Danganronpa: Kibou no Gakuen to Zetsubou no Koukousei The Animation

"You've got that wrong!"

First off, if you detest/abhor/dislike this anime, read no further. I've just seen many overly-negative reviews and wanted to have an alternate opinion available for anyone who needs one. This is also a very naive review, as I've never played the game, nor have heard of its popularity, so expectations were average.

Oh god, what am I getting myself into?

The setting of Danganronpa has to be one of the strangest. A despair-filled high school where you have to butcher your classmates to "graduate?" Not going to lie, I thought this probably wasn't going to be the greatest of shows...

"You've got that wrong!"

But how ... so, Naegi?

"The people around me and the events that occur are very peculiar, but interesting!"

Character: 10/10. Ahh, I see now. So the characters are extremely unique (and contrast each other perfectly), I mean, a Super Duper High School Level Wrestler that looks like a body-building man but is really a girl?! My brain was surprised and I'd imagine it started seeping out of my nose. But nonetheless, the characters (obviously) really made the show for me. Not a single character in the show can be labeled, by me, a bad character. Hell, I might just start a new list for Most Hated Characters just because of Monokuna. So I think it's safe to say that you'll enjoy the characters.

Consistency: 7/10. Alright, this is the one thing that got on my nerves. The series did tend to be quite episodic at times and left important information out as well. That was a big downer for me as well, because to me, the series could've been almost nearly perfect if it didn't just drop information. However, I do understand that this was a seasonal anime, a Summer seasonal to be exact, so there really wasn't a way to break out of 12-13 episodes. Long story short, this anime would've been awesome if it was a few episodes longer to include all the information.

"But remember, there's always some other great things that we have as well. Trust me, I'm a fortune-teller.*wink*"

Thank you for the information and for creeping me out, Yasuhiro. But this holds true as well. For example: Mystery! The mystery in this series is absolutely top-notch and very invigorating (and this is coming from a HUGE Higurashi no Naku Koro ni fan), and almost always kept me anxious and nervous until they were solved. The prime example of this was the Classroom Trials, which was the highlight of the series for me. Sure, some of them were rushed, but quite honestly, who cares?! It was so exciting when I saw the elevator descending to the Classroom Trials room. The folowing debate would be very interesting, and was extremely interesting to see how each student used evidence to support themselves and to attack others. I must say, it was a bunch of fun.

"You've got that wrong! Those trials were always difficult and were almost always put on my shoulders!"

True, Naegi, but that bullet thing you did was always really cool.

"Uhhh, thanks....I guess..."

Okay, stop interrupting me, I'm trying to write a review.

There is one more complaint I have of this series. The constant 'yadda yadda Despair blah Despair-filled bluh bluh Despair' dialogue was WAY overused, and it's very evident near the end. I mean, my god, I understand this is about despair, it's in the freaking title! The show just crammed that down my throat until I felt that was the only word I knew anymore. However, I did feel like I was reading a well-drafted essay, because I noticed a sequential tone structure, with a very strong tonal shift. Although this might not be very useful for anyone nor will you care,but I thought it was worth mentioning in case others noticed it as well.

There's one more thing I'd like to cover: Sound: 9/10
VA's 10/10: The voice actors in this series seemed like they were MOLDED to be perfect for each character. I couldn't see any character any other way. Even at first, I couldn't stand Monokuna's voice, but it grew on me fairly quickly. You could play any character's voices and I could deduce them almost immediately, they are THAT distinct.

OST: 9/10: I can't believe I'd ever love a rap song, but TKDz2b hit the tone of Danganronpa write on with "Never Say Never." I will admit, I did NOT expect an English rap song to come on when I started it (and there were no accents, even a bigger surprise), and I immediately fell in love with it. Takada Masafumi
also created a great soundtrack for this anime (I mean, he DID get chosen to do music composition for Super Smash Bros. Brawl) and the mood was always enhanced when the music started up. The ED (Episode 13's was great), however, didn't really do it for me. It contrasted with the feel of the series (somewhat like "Torch" from Clannad: After Story), so it was a slight mood killer, but it wasn't too bad, because it was still a great song.

"You've got that right!"

Wow, you feeling okay Naegi? That's the first time I've heard you agree!

"I just express my emotions enthusiastically and raw."

...that gave me a weird image.

Enjoyment: 9/10. Yes, I loved this series. I had a great time and an exciting time watching it. If it was slightly longer and didn't try to implant the word "Despair" on me and shove it down my esophagus, I would've loved it just that much more.

Yet again, this is completely my opinion, so please don't take any of my ramblings too hard. I also won't go over the story because everyone will have contrasting beliefs on it, so there really is no point.

Thank you Naegi and Yasuhiro for the commentary on my review. Now get out of here and live on in despair.

"Uncool, man. Uncool."

Whatever Yasuhiro.

Personal Note: I watched the last 7 episodes while having a high fever and it made me feel a lot better by just watching it, so this may have a slightly higher score than it would've, but, I digress.

I like to play games. I mean, we all do once every while when we're bored right? The fun thing about games is not to only to kill time but also for achievements in some cases. When you win a game against someone, you get that feeling of pride knowing that you were better than your opponent. When you lose though, you might feel disappointment but also hoping to do better next time. But what if you're in a twisted game where there's no next time? What if you only get that one chance because if you lose, your life will end? Well, in Dangan ... Ronpa, you won't get another chance if you screw up. Your life is at stake and in order to graduate/win, you have to kill someone and get away with it.

Goal: achieve a perfect murder.

Dangan Ronpa: The Animation is an anime adapted from the game of the same name. The game is a murder mystery visual novel. I have not played the game so this review will be judged based on from an anime perspective alone. And coming fresh from this series, Dangan Ronpa offers what it is based on its concept – a murder mystery story with twists and surprises.

For most part, the series is pretty straight forward. The initial episode introduced a variety of characters where each of them possesses a special talent of sorts. These ranges from talents such as lying, fortune telling, computer programming, or even the art of murder. One particular student stands out though because he doesn't possesses any special talent. In fact, he is invited to the school (Hope's Peak Academy) based on a raffle. His name is Makoto Naegi and he realizes his life is never ever going to be the same again.

