Monogatari Series: Off & Monster Season

“As far as I know, there is still more stuff to be adapted, as the novels kept going (and keep going, I think?), but seeing how this entry had a fitting ending with no loose ends, I don’t think that seeing more is really necessary, and I’m not the only one it seems, seeing that nothing else of it was released for five years now.”

This is something that I wrote on my last Monogatari anime review, published on September last year, and then on December I finished and reviewed the manga. Meaning, I called this continuation to existence and every Monogatari fan out there owe ... it to me.

Jokes aside, this is a hard entry to judge, as it adapts two novels and one of them consists of lots of mini stories in an anthology-like manner. Yet the series does a good job in building and maintaining a continuity between them, and they also build themselves from previous events and character interactions, so it’s fine.

For half of the show the focus switches from Koyomi to the girls, which is good for giving them spotlight and continuing to flesh them out.

The first story about Tsukihi is mostly silly and about pretending, but it is also interesting for what it means, and to see Ononoki trying to keep doing her mission. Another nice detail is how the episode forms a sort of narrative loop with something so silly as eating ice cream. But the best things is how it uses previous events and apparitions in it, and how it builds up the following events with Ononoki and Nadeko.

There are questionable things in its writing, which Ononoki tries to excuse as not being much as she fucking up but rather all result of Tsukihi’s apparition. That could be considered bad or genius writing depending of how picky or casual you are, for me it was just ok.

The bad part is how Ononoki can’t notice the most logical things throughout the episode, and is another character the one that has to resolve the problem appearing out of nowhere. Also amnesia and a comical loop.

After that it comes an arc about Nadeko where they try to solve an issue looking for an easy way out, and it backfires, so there’s the good message in there. It also serves to flesh out her by having her both metaphorically and literally confronting and coming to terms with her past self, in different variants, and struggling as an artist and being pressured by her parents and time, now as a teenager.

And the best part is how she had to solve the problem almost completely by herself, and how there wasn’t any perverted content in it, and even the slightly more explicit stuff that you could count as such served the narrative, so it’s not fanservice. Overall I consider it to be one of the best arcs I’ve seen from the franchise.

Time seems to be an important topic in the “Off” part of the season, almost as it telling that a certain time is already off and it moved to a new one, or that characters are running out of time.

Not trying to overthink it, but visually the directing regularly matches an object or Ononoki spinning around more than usual while talking about trying to take advantage of time, with following shots of clocks running, so that brought the thought to my mind.

Speaking of visuals, this entry keeps the usual standard of the franchise, which is of course very high. The new designs for the characters are nice, the special effects with little CGI and the backgrounds are still trippy and dynamic to look at. The occasional changes in style are there although not as prominent. The occasional texts are no longer passages from the light novels and are not as long nor as quick, so they are easier to see and read. And the directing has something happening all the time to make up for the occasional lack of motion, which is in fact less than in previous installments, despite having less stuff happening in it.

What’s new is the lack of fanservice, perhaps because the entry isn’t a harem but since I always bitch about the ecchi, I was very pleased with this change. Also, since Nadeko is an important character, lots of moments implement sheets and manga as part of the visuals, and bookshelves used for stairs-like transitions, very creative. There is also some occasional live action footage for the backgrounds as well.

The sound remains the same, good sound effects, very good voice acting, the soundtrack didn’t impress me, the visuals and the lyrics of the ending are good but the song is a very happy pop tune of which I’m not fan of, and the background music sounds like synthwave. Not that I’m complaining, I like to listen to the genre from time to time, but it is still as unremarkable as the soundtrack of the franchise always was for me. The opening is a reference/update of that famous Nadeko opening that most people seem to like, so it was fine for what the arc goes for thematically.

The next arc is the short origin story of Kiss Shot, showing how some of her traits came to be, such as her name, way of speaking and laughing, and how she became a vampire. The story itself is like a classic dark fairy tale, and it perfectly represents the idea of how naming conventions determine so many characteristics of the supernatural creatures in this world and franchise.

At the same time, despite having a serious tone, the conflict feels very first world problem to me, and the characters don’t seem to take it that seriously for me to care. Plus when you think about it, it makes it seem like Kiss Shot never showed her real personality in the franchise in retrospect, but at least gave more meaning to some of her speech patterns during silly moments. Speaking of silly moments, that’s what the logic of the characters and the naming conventions in the arc were like to me.

Oh, and it builds upon previously shown information in Zoku Owarimonogatari, which I didn’t bother to review because I found very little to say about it besides it being a what if fanservice story that is even practically erased by the end of it so what’s the point?

