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Jan 10, 2016
I tend to be very skeptical about both visual novel adaptations and time travel-related stories. In the first case, it's very easy to have a boring, dialogue-based story with serious problems of pacing; in the second case (and not only regarding anime) it's FAR too easy to construct an over-complicated plot with more holes than a Western movie bad guy after his showdown with the hero.
Still, Steins;Gate is praised by many people, bot for the original visual novel and the anime adaptation courtesy of White Fox studio, so I decided it was worth checking out and boy, am I thankful for that. Steins;Gate proved
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to be one of my top 3 anime I've ever watched (for the time being at least) by defying those prejudices I described above and offering as a result an amazing story with superb characters and more.
Stens;Gate is the story of Rintaro Okabe, a.k.a. the self-proclaimed "mad scientist" Kyouma Hououin, a very eccentric student with his own world of evil organizations and conspiracies. He runs the Future Gadget Lab along with his childhood friend Mayuri and his right arm, the "super hacker" Daru; in this place, the three spend a fair share of their time, devising inventions known as future gadgets. One of these inventions, the Phone Microwave, is in fact more than it seems and it's the prime mover of a story which will lead them to know many other characters while modifying the past and jumping between timelines.
I really don't want to spoil anything more about the plot, as it clearly is one of the strongest points about the entire productions. Far for being a mere sci-fi story about time travels, it has many ingredients for a great deal of depth. Steins;Gate does not lack in variety: it ranges from slice -of-life comedy to romantic drama to thriller to science fiction to psychological drama and it does this so seamlessly it's bound to hook you without fail. The plot starts a bit slow and in a way that may result confusing to some, but it never becomes boring: every episode gives you a piece of the puzzle and at the end of the ride it's really not hard to have a clear vision of the whole (this is a big eff you to all those anime which are complex and cryptic for the sake of it, irritating the viewer more than anything else). Meanwhile, it takes the time to make you familiarize with the various characters in a very natural way: especially in these aspects the story is built with a fair share of pauses, silences and not-so-conventional ways and this surely contributes to the sense of uniqueness Steins;Gate has. The unusual pace is however carefully planned out and magnetic, and it is aided by creative direction and bold frames for an identity all its own.
Of course pacing and finesse in direction are but a part of the picture: the sheer quality of the plot and the superb characters have an equally important role. Every character make certain decisions and have to come to terms with the consequences: everyone is given their space. There is not much room for development, but that is a plot-based choice and totally understandable. The exception is of course our Okabe, an absolute incredible character who undergoes a massive transformation as the episodes advance. His struggle is dramatic and intense, one of the highest points of the entire production.
The art is clear and appealing, while a bit generic at times, and it's accompanied by good-quality animations (with occasional imperfections, rare and small but present). The soundtrack is a good companion to the scenes, nothing particularly outstanding though; it's worth mentioning that the opening is very catchy and fitting, as the ending theme, and that the Italian dub is really magnificent, with an amazing performance from the voice actors, really heartfelt and immersive.
All-in-all Steins;Gate will not be remembered because of its (albeit pretty good) production values, but for the amazing direction, the hooking, multi-faceted plot, the fluid and impeccable pace and the superb characters. It's really an amazing anime which I'd recommend to anyone.
El Psy Cangroo, my friends!
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jun 5, 2015
Aaaah, Samidare. When a friend lent me the volumes, I thought "Well, this is gonna be the oh-so-typical manga about a princess and his servant, loaded with boring clichés". Boy, I was dead wrong. In fact, Samidare does employ some clichés and definitely has some faults, but it turned out to be one of the most enjoyable mangas I've read recently. It is a rare case of a work regarding which I'd like to be completely objective and to acknowledge each and every lacking feature of it, but its merits completely outclass everything else, proving that you can have something outstanding even if not all
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the parts of it are of the same, sky-high quality. I'd even dare to say it represents a bold and unconventional take on the princess format, capable of holding its own as a unique work in the genre.