The main premise of the series is to survive and escape the school. In order to do that, they have to commit the perfect murder. They must kill one of their classmates and get away it but that's a lot easier said than done. Of course, this spurs up a lot of tension and distrust among the students themselves as to who can be trusted. It's obvious though to suspect everyone and play safe but trusting no one. If you think the premise is twisted though, wait and till you meant the headmaster of the series. Its name is Monokuma (also known as the Monobear) and boy, he is someone that is shrouded in mystery. For starters, he has a very sarcastic personality. No one really knows what he says is true or not. However, the students of the academy quickly learns the hard way that his words are serious. In fact, this is proven by his dangerous powers to kill anyone on the spot. As a character full of mysteries, Monokuma plays the role of the primary antagonist as he enjoys the situations the students are in. His face also depicts a twisted like personality with one side being cute while the other side being disfigured. Furthermore, he has a tendency to uphold the laws of his game with absolute power as he is willing to kill others that breaks the rules or threatens his very existence.

Because there are 15 characters in this series, expect all of them to make their own spotlights. However, expect that number to go do down with each progressing character because of the premise. As fate knows it, there will be murders committed. Among its cast though, Naegi is the most average of them but also has the most guts and determination. Judging by his character, he is willing to help others and tries by any means to end this twisted game.

As the rules of the games go, you must commit a perfect murder to graduate. However, there is also a catch involving the classroom trials that proceeds each time a murder is committed. This is done in order for the characters to determine the culprit. If you guess right, the killer will be killed on the spot in a gruesome fashion. But hey, what if you guess wrong? Remember what I mentioned before about second chances? Well, that can go to hell because if you guess wrong, everyone else but the killer dies. It's a game that only our Monobear can think of to be this twisted.

Among the character casts, there are several students that makes their presence known more than others. Besides Naegi, there is the mysterious Kyouko Kirigiri. She comes off with a mysterious girl but a very intellectual mind combined with coolness and reasoning skills, she is one of the prominent members of the series. More importantly though, we can see that she also seems to form a close bond with Naegi even from the beginning. Other important characters include Byakuya Togami, an arrogant rich boy. Despite his attitude, he also possesses keen intellectual skills in problem solving. However, every character is part of the problem because every time someone is killed, there's someone to blame.

As for the problem solving goes, there are various hints dropped in here and there. This usually happens at the crime of the scene. Then, there's the class trials that proceeds the murders where arguments are ensured and accusations flies in the air. The murder themselves are always different and seems to be coupled with some sort of motive. These varies each time but the result is almost always the same – someone committed the deed and they will pay. But then of course, if the others guess wrong, they die themselves. It's literally a kill-or-be killed situation. While all this is going on, Monobear plays the fool. Man, talk about being a chill bear.

Because this is a mystery theme series, there are various twists and surprises. In particular, there is more than just meets the eye regarding the origins of the game. In fact, “who is Monobear?” “Who or what is the real mastermind pulling the strings?” “Was there anyone that successfully escaped years back before this graduation trial?” There are many questions that I'm sure viewers will come up with their heads as the episodes progresses. The fun aspect of Dangan Ronpa is making theories based on hints. Then when the class trial comes, viewers will be able to figure out if they are either right or wrong. The experience here is thrilling because regardless of the result, you'll feel like being in the classroom itself.

As thrilling as Dangan Ronpa is, I do feel like some of the murders are a bit too easy to solve with the given clues. This is especially true in the beginning where some of the clues are ridiculously obvious. Then, there's the executions themselves that comes after the trials. From what I've known, the executions incorporates reused animation from the game rather than anything new. The execution itself may also seem brutal but it can also be taken hardly serious because of the animation style. I find the animation to be poorly constructed and out of place. Also, from what I understand, there are things that should have been adapted but left out. Through my experience of watching anime adapted from games, this is always bound to happen on occasions so don't expect everywhere there. After all, games are the superior brand of its anime adaptation. Furthermore, the length of only 12 episodes gives this show a case of cramping and rushing things through. There are also some cheesy dialogues with an underwhelming ending so don't push the expectations too high.

Animation wise, Dangan Ronpa is like a crumbled cookie. It's like the chocolate is overbaked or something because the animation style is edgy and looks hardly realistic or to take seriously. Monobear is designed as a fusion of cuteness and psychotic. As far as the character designs go, they all do have an unique appearance. These match with their titles and personalities, some more ways than one as you will discover later on personally. One drawback I also found about the animation style is the murders. The blood is colored differently than what you may be used to and doesn't seem to be serious at all either. To me, it doesn't fit quite right.

For soundtrack, Dangan Ronpa executes an OST that mixes with rock, metal, and techno on occasions. There is a thrilling like feeling every time the soundtrack is played because viewers can tell that something big will happen. The OP songs are also artistic with the montages of the characters. On the other hand, the ED song provides a glance of the characters of every episode. Voice acting wise, Kirigiri's VA Yoko Hikasa plays her role quite well with her calm personality. In fact, she is always seen as being level headed and her voice tone is a good reflection of that. Monobear himself also has a voice full of sarcasm and cruel intentions.

Overall, Dangan Ronpa can be received differently depending on how you will enjoy this. As a viewer coming directly fresh into this, I did enjoy some aspects of it. However, there are times when I find the murder to be quite predictable along with the way being handled sort of out of place. What Dangan Ronpa brings though is the thrilling experience of finding out the culprit behind the murders. As the episodes progresses, more and more mysteries are unlocked where they might come as unexpected. For me, some of the expectations I had for this series were met while others I had were met with mixed results. Like I said before though, Dangan Ronpa is a mystery theme series with touches of psychological and horror. Therefore, it can be received differently for everyone. However, if there's one thing that we all share in equal, it is death.

