Gantz

NOTE: This review is intended to cover Gantz in its entirety.

Gantz is about as close as you�ll ever get to a love it or hate it anime. It�s littered with so much gore, profanity, nudity, and sex that it�ll either immediately turn you off or immediately glue your eyes to the screen. Being a person from the latter group I have to say I absolutely loved Gantz right from the start. Well, okay, not exactly right from the start. Gantz starts out in the life of Kei Kurono, an angst ridden teenager who has nothing better to do but think negatively to himself and get ... boners in class. He�s always worrying about something, and doesn�t care about anyone else except for himself. To put it simply, he�s like an emo kid on acid. He complains about everything, but mostly dwells on the fact that he�s never gotten laid. Hmm�wonder why. Ten minutes of listening to this punk whine and cry while so eloquently squeezing in the occasional F-word and I dare anyone to not want to turn this anime off and forget all about it. Thankfully things pick up from there, albeit with all the whining and crying still intact.

After we get acquainted with our main protagonist we get to meet Katou. Katou is an old time friend of Kei�s who used to look up to him. You see, before Kei was a whinny little punk he was actually a really cool and adventurous kid. Lack of character development doesn�t exactly show why Kei went from hero to zero, but Katou tries to emulate the Kei he once knew throughout the series, starting with attempting to save a homeless guy who fell on the subway tracks, with the help of Kei of course. Here is where the feces (and blood, guts, and various other nasty things) really hits the fan. Kei and Katou successfully aid the drunk homeless guy to safety, but soon realize that a subway is coming their way. Their plan of avoiding it? Run up the tracks passed where the subway should stop. Bad plan? You bet. I don�t know about you, but I�d much rather try my luck at climbing back onto the platform rather than outrunning a damn subway train. But that�s just me. It turns out that Subway isn�t going to stop at the station after all, and both Kei and Katou are royally screwed. They get hit, and heads go flying.

Welcome to the true start of Gantz. Here is where things go beyond the boundaries of typical anime. Here is where things get fun. Kei and Katou wake up in this room with a number of random people who all seem to have died. They can�t leave the room, and trying to make sense out of it all is only a waste of time. Introduced into the story next is who I like to call the third wheel. Her name is also Kei, but like everyone else in the series I�ll just call her Kishimoto. Kishimoto serves little to no purpose other than for Kei to obsess and angst over, and as fan service, but with her flakey and often times clueless personality I don�t think she�s doing anyone a service. Luckily Gantz isn�t about character depth; it�s all about violence, nudity, and all that juicy stuff. That�s where the true main character of the anime comes in: Gantz. Gantz is probably one of the coolest anime characters to come around in years, and he doesn�t even have to say a word. He�s psychotic, yet fully in control. He�s evil, yet lovable. He�s the gears in the machine.

Gantz is a game of survival that you can�t help but love. Everyone in the room is soon transported to an area of town and can�t leave until they have eliminated the targets selected by Gantz. These targets are as wacky as they are terrifying, and while many of them look harmless or relatively easy to dispatch of that is rarely the case. Part of the excitement of watching Gantz comes from not knowing what everyone will have to go up against next. It�s also worth mentioning that this isn�t your typical �bad guy of the week� series. Each time our reluctant cast is forced into battle it usually lasts for a lot more than just a single episode. This is good, because Gantz is one anime that will probably have you thinking �So many characters, so little time to kill them all.� Gantz sets its characters up like dominos. Very few of them are ever developed, and very few survive long enough to see the last episode. There is a lot of death in Gantz and plenty of gory scenes to cringe at and watch over and over again, trust me.

Gantz does suffer from one major flaw, or at least I thought it was major: the ending. For an anime that is so straight forward and brutal right from the start it sure did have a weak and vague ending. Maybe the writers just didn�t know of a good way to end it. The movie The Cube had a very similar ending and plot, so I must wonder if that is what inspired Gantz in the first place. I would have liked to get a little background info on Gantz before it ended. Like where did he come from, and what was the purpose of these �games�. Either way, there is a lot to love (and hate) in Gantz. It�s lack of character development, almost completely unlikable protagonist, and strict R rating is sure to turn many viewers off, but if you�re a fan of the brutal and nasty stuff I see no reason why you won�t like the fun little rollercoaster that is Gantz.

My Score: 9.0

Version Watched: English Dub

This is a review of both Gantz and Gantz 2nd Stage. Why are the two seasons even split up in the first place? The first season very clearly does not end the show and the second season picks up right where the first leaves off, so what's the point of even writing two reviews? If you have fundamental problems with this decision, blow me. Moving on.

Gantz is a show that a lot of people don't get. This surprises me because, in the grand scheme of things, Gantz is amazingly simple and straightforward. It's brutal in a different way than anime fans are used to because ... it pulls absolutely no punches in its delivery. This is an anime that isn't really suited for today's anime climate, where shit that uses gore for filler gets passed off as "tough to watch" (Elfen Lied), and Epic Movie style reference jokes get passed off as funny because moe girls are the ones telling them (Lucky Star). Its supernatural plot sets people up for something that ends up being the polar opposite of what they're given. At its core, Gantz is all about keeping it real, and that attitude is what fucks up a lot of the people that try to watch it. Really, it's the very definition of a love-it-or-hate-it anime.