In this manga, the heroes must face the evil Animus, a man with supernatural powers who wants to destroy the Earth with his Golems and his mightiest weapon, Biscuit Hammer. He is opposed by his twin sister Anima and her twelve animal knights, that is to say twelve normal people who have sworn to become knights in symbiosis with guardian animals. In return, they obtain psychic powers and the right to express a wish. Anima herself is a "guardian" of the young Samidare Asahina, the princess who can save the world. The element of novelty is that Samidare herself wants to destroy the Earth for her own reasons, and she is aided by Yuuhi Amamiya, knight of the Lizard (alongside the lizard Noi Crezant), who has sworn eternal loyalty to his beloved princess. This element alone brings a unique taste to an otherwise banal plot, because the reader is always engaged with this element of persistent instability and uncertainty: will the princess turn against the other knights? Or she will fight alongside them? If that wasn't enough, there are little twists to make the plot more exciting, and a consistent series of climaxes which grants the story an always engaging pace, to avoid any form of boredom; it's worth to mention that the author employs narrative devices to prevent the plot to be always linear and too predictable. There is a fine balance between highly dramatic moments (be prepared to shed some tears, too!), action, dialogues and comic relief in a typical Japanese fashion - never to the point of becoming annoying, though.
The story is of course brought forward by the action and the battles with Animus's Golems, but despite this the reader does not get the feeling that battles are the most important things. They are fairly planned, but also quite plain, and they do not benefit from the art style either - this one being really simple in every aspect, and a tad lackluster in the graphic representation of monsters and special powers. So, what ultimately glorifies an action manga with ultimately average action? It's the characters. Samidare's most astonishing accomplishment, and also the reason why the story can capture you so efficiently, is the depth of its characters: the twelve animal knights are intensively characterized, each with chapters completely devoted to their development; some (coherently, the adults), have a set personality developed in years of life, but we get to look extensively to their backgrounds and motivations; others (especially, but not only, the children) can change quite drastically during the course of the series, they GROW. The best things about the characters is that they feel alive, and are all protagonists in their own right. Sure, Yuuhi and princess Samidare are the "main" protagonists, but aside from the mere plot reason there are other characters who experience a growth of the same magnitude, and EVERY other character is graced with the same level of characterization. This counts for Anima and Animus, as well: they are more than mere humans, so they tend to present divine characteristics, but never once this leads to plain and generic godlike characters, quite the contrary in fact. The author also takes time to experiment with the peculiar eleventh golem - discover it for yourself, but I can assure you'll be surprised. Keep in mind that this remains an action-oriented manga, so do not expect Freudian psychoanalysis or other pleasantries: but in the genre, they are some of the most compelling characters I've had the pleasure to emphasize with. The ultimate message is about becoming adults and understanding the things that make life worth living; in this sense, it's crucial to note how we get a detailed epilogue about our heroes, ten years after the events of the main story. It's so beautiful to see how our knights have found their place in life and how they "grew a little more". Talk about awesome characters...
All-in-all, Samidare does have some weaknesses in some pretty basic aspects, like the princess herself, but the enormous strengths displayed elsewhere make this manga a little gem: the story is good, the pace is infectious and the superb character depth and development will capture your attention. You will feel like an animal knight in your own right. So put all possible prejudices aside, as I did, and enjoy this little masterpiece.
STORY: 8 - ART: 7 - CHARACTERS: 9 - ENJOYMENT: 9
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Mar 15, 2015
STORY: 5
Since I haven't read the manga I don't know if this is a common problem. The story in Trigun is simply bad: it's the story of the feared criminal (though we find out he is not that much of an outlaw) Vash the Stampede, a devastator of cities who has a ridiculously large bounty on his head. Eventually, we discover that he has a pretty big score to settle with his twin brother Knives, and that's it basically. There are little to no explanations for the majority of the questions the plot arises, plot developement seems to be strictly forbidden for the most part
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(seriously, the actual progression of the story occours in just a bunch of episodes), plot twists and unexpected revelations (the rare times they do take place) seem to be thrown at the viewer randomly... the list continues. Episodes are, for the most part, self-concluding little stories which show the adventures of Vash and his friends, and they are quite enjoyable! But the actual plot? It has a lot of flaws impossible not to notice if you abandon the nostalgia effect for a moment.