Okay, before you press the "Not Helpful" button after seeing my rating, realize this: I haven't played the game. This is a review from a watcher who thinks of this as just a regular anime, not a game adaptation. And, as someone who didn't play the game, I think it's a anime worth watching. Let me explain:

Story: 8

It's a really creative, well adapted version of the "Last man standing" plotline, which seems more cliché than it actually is. I personally really like the idea; when someone gets murdered everyone has to crack the case together and if that culprit gets found out, he/she dies too. ... The story revolves around 15 teenagers who are invited to attend Hope's Peak Academy, ad when they step inside, all they can feel is despair when they discover that their principal is sadistic, moving and talking Black and White Teddy Bear that goes by the name of Monobear, (or Monokuma). He instructs the students that this is all a test. Only one student is allowed to leave the school and that's the one that manages who doesn't get found out as a culprit or just manages to survive until the end. I loved the whole idea and personally, I love animes that mess with your head like this, because you NEVER know who the culprit is going to be or what is going to happen next. The only thing is that some of the elements were really confusing, and it takes a while to process what's happening, but overall, it's a really great idea.

Art: 10

This anime has a great transition between different art styles. From time to time, it switches from the normal expected art style and an urban vintage type art style, and thought it really enhanced the mood of a dramatic plot point. It was really unexpected and surprisingly relevant. I've never ever seen an anime hat does something like that, EVER. And I would highly recommend it to other animes in the future. Also, the effects during the anime, especially during the class trials, were really good and different from anything I've ever witnessed.

Sound: 7

It was pretty good, the transitional soundtrack and also the opening. I love how the opening was westernized into a rap, American song. It was really original ad I liked it. It was unexpected and fit the rest of the anime really well. I mean, it's nothing to sparkle at and listen twice to, but it was really original. The transitional music tracks were placed very well. I like the soundtracks in the Class Trials, it added suspense and put a mysterious twist on the plot.

Character: 8

Of course, with 15 teenagers, there were going to be ones I hated and ones I liked, but I didn't really necessarily "hate" any of the characters. In fact, I really like the mix of different design and personalities that made up of the group; from a multi-personality freak, to a body builder monster woman, Danganronpa covers it all. I really liked the main character; though, he turns kind of cheesy in the ending, but totally worth it right? Of course, the mix of personalities is what the anime really had going for it. Each character had their own tag, their own extreme personality that got them into the school in the first place. It really added effect.


Enjoyment: 9

Overall, I really enjoyed the whole mix of the different elements that each added some originality to the anime. I couldn't look away from the screen, it was so worth watching it.

Ending: 8 (I won't give any spoilers)

I know from experience that an ending can really ruin the anime. It's happened millions of times and that's why I'm really scared to watch the ending of Shingeki no Kyojin today... but that aside, I'm going to tell you what I thought of the ending. There is so much of a plot twist that you yourself hurt your brain by watching it, but that's not always a bad thing. I mean, Danganronpa puts the ending together really well, so well in fact, that it will get you banging your head against your desk for a week. I mean, there's slight cheese, but it's not overwhelming like in SAO.

Overall I really enjoyed watching it. It really put me on the edge of my seat and gave me chills with all of its beautifully executed elements. I would definitely recommend this to a close friend, or anyone to that matter! I believe this anime is really underrated and needs to be recognized. Right now, everything is buried in the shadow of Shingeki no Kyojin, but I'm telling you, it's a fantastic anime.

Overall: 9

Story 9: It has an amazing plot-twisted story, one of the best executed one's i've ever seen, because everything seems so logical, like a game you play, no matter how you play a game or it develops, if you follow the rules, nobody can't complain about it.

Art 8: A basic background with stereotypical places in a building that is really attractive drawn.

Sound 9: The opening and ending of the series are so damn good... never skipped them, they are so special like they would never appear in another anime.

Character 10: Stereotypical characters that are so different from each others that you can't dislike all of ... them speciallyone of the biggest dislikes of characters what they don't have is that they aren't annoying!!!

Enjoyment 10: No how matter what character or wich part of the anime you like, you'll enjoy it completly for sure.

Overall 10: Masterpiece, enjoyable until the breath, i never saw some anime like that enjoyable.

I rate this pure on the matter how I enjoyed it.

Ping, pong, pang, pong....... As I make this review,1st thing is 1st, I haven't played the video game yet, then again such game would cost a fortune here in Mexico and I haven't yet read both the manga and the light novel yet, so for this review, I'm only gonna base it for this anime and this anime only. Por qué todos ustedes entiendan, muchachos? Bueno, bueno, let get down and dirty, so far this is another very good anime for this season, despite of the spoilers available in MAL and other anime site info, it didn't affect my desire to watch and be ... amuse as to how the mystery and the deception unfolds with the students of Kibōgamine Gakuen, thought there are question abound as to what's the concept of such school be conceive, it really doesn't matter at all. if I were to compared this with it's western counterpart the closes it would be is "The Cube" were both involves people trapped in such confined place where everything is a puzzle that every individual has to figure out in order to get out, but unlike the movie 'The Cube," in Danganronpa the group of individual enjoy comfortable amenities and knows who the adversary is despite the fact that the said adversary is using a disguise, but what really make it enjoyable despite of the spoilers is how the anime was presented ok so never mine about the pink blood and the not so gruesome murder of the victims and the over-elaborate execution of the guilty, the real enjoyment was knowing how the mastermind (despite of the spoiler) did it and given that she's to be found out how will she react. Frankly, on the last episode I was kinda hoping that Junko is gonna be up to something to escape her own execution or does something to make the escape of the final six a bit more difficult, so my ratings for this 13 episode anime:

Story, enjoyment, overall: Good 8

explanation already provided, above.

Art: Poor 3,

I give such score since the characters illustration doesn't match the anime's concept, also, the execution, character's attire, murder and background are just too over-elaborate, thought this anime should use a little bit of Junko, Kirigiri and Sayaka fanservice. About Sakura, I would have prefer that this series' illustrator would have made her a he or make her a hot babe rather than an bulky FBB who pumps themselves with steroids.


Sound: Fair 6.

For the op and ed- me not likey, but, for the Monobear, the one who did its voice was very compelling to say the least too bad that Junko's VA wasn't able to do it properly. Then again, the way Junko delivered her lines in the final episode was pretty awesome and so as Genocider Syo.


Character: Good 7.