Essentially, what Gantz does is take familiar stereotypes (the teenager, the helpless titty girl, the self righteous big dude, the serial killers, the gangsters, the bikers, grandma and her spoiled grandson, etc.) and shows you how they would react in a life or death, kill or be killed situation. It's a textbook deconstruction that takes character types out of their usual element and throws them dick first into all sorts of trials and tribulations that they aren't usually written into. It's an anime that makes no judgements on others' character; "morally pure" losers will at times act like fucking psychos, and complete assholes will touch your heart, or at least make you laugh. It's an anime that serves as both an indictment and an exoneration of humanity; it will con you into rooting for kill-first-ask-questions-later types over those genuinely concerned about their fellow player, but in the same way it'll coax you into rooting against the kill-because-I-like-it types who knowingly and purposefully fuck over everyone else for their own selfish reasons. It's an anime that preaches balance as the solution and then kills the balanced ones anyway. It's paradoxical, contradictory, cold, and eccentric, because that's the way a fantasy-land situation like this would be in the real world.

Even though I basically just gave Itchiro Itano a textual handjob up there, Gantz is certainly not without its flaws. If you are not emotionally invested, or at least interested, in the fates of any of the characters (the majority of which are horrible douches), this anime will rape you with how slow its pace is. Battles have a tendency to run for 3 or more episodes and they can be the most frustrating things to have to sit through for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it feels like writers don't know how to end a battle so they just keep throwing more shit at us (the 3rd fight ends with Katou fighting a giant green turd because they literally ran out of ideas), some battles are plagued by having a cast of pussies who ruin perfectly good opportunities because none of them will act first, sometimes the characters launch into the Communist Manifesto during the middle of a fight scene, etc. There's much more dialogue than action, so if you're just watching this to see dead guys cash checks and break necks, then I'm sorry but you're going to be disappointed. The writers have a tendency to let the plot dictate the character's actions, even if it means making otherwise logical characters act dumb as hell, just to further the show along. Above all that though, Gantz's most pervasive flaw is that the cynicism is often left unchecked. Half the shit in this show could be something out of Youngblood or Bloodpain or Assblood or any other generic, "dark" 90s comic book. Every child is beaten, every woman is nearly raped, the one black guy is a gay thug, the bully rips the Karate instructor's teeth out of his gums, the guy who loves guns also loves torturing things, the goody-two-shoes old man tries to "save" a kid serial killer by talking sternly to him, that same serial killer tries to validate killing and raping homeless people (!!!) with a long-winded speech about war, and so on and so forth. It just gets really really over the top at times and, I mean, I don't have a problem with that (I loved Death Note and its intense notebook writing action), but it shits all over the "realistic and gritty" atmosphere the anime tries to present.

The art? Um, it's ok. That's about the best I can say. It incorporates some CGI, and it runs the gauntlet from good to "what the fuck is that?" The monster designs are pretty creative and they make up for how generic the character designs are. The backgrounds are nicely done as well, so no complaints there. Animation wise, the show is plagued by stiff computer animation and an assortment of cheap tricks that actually made me do a few double takes while I was watching. Nothing to write home about.

Sound in-show is barely even noticeable. The OP is pretty cool but I skipped it a lot. I imagine it would've gotten pretty fucking annoying quick if I had to hear it on a regular basis. The ED? Uhhhhh yea its ok. Generic, relaxing, melancholy Jpop. I expected much more in both of these departments from GONZO than what we were given---oh wait, no I didn't. The English dub was middle of the road as well, not shit-tier but not god-tier either. Some of the voice actors were better than others but for the most part my only complaints are subjective, so we'll move on.

Out of everything it seems the characters are what piss most people off about this show. For starters, there's a rotating assortment of cast members because they're constantly killed off. Because of the wide array of assholes that regularly appear on this fine cartoon, the very few people you can sympathize with (aside from Katou) are minor roles, which sucks because again, in this show being a member of the supporting cast is an instant death sentence. There's a lot of varying personalities, some you'll like, some you'll hate; I think this is probably one of Gantz's strongest points because it allows the show to stay fresh, even if it is at the expense of a lot of character development. The 3 people of biggest importance to the plot are:

Kurono, the whiny, horny, selfish, impressionable teenager. Probably one of the least likable characters on the show. His development is really haphazard because the second he starts to change in a certain direction, the show waves its floppy dick and fucks the whole playing field up. On the spectrum, he's more or less centered between I'm-a-fucking-psychopath and I-fucking-care-about-everyone, and as such, he can be cool one moment and then act like a flailing dumbshit the next. Really, he's whatever the writers need him to be for that specific episode. Personality wise, the most flexible member of the cast.

Katou, the big dude with everyone's best interests at heart. One of the only glimpses of genuine goodness on the show. Can get really, really fucking annoying when he hinders the progress of the group with his nobility, but at other times he's a welcome break from the sea of dickheads this show throws at us. Sometimes loses control and legitimately hurts people (physically). His only reason to really continue on living is to raise his little brother.

Kishimoto, ahhh fuck this bitch. IMO the least likable member of the cast, even worse than that fucking serial killer kid or that whiny businessman. This bitch is the worst. Killed herself because her bad grades lead to a strained relationship with her mother or something like that. I don't know, it was basically just an excuse for us to see her naked (which is stupid because we saw her naked like 30 other times afterwards). Depends on others for 98% of the show and is always yelling at other people for not doing anything when she herself does the equivalent of masturbating during a house fire. Kept around primarily for fanservice and to create sexual tension. Not exactly emotionally stable but that's to be expected considering the circumstances of her death.

