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-No spoilers are contained within this review-

Night on the galactic Railroad is quite the ride… to say the least. Before beginning this movie I had been given fair warning, yet I still proceeded giving it the benefit of the doubt.

Story (2/10)

Have you ever smoked acid? Me neither, but I’m pretty sure this story is something that might pop into your head if you did. Get ready for the ride of your life as you follow two cardboard cutouts into a cluster of strange and meaningless scenes. Usually stories have linear plots and character developments with a twist at the end that makes ... everything make sense. Gisaburou Sugii throws all of that out the windows. Night on the Galactic Railroad is a tale that will leave you shocked at the fact that you just spent over an hour of your life watching nothing.

Animation (1/10)

Bambi was made in 1942 and the animation still hold up to this day. Night on the Galactic Railroad was made in the mid 1980’s (38 years later) and the animation was terrible. This is a slideshow of a movie. Almost every shot is either a panning shot or a series of recycled animation.

Sound (1/10)

Never has there been a more disturbing sound track in anime. For 113 minutes I squirmed in my seat out of discomfort. The soundtrack consists of nothing but scary, creepy, and unsettling music. Even if the characters are going through something heartfelt or loving the music would cut in and ruin everything. The quality of the music is also a problem. This static music not only sounds bad but it breaks all illusion of immersion, destroying the atmosphere, which in all honesty is a breath of fresh air.

Characters (1/10)

Have you ever sat down and looked at a piece of cardboard covered in crayon scribble. That’s basically the experience of watching these characters on the screen. There has never been a more cold hearted character as Giovanni. This ice cold cat stares without compassion as children drown before his eyes. The only other being that is as heartless as Giovanni is his prick friend Campanella. This couple stares poker-faced as they see horrific sights and atrocities committed in front of them. It does not matter what these characters go through, their facial expressions will not change in the slightest.

Enjoyment (1/10)

The sound scraped against my ears, the animation scraped against my eyes, and the story scraped against my soul. This movie was uncomfortable, horribly written, and everything about it made me want to turn it off. This was a train-wreck of a movie.
Other Thoughts
I would not recommend this movie to anyone and neither should you.

-No spoilers are contained within this review-

Story (6/10)
When I first got a grasp on the story in Another I was slightly surprised. I started to watch this show with expectations of a cliché storyline, where the “surprises” could be seen from a mile away. The story in fact is something very different than what I would expect. Another takes the form of a “slice of life” show at the very beginning and evolves from then on into a thriller. The whole of the story follows a character named Kouichi Sakakibara after he transfers to a new high school. As he begins adjusting to his new ... surroundings he notices a girl in his class named Mei Misaki. Mei (for reasons unknown) has been ostracized by the rest of the class so Kouichi, being a nice and friendly guy, starts talking to her and befriends her. Once strange accidents and calamities start befalling the classmates Kouichi takes it upon himself to find out what is going on. This story setting is something that I have never run into before, so, naturally, it caught my interest. Even though the storyline was unique it unfortunately seemed to be lacking. Exposition about the plot is very dry and sometimes hard to understand. The main character’s investigation pretty much consists of sitting in the school library and sifting through old yearbooks. Seriously? I had to take points off for that. Where the story really shines is the situations. Many characters will find themselves time and again in very strenuous or perilous circumstances, all of which come out of the blue and give the watcher a very strong sense of suspense. This was what kept me going, and honestly what saves the show in my opinion. I will not spoil anything but I have to say that these parts are extremely well done and had me on the edge of my seat.

Animation (5/10)
The one thing that makes a thriller movie good is the atmosphere and on this section I have mixed feelings. The characters are drawn well enough and the animation quality fits together, but there is one issue. The key to scaring the audience is getting them immersed into the story, making them more susceptible to fear, but there are parts where immersion is broken. For instance near the ending (no spoilers) there is a scene in which a fire breaks out. One huge immersion breaker for me is the animation of the flames. To be blunt it’s extremely bad. Honestly it looks like something out of an old Playstation game. To have something look so poor at the climax of the show is a huge mistake. To be honest I made the effort to try to ignore it so that the experience wouldn’t be ruined. Other than that the animation is fine. The atmosphere is done effectively enough to tell the story with little interruption.

Sound (8/10)
I’m sure people who watch thrillers know that sound plays a crucial role in completing the atmosphere. In the case of Another they pull it off very well. The music is downright creepy, silence is used correctly, and the OP sets the tone for the show. I found that when the atmosphere was lacking or part of the animation was “hiccuping” that the music and sounds would be enough to keep me involved.

Characters (5/10)
This one is hard for me to admit, but the characters aren’t really well done. They are very average, bland, and plain cookie cutter. That being said, they still fulfill their roles as characters. I never found myself attached to the two main characters, as I should have been. Let’s just leave it as this. There was nothing outstanding about them. There was enough to make me scared and interested but overall they leave something to be desired.

Enjoyment (8/10)
This show is like junk food. You know it’s bad, the ingredients are not up to par, but there’s just something about it that you like. Apart from all of the faults mentioned above I still really enjoyed this show. There were a few parts that tested my patience and/or bored me, but they were brief enough that I still continued I think it was worth sticking out. Nothing about this show will astound you, make you think, or leave you breathless, but regardless it can still scare you. Everything comes together just enough so that the ride is still a lot of fun, and for me that’s worth something.

Overall (6.4/10)
Like I said before. This show is junk food. Not to say that it’s total garbage. It is not all that well done but proved to be an entertaining and fun ride. Apart from its lackluster appearance and somewhat shaky atmosphere Another still freaked me out and gave me a good time. If you like thrillers that are gruesome and creepy, but you’re not looking for something to overanalyze or study, this is a good two-dimensional product that may be worth your while. Even though it was slightly forgettable I had a good time and, if you pick it up, I hope you do too.