Monster Farm: Enbanseki no Himitsu

I just finished watching all of Monster Rancher. I will have to treat eps 1-48 as "season 1" and 49-73 as "season 2." This review I will break down into two parts, the scores you see above is overall scores for both seasons.

Season 1
The story was awesome. It was filled with characters that were fleshed out nicely, the overall plot was great with bits of light comedy and dark/tragic moments. The sound and art were pretty decent but nothing too much to shout about. It left me felling pretty good about the whole show.

So for the scores I'd give it: 8, 6, 6, 8, 7, ... 7

Season 2
This season was a let down. They changed the story from having an epic adventure to battling in Monster Rancher tournaments. One can understand the need for the battling but it sucks compared to the first 48 episodes. The story was pretty weak, art and sound didn't change much, the characters were weakened in my opinion, it wasn't as enjoyable and at times I struggled to finish watching episodes in the middle. The ending was also rushed and felt cheap. Not to mention that they left a huge plot hole open.

Scores: 5/6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 5/6

I'd recommend episodes 1-48 highly. There characters were great and even though it seems kiddy-ish it really wasn't. There were plenty of dark and depressing moments as well as ones that touched the heart. 49-73 only watch if you have to in order to complete the series. It gives a happier ending but it cheapens the show a lot.

A Review of Monster Farm (Seasons 1 & 2)

Story (6.5/10): The story is not that original and has been done in other TV shows (like Digimon). The story follows Genki Sakura, who is a very good player of the Monster Rancher video game. He wins the game's tournament, wins a CD, uses the CD, and is then transported into Monster Rancher video game. Afterwards he finds companions (both monsters and human) to help him on his journey to get a more powerful monster to overthrow a tyrant named Moo. Expect filler episodes. The story is unique in terms of the different monsters and scary moments ... but that's about it. The plot twists that makes shows good are lacking in this one since they only last a few episodes. Overall, the story is pretty generic.

Characters (6/10): In terms of character design, the protagonist looks a lot like Ash Ketchum from Pokemon. His attitude is that of a teen so don't expect that much maturity on his adventures. His monster companions are sort of cool, especially Golem and Tiger. If anything, the only reason I watched the show was because of Tiger. Tiger's design exudes coolness. There was one notable tearjerker episode involving him but that's about it. After that, his appearances were less emotional and more akin to an attack dog. The main villain named Moo (who I initially thought was a cow when I heard his name) was a very cool dragon who needed a LOT more screen time. I mean, we only see him a few times throughout the entire show.

Art/Animation (6/10): The art/animation is early (1999). So it's not in any way modern or special.

Sound/Music (5/10): The sounds are generic. The music was also generic (cheery songs in happy scenes, sad songs in darker scenes,...etc.). The only exception would be the opening theme song. It was enjoyable but not outstanding.

Dub or Sub?: Dub. I saw the English dub of this show back when it was on Fox Kids. The dub was decent, some characters voices were weird but overall the dub was acceptable.

Enjoyment (7/10): In my youth, I enjoyed it. The first season was good enough (for my standards at the time) but then the show seemed to die off when the second season appeared.
Who Would Enjoy it?: Kids, no one above a kid should watch this, unless you're really, really, really bored.

Summary/Overall (6/10): The show wasn't bad but it wasn't good either. The show's creators could have done a better job of this show. The show seemed a bit lackluster by the end of its run.

Similar Shows: Pokemon, Digimon

Review #2

This is so a rip off of Digimon! I remember when I was younger, I liked it but seriously… now that I have watched so many anime shows and found out just how badly ripped off the other shows are, I feel a little like crying. Now please don’t take this the wrong way, it is a good show to a point but it takes so long to get to where it’s getting good that most people would probably conk out of it. It’s good for what it is, a children’s show, nothing more and nothing less.

We start out with the main character, Genki ... who is pretty much Ash Ketchum in school. He is overactive, over annoying, and most of all, over stereotypical of these types of shows. He gets sucked into the video game (like Digimon) and has to help collect monster discs (like Pokemon) to unlock the power that is inside (like Yugioh). He fights monsters (like all three) and makes friends with the monsters he meets (like Digimon and Pokemon). They end up getting lost on their travels (Like Pokemon), sometimes wondering aimlessly around the world (like Digimon) and… WHAT THE FUCK? Did the creators have no imagination for this series or is this plot so generic that we can’t make a decent show like this without ripping off another?