Did I enjoy this anime? It depends on what you mean by enjoy. Its hard to "enjoy" an anime like Gantz in the typical sense, but it was well executed and at times pretty fun to watch, so I'll say yeah. Plus it made me laugh multiple times (both intentionally and unintentionally), and in an anime this bleak, I think that counts for something.

Overall I give it a 7. Watch it for the black guy, he's hilarious.

Supposedly to be about COMPASSION. It manages to show HESITATION. Imagine a paintball game where all the participants are dumb and become sitting ducks.

Episodes drag endlessly, stretching at a slow pace, with all characters doing nothing, stupid, motionless, refraining from even defending themselves even if they are armed with hi-tech weaponry and if they are in the iminence of being hurt/killed by the bad guys. It feels strongly like a horrid NIGHTMARE in which you are frozen, unable to act and everything is out of control due to your own weakness.

The aliens are quite something. Surprisingly sluggish grotesque weirdos, who even so eventually manage ... to kill the characters due to their lack of decision. They are later replaced by mystical Tomb Raider-style living statues.

The CHARACTERS are flat -- a profusion of generic cliches : 1) the big guy who is too soft-hearted to do something (in the best Yasutora Sado-style), 2) the innocent/stupid hot babe who is too scared to do something, 3) the cynical who plays the game all along (this is the one with whom the westerners will probably relate more), 4) the psycho sadist bum-killer who blames the society... and so on. Exception noted for Kurono, who starts as a grumpy selfish teen who evolves into a cowardly fearful selfish teen and then into a not-very-competent reckless teen killing machine.

HUMOR pops up every now and then, and when it does it is well done (e.g., the scoring of the points for the dog with hylarious comments). Some acid critic permeates (e.g., the fanatical priest who is blind to the truth, the stupid yuppie who never catches up and is unable to act in the team).

The vulgar language, the violence and sexual hints give the illusion that some development is really taking place, but the lack of action is unnerving, they mostly talk and talk, without deciding nothing. If the story was condensed/edited, the 26 episodes (of this two-parter) could easily become 10 or 12.

Ah, there is also a sterile melee of criss-cross non-coincident encounters of apparently secondary characters which supposedly have some meaning in the major plan, whatever it may be. And also a faint attempt to create a psychological dimension with the curiosity about the meaning of the ominous ball 8. Looks like a cheap sci-fi where nothing is even remotely explained (such as in "story? who cares?"). Unexpectedly, it got me glued to my seat and I watched the 26 eps in 3 days.

As I'm sure almost everyone knows by now, this series is not for the faint of heart. It has buckets of Gore, a healthy dosage of nudity and a nice sprinkling of profanity to go along with it.

That being said, Gantz really does have a message underneath it's grisly facade, this is actually a much more philosophical anime then people think, most might compare it to Elfen Lied, do not be fooled. I found Elfen Lied to be way over-the-top in content but I felt that they did way to many scenes just for the hell of it. Gantz itself however manages to ensure that ... it keeps a message to go with the violence, when I was watching this show It seemed at many times to talk about why violence itself is generally unnecessary (I.E. Kato's initial feelings regarding the Green Onion Alien and especially the last episode arc which features a pacifist bookstore owner who in my opinion makes some fantastic points about violence)

All in all Gantz is worth checking out, The Message is very different then what the content shows you.

When I first think of watching an anime, I always look at the reviews. I like to see what others have to say before I watch, without spoilers. I am really glad I decided to watch this anime. I was pleasantly shocked at the beginning and wanting more at the end. I have yet to watch Gantz: The second stage, but I am starting when I am done with this review.

Story: I gave it a 9 because I really think it deserves it. There is more than one hidden message in the story and hopefully most of you will see ... it, if not, that's okay as well, you will enjoy it. I hate to read reviews with spoilers, so I won't add any. It starts off shocking and isn't for the faint of heart. If you don't like blood, gore, nudity, profanity, this anime is not for you. There is no sex or romance, :( , lol, but thats okay as well.

Art: I think the art could've been done better. If you watch it online fullscreen, it's kinda choppy. The colors weren't as vibrant as you would expect being horror.

Sound: I LOVED the music. It fit well with episodes and what was going on at that time. There was a lot of that creepy, horror movie magic there. The beginning starts with Hard Rock or what I think is hard rock and then end is kinda...gentle.

Character: You love them, hate them, pity them and want to smack them. Some characters made me wanna jump through the screen and beat the crap outta them for their lack of survival skills. You won't see all characters all the time, but we all know the mains pretty much stay. Some you can't wait to leave and others you feel bad when they are gone.

Enjoy: I was really surprised I enjoyed this anime so much. I usually go for an anime with romance, drama, etc. There were times I was slack-jawed by what was going on. Sometimes I was rolling with laughter at the stupidity and helplessness a few characters portrayed. But I really enjoyed it and watched it all back to back in a few hours.

Overall: I think this anime is OUTSTANDING!!! It is not your typical story line and if you don't read any spoilers, you will be surprised and enraptured. Look at this anime. Give it a chance. I tried to stay away from giving too much away. This is my first review. I think, I hope, I will get better with time, lol.