ART & SOUND: 7/8
From an artistic POV, Trigun does a fairly good job: the anime has an engaging steampunk design which mixes spaghetti western with a more typically Japanese vision of technology and fantastic elements. Even though the art is fairly essential, it has a lot of personality and effectiveness. Overall, design and animation are fairly outdated, and even though this could contribute to the vintage atmosphere of the show it could be a letdown for others. Character design is simple and good, effectively giving to our protagonists a distinct identity.
The music, in Trigun, is great: once again it draws inspiration from western movies and from the renowed composer Ennio Morricone. It activel contributes to the atmosphere, with an amazing use of the instrumentation (which includes harmonicas, acoustic guitars, double basses, but also more modern instruments such as electric guitars and the likes). The overall level of quality is high, even though not "would listen often when not watching the show"-high (with a few exceptions, like the opening and Rakuen). Speaking of the sound effects, they also have a vintage feeling to them, and their quality is good because they don't ever feel outdated but, as I said, vintage. As a final note, Italian voice acting is FANTASTIC, especially regarding Vash and Wolfwood.
CHARACTER: 6
Generally speaking, characters are not that memorable. Vash is undoubtely a great and interesting protagonist, as he is a pacifist gunman constantly struggling to retain his morals in a world in which the strong survives and the weak is pinned down. He has a number of weaknesses and obstacles to overcome as he remains coherent with himself. Its level of characterization is high and he is a strong point of the show. The other only really good character (to me, the best) is his friend Nicholas D. Wolfwood. He is a polar opposite of Vash, because even though he is a priest he doesn't hesitate to kill and commit criminal actions in order to survive in the harsh planet Gunsmoke. His relationship with Vash is deep and effective, and it culminates in what is arguably the most thought-provoking and emotional moment of Trigun. We then have Meryl and Milly, two mildly enjoyable support characters who travel with Vash throughout his journey, first for business reason and then for something else. The villains, though, range from "okay at best" to "downright terrible": Knives, the main villain, is the best of the category, though heavily cliché'd; Vash's twin brother, he thinks that he and his brother, as superior beings, should extinguish humanity and rule over the planet. I heard that in the manga his reason are better explained: good, because in the anime he starts as a "normal" kid and goes crazy with no apparent reason, with all the troubles that follows. The last mildly appealing character is Legato, Knives' right arm. The organization of villains if full of bit players not even worth to mention.
ENJOYMENT: 8
Despite the big flaws, Trigun is a highly appealing anime, because the often self concluding episodes are packed with fun, adrenaline and morals in an effective mixture that charms the viewer and makes him watch more and more episodes in one sitting. The balancing is spot on most of the time, with intense action sequences followed by gags and emotional moments in the best way. Speaking of which, episode 23 (Paradise) is a masterpiece. Simple as that, it's the best episode of Trigun because of the final, unforgettable sequence. Ready your handkerchiefs and prepare to cry a lot. Other episodes are not as good, and not masterpieces in their own right, but as I said the rhytm is so engaging that you'll find yourself watching three or four episodes in one sitting most of the time. There are no really dull moments to be found, but also no amazing moments (aside from the one I mentioned), preventing this category to score a 9.
Overall, you should watch Trigun, but be wary of its several flaws especially in plot and characters department. Fortunately, they are not the main driving force of the show and so they won't prevent you to enjoy the run.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Mar 2, 2015
STORY: 9
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is the story of Simon, a hole-digger who has lived his whole life underground. One day, he and his friend (or as they call themselves, "brother") Kamina encounter a giant mecha from the surface, a Gunman, and defeat it with Yoko, a girl who also lives on the surface. The three boys and other allies will go on a quest to save the humans from the tiranny of Lordgenome, the Spiral King who forces men to live underground. This is the story of the first part of the series, but from episode 15 onwards GL changes COMPLETELY and develops in
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ways you don't expect. Though the story in its entirety is not abslutely original (it's the """"usual"""" struggle against a menace to humanity... more than once, in fact) this developement and the sheer amount of epicness which drives it is the thing that makes GL shine in this department. Even the "message of the spiral" is a typical shonen moral, but it's delivered so effectively and epically that it will not fail to impress you.
