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Dec 25, 2020
I will spoil some beats of Shounen no Abyss here, as well as Aku no Hana. Be warned.
I must say, when I first found this title my interest was piqued. The art-style seemed pleasant, capturing atmosphere through paneling and shading akin to Shuzo Oshimi, as well as having a character design strikingly similar to Aku no Hana's post time-skip Kasuga. I must say I am a big fan of Aku no Hana, and upon writing this review, I have not read anything that quite captures atmospheric depression and loneliness in the same manner. So yes, I was excited to read something which could capture
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a similar feeling.
But as I continued to read Shounen no Abyss, the more it felt lacking, to the point where it would be frustrating. I suppose my expectations should've been lower...
The story follows Reiji, a seemingly normal high-schooler with normal problems who lives in the middle of nowhere. He gets lightly bullied by an old friend, has some family problems, and wants to leave town, but it's hard to tell if any of these issues really get to him at all, or if he's simply good at brushing them off. Instead, he choses to indulge in Idol culture and hang out with his friend. He seems happy. Then he meets his favorite idol who now works at a drug store and suddenly his everyday life is turned upside down... Does this sound familiar?
Already, I was inclined to make comparisons to Oshimi's Aku no Hana simply because of the artwork and Reiji being a Kasuga look-alike, yet so many story beats, atmospheric panels, and early moments feel so Oshimi it made me think that he was a main inspiration.
Boring town, check, normal but quiet boy with not many friends, check, girl who comes in and changes the way he sees his everyday life, check. But the difference between Shounen no Abyss and Aku no Hana become clear after these first few chapters end.
One main issue I see with Shounen no Abyss is that it fails to really capture WHY people become mentally ill. Reiji is fine one moment, then is trying to commit suicide the next. There is no flow, no development, no character beats that would lead up to this. There were some issues in his life, but there was no reaction to any of them. It makes Reiji seem shallow, a husk of a character that the author can manipulate into feeling any way he wants.
If I could bring up Aku no Hana one more time, the timeskip is a foil. We SEE Kasuga slowly becoming disillusioned with life for 6 volumes, then after the failed suicide, he has to crawl out of this mess himself. It's slow, and natural, and we can see how the events have shaped him post-timeskip. Reiji lacks any progression in his actions. We barely get to know how he thinks and reacts to things before he decides to end it all. Once again, this seems shallow.
The structure is the second big problem. Shounen no Abyss wants to have it's cake and eat it too. Have a cast of 'developed' depressed people, and have Reiji get laid by as many girls as possible. The idol he looked up to, his teacher, his best friend, his mother(?). These girls aren't characters, they are tropes that Reiji can use for sex and then move on to the next girl. It's almost structured like an arc, except there isn't any conclusion. Reiji goes from girl to girl without much of a reaction. And though we seem to be getting consequences from this, who cares? Why should we care when Reiji doesn't?
Pure and simple, I described it once as depression porn, and I stick to that claim. There is nothing that is being said here that hasn't been said better anywhere else, if it's saying anything at all. It seems like a pre-teen's idea of what depression would be like, adding in a bunch of cute girls to keep the attention of it's readers. It's begging to be called deep without putting the work in, begging to be labeled as a masterpiece without any actual progression. Overall, Shounen no Abyss is not worth your time. It wasn't worth mine. There's nothing of substance here, and I doubt there ever will be.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Jun 28, 2016
Concrete Revolutio is a story about justice, but not in the traditional sense. The story does not use justice as a means of black and white character motivation or to move forward a sequence of events. It does not involve someone seeking revenge for the murder of their family, or a magical little girl fighting for love and justice.
Concrete Revolutio instead gives a story about seeking out answers that no one can give you, specifically about justice and what seeking justice truly means. This means that the characters analyze justice for themselves, and in the end, come to a conclusion about whether or not
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justice is worth seeking out, if it exists or not, and who deserves it.
This means that justice is not a simple plot devise in Conrevo, but instead a theme, a question instead of an answer, a confusing topic that the characters think about in every episode. Justice is, however, not the only theme conveyed in this work, but also many others, such as love, naivety, and the human condition. It’s a show that is selling an idea about justice, about what the character believe about justice and if justice can be manufactured and sold as a fantasy.
Conrevo does all this in a setting that is at first very much unlike our own. It contains monsters, beasts, robots that beat up bad guys, aliens, magical girls, and superhumans. Over time, however, viewers with a keen eye can point out how things that at first seemed so foreign can also be symbols for real things, things that were in and going on in the time period Conrevo takes place, which is the 1950s through the 70s, using the cold war to its advantage to get its themes across.