The storyline of Alan, in the episode ‘Eternal Worm’ (Ep 4), was actually rather sweet at the end and made me feel something briefly for the show. It was one of the most intense sad scenes in this show. Another character that I actually really like and feel emotion to is the wolf-like tiger called ‘Tiger of the Wind’. I guess I’m just a sucker for anything like a wolf. He seems very spiritual and has wonderful philosophy. His story line is sad and yet seems the most logical of the group.

When Genki does end up making his own character, all he seems to make is something that looks like a pink little thing and actually called itself Mochi when it first appeared, becomes called Sweet Cake by him in the first episode. Then after, they call him Mochi like they should have done in the first place!

So… is the bad guy a cow or something? Because calling the bad guy Moo really doesn’t make him sound any scarier then the little pink squash ball Mochi. Seriously, are we supposed to get milk from this thing? And if so, then I want none of that milk!

So, I’m sort of going to spoil something for you since this is two seasons lumped together (Because Fox kids is a dick like that), Genki does get back home (Shocker… really? *Sarcastic*) and they use the same stupid little storyline as Digimon where only a couple hours passed when he was in the Monster world for months to about years. But it comes at the end of the first season. So my question is, why did they decide to have a second season where he goes back? They could have left it wonderfully when Genki got back and gave us that heart felt ending to the whole series. Something tells me that they just used it to sell more items and that’s exactly what it feels like. And that’s not the only problem because this one ends with a big hole in the plot. It doesn’t let it end like the first season.

The artwork is alright, pretty standard for the time period it came out in. Some of the monsters feel like they were stolen from other anime series. Faces don’t seem to keep their shape, sometimes showing big cheeks once in a while and then no cheeks at all. Bodies don’t stay the same sometimes as all, making it a little mediocre.

The opening English song is really stupid and is like a rap mixed up of Yugioh, Digimon, and Pokemon. They also seem to have something similar to the poke-rap. Then we have the English script… now I have not been able to see the Japanese version but please tell me they do not use this stupid line ‘…then he can turn all the baddies into goodies…’ Please tell me they aren’t so stupid as to do that? Genki is one annoying boy, to the point of me shouting ‘SHUT THE FUCK UP!’ He also calls out ‘IN THE ZONE!’ which feels like they were trying to just make a saying. It sounds as annoying as Naruto’s ‘BELIEVE IT!’ saying. Alan’s voice sounds better then almost all of the characters and that says a hell of a lot. He isn’t the best but he’s the better of them.

It’s the story of a boy who was transported (through his video game) to a faraway land to a world where monsters rule.
He played the game like an ace, now he’s in this place to save the monsters from the evil Moo.
A pendant shows the way to a “Mystery Disk”. They’ll take it to the Shrine.
But will it be that fabled Mystery Disk and release the Phoenix inside?

So it’s the typical story of boy meets girl. They go on an adventure to collect something (Pokémon, Inuyasha, Dragon ball,…).
They meet up with friends (monsters). The objective is to unlock “Mystery Disks” that contain deceased monsters. ... The goal is to find the Phoenix which is the only one who can defeat Moo. Moo is not a cow btw, or at least I don’t think he’s a cow…

A pretty fun anime, with a rocking opening theme song.

The term “Pokemon clone” gets thrown around a lot with late 90s and early 00s anime. Digimon has perhaps the most defense against that claim, with plenty diehard fans campaigning for it not only being so different than Pokemon it has an identity entirely of its own but it’s even better than it. Monster Rancher however seemingly receives the most criticism for being a “clone” of Pokemon.