I would have given it an 8, but the fact that Mukuro Ikusaba's roles was too brief, should limit this part to a 7. Then again, it ain't that bad, since it was Naegi and Kirgiri who gave this anime the most impact and the 2 are the only ones who kept the group together even is there are times along this anime's episodes that they have to the escapegoats. Also, Monobear, really did play a good role foe being the antagonist in this anime, also I like the way that Junko (I'm referring to the real one) who came out on the last episode as this psychotic despair spreading freak dish out her freakish side and the way she tries to use deception and manipulation as a last attempt to escape execution in the last episode, though, she could have done it in a much a more easier way, then again, I'm thinking if this anime will have a season 2, I won't be surprise if she faked her own execution. As for the others, like Aoi, I really hate the fact that she's moire of a lucky bimbo than anything else, Yasuhiro, on the other hand was merely useless in fact I can never understand why a fortune teller like him can't predict any of the student's future nor was he able to foretold who is behind Monobear, Touko or Genocider Syo, was pretty useless as well, she more of a comic relief than a fearsome serial killer. Togami, is another character that contributes to this anime's overall impact, but, I see him as this play safe character, who's pretty much does everything to keep himself away from the bubble.

The end, muchachos.

It is known fact that if you make an anime/movie adaptation off a video game , it will never be as successful as the video game itself, given that it has the same content and story. Video games allow you to experience and make your own decisions, which is not an option in movies/anime. Infact, many innovators actually believe that decision making video games MAY replace movies in the future (If you've played “Life is Strange”, you’d agree with this fact).

Anyhow, before you read any further, if you oppose this anime solely due to it not being able to live up to its video game ... counterpart, I advise you to piss off. I'll write this review based solely on the anime itself, and will not compare it to the game (Not like I've played the game anyways).
Now for the anime itself. I started watching this anime, not expecting too much from it. As I finished watching episode 1, I was thinking of dropping it. But I must admit, shit got real from then on. Everything that happened had my full attention. And before I knew it, I had been indulged into it.

Story 7/10
Enjoyment 8/10

If I am to keep it spoiler free, I'd say that the story is very average to start with. It only gets interesting after the first murder. Since I haven't watched like 500 Anime series to be writing this review, the story was interesting for me. It kept me really really curious as to who the murderer might be. Some Mystery series fail to keep audiences curious (won’t mention them here). But luckily, Danganronpa wasn't one of them (For me at least, because I am a fan of Mystery series)

Art 8/10
Character 8/10
Sound 6/10

No doubt about it, the animation was very good. The character design was cute as well. I must admit, I did start this series only because I liked the character design. The only part I disliked was the "punishment" periods. Which I think were nabbed off of the video game (?), since it was pure CGI.

Overall 7/10
All and all, its an 7 for me because I love Mystery anime.

The story is the most creative story i ever seen although there is a lot of anime that adapt from a game, this is one of the best anime base on a game adaptation i ever seen.

The art i give it six because the art i doesn't like senior highschool student The art is like a junior highschool student.

The sound the music of this anime is so great both never say never and zetsubousei hero chiryouyaku is fit to be opening and ending of this anime.

The Characters in this movie has a development from the past to the future. all characters in this anime has ... all their problems in the past

The enjoyment of this movie outstanding i mean i try to watch this movie for the second time and i cant stop watching from episode 1 to episode 13.

and i recommended to all who loves to watch action or mystery anime i will recommended Danganronpa

As someone who did not play the video game, I found this anime to be quite good. I think if you have played the game, you would find the anime a let down because the anime feels rushed considering how short it is. I really enjoyed the anime though. I thought the concept was very interesting and it was a very fun anime to watch. I liked certain characters and hated others but that was the point. The last few episodes did feel rushed and at certain times throughout the series, you will feel like there could be a lot more. I wish this anime ... was 26 episodes because the murders and investigations were very short at times. Overall though I would recommend this anime to others. It is not like any other anime and it is a good watch.

Danganronpa is a series based on a PSP game from Spike, a company best known for their work on various DBZ games. They also worked with Capcom on a very under-rated game called Crimson Tears. This game, I never heard of until the anime came out. So I'm going to be judging the series entirely on its own merits and I'm not going to notice if they screw up something from the game. The adaptation was handled by Lerche, a company that, according to ANN, has only been involved with seven anime productions. None of which I've seen. So let's take a look at the ... recently finished Danganronpa anime and see what it's about.

Our story begins with our protagonist, Naegi, walking to his new High School. No sooner does he cross the threshold when he finds himself waking up in a classroom that's been bolted shut. An announcement plays requesting all students assemble in the gymnasium. He finds himself with fourteen other students and a stuffed bear apparently belonging to Harvey Dent appears claiming to be the Principal. They're told that they won't be allowed to leave until they graduate. And the only way to graduate is to kill someone and get away with it. Now, Naegi has to solve the mystery of just what is going on at Hope's Peak Academy, figure out how to escape, avoid getting killed and solve any death that happens or he, and all of the other innocent students, will be killed. This anime is very silly, but in a good way. It's like a very macabre parody combining murder mystery with the whole “students being forced/ strongly encouraged to kill each other” genre that was popularised by Battle Royale (which happens to be on one of my book shelves between the Handmaid's Tale and Suzuki Koji's Dark Watch.) Now, I don't just refer to it as a parody because the antagonist you spend most of your time with is a teddy bear. The character designs are also goofy, the tone stays rather macabre but avoids getting too dark by showing execution scenes in very muted colours and leaving the gorey bits to your imagination. There are also some rather silly scenes. To give one example, Kirigiri finds a clue in the underwear of one of the corpses. When asked why she would check there she shrugs it off as no big deal. It's not like she checked their socks or something. Let's move on to the mystery elements. This is an area where the series excels. The investigations go by very quickly, but they manage to give you all the information you need to either solve the case or figure out where the discussion should begin in the classroom trial. The only exception is the trial before the last one, in which they disclose very little but I'll let that one go since there is a good story reason for it. One thing that I really liked is that they managed to make the discussions interesting, even when the solution was obvious. So you never feel like you're watching a bunch of idiots flounder around to figure out something that should be obvious. This isn't Hyouka. My biggest criticisms of the series are that they leave a lot of unanswered questions , which I unfortunately can't ask since most of them involve spoilers, and the ending is pretty cheesy. Now, a lot of the series is cheesy, in a good way. The ending, however, gravitates more towards the facepalm inducing end of the cheesiness spectrum.