Action, aliens, crazy wild sex! Yes, these are all elements of the story of Gantz, and what a story it is!

The story starts with Kurono Kei, a complete asshole with no regard for the life around him, who dies trying to save the life of a homeless man.

Yes, you heard me right and before you call out my contradiction, there were other parties involved.

Kurono Kei was described as being a fearless person who was ready to tackle on anything by his close middle school friend Kato Masaru, however, as time went on Kurono slowly starts to drift away from being so fearless and eventually assimilates ... into the void of the human nature.

He becomes just like every other human being, no longer any different as he once was, just an uncaring, unfeeling person trying to work for only his own benefit in the world.

Kato meets up with Kurono one day by accident and finds that his old friend has changed for the worst. The two start to reminisce by the subway station and Kurono notices a drunk old man, he curses at him silently to himself and talks about the filth in the world for a while in his own head when suddenly the man is on the tracks of the subway in imminent peril. Kato, being the fearless wonder boy he is, urges Kurono, whom he had always looked up to, to save the man! Yet, Kurono is no longer the person he once was, he has become detached from his former self. However, he reluctantly goes to help the man off the tracks, but, in doing so, Kurono and Kato are both killed by the oncoming train.

When they awake they are not dead, or they are, but they still exist. This is where the story starts to get good.

Possibly the greatest part of this anime was the characters. Truly, splendidly done. Wonderful character development as well.

Throughout the story it's a constant test of "What are you willing to do to survive?" and it shows the human nature and animal behaviors that show the lengths of our will to survive.

While Kurono starts out as someone who would die in this new world he finds himself in, he soon adapts to his new surroundings and overcomes all odds.

While the series ends on a bitter note, at least Kurono gets to unleash his carnal desires. And isn't that what life is all about anyway?

A great, great, great series that I would recommend to anyone 16 and over. There's a decent amount of blood and nudity, but it's nothing that someone at 16 shouldn't be able to handle.

Definitely a guy's anime, but, maybe some girls will like it as well.

First of all, I want to say that the anime of Gantz, is not as bad as people who have read the manga have made it sound. Also, I am not a person who watched it for the gore or nudity, but for the story and overall message. I started this anime expecting a disaster. But as I continued to watch the series, paying attention to every detail, I began to feel a thrill that no other anime has offered. It is that thrill that made this anime unique.

Gantz was a thrilling adventure about an ... average high school student, Kurono Kei, who didn't think about anyone but himself. He was just a perverted kid that thought only about women. But all that changed when he died. Well, I'm not sure if he really died, but that doesn't matter.

He was sent to a room with several other people that had similar near-death experiences. In the middle of that room was a large black sphere known as Gantz. This mysterious sphere sent Kurono and his group on various alien hunts. Whoever died was replaced for the next round. Kurono's main goal was only to survive until he discovered that he would be able to go back to his normal way of life if he killed enough aliens.

That is the main plot of this series. The strange events that occur along the way are what makes the series stand out from the crowd. If you're bored and can't find anything to watch like I was when I started this series, I suggest you try Gantz out for a spin. If you do, you may get more than you were looking for.

Gantz involves a very unique story line that no other anime can match. This anime is filled with blood,gore, and constant killings. Whats so interesting about this series is that anyone can die at anytime. I actually find this to be a downfall to Gantz. As soon as I find a character that I don't want to die, HE DIES!! I like to understand the characters and if they keep dying soon after their background information is given, that information becomes useless. However, because I don't want to ruin the plot I can't go into detail.

Besides ... the fact that there is little information on the characters, there is also little information on the weapons. People just keep pulling out new weapons.....WHEN DID THEY GET THESE?? I mean when they showed them in the earlier scenes they had nothing and in the next clips they have every weapon available.....HUH??

By the way: THIS IS NOT AN ANIME FOR PEOPLE WHO WANT TO SEE A ROMANCE....

For some reason I felt I had to list the things I disliked first. Luckily the good things counteract the bad. Unfortunately, I watched this anime a long time ago and the easiest things to remember are the things I disliked.

The plot is complex, unique, and well done. Many of the episodes progress slowly, but there is a good share of fighting as well. The characters are very simple despite the complex plot. There is the typical male with a hero complex who feels he must do right no matter the consequences. Then there is the male who feels he is forced to play hero after having pressure applied by the male with the hero complex. However, what would two males be without a damsel to rescue?? Nothing and that's why the third main character is a beautiful girl. Two males and 1 female mean one thing, a love triangle. A love triangle forms, but I don't recall this playing much importance in the plot. There are other characters as well, but there is no need to list them because a lot of them die =*(.

Overall, this is a pretty good anime, but it's only worth watching if you watch the 2nd season with the final 13 episodes. A lot happens in the second season and I feel it is better than the first season. The plot is even more dynamic and things happen that you will never expect. With that said, watch the second season after watching the first season!!

Probably not the greatest review, but that's life. You don't always get what your expecting and my review could have been worse. I could have had spoilers everywhere, but I decided to be nice \,,/ (<>..<>) \,,/

It looks like Gantz is hated by many people... wrongfully. Gantz is not just an mediocore ecchi anime with pointless gore scenes and awful characters. Gantz is full of emotions. The situation, the protagonists are, are unreal, it would never happen to us, so what would you do, when you die and you would directly teleported in an unknown room? What would you do, when a fucking ball teleports you to an area where you have to fight against fucking aliens?