Virtual pets were a big phenomenon of the 90s like Tamagotchi, you can even tack on stuffed animals like Furrbies and Beanie Babies, and Pokemon was merely a subject of this growing trend. Other shows and video games ... arrived quickly thereafter like Digimon and Monster Rancher but unfortunately were both, among others, were met with children comparing them to Pokemon and its similarities, not so much their differences. I mentioned before Digimon was able to standout among the rest as at least being a “better” anime by having a different evolution premise, one where the digital monsters could transform to and from their more advanced and stronger selves as well as also having a less than episodic chain of episodes that told a more linear story with arguably more intense (not necessarily dark) themes than Pokemon typically attempted. I also mentioned that Monster Rancher took a brunt of criticism for being too same-y to Pokemon and from the outside looking in the concept had very little going for it whereas the essentially all of its positives (traveling monster companies, the art of collecting said monsters, the ultimate journey etc.) were done far better by its contemporaries.

I don’t support this somewhat popular claim. I think it’s safe to argue that Monster Rancher was likely the show sitting in third place in terms of overall quality and staying power. Pokemon and Digimon are still going stronger in the anime industry whereas Monster Rancher is more so remembered for being a mark of the 90s trend. I think nostalgia plays a part into me even seeking out this show, but I’d argue nostalgia didn’t play a big role at all in even determining my final score. I would argue this show out of the three has the better plot and has my favorite art style too. It may not have as unique of a concept as Pokemon, but the idea of someone finding monsters through taking CDs, whether they be movies, games, or music, and inserting them into your PlayStation console to unearth a new monster to add to your farm was lowkey innovative and something that surprisingly didn’t catch on as well as it could have. I personally haven’t played the video games but from play throughs I’ve watched seem fun enough and something I would have enjoyed plenty as a kid.

When people say “Pokemon clone” they never focus on the differences or lack thereof, typically pointing out a lack of such thing if anything, but even using the term writes off all of the merit it has going for it. If we are just looking at the show, there are virtually no commonalities. Try watching both shows and notice how less similarities there are the further you go through this show. It’s as if there can actually be a show about humans with monster buddies that go on a journey and not be Pokemon. Allow me to further harp on this by going over my synopsis and review.

In one of the earliest examples of an isekai that involves a gamer dropping into a video game world, Genki is a professional Monster Rancher player from Japan who gets warped into the video game itself, inside its own universe, while not subject to that games button mechanics — everything feels real and is a living and breathing world with its own, similar set of laws and physics. This isn’t the same fun-filled video game franchise as Genki knew, it’s a wicked land overrun with demonic creatures and critters who are either being governed or doing the governing themselves under the leadership of the evil Muu. You have your rag-tag group of misfit warriors who gradually assemble as Genki’s journey continues and the stops along the way are met with strife and lay witness to unfortunate stakes.

At one point, a tragic death occurs to that episode’s introduced side character. When a monster “dies” they are turned into a stoned disc clasped in an uprooted entanglement where they are forever sealed away. When I saw this, I nearly geared up, and knew this show was going to make me feel a different way than what I was expecting from critics like YouTuber Billiam who said they couldn’t even finish the show. Now, that monster can be reborn new but the circumstances of nearly impossible and hard to sneak due to the tyrannical ruling the citizens of the land are under. This is as close to Pokémon’s “gotta catch’em all” moniker as it gets, and that’s not even what Genki is trying to do. He’s simply trying to safe the monster world and free himself and return home.

Each of the characters are lovable in their own ways and although each of their designs are more simple than the next, they are distinctly Monster Rancher enough to not be confused with a Pokemon. Looking at the monsters of the main cast and going off of their Japanese names now, Suezo is the icon of the show. Not as memorable or likable of a design as a pikachu, Seuzo represents the design philosophy of the franchise: simple enough to find likable and ideal enough to portray a monster. Suezo, being more or less a walking eyeball with a mouth and rounded yellow eyelid with a protruding tail-like limb, is a wisecracking, impatient, and loud-mouthed member of the crew who provides plenty of comic relief and is enough of a character as a whole for me to like the show and care for the rest of the cast in their journey. Other characters like Ham and Golem are lovable in their own rights but not the most compelling design wise. The former being a literal tall, bipedal rabbit and the latter being, well, a Golem. Rygar and Mochi are both enough to fit that design philosophy I brought up.