Most of the characters in this are pretty typical. Naegi is a lot like many other shounen protagonists, he's young and naïve but he's got a lot of heart and great potential. Many of the other students are also representative of rather flat archetypes. Maizono, Ishimaru, Hagakure, Yamada and Oowada to name few. Now, in all fairness, most of these characters are passable even if they aren't particularly deep. There are some very problematic elements to the way a few of the characters are handled. Particularly Fujisaki and Sakura. There are some characters with really interesting concepts behind them, but they never get fully developed.

The art is interesting. I already mentioned the goofy character designs and the execution scenes, but there are other facets worth discussing. A second way they tone down the gore is by having blood be some bizarre colour like bright neon purple or green. The evidence is also presented in such a way that it feels like a game. It gets brought up in boxes or contradictions will be illustrated by the image of a bullet shattering into a person when Naegi raises an objection. Which does give it a unique aesthetic.

They got some really stellar voice actors for this. Including Ogata Megumi, Ishida Akira, Hikasa Yoko and Sawashiro Miyuki. All of whom give great performances. The biggest issues are with Kujira and Yamada Kappei. Kujira plays a female character but gives a heavily masculine performance, which is one of those problematic elements with Sakura's character. Yamada just gives a very flat and kind of annoying performance. The music is good. It's used to accentuate the action pretty nicely.

The Ho-yay factor is a 1/10. This has no Ho-yay. I kept expecting there to be some, just because it is starring Ogata Megumi and I'm used to seeing her play characters with either a same sex love interest or at least a one-sided crush on someone of the same sex like Haruka, Yukito, Kurama, and Ayato. But no, she doesn't this time.

So, how is Danganronpa? As a horror piece, it doesn't really work. But if you have a dark sense of humour and you enjoy a good mystery you will likely enjoy it quite a bit in spite of its problems. If macabre elements creep you out or mysteries make your head hurt, it's not going to be for you. For myself, I give it a 7/10. It's a good anime and I did enjoy watching it. Next week, horror anime month ends with a look at some cute little animals... from the Petshop of Horrors.

Before I start this review I want to make something very clear, I am NOT analyzing the adaption part of this anime, what I will try to do in the next lines is view this a anime as a something on its own, I will not compare it to the original work in any way, therefore this review is more guided towards people that have not played the original game.
That being said lets move on, shall we ?

Danganronpa: Kibou no Gakuen to Zetsubou no Koukousei - The Animation, or Danganronpa, or even DR for shorts, its a mystery/investigation anime, in which the main plot is ... as it follows : Several students with unique characteristcs are invited to join a private school, once they get there they discover they are locked in there and the only way to get out is to kill one of their classmates without being discovered by the remaining classmates as the killer, all this is orchestred by the main mind behind this sick "game", a fellow that goes by the name of "Monokuma" and only comunicates with the students by using mechanical teddy bears.

Sounds at least interesting right ? And in fact it is, the story itself is one of the major good points about DR, besides the "weekly" or so mystery of a student assasination, and therefore finding the culprit for such assasination, there is also the main mystery surrounding Monokuma and the reason the students are locked down in the school... I confess that I, personally, found the answer for both these question to be satifasctory (as well for most of the murder cases), but of course this can vary from person to person.

Now, lets talk about the major down point in DR, the Art. Here is where i thouhgt a bit more of care could have taken place. Dont get me wrong, I dont think the art is bad per say, but in this current generation is possible to make a much prettier anime with just a bit more care to details, color pallete, and that kind of stuff. Also, pink blood ? Seriously ?
Well at least at a good side i can point out, the execution sequences, that were really good, and "artistic", and also most of the character design... pretty original and good looking, specially Junko and Ishimaru

Moving on to the Sound... Here i I thought once again Dr did a pretty good job, the soundtrack during investigations and trials are really good and catchy, the kind that will stuck in your head for a whole day.
The OP's were ok, nothing flashy, but nothing terrible either, and I really enjoyed the main ED (episode 1-12), really great song, cheerful wich usually generated a nice contrast with the almost ever dark and tense episodes endings.

In the character segment DR did pretty good as well, with a few cliches of course (Naegi, Togami, etc), but nowadays i highly doubt anyone can find one anime (or movie/tv show for that matter) that does not have at least one cliche character. To be quite honest, with this many characters I was expecting a much larger number of cliche types, but then again i was happily surprised to see that most of them has actually a pretty cool background and personality (I am not going to cite names here becuase I dont want to give possible spoilers). If I have any complains at all here, is that some of the characters had too little screen time, I would love to see some more action of them, and some times the development felt a little rushed... nothing major thouhg. Could a larger number of episodes solved these problems ? Probably yes, but I will take what I can get.

Another great plus on DR resumé is definetly the enjoyment. The sense of immersion on this show is fantastic, and trying to figure out who is the culprit in each murder case is truly awesome. Of course the script does not make it easy for the viewer, if you really want to get to the correct answer before the next episode it will take a LOT of time and thinking, and most of all attention to the minimun details. Doesnt sound so fun right ? Thats why I believe the focus in this anime is another, the anime does not want you to find out who is the culprit, you dont have to. What it wants you to do is have crazy guesses and theories, do not try to have fun by analyzing every bit of evidence, its not your job to do that, the anime will give you the answer in the next episode no matter what. Have fun by taking the wildest guess you can think of until then ! Its like in a movie or tv show, you are not supposed to know who the culprit is before the script tells you, you just sit back and enjoy the ride. If you can do that, I assure you the anticipation to find out who is the culprit will be great. Oh and PLEASE DO NOT LOOK UP FOR SPOILERS ! I think this is pretty much mandatory in mystery animes, but still its always good to remember.

Overall Danganronpa is a good anime, and a pleasant surprise of last season. If you are looking for a nice mystery with interesting characters look no futher, you have found it. Its not a perfect anime (hell,its far from it) but its a great ride and it will probably hook you up until the end.