And that's the point where Gantz success. The characters behave human, they cry, wonder, ask. This is the natural behavior when a human sees utopian ... beings.

I won't say Gantz is perfect, of course, sometimes I wonder how bad it actually is (after re-watching it several times) but Gantz is a unique anime. I was very annoyed when the character won't shoot, but again, that was human.

It' s full with drama elements and when someone says it's just a violent nonsense anime, he's sure a moron.


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Story:
In my opinion the story was quite enjoyable. Too bad I'm not allowed to be more detailed...

Art:
Why I really like Gantz. The art fits the whole atmosphere. The characters do look very detailed and human. No bigeyes and super sayan hairs. I'm very astonished how detailed Gantz was in some parts. The background of the whole anime was mostly done by the PC.

Sound:
I love Gantz's soundtrack. Once again, I'm not allowed to spoil but I can say at very dramatic situations, there was music like in churches. The whole soundtrack is one of my favorites with the Death Note's.

Character:
As I said before the character where very authentic so they acted very human in difficult situations. Kurono is by far ma favorite character of Gantz. He's an average guy like every guy. In the second half of Gantz you see his character progress. He's a real monster...
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I would overall rate Gantz with 8 (including the second season). Gantz made many thins wrong and many things right.

Original. Provoking. Gory. A Masterpiece.

Premise:

Once your life ends, your new one begins inside a small room with a large black ball. Inside the ball is a creature named Gantz who sends copies of people who died to battle against various alien creatures.

Gantz is split into two seasons, and I'm reviewing the first one. The first season consists of only two of the many missions in Gantz.

Story:

A blend of science fiction and pure grotesque horror is what you will find when watching Gantz. This show succeeds at stretching the limits to what can be shown on the television, so expect tons of profanity and body ... parts. Also, Gantz contains one of the best and shocking beginnings to any anime show.

Gantz is brilliant as it primarily focuses on the human element instead of just the story, where realistic people are put in an highly unrealistic situations. Most people would probably react just like the people who are forced to fight for Gantz, and that is the magic of this show. The characters don't display flashy moves, but instead show fear and hesitation.

Art:

Gonzo did a pretty damn good job with the art and animation. The weapons, armor, and aliens featured in Gantz is some of the most original work I have ever seen.

Sound:

The soundtracks are eerie and set the mood of Gantz perfectly. Even though I tend to dislike rap music, the opening theme song in Gantz is catchy and memorable.

Character:

The main character Kei Kurono, is somewhat of an antihero, who is pessimistic and frustrated with the world, and I personally found myself relating to Kei.

Masura Katou, who is the opposite of Kei, is somewhat naive and tries to "save" everyone instead of just himself. Katou actually proves to be a role model for Kei later in the series (in the manga). Nishi, my favorite character, is even more pessimistic than Kei is and has a Darwinist view of society. Nishi has some of the best lines in the show and the manga.

Overall:

The first season of Gantz is really well done, and follows the manga almost perfectly. I can't stress how much I recommend this series as long as you aren't offended by graphic material.

Ok ... so this is my first review and i decided it shall be about Gantz. At first u must think I did this as a joke because i rated this series as a 10 . Well I will explain this while I am doing my review of this series . And i mean series and by saying such I mean the second season and the manga and movies too . It will not give out spoilers.

IF YOU WANT TO KNOW MY RECOMANDATION FOR YOU SKIP TO THE LAST 4 PARAGRAPHS.

So lets start with the first season of the anime. Being a gore fan ... i liked it from the first episode. This was due to the way the characters died (think this is my only spoiler if u have not seen this anime at all) but the most impressive fact was how the events unfolded. It showed what all the characters thought and the excitement they felt when they thought they will see some one die and their refusal to help someone if that will put them in danger .

It can be said that the main character is horrible but here is the thing. Kei suffers a huge change because of the gantz universe he is thrown in . At first he is a no good brat , cynical and perverted . This is showed in the first season which also shows his determination to survive. He does not adapt instantly as in most animes like bleach when Ichigo became a shinigami his was not at all surprised (i know he would see ghosts before but what the f**k). After he decides to live he is willing to sacrifice everything. While taking part in missions he survives solely by instinct at first.

The second season shows the character becoming a killing machine which does not care for moral codes or such petty things. His survival is the only thing that matters.

Now as you can see all characters change but the one who suffers the most is Kurono Kei .. as expected from the main character. He is horrible at first but starts to get better in the second season because he becomes a bad ass killer (which i enjoyed to the fullest) and at the end of the season he comes to appreciate life and tries to do his best for the people around him ... well after something happened in the 22nd episode ... that is what changed his mindset .

Now let us ignore the last episodes because they suck hard .. it is not an original ending .. it is an alternative ending for the anime . The story goes on in the manga ... which is where I wanted to arrive.

The manga shows how lovable the main character is ... risking his life for the person he loves and for all his friends . His resolve to save and protect everyone is quite touching. Kei goes through a huge change .. .from the cynical weak and pathetic punk he was to the hero we all wish to become. And all of this because his willpower .

More powerful characters enter the scene but none have the ability to survive without an incredible amount of wepons or sophisticated gadgets that help them dominate the enemy completely.

The anime was good but I recomand the manga if you do not want to waste your time ... if you do watch the anime be shure to skip the last episodes .. after the temple mission ends i mean.

