vignettes were hastily strung together chronologically, and then some details were added after-the-fact to create some vague impression of continuity.


Characters - As far as characters go, none were very memorable; with the exception of the doctor who replied to everything with "how overwhelming". He was great.

The problem with this show is that you learn over the course of it that the character relationships between everyone are in fact very complicated, so complicated that it becomes difficult to keep track of each character's motivation and backstory.

Sound -
I enjoyed the soundtrack throughout the show. The opening themes are by far the most memorable parts of the show, and the second one is especially well-written. The original Japanese voice acting is standard quality Japanese voice acting. Moreover, I would not recommend the dub. Some of the performances do not do the characters justice, and feel awkward to hear. However, if you're really inclined on not reading subtitles, then the dub is acceptable and you shouldn't run into too much trouble.

Art - The art is arguably the most interesting part of this show. There are many stylistic choices which make the scenes very interesting to watch from an outside perspective. Additionally, artistic themes are present throughout the show, all hinting at some deeper meaning and adding to the atmosphere of the show.

Enjoyment - Throughout the series, I was never thoroughly interested nor invested in the story. Even in the final few episodes I found myself wanting to put the show on hold because I wasn't very concerned as to what would happen. However, this isn't to say I was bored the whole time. There were some very memorable scenes and I did enjoy both the symbolism and the philosophical dialogue that was scattered throughout the show.

Summary - It's tough to summarize an anime like this. The writing and ideas had such potential, but the execution was lacking. The show is unique in that it is both not compelling and yet leaves something to be desired. Unless you really enjoy symbolism and don't mind it when plot lines go completely unaddressed, watching this will only disappoint you.

It seems that the writers were convinced that rapidly alternating between art styles, animating grandiose nonsense, and neglecting a coherent story are viable substitutions for writing something that's actually entertaining. They were wrong. I was bored senseless both times I watched this, even though I read many analyses of the series after my first watch.


Story - There isn't one. When I try to describe it to people they think that I'm just making things up. The story is so nonexistent that it's pretty impossible to spoil.
2/10

Character - The MC from Evangelion is paired up with a bipolar schizophrenic girl with unexplained magical powers. The ... character interactions are nonsensical and character motivations are not even remotely explored. It's impossible to take anyone in this series seriously.
2/10

Art - One of the few redeeming elements of the show. The art is admittedly superbly well done, especially the over-the-top ridiculous sequences that this show is known for. My score ignores how the authors used the many changing art styles as a replacement for actual content.
9/10

Sound - The sound was excellent as well. The soundtrack was great, the voice actors were solid, and the english dub is surprisingly good. 9/10

Enjoyment - Watching this once was once too many. Some people might enjoy seeing bright flashing colors and absurd sequences of nonsense, but for me it became trite and jaded 10 minutes into the first episode. I was a fool to continue watching, deluding myself into thinking that it would get better.
1/10

Overall - The problem with this show is that if everything is ridiculous, then nothing is ridiculous. I love surrealism, grandiosity and not always understanding everything until the end, but FLCL tries so hard to take everything to an extreme that it struggles to be coherent or meaningful. Perhaps this is why fans are convinced that this show is complex - the idea that they so thoroughly wasted 2 hours of their life on something with absolutely no purpose is disconcerting, so they fabricate some "deeper meaning" for the show when in reality, there isn't one. Or, at the very least, there isn't one that can be attained without grasping at straws. And that's not a meaning worth discussing.

What makes a show great? Is it the engaging story? Is it the interesting characters? Is it the immersion the show creates? I find myself always asking these questions whenever I start a series. Hunter x Hunter was no exception. I hadn't heard much when I first started it, but I had heard comparisons to Fullmetal Alchemist and Attack on Titan, both of which are some of my favorite shounens. Still, I had my doubts. "148 episodes? How could there possibly be that much interesting plot without fillers?" I asked. I was a fool.

Let me tell you right now, 148 episodes is not enough. I ... would give anything for more episodes of arguably the most outstanding series I have ever had the good fortune of watching.


Story - I'm not going to go into detail about the story; you can read the synopsis for that. I'll instead talk about the storytelling itself. The story starts off fairly interesting and grows exponentially more interesting per episode/arc. The author, Togashi, has an amazing sense of pacing; some plots take several episodes to resolve, but so much happens in each episode that it becomes something that enhances the show. The story is also incredibly immersive because of how well Togashi builds the HxH world. As you follow the main characters on their journey, you learn more and more about just how expansive and unique the world is. There's always something new to explore, which really does make the show feel like an adventure.

Each arc varies in tone. The show starts off pretty light, and gradually gets darker. My god does it get darker. Not to imply that the light arcs are inferior; they're still immensely enjoyable. The show just contains many different forms of entertainment. The darker arcs will include scenarios and scenes of such intensity, drama, and action, that you won't understand how anyone could've possibly waited a week for the next episode. Lastly, there's one element in the story that snuck up on me and transformed into something so beautiful and moving that I simply didn't know what to do with myself.
10/10


Characters - There are very few ways to adequately describe how brilliantly the author writes such likeable, unique, and interesting characters. And I mean all of them. This is a rare kind of show where every time I see a character come back after not being around, I feel such joy seeing them. Especially the villains - you will love the villains so much that you legitimately will not know who to root for at many parts in the series. The show often develops villains so much that I found myself at times hating a "good guy" just because of what they did to a "bad guy".
10/10


Sound - I know this upsets many people but I enjoy watching dubbed anime. However, this is on my short list of shows where the voice acting in Japanese is so good, I'm afraid of a dub being made because I honestly don't think the characters can be done justice. I'm even afraid to watch the original 1999 version because the voice actors are different.

As for the soundtrack, I don't have much to say. The soundtrack fits the show remarkably well, however there's nothing particularly outstanding about it (save for a few episodes, when a "requiem" is played for a certain character for example).
9/10

Art - The art studio Madhouse really brought their A-game. Their production of this show is almost paramount to how enjoyable it is. As great as the manga is, it wouldn't have been nearly as enjoyable without the stunning artwork and directing that Madhouse designed.
10/10


Enjoyment - This is pretty self-explanatory at this point. If I could erase my knowledge of any anime and watch it from the beginning, it would likely be this one. Hell, at this point I'd gladly watch 30 episodes of pure filler just to see more of the characters and the world.
10/10


Regardless of the genres you enjoy, Hunter x Hunter is guaranteed to be a breath of fresh air. Togashi seems to have a penchant to subvert almost every trope and cliche in the book, leaving you guessing at every turn. The result is a brilliant and captivating piece of entertainment, guaranteed to captivate you like almost no other show can. Whatever your answer to the question "what makes a series great?" is, know that Hunter x Hunter has it.

P.S. Hisoka is love, Hisoka is life.