The characters are used mostly as a means of getting ideas and beliefs out. Some characters are merely there to convey their beliefs, and some are symbols of other things. This is not to say the characters aren’t well written. On the contrary, the characters must be masterfully written in order to get the themes and symbols across to the audience, although it is hidden through dialogue, imagery, and symbols.
The way Conrevo presents the story in highly unconventional. In every episode we start with one point in time, and in every episode we skip to another point in time which has relevance. Some have called it messy, however I have formed the opinion that it is well planned out and fits in the overall structure and the theme the show wants to convey.
The art style, looking similar to comic book strips, is fitting for the subject matter. With a show about superhumans, robots, aliens, and magical girls, why not have a wacky art style? But this style also fits with old style Japanese manga characters, such as Cyborg 009 and Devilman. It is obviously fitting for a show that deals with stripping away the role of the superhuman and questions justice to have this imagery, just as most these characters from the old days fought for justice.
Overall, Conrevo is well worth your time. It has amazing thematic pacing, strange but warranted storytelling, having time skips in every episode, and is one of the most original and well planned out anime I have seen in a long while.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Sep 5, 2015
Windy Tales is a slice of life anime. It doesn't try to be anything more or less than what it is, and that is what makes it shine.
As a slice-of-life, Windy Tales premise is relevant enough in each episode to create interest, but doesn't overshadow the stories themselves. Although the main characters learn about moving the wind to their advantage, we don't see them use it to fight evil or get what they want. Instead we see them go through their day to day lives WITH this power. The power to move wind isn't the main plot, the characters are. Personally, I found this to
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be a breath of fresh air. When a show has characters with powers, we don't think of slice-of-life. Instead we think of shonen anime, magical girl anime, adventure anime, anything BUT slice-of-life. Rarely is it we get to see a calm slice-of-life anime with powers in between, and it was very fun to watch it for what it was.
The animation and art of Windy Tales is obviously very unique. One could even compare it to some of Masaaki Yuasa's works. The characters don't look like the typical anime characters, with small eyes, and their bodies looking like they were made up of shapes, sometimes uneven and rough. I personally loved the look of it. The art style was very innovative, and made it even more fun to watch the show.
The Soundtrack was mostly in the background, barely there. It wasn't really anything new to listen to, and wasn't amazing in any way, but it didn't need to be. it was there to give atmosphere, which overall made me feel relaxed as I watched. The music was good, and fulfilled its purpose.
The characters to Windy Tales, as stated above, were the main focus of the series. As such, each were fleshed out accordingly. Each character was distinct and entertaining. By the end of the show, each character would've grown on you by being themselves. Now, not EVERY single character got development, mostly just the main three, but those that did were the highlight of the show.
Overall, Windy Tales was a pleasant take on the slice-of-life genre. The animation style was refreshing, the sound relaxing, and the characters enjoyable. Not every episode was enjoyable, there were some in the middle that were, at the very least, repeated themselves a bit too much, but most episodes were a lot of fun to go through. I highly recommend this show to people who like unique slice-of-life shows, as well as those who have yet to get into the genre. It has enough of the 'wind power' premise to keep one interested and entertained, and that was more than enough for me.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jul 16, 2015
Texhnolyze is a hard anime to watch. The first episode sweeps you up into a world where everything starts out dark and seemingly mundane, and continues to be this way throughout the 22 episodes you watch. Everyone seems to be so tired and dead inside, like the city of Lux itself. With a minimalist style, not much is said, but does there really need to be words to describe what this show represents?
Texhnolyze is an anime without excessive fight scenes, drama, or mostly anything that regularly pops up in current anime. Instead, it drags you along with Ichise slowly, almost painfully, having you experience and
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find out what being human really means, or rather what human society could turn into when evolving is no longer an option. The characters in Texhnolyze also strive to show the viewer human nature, most of them being more like symbols for certain characteristics of humanity than actual people. Texhnolyze is a slow show, however, if you stick it out and watch till the end, there is nothing quite like the conclusion Texhnolyze finds.
Texhnolyze is not an anime for the characters. Instead, it uses the characters as a means to progress the story. This is why the characters can feel very far away, even when they've been in the show from start to finish. But that doesn't mean the characters themselves aren't well written. In fact, in my opinion, Texhnolyze uses it's characters so well that they seem human even when put to a distance.
The soundtrack is particularly beautiful. Although the anime sometimes chooses silence over sound, whenever the music starts up, it never ceases to impress me, with mixtures of piano and violin, or even an electric guitar solo.
Overall, Texhnolyze is not a pleasant watch. You can't watch this show and walk away happy and fulfilled. It instead tries to deliver a dark truth about humanity and what will happen when we are no longer able to evolve. It may not be fun or uplifting to watch, but it is certainly rewarding in the end. I personally loved every moment.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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