Pokemon and Digimon both had monsters that you would look at their designs first and then decide from their appearances and move sets how cool they were. This isn’t really the case for Monster Rancher who admittly have the least appealing designs with no real evolutions, using fusions as the mechanic, and most species of monster being unique through their colors. Example being Suezo being yellow normally but other types being those with a red eye and black skin. Collectively: It’s mostly their personalities and their interactions together that’ll win you over and something that the video games unfortunately lack, at least from my understanding. So if the anime isn’t attributing to your knowledge of the monster personalities, since the designs mostly don’t have much personality to them already, then you’re missing a portion of their canon nature. But that’s neither here nor there and more so a comment on the cross between media and what translates other easily or not.

The animation itself is also pretty good. A show like this, for its time could have been given less to work with but it’s arguably better than most shows out at this point, particularly those shows that extended past multiple seasons in the year. I would not go as far as saying the show looks as good as Pokemon or Digimon did back in the day, but the action and drama always translated well between the cells and met Pokemon and Digimon in its consistency.

The music was fine. Just fine. I watched this show dubbed so I wouldn’t know if this show’s “monster rap” exists subbed if at all, but the “unlock your disc” rap track is certainly where the line is no longer blurred in Monster Rancher attempting to capture the same success as the Pokemon anime and their respective “Pokemon Rap” that so many people can still recite to this day. The beat is basic, the production makes it sound like it’s more of a rock track than it is a hip hop one, and the rapper sounds off flow at some moments just so they can fit in different monster names and info about them. Nothing about it is worth reciting except to mock the repeated phrase “unlock your disc,” as if it were being said by someone with a shit-eating grin as they push up their glasses. Sound overall though is pretty good. It’s average but pretty competent. The background music was varied and proportionate to the settings and situations.

If you were one of those who wrote this show off and just thought of it as a “Pokemon clone” or just a boring kids show, you’ll be pleasantly surprised in all the REAL situations the characters have to endure and the cycle of life, death, morality, and other such difficulties we may go through. There are some genuinely cliffhangers and plot twists that you’ll come across both this and its just as good sequel season. Muu is scary as all hell and looks like he could be from Devilman or an 80s-90s OVA like Urotsukidouji. Despite its lower score on MAL, consider giving this one a shot if you’re bored, have Hulu or even YouTube (there’s a couple playlists with every episode last time I checked, as of this writing) and want to watch something that’s somewhat longer than your average seasonal show while still under 100 total episodes, has that oh-so gorgeous 90s aesthetic, and, sure, is close to feeling like Pokemon without actually being Pokemon.

(covers both seasons)

Monster Rancher……Yes, I know the Japanese version of that is Monster Farm but today we are doing the English version that aired on the now-defunct (and fortunately) Fox Kids. Now it is based on a series of life simulation RPG videogames created by Tecmo (the company that brought you Ninja Gaiden & Dead or Alive) having over 14 games across different videogame platforms.


In the anime adaptation, it revolves around Genki, a 12-year-old middle school boy who really loves to play videogames and one day, he discover the Monster Rancher game and as he plays it, he is zapped into their universe ... where he meets the rest of the team: Holly, a 14-year-old girl on the quest along with their monster team, Mochi, Suezo, Golem, Tiger and Hare (No, I’m not calling them Tiger and Bunny) to find the ancient Monster Phoenix, and it is the only powerful monster that’s able to stop the dastardly……..MOO!



Yes, his name is Moo. What happened to Mistress BAA? Overlord BARK? Princess SQUEE? Hell, where is Grand Master MEOW?




Now, you’re wondering that this anime reminds you of something. You know, that type of anime that involves battle monsters and traveling in unknown strange lands especially when the travelers are very young and it’s also based on card game/videogame franchise. I know what this anime reminds of……..it’s like…..DEATH NOTE!!!



OK, I’m just kidding. But the difference between Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Digimon & Death Note is Death Note doesn’t have those noticeable COPYCATS and generic ones at that (unless somebody can correct me)!! WHY anyone would needed another one of this type of anime? I get that it’s something for kids to watch and even though this came out when I was a kid, I never knew about its existence but I guess that were trying to cash in on the Pokémon/Digimon/Yu-Gi-Oh craze and I don’t think it worked that well considering Monster Rancher only lasts about 72 episodes and the other ones just go on forever even if we had enough.