ART: 8
The mecha design is splendid, when not downright CRAZY in a beautiful way (those who have seen the last episodes will know what I mean). Mechas are varied, great to watch and they ooze epicness from every hole, especially later on. The character design is less peculiar, but memorable as well (how can you not enjoy the... ehr, graphical qualities of a character like Yoko? But boobs aside, I mean it), somewhat simple and effective both in serious moments and in comedy. As far as the environments go, it's not all good because we mostly see desolated portions of the earth, a technological city and space. Nothing that special, but not that it really matters, I'm just being hypercritical here. The animation is really good overall, fluid and smooth but most of all CLEAR. The battles are graphically a mess most of the times, but you can perfectly make out the details. Unfortunately there are a couple of REALLY subpar episodes from this POV.
SOUND: 8
This would be a 7 normally, because the songs are good to listen while watching the action but not on the level that they make you want to listen to them in other occasions... that is if we exclude the second ending theme, "Minna no Peace", and the awe-inducing "Libera Me From Hell", which is the best version of the serie's infectious rap line "Row row fight the power" mixed with some epic opera. Those two songs are so great they manage to elevate this category to an 8. Another contribution is due to the fitting sound effects, as well as the excellent Italian dub (I saw the serie in my native language dub).
CHARACTER: 9
A particularly strong point of GL. The cast is awesome, with characters full of charisma (to name a few: Simon, Kamina, Nia, Viral, Lordgenome...) and capable of making you empathyze with them. Their stories and resolution are one of the main things that keep the story going. One could object that they are largely one-dimensional (few characters like Simon, Viral, Lordgenome and Kittan do really progress from their first appearance in terms of personality), but truthfully the creators focus JUST on the right characters to develop, while the others still retain charisma through the corality of the cast, not to mention that nearly everyone of them has something epic to do or say in the serie. Last but not least, they made a final villain who is cold and personality-less for plot reason awesome as well, how the hell did they do that?
ENJOYMENT: 10
I am not gonna lie about this: GL is a serie that you could see in one day due to how hookind and entertaining it is. You start with little, but as the episodes progress it becomes more and more epic, and by the end of part 1 you are thinking "That's it, they cannot top this epicness". But they do, and they do it AGAIN and AGAIN up to the serie's finale. It's like a giant matrioska of epicness in which you start from the small one and then witness dolls bigger and bigger. This way, you are increasingly eager to continue the more you progress. This is largely due to the cast, but also to the battle themselves, with dozen of ridiculously large, powerful and/or memorable mechas and villains: by the end of the serie you will be screaming with excitement like you probably did as a young kid when watching Dragon Ball or Saint Seiya. There are a couple of dull episodes along the way, one being a recap of what happened before, but you won't even notice as you will be pushed forward by the massive momentum that the serie has, bigger and bigger until the end.
All-in-all TTGL is an awesome serie that everyone should watch, wether you like mechas or not. Technically superb, well written and epic with an awesome cast, the work is a must watch for every anime fan. It has some flaws if you really want to find them, so I can't give the serie a totally perfect score, but it's very close to perfection. At the moment, at the second place of the most beautiful anime I've ever seen. If you haven't, go. NOW.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Mar 2, 2015
STORY: 8
Koroshiya 1, or Ichi the Killer as I will address the serie from now on, is the story of a group of excommunicated Yakuza members who try to achieve money and pursue their objectives by manipulating and killing other criminals, aided by their partner Ichi, a ruthless killer. Ichi is in fact a young man in his twenties, with a dramatic past which caused his mental instability. This manga is his story as well. The author tackles themes such as violence, power, crime and the likes, adds a whole bunch of extreme violence, vices and perversions and builds a complex story which continuosly surprises
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the reader with twists and unexpected scenes. The plot is very intelligent and will surprise you if you think that Ichi the Killer has only violence to offer. Truth be told, the story has some flaws and something remains way too open to interpretations even in the finale; occasionally the dialogues are too ambiguous for the reader, even when they are not meant to be so by plot reasons.
ART: 9 - CHARACTERS: 8
Hideo Yamamoto's art is beautiful and an extremely strong point of the manga. The trait is rich and incredibly expressive: in fact, the best aspect is represented by the facial expression of the characters (who actually look Japanese! This can be a surprise for a casual manga reader), especially Ichi's and Kakihara's. Aside from the characters, the settings are also detailed and beautiful. Yamamoto's depiction of violence is extremely crude and brutal, exposing mutilations and strikingly painful situation with a clinic level of detail. Almost perfect, really.
