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Noragami was simply decent, although if someone were to ask me whether I liked it, my answer to that question would lean more towards a "No, not really" oriented answer. Quite frankly, this show disappointed me, to say the least. And its unfortunate because I really thought I was going to like this one, but sadly, the hype just didn't cut it for this one.

Story: 6/10

Definitely not the best, and fails to be in many ways. It lacked too many major details, and I found it somewhat choppy in some areas. At first, I liked the whole, "stray god trying to make it big" ... idea, and the first half of the series was manageable, if not, enjoyable, but as it progressed further, I felt myself beginning to lose it. It lacked detail and sophistication, a show that would only be worth posing as a time-killer, just another thing to keep you semi-busy until you can find something more interesting to do.

Art/Visuals: 7/10

Wasn't too bad, especially since I also watched this on in high quality (I always watch my animes in HD in order to give it's visuals a better judgement). The anime was also filled with many scenic parts, which proved to be beautifully colored and detailed, as well as decent looking effects. However, during most, if not, ALL the fight scenes, the animation dropped by at least 50%. This isn't particularly uncommon in most anime, but that certainly doesn't mean it isn't a problem, especially since this is a shorter series. Most short anime series I've seen lately (ones that have aired around the same time as Noragami) have all managed to keep a steady and nice animation quality, even throughout moments where most animators would get lazy and throw in some half-assed frames or cheap looking CG animation, which is what I saw in this series at many points. Examples of some short series who stayed consistent with crisp looking visuals would be Stein's Gate (well, this one's actually 23, but this only further proves my point), Psycho-Pass S2, Angel Beats, Black Butler S2, and Baccano (this one came out sometime earlier, but I can easily compare its animation qualities to Noragami).

Sound: 7/10

The soundtrack wasn't too bad either, honestly. It was very unique and had a very nice touch to it. The music in this particular show was quite different form the typical rock-ish J-pop you usually hear. It was mixed with some dubstep qualities and, how should I say it... funk? which in my opinion is a plus. My favorite track from the series, however, was Harmony. I for some reason really enjoyed it when this particular one was playing, so soothing~

Characters: 6/10

Hm, I think it's safe enough to say they weren't the best. I mean, as whole, they were funny with the way they interacted, and the the relationship Hiyori and Yato gradually developed wasn't too bad either, especially because it wasn't forced, it made sense, and it was, for the most part, practical. But other than that, I found the cast very mediocre. Many of the problems that arose in this anime were basically the fault of the characters not being able to communicate their feelings in a sensible manner. They were in fact selfish, only thinking about their own needs and what they thought they wanted, without giving a thought of "Gee, I wonder how 'so and so' feels about me doing this/acting in this way? Maybe I should ask them..." But in most cases we got, "I do what I want because I'm 'so and so' or because I deserve 'this and this'. Screw you." (this is 110% directed towards the poor relationship Yato and Yukine had among themselves, just so you know. But keep in mind, Yato brought into the show the things that made it watchable, to say the least, and was definitely one the few reasons why I decided to complete the series) If they had just taken the time to tone down their bitching about 'xyz' and just, I don't know, TALK about how to improve their partnership, many of the problems that occurred in the anime would've been solved or prevented, easily. And then there's Hiyori. She was an okay character at first, her being a half-dead phantom and having to pursue (I guess you can say) Yato in order to be changed back to a full human. That was a story line I didn't have many qualms about, but for some odd reason unknown to me, as the series progressed, she was pretty much demoted as a main character to a petty damsel in distress for some villain we only got to know anything about during just the last 2 episodes of the series... hm... how unsatisfying.

And then that brings me to the villain, whom I found extremely random and unappealing to the story. Honestly, my reaction to the last-minute introduction of this character was "Oh look... a random villain with little to no back story appeared... yay." It felt so misplaced because the time in which we began hearing even a hint about this Rabou character was, I believe, episode 10 or 11, and this is like what, a 12 episode series. I mean, you've just gotta be kidding me on that one. Not only that, the information we finally learn of him is nothing too special, nothing that would or should make you think his debut was anything to be particularly excited for. Additionally, he was an idiot. Like, I don't know whether it was just a petty pride thing, but for some reason, he was so hell-bent on fighting against his partner after what, hundreds of years, after Yato had clearly moved on and even told him to move on as well. But nah, this Rabou dude decided consuming himself with Ayakashi was a swell idea, which there was no real point in doing. Which then brings us to the ending fight scene, which was also unsatisfying. Yeah, we saw some waterbending and water Jutsu stuff going on, but that was it. We experienced nothing different from Yato, EVEN when he switched to rage mode after Rabou had broken the orb containing Hiyori's memories. I honestly expected Yato to have some hidden ability, something much cooler and unexpected than Rabou's, but all we got was a generic 'last one standing" ending where the villain was easily defeated, and therefore had no business being a villain in the first place. Villains like that are for kids shows, not more elaborate ones, but then again, this was not an elaborate anime.