Well, the story is generic, there’s no doubt about it. Now the characters: Genki is fucking annoying……there, I said it. Basically he is the stereotype of this type of anime where he’s very determined, optimistic, and hopeful and likes to yell something at the top of his lungs. Man, do I want to strangle this kid and tell him to SHUT THE FUCK UP, YOU DAMN MORON!! Most of the dialogue is so annoying in this show and for example, the antagonists in the show? They are referred as “baddies”. Yes, They say that on this show and you know what, whether I think of that word, I’m thinking of somebody playing a drinking game to this show and you got to take a shot whenever someone say “baddies”. I guess that no one survived. Most of the monsters with the exception of Tiger are very forgettable, mainly because he bothered me the least and Holly…..yeah, she was important, too…….kinda. The name MOO as a villain is still stupid and I mean really fucking stupid.



I’m ashamed to say who did the animation of this, considering they made one of my favorite movies (not just anime movies, but overall movie of all time). The studio is TMS (Tōkyō Movie Shinsha) and what they made before this was Akira of course, Little Nemo (yeah, that movie was animated by a Japanese animation studio. Go figure. I didn’t know that at first.) Anyway, the animation level here is about average for a now-vintage kid show but speed lines do occur sometimes and it makes it seem like they are slipping in that department and character designs are a bit average.



The music……me screaming at the top of my lungs would sound better than this played-out Wal-Mart style Pokémon rap they played and also that damn side song that goes “Get a disk, take a risk, spin it fast, through the past”. I could’ve ended it with, “I rather get shot in the ass.”



Now, on to the English dub and surprisingly to me, this wasn’t made by 4Kids. No, really, 4Kids are not responsible for this dub, for once. It was made by a dubbing company in Canada called The Ocean Group and yet the anime & western animation they dub or just voiced before and after this were better made. Here are a few examples: Black Lagoon, The Girl Who Leap through Time, Escaflowne, Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade, Death Note and Inuyasha….freaking Inuyasha!! Yes, Inyuasha isn’t that great IMO but I rather watch that than this. Most of the voice work in here do sound so very kiddy-like, it hurts and it gets very irritating by the minute hearing those voices, especially since I recognize some voices that came from Ed, Edd, N Eddy.



FINAL VERDICT: I could easily say that this show makes me want to curse kid-aimed anime, such as this, Beyblade and Scan 2Go, but even as a kid, I wouldn’t be as interested in shows like that and in the present day, I still won’t have an interest in it. But as much as I want to trash the show, I can’t but one of the reasons why is that the show can get genuinely decent for most of the time, especially in the emotional moments in the show gives it a plus in my book but still that gets shadowed by the idiocy of the writing, the marketing and the shallowness that basically carried this show. Now even though for you have any kids or younger relatives that might be interested in this and it reminds them of those other shows I mentioned before, just tell them those shows are better than this.


As for the second season............I just gonna say what was the point of that? Because there really wasn't unless they wanted more exposure but that failed.

This review will be for the entire Monster Rancher, or as it is more commonly known as Monster Farm, series. This means that I will be covering the entirety of the series including Episodes 49 through 72. That being said I will digress and actually begin my review of a show that opened my eyes to what anime was (minus Digimon, Pokemon, Medabots, etc.) in my little impressionable mind.

As I sat watching Pokemon for the quadrillionth time on a Saturday eating a bowl of cereal, my eyes fixated on a commercial for what appeared to be a game where you could obtain monsters ... from CDs slated in your Playstation home console! I rushed to the store to pick up the game, which at that age was "Mommy can I buy this?" when we went out shopping. I looked at the instruction manual and saw that a Television show based on the first and second game (I had bought Monster Rancher 2 not knowing that Monster Rancher 1 existed) was going to be airing on FOX Kids and I had to watch it. Fast forward back to that awesome Saturday eating cereal and I found the FOX channel and watched some Monster Rancher.