Overall I found it to be a very unnecessary and mediocre arc that didn’t add nothing of interest. At least visually it was pretty great. It suffers from lacking motion but makes up for it with painting like illustrations, gothic aesthetics reminiscent of Castlevania or Shinbo’s earlier works like Le Portrait de Petit Cosette, a special short intro that was like a shadow play with even set pieces simulating an actual theater, though I think the whole thing was made in CGI, but still looked very cool.

Heck, even the scenes were separated in acts like in an actual play. And although there was no opening, the music was pretty immersive, except for the ending which remained the same as before and didn’t really fit one bit.

The next arc goes back to present time yet builds up right from the end of the previous one as it has Suicide Master meddling in Japan and being part of several attacks towards girls from the Naoetsu school.

In this arc Koyomi goes back to being the protagonist and the whole thing is once again played out as a mystery of sorts, plus it builds up good reasons for having several characters being involved in the conflict and having a specific role in it.

Unlike the previous arcs, the tone goes back to being somewhat humorous as it was the case with previous entries, but at least there is still absence of fanservice, so I don’t complain.

Even the aesthetics are closer to what the franchise has shown before the rest of this entry, both in visual presentation and music. But I have to praise the opening for going back to the ones you would expect from one about Shinobu, and for that jazzy theme. She always gets the best openings it seems.

What I don’t fancy much, was the conclusion. For such a big deal that the reunion between the two vampires seemed to be, it felt lacking to me, even when I understand their laughs now.

Also although the reasoning of the main characters to find out the villain seemed fine, I don’t think there was enough information or build up to how she got to know about them, and the villain herself was just an edgy, nihilistic, suicidal teenager that got defeated with one hit before not really feeling that she actually learned her lesson. Overall it was a fine arc but with a bit of a lacking resolution.

As a whole I found it to be an ok addition to the franchise, mostly for the aesthetics, the lack of fanservice, the girls being looked into without Araragi around, and for the Nadeko arc. But I want to be clear, if that arc wasn’t here, I would have considered the season to be overall mediocre.

Monogatari is a franchise that can give me bad stories, good ones, and masterpieces in a single season.

I can't give an opinion of the entire season, because we have three stories within the same one. So I have to break down my opinion into three parts as well.

Nadeko Draw: I objectively understand and appreciate the development that had to be given to a character like Sengoku. Through this arc we saw the maturity of the character, how he accepts his past mistakes to continue growing as an adult who will eventually be part of society. It makes us see all the potential and power that ... a girl who could become a god on a whim has. Personally, this story couldn't interest me less. Nadeko's character is the one I hate the most in the entire work, so 6 chapters of it felt quite heavy. Although in the end you feel like you can make peace with the character, it still doesn't escalate enough to say that I like him now.

Wazamonogatari: I wish I could find words to describe the level of perfection Monogatari reached with these two chapters. You could put it under a microscope and find something wrong would be impossible. The script, the soundtrack, the animation, the direction, the voice acting, the contribution to the lore, it has absolutely everything. Even a person who is more of a Monogatari hater than a fan can appreciate the quality in this arc.

Shinobumonogatari: On paper, this part of the story sounded like it would maintain the level of Wazamono, but it wasn't. With a cast made up of Suicide-Master, Gaen Izuko, Shinobu/Kiss Shot, Acerola, Kagenui, Hachikuji and Araragi you have everything to make a story that will make you fall out of your seat. Despite having everything clear, I don't know what happened that the story didn't fulfill what it promised. The whole issue of the mystery of the mummified girls feels like it's not going anywhere, there's a lot of dialogue that feels more like filler than anything else and the important characters feel more like extras in Araragi and Shinobu's journey. What I do appreciate is the final chapter, all the talk between Suicide-Master and Kie is too good, it's what Monogatari is at its best. Still, that chapter doesn't save the fact that other characters like Gaen or Kagenui have been wasted.

Those would be my general impressions of the stories. I think the season has the same problem as the bulk of the franchise, the thousands of cuts are dizzying and Senjogahara, despite being a main character, appears very little.

Animation: Not much to say. Shaft is not a flashy studio like Ufotable or Mappa. But where they lack in eye candy they more than make up for in art direction. Every frame serves a purpose. Every frame has personality. And in this entry, those qualities are as present as ever.