And then I must also mention Bishamon. Not too sure what her purpose to the story was other than the fact that one of her shinki was killed by Yato, and now wants to kill Yato for doing so. We know nothing about her, her past, and who her deceased shinki even was. She also wasn't given sufficient enough screen time, which only made me more irritated about trying to figure out who exactly this woman was. But of course, this may have been intended, as a second season may be on the way (whether another one is actually needed is debatable).

Enjoyment: 6.5/10

I enjoyed the comedy and the visuals of the anime. The comedic aspect of it was childish (sometimes mature), but I laughed, and I tend to have a soft spot for shows that manage to make me laugh, seriously. That's a always a plus. However, that is only the surface, most of the things that went underneath the series in terms of story and characters wasn't very appealing, and these are all important factors that are meant to add to the watching experience, not take away from it.

Overall: 6/10

It was simply... decent, a show that clearly fell below the hype level. Many aspects of the show seemed bland and unfinished, always building up to some interesting ideas, only for it to be discontinued later on, a reoccurring trait I observed in this series. The characters weren't very interesting and sometimes irritable, and the ending was unsatisfying. But even so, they had great visuals and music, and the series was nonetheless an enjoyable one, even if how enjoyable it was was all the series had to begin with. So fellow denizens reading this review, all I can say to you about this series is, if you have free time with absolutely nothing to do, I guess you can give this one try, just be sure not to expect much, especially if your the type who prefers well thought out, detailed storylines with great characters and supporting details... which Noragami didn't exactly have.



*I apologize for any grammatical errors*

*sighs deeply*

Words can barely describe how much I enjoyed this anime. I went into watching this glorious show without knowing much about it other than fact it was about 2 teenage boys who acted as terrorists. But just knowing that alone was enough to interest me, but little did I know I was in for a bigger ride than I had expected.

Story: 8.5+/10

A very good plot line, I must admit. It was sophisticated, one that got you thinking and wondering about why things played out the way they did throughout the entire series, right until the end. This was probably a really big experience ... for me because I thoroughly enjoy animes that cause you to think and backtrack sometimes, it keeps the watching experience much more enjoyable and much less boring. Examples of such are Steins Gate, Psycho-Pass, and FMA, but I'll save those for another time. Branching back to ZnT, I cant tell you how intrigued I was by every little detail and niche that kept popping up as the story progressed, while still coinciding wonderfully with the overall plot line of the story. Honestly, for anyone who is looking for a well thought out story with great supporting details, accompanied by astonishing mysteries, this is a show well worth considering.

Art/Visuals: 9/10

Two letters. H. D. It was a struggle trying to find all the downloadable episodes in such high quality, but the painstaking labor of finally finding all of them was extremely worth it. Watching it on my HD plasma screen... well... everything looked so damn beautiful, especially the explosions, those lovely, luminescent explosions. But not only that, the art style of the show was also very nice, not particularly unique per-say, but it had a style that fat quite nicely with the show. Actually, I believe I instantly fell in love with the visuals of this anime during the very first episode, as they were escaping from the plutonium facility. A very nice use of semi-3D animation in my honest opinion.

Sound: 9/10

*cranks up the stereo*
Lovely, LOVELY, soundtrack. My word, is it even legal to have such beautiful music in an anime about terrorism (loosely speaking)? I mean, I thought the visuals were great, but this is just ridiculous. As I was watching the anime, I found myself paying alittle more attention to the music playing than what was actually going on in the show, no lie. Each one had beautiful mix of bittersweet feelings to it, which was great because the anime itself was the most bittersweet masterpiece I have seen in ages. My favorite track, though, was definitely "Walt". Beauty. At its finest.

Characters: 9/10

Each and every main character was exceptionally portrayed throughout the series, and I enjoyed watching every scene that had them in it. None of them were useless to the story or had unsatisfying back stories, they were all equipped with great personalities and usefulness. So basically, I fell in love with the cast, simple as that.