Danganronpa is a series I wanted to like more. It's by no means terrible. The story is interesting, some of the characters do have the potential to grow on viewers even if they're unfamiliar with the source material, and it manages to build up a serious level of excitement around each individual trial. Furthermore it has unique style which reminds the viewers of it's origins as a game. This is both one of it's greatest strengths as well as it's greatest weakness. While it lends itself to a distinct atmosphere and helps maintain a sense of energy that persists throughout the series which prevents one ... from feeling the whole show is dragging along. Some of the visual cues are neat in their own right. Yet, at the same time, it feels too much like one is watching a video game. While not a "formulaic" show per se, it lends itself to feeling strangely mechanical and predictable from time to time. This can also take the viewer out of the action so to speak. For people unfamiliar with Danganronpa this aspect can be irritating where it may have been intended to appeal to fans of the game. Some scenes appear as if they were torn directly from the source.

Then there's the fact that this series is heavily rushed. A lot of characterization, character development, and plot elements that the source material had time to flesh out are often barely touched upon, rushed, or outright excluded. This lends Danganronpa to feeling a little sloppy and it shows. While the source material may not have aimed for hyper realism, this unfortunately makes some scenes and important reveals feel utterly ridiculous and absurd in ways that only serve to hurt it.

Then there's the opening song. It's not bad but the lyrics some times seem like who so ever wrote it was trying too hard to make it related back to the story itself.

On the bright side, the plot is more-a-less faithfully adapted. No major liberties are taken with what is overall, a fairly well written story. The art style is pretty decent. At it's best moments it can be pretty damn fun to watch. Even if the execution sequences do like they were taken right from the game, they do make for an entertainingly absurd bit of dark comedy. What character development made it in was fairly well handled and most of the cast ends up being fairly likable. Just like the game that spawned it, Danganronpa has a sense of style even if it's not handled as well as it could be. Most of the voice cast (at least with the Japanese language version) does a decent job.

While it's more interesting than the average series, fans will probably enjoy it more than someone totally unfamiliar with the franchise. While I would not hesitate to call it a good series, it suffers in some significant ways from time constraints and stylistically clinging too close to it's source even as it uses this very same element to elevate itself in other aspects.

Ok let me get this out of the way for all those complaining about the anime not living up to the video game. A game and a Anime are two different things and i wont be using the game in this review because its just not a very comparable subject. OK on to the review.

Story: The concept of the story isn't very original; but the way they took on the concept was. the hole concept of killing someone while at the same time you cant get caught by others hasn't really been done like this before. the whole trial system was good too but felt ... like it was a little rushed but for me rushing it wasn't as bad of a thing as other say; it kept me watching and because of the fast pace i wasn't bored at all; the down side to this is i wasn't as surprised either when a "twist" happened.

Character: This is where the series fell short because you don't really learn much about the characters in this anime. The information you do get on the background of the characters if you actually get some is very little and doesn't contribute much to the story. They do focus on the characters but not the same way (or should i say not in the way the should) compared to other anime. They focus more on the character at the present moment and how they act towards things then actually getting to know them and telling about there past which really brings the rating down.

Art: i don't know why people where so angry about the art it felt very fitting for this type of anime. Its was bright and colorful while at the same time eerie and sinister which kept me glued to the screen. Also it made each character very individual and very easy two spot what kind of person they where gonna be and made me more surprised when some characters had more to them than expected.

Sound: The soundtrack was enjoyable for me. not as much to say about it though. if you like the sound track to persona 2 your gonna like the soundtrack for this (weird and obscure i know)

I played the game after i watched the anime so i don't know if that's the reason why i like the anime more than others. either way i don't care the game and the anime are two different things with a similar story that take on the story in two completely different ways. This is why is why its a bad idea to compare these two and i hope future reviewers see this and think about how different they are before making a review.

Story: danganronpa is about 15 *cough* students, who wake up and get locked in they'er private high school. The students have kill each other until 1 is left, who of which is allow to leave. But its not that easy,if a dead body is found, then a class trial is held to find the murder. if the murder doesn't get caught, then everyone else gets killed, if he/she does get caught, they'll be killed.

Art: There are 2 problems, which you may or may not like. 1 is that the blood is pink, as you can tell, this is for censorship. the second is the educated ... cut scenes, when this happens, everything becomes "flatten" you could say.

Sound: meh, normal

character: most characters we have almost no backstory or development. because why well you talk about yourself to a bunch of random people *cough* who'll kill you

My experience finding Dangan Ronpa was a weird one. I was in the family car, and I kept seeing the subbed episode on my sister's iPad. I caught episodes 9,10, and 11. So naturally, I was already spoiled for who lived and who died. I didn't even know it was a game.

Let me get this straight: as an adaptation of the game, it's mediocre at best. Only the class trials had the same amount of quality. But that's because they took a different approach. Instead of having Naegi walk everybody through the trial as he did in the game, everybody was able to contribute, ... this streamlined it, and didn't run the risk of the other characters looking like idiots.

I'll get right onto the voice actors. With the exception of Bryce Papenbrook as Makoto Naegi, none of the game actors are returning. Papenbrook absolutely nails it as Naegi as he's had experience fine-tuning the role over multiple previous appearances. But with the exception of Togami (Spouting the same English VA as Sadao Maou, ironically), none of the voice actors quite know how to play their roles. I kept hearing other roles the actor played. I don't hear Maizono, I hear Kaede Kayano. I don't hear Asahina, I hear Emilia the Hero. I don't hear Junko, I hear Liz Thompson.

The back-end was horribly rushed. Not even an extra long episode 13 can alleviate some of its problems. 13 episodes was probably the right length, but 22-25 minutes per episode was not enough. There's enough material here for episodes twice that length. Just look at the game. All the free-time events, all the subtle visuals to incorporate. The script was writing itself, and with a franchise like Dangan Ronpa (2 critically-acclaimed games strong at that point with more on the way), as long as you made it halfway decent, fans were going to buy it. They'll get their friends hyped for it.

I call this the Scott Pilgrim of anime. (It doesn't help that Makoto looks like Scott.) Yeah, it's an adaptation that's good on its own, but the original medium is so much better.

To start my review I would like to start things off by saying, my rating on this anime will be based off of the anime alone. I am well aware that this started as a game and got turned into anime and like all things before they get animated, was most likely better. For all the sections I cover, I will break things down and at the end of the section there will be a tl;dr (too long, didn't read) for those who want to get straight to the point. I would like to give an apology in advance if there ... are any spoilers in my review.