Now to the actual review. The story, plot, characters, and general idea of the series is pretty similar to Pokemon and Digimon. Genki, your average, hyperactive, Ash/Tai/Protagonist you love to make fun of enters a tournament where he uses his Pink Suezo to knock out another kid's Golem. He wins the tournament and wins a Monster Rancher 20xx game! He ends up getting transported into the game and meets up with multiple monsters and has various adventures over a 48 episode arc that covers Genki attempting to get out of the Monster Rancher world (or attempt to stay in it!) and trying to find the mythical Phoenix monster to save the evil monsters from the evil Moo. Monsters rule, Monster rancher...*cough* That would be a line from the rap that began every episode of the American Dubbed series that was NOT dubbed by 4Kids surprisingly.

All in all I feel that the plot is different from Pokemon/Digimon but lacking in it's own way. The show uses all of its force to try to get kids to buy merchandise based on their respective series just like the other shows but really pushes their game to the point where they parody it in the television series. I loved the series growing up and have re watched it multiple times. The first story arc covering the 48 episode span was glorious in its run and it left me having a warm feeling in my heart. I would have given it an 8 but there was another "season" where from episode 49-72 Genki and friends enter tournaments to try to get a magic stone and revolves around the premise of the Monster Rancher games. That being said I love the games, so I feel like those episodes were kind of awesome but most people will feel it is fanservice in the sense that they want to sell more copies of their games. Either way I say watch the series at least until episode 48 for a feel good story that is similar to Pokemon/Digimon but it is darker, well written, and relatively animated well for its time.

Overall 7/10 First 48 episodes 8/10

Monster Rancher is the story of a boy named Genki who gets pulled into a magical world where monsters are real and now he must help a girl named Holly save this world from an evil monster named Moo by resurrecting a legendary monster called the Phoenix. Sounds a lot like some other fantasy adventure anime I've seen; heroes must go on a quest to find the thing to beat the bad guy with so they can save the world.

Story 6/10
Monster Rancher is a monster-of-the-week kind of show where each episode Genki and the others must fight a different monster Moo has sent to ... destroy them with (since Moo himself is obviously too busy to fight them personally).

This brings up my biggest complaint with this anime is that it's a shounen anime (even though that isn't listed as one of its' genres) which means there's a lot focus on the fighting, but usually in shounen the fight scenes are the best part yet here the fight scenes are just boring. Either the villains are so weak that get defeated too easily or the heroes win with luck or convenience. For example, the heroes might be losing a fight, but then Genki makes some speech about courage or friendship and then they win.

Also, please don't tell me this anime is more about the comedy than the action as there may be a few jokes in each episode, but they aren't funny enough and there isn't enough of them for me to think of this as a comedy.

Characters 4/10
All of the characters have very little personality and I can actually describe each of their personalities with one word: Genki is positive, Holly is nurturing, Tiger is tough, Golem is gentle, Hare is smart, and Mochi is cute (however, that thing Mochi does how he ends each of his sentences by saying "chi" isn't cute, it's annoying). Some of the characters do have a back story like Tiger wants to defeat Moo because Moo took his brother, but they don't show enough emotion or show the pain there in because of their loss which makes it harder for me to empathize with them or care about their problems. The only character that does go through some development is Pixie, who is one of the show's best characters, but she's a minor character that's only in a few episodes.

Moo is also a horrible villain because what makes a great villain is that they're evil because they love being evil, but Moo just seems evil because the plot demands that he be evil. Also, villains are suppose to be threatening and while Moo is really powerful, he doesn't project terror and malevolence; probably because his evil speeches are boring to listen to and his face is frozen, seriously he has no facial expressions and his mouth doesn't even move when he talks (I guess that was to make him look more monstrous).

However, there are three characters from Season 2 that I really want to point out named Mon Mew, Gobi, and Poison. They're villains and what I love about them is they're such idiots. Throughout Season 2 they try to destroy Genki and the others, but fail each time much like Team Rocket from Pokemon. There's even one episode where the episode's entire focus is on them and that's my favorite episode; if they were the main villains from the beginning I would've given this anime a higher rating.

Overall 5/10
Just watch Pokemon or Digimon.

I saw some loose episodes maybe 15 years ago on TV and then forgot about it, then, sudenly a few weeks ago someone reminded me of it and decided to give it a go.