Nine
The cool and sophisticated hacker mastermind behind it all. His character personality was alittle on the generic side, but that little detailed failed to undermine how well thought out his overall character really was. He had a heart that was usually hidden behind his heavily serious demeanor, which proved to be an exceptional character trait that gradually showed it's true colors thought out the series, especially towards the end. Sadly, he suffered from panic attacks and increasingly worsening headaches that only proved fatally detrimental later on, but even with that, he stayed true to his goal until the end.

Twelve
The ecstatic, mysterious little optimist in charge of constructing the bombs and carrying out other duties Nine wasn't able to. An extremely lovable character that complimented nicely with Nine's bitter attitude. I'll admit, however, he had the most fluctuating personality out of all the characters, but it was probably because he had a heart even bigger than Nine's, hence why he sincerely fell for Lisa, even when he knew doing so would prove extremely problematic for both of them (and Nine), in the end. He also had a very interesting symptom called synesthesia, which allows a person to see colors in sound, according to the anime (there's a much more complicated definition to it).

Lisa
The shy and rather quiet girl who suffered from both domestic and social problems. She was honest, and also had a very big heart for those she cared about, and there was never a time in the series I disliked this character. I found her very important to the story, especially in regards to the unintentional relationship she gradually developed with Twelve. Yes, she was weak in many areas Nine and Twelve excelled in, but being with the two began to influence her exponentially in a positive way that allowed her to become a good character (we can thank Twelve for this). Yes, she was also the damsel in distress a few times, but damn, she played the part so well, honestly. It fueled alittle more needed material into the story, which I didn't find bad at all. And that fact that she was mature enough to admit she may have screwed up rather big a few times, only made me credit her more as a character. In many cases, distressed damsels become very irritating for me when it comes to shows, but in this one, it was a different story.

Shibazaki
The badass detective. This guy... he deserved some kind of medal for his services, not the bullsh*t the higher ups gave him, but that's besides the point. The intelligence of this man was exceptional, mainly because he was able to crack Sphinx's riddles so acutely, grabbing and processing the little details many of his other co-workers failed to even notice. Like all the other cast members did, he had heart of gold. I understand that at the start of the series, he was strictly hell-bent on bringing down Sphinx, but when he starting seeing the full picture of what Nine and Twelve's motives really were, he began to calm down, even as far as telling one of the army men who was ready to strike them down aerially not to shoot the two boys, thinking it was more sane to put them through a trial. Basically, the man knew his sh*t, which is why he was such an enjoyable character to see in action while watching the show. Not only that, his past was just as chilling and interesting as the other main characters of the show.

Five
The sadistic little demon child with rad looking hair. I don't exactly know why, but I liked her addition to the story. An extremely vague character at first, as you ventured through the show, her personality and character development really begins to grow on you. I'll admit, I wasn't too keen on as to why she was so concerned with defeating Nine, and still isn't completely sure, but whatever the case might've been, I was genuinely intrigued with her actions during the last couple episodes. It was quite surprising, and I enjoyed every minute of it. And not only that, she managed to come extremely close to destroying everything Sphinx was meant to accomplish, a very worthy opponent to the story, I'd have to conclude. Additionally, I found it interesting that she also shared similar symptoms to Nine.

Enjoyment: 9/10

Safe to say, I enjoyed every minute of this wonderfully rendered show. It got me thinking about so much I had never known before. I've always been a fan of Greek mythology and ancient gods, so watching this anime was also loads of fun. Every time it was time for the detective agency (mainly Shibazaki) to start cracking the riddles, it was like getting ready to begin an ancient mythology class, it was just that intriguing to me, especially since some of the things they talked about I had no knowledge about prior to watching the series.

Overall: 8.5+ (It wasn't perfect, but it was damn well good enough)

This anime was very good. Much better and emotionally nerve-wrecking than I had ever imagined, which only made me love it more. Everything that went into this anime, from the story to the knowledge it provided, highly including everything that came in between, was amazing and brilliantly played out in a way that would draw anyone looking for a sophisticated, one of a kind AND well executed show. Oh, and keep in mind, no fillers. I've witnessed short anime series who actually had the audacity to squeeze in a filler. Never a good thing. Which is why this one is just precious in every way imaginable. Zankyou no Terror is a must, really. If your looking for an anime with some serious finesse, this is the one to watch, you won't regret it, and if you do, well... lets hope you don't.


*I apologize for any typos/grammatical errors by the way*