Nadeko Draw

Story: Definitely one of the stronger stories so far. A very moving culmination of a decade’s worth of character development for a very complex, well-written character. As with past stories, Nisio Isin’s usage of his aberrations to give shape to the inner complexities of his characters is fascinating, and with this story, very well ... executed. This story seems like a great improvement on the author’s unique storytelling method, and Shaft presented it very well.

Music: Some pretty clever usage of Renai Circulation’s main melody. Definitely an old fashioned approach to scoring, but executed perfectly. A tasteful use is heard in the main opening, but also the utilization in character themes was done very well. Also very appropriate to the theme of the story. A story where the main character is confronting their storied past is perfect for this form of musical expression.
As for the ending. YOASOBI loves their 4-on-the-floor dance grooves, but I would be lying if I said this song wasn’t catchy as hell. And the visuals were also quite simple, but stunning in their own right. Quite a testament to their confidence and commitment to making quality music.

Overall, one of the best if not the best stories of the entire franchise so far. Quite simple in some ways, such as the music, but I don’t view that negatively at all. In my opinion, the later installments to the monogatari series, such as Hana, Tsuki, and all of Owari, were straying from the simplicity that really made me enjoy the earlier installments like Bake. So seeing Nadekomonogatari really makes me feel refreshed. The vision is still alive. 9.6/10

Shinobu Mustard

Story: To start with, let me just say the short story that prefaced this arc was very good. I think it set up Suicide-Master's character well and gave good insight into Shinobu's origin. However, the main arc leaves much to be desired. The pacing of this arc was pretty bad. It took me a lot of willpower to remain interested. Its cool that Araragi came back, and there was definitely some great humor thrown in here and there, but overall, the story was boring, didn't have much at stake, and mostly served to reunited Shinobu and Suicide Master. It seemed unnatural and awkward to me and I think that it was executed poorly.

Music: A good third of the arc actually lacked any sort of opening theme or overarching motif throughout the story, and when it did finally show up, it was just a recycled version of past Shinobu arc OPs that was executed uncreatively and didn't have much going for it in terms of visuals. Uninspired and uncreative. Very dissapointing.

Overall, boring. Not much to say. I really feel like they flubbed the momentum they built with the first arc. Suicide-Master ended up being quite boring and didn't add much to the story. The twist at the end was unexpected for sure, but it was weird and random.

Can Monogatari really be Monogatari without Koyomi-kun? After binging this arc, I would have to say no. So far, the season feels like little more than a mid spin-off.

I don't get the decision to take one of the most boring characters from the franchise, and waste a whole half season on her. While there was some development, it seemed there should have been more to this than the writers actually presented. OK, she can now draw some shikigami. OK, she is less a victim and more a participant. Is she really a better person? Is she a worse person? I'm not feeling either. ... She's still about as shallow a person as can be. Ononoki-chan, who is a freaking corpse, has more depth, and is better rounded. And the Ougi plot device is back. 😒

Not only was the character writing at issue, so was the narrative. It blundered along constantly. And this 6th ep was so poorly done. 5 minutes of story and 18 minutes of filler epilogue. It was so lazy, as to leave me disdainful. Never thought I'd ever say that about anything Monogatari.

Not everything is a complete travesty though. We get some very nicely rendered artwork, as per the franchise. I think they may have made Sengoku and Ononoki a little too cutesy, but that's just my taste. I could have done with a lot less of the completely gratuitous and sophomoric fanservice. The director should have wielded it like a fencing foil, not a battle axe. The animation was not quite up to par with what I have come to expect from the franchise. The hand drawn stuff was fine, but way too many instances of cheaply done 2D and 3D CGI. I've seen a lot worse (looking at you Stampede) but I still found it distracting.

I will give props to the VAs, who help hold this arc up nicely. Both Sengoku and Ononoki were skillfully done. Good use of his cast by the director. Almost enough to make up for the writing and animation flaws.

I'm finding this season kind of off. It's not unwatchable, but I can't help but think this should have been much better. If I was grading, I'd give this 78/100; a C+. But I am used to Monogatari stuff being in the B+ to A- range. This is firmly in the disappointment camp. I can only recommend this to the hard core Monogatari freaks out there.

Ep 6.5 - Shadow puppets? PUH-leez. Drop to 71/100 C-
Ep 7 & 8- This mini arc is more what I expect from the franchise. Well done. Creep the grade back to 75/100
Ep 9 Koyomi is back, but is it too little too late?

Too little in the long run. With there being only 2 eps worth watching, can't give this any higher than a weak C- at 70/100. Out after 12
eps.

Went back to catch the last two eps. Shouldn't have bothered. Sums up the series.