Now .. I said ill talk about the live action movie too so here it is. Except from the first movie the plot is totally different . Only the characters remain but what happenes is a different story. Like the anime with the alternate ending , here an alternate story is presented and is done quite well. The effects are good and its very entertaining . But unfortunately if u hated Kei in the anime you will hate him too in the begining and maybe the entire time you are watching.

As you can see this was not actually a review but more of a recomandation . Skip the last episodes of the anime and continue with the manga ... IT GETS BETTER ... or skip the anime entirely and go to the anime .Watch the movies they are great really except from some acting issues but nothing can be perfect.

SO what do I have to tell you other then that ?

Kurono Kei develops amazingly even though this is not seen in the anime . Gantz was a series that made me read the manga .. .and believe me I do not read manga unless something impressed me deeply in the anime.

If you have questions feel free to ask me .. I have watched the anime 4 times and read the manga and reading it still so i know this series pretty well .

To simply put "Gantz" in one word? Fuckin' Awsome. Gantz had everything any anime fan or emo person could want, Twisted Plot, Amazing desgin, blood, gore, nudity and the occasional awkard ness with a hot chick. If you liked elfen lied or any hentai ever made with action in it, then this anime is for you. I absolutely loved it and Im still reading the manga.

P.S. I know where you can read the manga for free online, the only problem is that it comes out like, every 2 - 3 weeks, and its annoying to wait for such a materpeice. Messege me for the link.

Main character Kuron Kei might piss you off as you watch this anime in the beginning of this story. He's obsessed with porn, and only interested in getting laid. And the story is very slow paced. However it will get more interesting as you continue watching. This anime is a bit violent, so be prepared. The good part of this story is the plot behind it. There are good fighting scenes, and the serie will take you into the good and bad sides of society...

Overall
Wow, this was a different anime. Perhaps not the best, but very different. More mature content than the average series, with gore, slime and tits everywhere.

Animation
The graphics give a dark and gloomy feel, which is cool. Blood and dismemberment look good and is better presented than in, for example, Elfen lied. The characters are not great, though. They look rather plain and "normal". Sure, this is an anime about normal people, but the dull characher design was one of the letdowns of this anime.

Still, a high score for all the splatter and the dark theme.

Sound
Nice intro/outro themes and background music. The voice acting is alright, ... but there are waay too much "eh, uh, ah" moaning of people hesitating. Gets on my nerves.

Story
Wierd but interesting story of people being forced to play deadly games. The actual "Gantz" plot doesn't develop too much, though. Instead, the series focus on the people in it, and their moral dilemmas, like "when is it alright to kill?". Somewhat interesting, but there is way too much "people pointing guns at stuff but get paralyzed by hesitation".

Character
Most of the characters are only temporary, but some are very memorable. Kei, the main character, is a very interesting fellow; not really a good guy, but more of an egoist. There are lots of character development, but since most people die pretty fast, it doesn't go very deep.

Value
I don't regret watching this one at all, it was a unique experience. Sure, it could have been better, but I'll watch this again just for the uniqueness. In a couple of years. Hopefulle there is a 2nd season on its way.

It REALLY pisses me off how people put down the anime, Gantz in most of the reviews on here. This is an awesome anime besides what most people think. Gantz, is a diamond in the rough because of its surreal feel that provides a look at the darkest aspects of human behavior and the human mind, by letting you get to know the characters from the inside out. Characters think out loud in some sorta stream of consciousness, showing that which is normally left unheard. This keeps the phrase/cliché “show the evils of humanity through children” theme from being dull. In combination ... with the uniqueness of the situation, the character's thoughts make Gantz an intriguing watch. A creative use of the human logic and the raw look at the best and worst of humanity makes Gantz more than a gore-fest, but an OUTSTANDING series.
Yeah i think they could have taken it farther since the Manga goes on Forever, but i think it was a great series altogether. Yes, sex in the anime, violence in the anime, doubtlessly made it attractive; one could even argue that the makers of the anime are making a statement based on how we are drawn in by our own nature, or apprehensive thoughts in this messed up society we all live today, where some human lives are worth less than others. In the end, there is nothing that cannot make Gantz both a great work of art and a great creative success because to me art is suppose to shock you, and this series did exactly that.

This is why I believe Gantz is a perfect unique piece, regardless of how great the manga was. You don't have to agree with my convictions/analysis, but I just hope that it could lead people to reexamine their initial approach to this amazing anime. check out my page when you get the chance :P

Before I started watching this show a while back, I've been informed of how imperfect it was, and how better the manga was in a lot of ways , so i can't say i was disappointed with this anime at all, since my expectations were that high to begin with, but I'm not saying that this show was entirely bad, because even though I can notice some major flaws in this adaptation, it certainly had some qualities that made the show worth watching.

Side-note: This anime is sadistic as fuck.

Story : 7/10

Gantz tells the story of our protagonist Kei Kurono meeting up with his ... childhood friend Katou in the subway by chance after not seeing each other in a very long time, as the two were chatting, Katou notices a homeless man on the train tracks, but right after they help the man, they get hit by the subway train and get killed, now suddenly our two characters find themselves trapped in an apartment with some other people that had a near death experience be their last memory too, in the room there's also a big pitch-black sphere called Gantz, Kei and the others are now forced to fight aliens and gain points. now the set-up is very interesting and exciting, and it just makes you beg for more after every episode, but sadly this anime has one of the most anti-climatic endings I've seen, but it definitely had some exciting episodes that grabbed you by the balls, since everyone in this anime is constantly wearing a red shirt and it actually kept you on the edge of your seat at times ,but I'm very glad that the manga continues after that mediocre ending.