As far as the characters go, the author decided to introduce a limited number of them (the relevant ones of course) and to make them as twisted as possible, all while retaining a strong realism. Even the most positive of the characters are not quite "good" if you look at the whole picture. But, aside from Ichi and Kakihara, the villain, who are the peak of the characterization (and develop during the story), we can remember Jiji to be particularly explored personality-wise, while the others are mostly "there" and we do not get to know them that deeply.
ENJOYMENT: 8
The tension of the story is always high, with dangerous manipulations occurring while you're never sure of their outcome, brutal torture scenes and ruthless assassinations. While the rythm increases when Ichi takes action, in general it is slower than you expect, and you'll have to read carefully in order not to lose anything important in the twisted mindgames between Kakihara and Jiji. If you are captured by the dark atmosphere and are not disturbed by massive gore and violence (be careful if you consider reading this manga, because you'll find a great deal of those), the intensity of the story will make sure that you continue reading until the ending (which is not as resolutive as I would have liked).
Overall, this is recommended to those who want a realistic, ultra-violent and dark thriller manga. It's not suitable for everyone, but for those who dig this kind of darkness and depravity it is one to read because of the complex story, engaging characters and superb art style. It has some flaws, but it's a little gem anyway.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Mar 2, 2015
STORY: 6
Claymore is the story of the "Silver Eyed Witches", half-human half-demon beings who fight man-eating monsters called Youma. The main protagonist is one of these witches-warriors named Claire, and the majority of the plot is about her quest for revenge. Despite the basic premise, the story evolves to become a bit more complex; in the end I found it to be Claymore's weakest aspect, as it remains largely predictable. The one time it tries to surprise the reader with a big revelation it does introduce some unexpected elements, but the author did not employ the said elements in any other way throughout the manga
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(i.e. there are things that are mentioned but never or briefly shown), so it is rather disappointing in the end (especially with the fact that some explanations seem not so coherent and more aimed to perplex the reader than anything). There are some moments you definitely do not see coming and they are great, but more connected to the fights themselves than to the plot. Luckily, everything else is very good.
ART: 8 - CHARACTER: 7
The art is satisfying, with a great character design managing to keep every warrior different from the others despite all of them being similar for plot reasons and them being so many. The monster design also shines with some absolutely great looking and menacing demons. It's too bad that the environement are not drawn to their fullest potential as they could have been more varied and detailed (the Medieval setting had so much potential for this). It doesn't help that the landscape is always destroyed in the fights either. Remaining on the characters, they have not the deepest characterization but they are enjoyable nevertheless. Every one of them has little nuisances which make them interesting, especially the seven main Claymores who are the protagonists of the manga. The villains are a bit of hit and miss, since some of them are quite charismatic while others are too cliché with the standard high and mighty attitude given from the fact that they are incredibly powerful.
ENJOYMENT: 8
The balancing between action scenes and plot developing is one of Claymore's greatest point: fights are long and immersive and most of the time when you are just about to get bored from them they resolve just the right way and you can catch your breath with explanations, strategies and the likes. The rythm is, as a consequence, very engaging and you always feel motivated to continue the reading. Fights themselves are often dramatic, with high tension and filled with a little more blood and dismembering than your average action manga (by no means Berserk-level gore, but it still is something); they often employ strategy and this make them less predictable, though they are sometimes resolved with a convenient power up in shonen fashion. This is one of the thing I disliked the most: despite being basically a seinen, Claymore employs too many expedients and structures typical of shonen mangas (that is to say warriors with a number to represent their strength, convenient power ups, class of stronger demons and so on) which hinder the overall potential of this work. I would have like it to be more mature and anti-conventional in these details and it had the potential to do so.
So overall we have a fantasy action manga that does not particularly excel in any aspect, though some of them are great, but the alchemy of them works quite well and will keep you hooked if you are a fan of the genre. In fact, I was tempted to give this an 8, but considering all the flaws that I think there are in this work I opted for a 7, which is more fitting to my overall standpoint.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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