The story: 7.5
The foundation of Danganronpa is set quite clearly and successfully. A group of highschool students are taken as hostage. They can only escape if they kill another student. If one is gutsy enough to kill one of their classmates, there is an investigation and trial session in which the group discuss who the killer is. The investigative process is timed so collecting clues will be limited. So characters are not just blurting out names of the ones they hate during the trail process, they have to come to a unanimous decision together on who the killer is. If the classes guesses right, the killer gets punished, if they are wrong, they get punished . There are indeed motives and intensives set. There is a dilemma on both sides whether or not you commit a murder. There is very, very, little romance in here (if you could call it that). It would've definitely been a plus if there was a more well developed romance. Reason being love triangles are always a good way to add further twists and motives. Given the 12 episode limit, you are just squeezing things together while at the same time not forgetting about key events.

tl;dr - Danganronpa has an adequate story . It meets all plot devices, an exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. Just the way it was executed could have been done a better. Also gets a definite minus 1 for almost no romance with that abundance of characters.

Art - 6.5
From the cover, the art looked great. The tone of the anime to me felt a bit retro, futuristic and colorful. The reason why I rated so low was when it came to the punishments and the plot twists of facts it was so... flat and basic. I mean this is where the person dies or pleads to the classmates that they were not the one who did it. I remember seeing the first death (not spoiling any names) but I was so excited to see how this character was going to be executed, but instead it was just a total let down. So to me it felt like there should've been more. There was definitely a balance, not just a typical chop off head, and blood spurts out everywhere type, but was still disappointing. I mean in an anime you animate! I do understand that there some people who are a fan of the simple and done, but for an anime with a futuristic type set tone, doing a plain and simple doesn't quite cut it. (Okay, maybe I lied, blood spurting out does sound good in this type of anime.)

tl;dr - It was not creative enough in the parts that mattered the most which is a total buzz kill. In an anime, you animate!

Sound/Music - 7
Aside from the art cover, I usually judge whether I want to watch an anime or not is based on the opening theme song. As we all know good theme songs = good anime, look at Shingeki no Kyojin for example! The intro was a below average intro to me. Like I stated in the art section, the song also gives this anime a futuristic tone. It was not something catchy and remember-able. If a song is about hope and beating despair, the voice needs to be that way as well. The woman did have a good voice, but her tone was a little off in my opinion. Another example I'll use to show my point is LiSA's Sword Art opening, Crossing Field. She had a very strong and encouraging voice that matched with what she was saying in the lyrics. There was none of that in here. That being said, the best part of the intro is when the woman transitions and starts singing, there's a little sexy and slow dance that Monobear does which I found hilarious and entertaining itself, it gets a plus one in sound and in art just for that. (hopefully you do too so i don't look crazy). Now for inside the anime, it does use pretty well quality sounds. To put it simply, when it needs to be creepy and suspicious, you got creepy and suspicious background noises.

tl;dr - Monobear can work it! But really, I cannot stress enough how important it is that if everything shows Danganronpa is a futuristic anime, the art needs to match the feel where it matters.

Character(s) - 7.5
Now with animes that introduce a group of potential main characters all at once, they all get a minus in character development because of the quantity and not enough quality, they cannot fully bring out the true character. So in return, you kind of don't give a shi* about some. This one is no exception, with that many characters, you kind of forget who your following or who that character is. Of course if they fully developed the characters there wouldn't be enough episodes so I am not bashing on Danganronpa completely on this. They did well in the time allotted. Because of the amount of characters there are of course "throw away characters" . Now I don't know if the producers we're trying for this but some characters were just annoying, such as Genocider. I understand that she's supposed to be some sort of deranged maniac murderer, but that voice just kills me. It sucks too because she was pretty cool(I personally like bipolar characters especially if the other half is psychotic), but that damn voice! If they we're going for an annoying voiced super villain, they succeeded! Still doesn't get a plus in this section though. One thing I was kind of half and half on was the title these characters received, which were Super Duper ______ insert personality here. I think it's corny, on the other hand whenever I heard the full title in the anime it was just so entertaining. In this section I'll give a plus to Monobear's "Ping, pong, pang" announcements (or is that supposed to be in sounds XD, whatever). In my opinion, the best characters were, Monobear, Naegi, Kirigiri and Enoshima (wish she had a longer part).

tl;dr - Not fully developed characters and because some aren't they kind of get on your nerves when they finally do get a bit a dialogue.

Enjoyment 7.5
I did enjoy this anime, even if there are some shaky rushed parts. In some animes you have to get to the middle and sometimes even close to the end where you're like, "Dang this is getting pretty intense". To me because it was so rushed, you are getting hit with all these different things and if you do comprehend them it feels like your stuck in the same dilemma as the characters. That being said in later episodes it does lose it's steam as it has to wrap even more things up, so there are more unanswered situations that we just have to live with. It is personally better to me to end with a big bang, that start with one,(don't be a Vegeta and use your ultimate move and the have nothing to back it up in-case it fails). Nonetheless, personally I enjoyed the anime. It's one of those animes where, you will go to the next episode because you do want to know what happens next, not because you started it and now you have to finish it.

tl;dr - I believe the ending sentences said it best. In my opinion, this is a type of anime that you will click next episode on for the sake of wanting to know what happens next, not just wanting to finish it because you started already.

Overall - 7
(Since this is only four sentences, there will be no tl;dr.)
With everything to consider I do believe this anime is something people should watch. It was an adequate anime that did not fail too hard, but did not do too amazingly well. So it get's an adequate score from me. This is where simple and done works :P.

Closing Statements / Final Thoughts
I do understand that fans that have played the game will be a bit disappointed in this anime, but like I said in the first paragraph, to those who have never even heard of the game and are considering to watch it should. If your like me and have finished watching all the amazing animes for the Summer and are waiting for Fall animes, this surely will kill a little bit of time. Watching over 100 animes, this is my first review so I would like people who found this helpful to tell me and those who didn't what I would need to work on. If you took enough time to say it was bad,say why, not just say it was horrible. You won't hurt my feelings I promise...or maybe you will but it's okay! I would like to end this review by saying thank you for reading it even if it was just the tl;dr's and hopefully it helps answers your question to, "should I or should I not watch this anime."