Animation : 7/10

Gantz was produced by Gonzo, the same studio that brought us Bokurano, Hellsing and Gankutsuou, but Gonzo is far from perfect, even though they can have some amazing and thrilling action scenes here and there, they are known for using very bad CGI that would stick out like Kurono on Viagra , most of the scenes looked solid with a small amount of flaws, so other than the CGI the rest of the visuals were acceptable, nothing that would drop the quality of the anime overall.

Sound : 7/10

The Japanese Dub was good, but the English Dub on the other hand was a little mediocre, with the emotions of the characters being misrepresented quite often, but watch the dub if you can overlook some shitty voice acting for irrelevant characters that are going to die in a few minutes anyway, the sound effects were pretty good, the soundtrack always matched the atmosphere of the scenes really well, and Christopher Ayres's Kurono Kei was surprisingly above average.

Characters : 4/10

Our main character Kei Kurono is a perverted teenager that comes off as a complete twat at first , but he does get a good amount of development throughout the second half of the series. Katou is just a big pussy that you're gonna hate because of how useless he can be sometimes, and Kei Kishimoto is pretty much just an autistic version of Sakura from Naruto but with huge tits. Most of the side characters die just after getting introduced, the kill-count for this show is like Game of Thrones on crack, Don't get too attached to the characters because every single one has a high chance of getting killed at any moment, one character that i should mention is Nishi, he may not be the most original character ever but he was really interesting compared to most of the other side characters that were so bland that the writers, pretty much the only character that got any kind of development is Kurono Kei himself.

Enjoyment : 8/10

Even though this anime had its problems, the fun and enjoyment that you get while watching anime is never about storytelling or character development, it's just about the mindless action and intense fight scenes , you can watch this anime just for the excitement and action if that's entertaining enough for you on it's own.

Overall : 7/10

Gantz was quite an enjoyable ride, and i would definitely recommend it to anyone that has any interest for the action genre, even though it's quite mediocre on a critical standpoint, i think it would be worth your time. However, what i think you should do right now is that you should go watch the anime, and right after you're done with it, go start the manga on chapter 90 (since that's where it goes right after the ending of the anime) , and that's where gantz gets really good and exciting.

Story 9/10 - Innovative to say the least. I've never seen anything compare to the creativity put into Gantz. Without spoiling the plot twists, the story follows a young man who is killed, although finds himself in a strange room after death with a mysterious black ball. This black ball puts this young man, amongst others, into serious life threatening combat situations in which they are struggling to regain the life they had lost. Completely amazing.

Art 10/10 - The blood is well done, the characters are well done, the visuals are amazing and the enemies are creative. Perfection.

Character 9/10 - Nearly perfect. A few bothersome ... people who i could have done without but hey, 9/10 isn't bad :P

Enjoyment 10/10 - Amazing. Absolutely amazing. If you are into intense combat, a thrilling story, and a little romance on the side, Gantz is for you. It had me on the edge of my seat from the very first episode, and kept me there until the very end.

Overall 9/10 - Just watch it people. Seriously :P

Okay, where to start... It seems to me that Gantz is underrated by the general anime community due to the gore in the series, yet if you can move past that I believe that there is a profound element that shines through in this series... namely a bold take on the meaning of life. It seems that the critics of Gantz are unable to appreciate the amplification of the qualities that make us human behind the violence that is prevalent throughout the series.

If you are torn asunder between watching this series or not, be bold and watch it, despite the reviews created by people ... who are afraid of the possibility of non-absolutism (in the traditional sense) of life and are henceforth unable to even pose the question of a Gantz-like scenerio. Aha! This is precicesly the point of this show, you will feel strong emotions while watching it, but as any free person, attempt to at least consider the show's perspective and you may learn something valuable about existence in general.

The cruelty that humans are capable of imposing upon fellow humans is appalling, yet Gantz just brushes upon, with great brevity, some of the atrocities humans commit against one another. If you cant accept this simple fact you are too weak to appreciate this series.

Character development in the show is especially impressive, as the protagonist changes when faced with dire circumstances. He MUST become the hero and BE the person with no fear to help the humans around him to survive.

Please excuse the disorganization of this review but consider this when thinking of Gantz: this series epitomizes the beauty of life by forcing people to break their daily habit of living, (going to work, eating, passing away) and deciding what makes going through the pain of breaking their routine to accomplish something worth it. Essentially posing the question.. Why is going through the pain and horrors of life worth it if their is no after-life (in this scenario)? And then giving answers in an ambiguous way that many fear for most people don't want to hear it (need absolutism) but... I interpret this series to say that life is not a question to be solved but a mystery to be lived.

Sorry about the grammer throughout, and not trying to shatter any beliefs here but a test of a strong mind is the ability to consider possible perspectives and their implications.. to watch this series you need to assume that there is no morality other than that which is created by the herd instinct of society. Additionally that no "higher" justice will befall wrongdoers.

Hope you learn something from this animation!