Monster Farm: Enbanseki no Himitsu was not what I remembered. I remember enjoying it, sitting willing to watch it, but seeing it a few years later made me change my mind.

Story: 5/10
It's bland. It's too cute. Tries to be deep at times but fails misserably. There are some good moments, there are a bunch of unexplored and itneresting events (War of the Ancients). But when everything comes together, it's no more ... than a mediocre story.

Art: 4/10
Decent at last. Some monsters are quite interesting. But landscapes, humans are mediocre. There's nothing remotely special or memorable.

Sound: 2/10
Oh-my-god. I have seen quite a few animes in my life, but I have never found a worse voice acting that the one in this one. There's no emotion, some voices definitely don't match the character and they seem forced.

Openings and endings won't be remembered and the OST is quite repetitive, not very intense and doesn't go along, it just exist with the anime.

Character: 1/10
***VERY SMALL SPOILER***
Believe it or not, there's something even worse than the voice acting. The MC -the human- is by far the most dense and pathetic character I've found (and I've seen Absolute Duo and Isuca). It's mere existence doesn't make sense, just an adhd kid who fights against mechanical giants that shoots lazer beams... and wins. That's lame. That's bad. That's useless. a crappy kid fighting against overpowred monsters is like the little kid that had to appear in every 80's cartoon.
Ther est of the characters are cliche at best: the comc relief, the light hearted pacifist giant, the smart but dishonest one, the girl and the Tsundere monster.

Overall: 4/10
I gave it a 4. Maybe because of nostalgia, meyabe because it's a very old series based on a video game. It has a few intereting moments -ONLY A FEW- but as an overall anime it's really REALLY bad.

You should watch it if you're old and have played the first two games from the Playstation 1. But if you're looking for something remotely interesting, keep watching, there's nothing here.

Before I go further in this review, I do want to give a heads up that my thoughts of Monster Rancher (Monster Farm) cover both TV anime within the series. This being said, on with the review.

Monster Rancher largely exists to promote the video game series that it's based on and is pretty by-the-numbers as far as plotting and characters go. It actually consists of two separate TV anime that were aired for it in Japan and aired in America in an edited format to appeal to younger audiences with Western sensitivities. While largely having the same cast of characters between both seasons, both seasons ... are quite different in mood and premise with grade-schooler Genki Sakura whisked into the video game of the series to aid teenage Holly and several other monsters with stopping evil monster threats.

The first series features the main group trying to locate the Phoenix, a mythical monster with the power to oppose the threat of the villainous Moo. This series has a more serious mood depicted as monsters are shown to die at varying points of the series when dealing with Moo and his minions, and Moo is depicted as a menacing and merciless enemy threat when Genki and his allies have to contend with his forces.

The second series plays out more as a tourney-style monster battle competition a la Pocket Monsters as Genki and his friends have to compete in monster-battling tournaments to win championships toward winning a prize that contains the magic stone that was used by Holly in the previous series to try locating the Phoenix. This series is noticeably more lighter in mood compared to the first one as no monsters or humans are shown to die throughout its run and there is a bit more emphasis on humor and competition compared to the more serious stakes of the first series.

While I do get that both Monster Rancher anime were made in mind for younger audiences for their target audience, it doesn't necessarily make it a memorable anime in the same vain that anime fans would get from their viewing of more popular titles aimed for children like Pokemon, Digimon, and even Dragon Ball Z. Unlike those three titles, Monster Rancher doesn't have anything in particular that strongly sticks out with it to attract a wide audience. The characters are largely two-dimensional character types, the plot developments being pretty one-note with events, little to offer in the way of world building, and way too much dependency on Power of Friendship plot devices for the heroic characters to get by in battles. In essence, the two Monster Rancher anime largely try to ride on the video game franchise's name recognition to try drawing an audience while doing little to add any substance to it to make it more engaging.

If you are looking for any anime series for your children to be drawn to that are based on popular video games, I'd strongly recommend keeping away from the Monster Rancher anime and just have them stick with anything like Pokemon and Digimon that have more to offer in engaging their interest.