So, this is my first review for an anime that is adapted from a video game that I've never played. Also, my computers broken, so, currently typing this on my mobile, so, excuse any misspellings.

Danganronpa is a show about a group of 15 teenagers, each excelling at a specific skill, who are enrolled in an Academy, where their only way out is to successfully kill one of their fellow classmates and get away with it. If you are caught, you're executed, if you aren't caught, everyone who is innocent gets executed.

Story-9/10- The story of Danganronpa is unique, in that it plays out in ... a way that keeps you on your toes and guessing who's going to be the culprit. There were many times where iI had thought I had guessed the culprit through logic, only to have it be a completely different person using logic that was equally reasonable. If you're a fan of mysteries that will make you want to re watch it just to find all of the fine details that prove a characters guilt, this is the show for you.

Art-9/10- The ar is another great part about this show, although for the most part its just good, when they get to the execution scenes and mix together the 2d and 3d, it really looks amazing. The character designs are also noteworthy, as they each give them a distinct personality and helps add to the atmosphere of the show.

Sound-7/10- The ost does its job of keeping the tone and atmosphere of the show consistent, but, that's about it. No songs stand out in particular, but they do a good job of fitting the scenes, and that's all we should really expect.

Characters - 10/10- The characters are by far what makes this show for me. Each has a unique personality, and the voice actors really did an amazing job portraying the characters they were given. Although at first it may seem a bit overwhelming by how many characters there are, and how much they each lack development, you come to notice that even those who only get so much as two episodes of screen time play important roles in the story and has an impact on the group.


Overall -9/10- I've seen many people say that this show is an awful adaptation, and is very rushed, which at sone parts it is. But, having not played the game, and judging it solely on its own, I'd say Danganronpa is definitely worth watching, even if you aren't too fond of mysteries. It's characters are charming and unique, while it's story is gripping, suspenseful and will have you second guessing yourself over who did it. Danganronpa has easily joined my top ten anime of all time and I think everyone should at least try it.

Danganronpa is one of those animes that will keep the viewer guessing. I really like the story and the conflict in this anime.

The basic premise of Danganronpa is that 15 high school students are trapped in a school an the only way to get out is to solve murders or get away with murder. So this anime is basically find the killer and have him/her punished via execution or get the wrong person who committed the crime and die while the real criminal gets released.

The characters all have unique characteristics emphasized in this anime. The two best characters are Naegi and Kirigiri. They have the ... best chemistry in this show because of their platonic relationship.

The enjoyment I got from this anime was beyond my expectation. There were only little nit-picks that I don't like about this anime, but overall it is a great show. Every trial in this show was outstanding not only because it was life or death, but because it just throws the viewer curveball after curveball and the actual person who committed the crime is someone that you never expected.

Bear in mind when reading this that I haven't played the game, his review is solely about the anime.

I loved this anime, solid 8 out of 10 overall. DanganRonpa is an anime with a great art style and character design that captures the core themes of the anime perfectly. The pink blood is something that I personally love, it helps to show how messed up the situation these highschoolers are in actually is. The pink blood also plays well alongside other aspects of the show such as Monobear which take the seriousness of the brutal deaths away and make them somewhat comedic, ... again showing how twisted the school they are in is. My favourite thing about DanganRpnpa are the characters, each one is unique and there were none that I disliked, especially Monbear.

There are a few things that forced me to give this show an 8 rather than a 9 or a 10. Firstly, I felt that it was a little too short, 13 episodes was not enough to do each of the characters justice and many of them were not around long enough for me to get invested inn their story meaning that their deaths did not have as alrge an impact as they could have.

To conclude, DanganRonpa is a great anime which is well worth watching. The mysteries behind the plot and the results of the investigations will keep you on the edge of your seat.

8/10

Even though it was short I think they did an amazing job of setting a good plot and did a good job finishing up the story. The murder cases were fun to guess and had me very excited for the classroom trials.
[spoiler]Also, it was cool how MonoBear ended up being one of the earlier dead students. I never thought for a SECOND that Enoshima would be the mastermind. It wasn't predictable at all.[/spoiler] Overall I thought it was very well done and had everything I was looking for in this type of anime.

Danganronpa: Academy of Hope and Students of Despair. Just from the title of this anime you are intrigued as to what it could be about and as to where it leads to. This anime is basically a mystery genre and I believe it to be very well done. My only complaint that would keep it from being a 10 is the rushed feeling you get. But let's get into this review!

Story: 9
This story has quite a unique setup for animes that I haven't really seen before. Essentially 14 of the best students in their particular areas (Super Duper High School Students) are gathered together along ... with one lucky person to attend this academy that guarantees success in life upon graduation. Everything sounds great until upon entering the school, everyone is knocked out and reawaken to a summoning by the principal who is a talking bear named Monokuma. He informs the students that they are trapped within the school and the only way to escape is to kill another student and not be voted guilty during a trial period in which the whole class participates to try and decide who the murderer was. As the story progresses, it focuses on the murders and mysteries within the school rather than the character interactions as a whole, and the classroom trials that take place, all determining who was the murderer. Quite a unique setup. The murders that take place a well thought out and it is quite difficult to figure out who the culprit is until soon before they announce them,

Characters: 8
Our main protagonist is Makoto Naegi who is the lucky student selected to attend this wonderful academy. His personality on the whole is quite bland, however he does get along well with the rest of the characters and does his job well. Most of the story is told from his perspective and on the whole he is a likeable character. Another notable character includes Kyouko Kirigiri who is extremely cool under pressure and helps Naegi the most in figuring out mysteries. There is a bond of trust between the two developed as their time together increases and they learn to rely on each other, even with the situation they are presented with. On the whole they are memorable characters each with their own specialty area that makes them unique.

Sound + Art: 8
I really enjoyed listening to the Opening and Ending songs for Danganronpa, and the music chosen throughout the anime itself is suspenseful and creates the right atmosphere. The art is quite good as well, particularly with the executions that are done in a cinematic style.

Overall Enjoyment: 9
I really enjoyed watching this anime and finally being able to finish it off. It had me on the edge of my seat, excited for what would come next and how things were going to be solved. If you are into the genre of mystery then I highly recommend watching this anime.