This review is written from the perspective of someone in middle of the series trying to finsh it off, and point out some confusion, pros and cons of the series as I see it. Many have voiced opinions as I will below, but first I want to take a moment and discuss the presentation of the series to a late-comer.

The confusing part for me is trying to line up the TV series (the single disk I have) and the books, and which of the myrad of offerings Amazon has to offer will best fill the void.

I can gauge the pace a little and ... figure out at what point the stories line up, though I don't understand how the "filler" can be so different between the books and the TV versions. I've seen how stories have been reinterpreted before they are put to screen or print, and that stuff happens, but the Gantz TV series throws more of some things in that would have been more at home in the book (little things of no consequence to add into the book) but are almost out of place in the TV series.

I was going to go into the Amazon mess that was confusing me, but it boils down to trying to find out how the "collectors" type collections match up to the first and second series. I guess I'll figure it out eventually.

In case you are wondering, I usually buy random anime on clearance at the store hoping to find one that I like. The first part of Gantz I found was disk 2 or 3, and it had little fighting, I don't remember even a single transfer to the room, but it was still intriguing, as it had some "rememberances" and the end had a few previews. Wasn't bad but didn't make me want to tear up the town trying to find more. I kept my eyes open, though.

Book 1 showed up at Borders and I grabbed it. Art looked great on the cover, but I couldn't look through it til after I bought it, as it was wrapped, which also peaked my interest as it meant it wasn't going to be a simple "children's story". I'm on book 16 or 17 now, waiting for the horribly long and irratic period of time until the next release... while the untranslated series is 4x farther along and a movie has come out I'm probably going to get to see anytime soon. The anime is about all I can reach for....

Now for my opinion on how I felt about the series. I have mixed feelings. As stated in other reviews the pacing is murderously slow and awkward, both in the TV version and in the books. I keep feeling like I'm straining for the next action/event to occur, at times nearly getting bored with the detail along the way...

...yet I was addicted when I opened the cover, and even more so when I replayed the lone disk I have after getting some of the beginning understood. It isn't that I'm particualarly attracted to the gore, the violence, the edginess, nudity, or some of the other things it's known for, but the series would fall flat on it's face without it all there, and in the books I notice that the author/artist seems to be at war with either himself or the publisher as he smears one issue with gatuitus gore and nudity, then seems to censor the next issue. It's another frustration that it isn't consistant.

The tech facinates me, though. There are a few inconsistancies here and there, probibly due to errors in translation, but all in all the theory and mechanism of the technology of Gantz is far more fluid and coheasive than most anime/manga series for how far fetched it is. Specific tools or devices have specific purposes, and there are no 'all powerful' guns or abilities. It almost seems like there is an imbalance at the beginning of the series, but this is due to the writer being able to keep the reader in the dark at the same pace as the main character, learning as he does.

*Spoiler*
I like stories that don't make concessions for "main" characters. In some ways it was a slight letdown when Kei was basically killed off after doing little of nothing to solve the level, but he was the only one returned. It would have been almost more at home to have the team survive and kei die, another "main" character replacing him, then kill the "old team" off. I'm not sure why Gantz would choose a player that it has had such trouble with and dissapointment over team mates that were much more "live" at the end and more active, even more successful. Of course, that's part of the feel of the story: there's a craziness lurking in the shadows, wanting to be understood but refusing to come to light.
*/spoiler*

From what I've read of the the TV series, it doesn't have an ending that lines up with the books, so it will be interesting to see how that plot develops. The books eventually do make sense, even if it takes way more time than it needs to for the reasoning to come out.

(A personal note: There have been times that I've considered not buying the next book, feeling like "it's been two or three books this battle has been going on, when is something signifigant going to happen". Keep in mind that this is digests in graphic novel format, probibly about ten chapters to a book... I would probibly given up long ago if I had to buy EVERY SINGLE ISSUE of a Gantz comic, especially at today's US prices, or a whole magazines with single issues in them. As many have mentioned, this is the biggest issue with the series.)

All in all, I enjoy Gantz emensely, but wish that the author/artist (and carry this to the TV series) would stabilize his focus on steady and reasonable pacing, as well as pick a level of "adult content" and stick to it. Varying levels of censorship are worse to me than continous levels of high censorship, as this latter does not distract from the actual story.

You ever wanted one of these stupid chinese cartoons but actually good? Of course not, you use this website. But anyways, GANTZ is like the only good series in the cesspool of the shit butt no game no life genre of this god forsaken artform.
GANTZ couldn't be considered decent by any traditional means, because GANTZ is not anime, its the future of human art and expression.
Kei is by no means a likable character, but that is but the point. He is the side of all of us, controlled only by lust and greed, while all the other characters are literally plot devices to make Kei ... do stupid shit.
Not only does GANTZ go deep into the understanding of humanity, thus expressed with the almost lifelike animation quality! Let me break it down for you brotendo, but most anime reaches about 30 frames per second, though GANTZ reaches some points that I myself clocked out in a video editor at about 5fps. The fact that such primal and raw emotion can be shown in five frames is reason enough why you should watch this absolute masterpiece.
Don't listen to any of these other virgin losers, GANTZ is an anime only for those of higher intelligence, if you don't like it, you simply do not get it. There is no possible way to dislike GANTZ. GANTZ is much like the revolutionary musical album Trout Mask Replica by Captain Beefhart, which shattered all traditions left before it, creating a whole new world of abstract expression. Thank you.