I had been wondering about this anime for a while now, but I never got around to watching it. However, When I did, I went through them like a bag of chips, eating one after the other. I wouldn't call it my favorite anime, but I do have some high praise to give (maybe it's because I finished it 5 minutes ago and my emotions still flooding my head and are all over the place; who knows?)
Story - 9
I don't find the story exactly 'Original', because within the first 2 episodes, I immediately thought to myself ".... Matrix meets 1984." (both of which I haven't
...
seen/read, haha) I had been taught once in my drama classes at school that there are no original 'stories' but more so, original ways to tell them. And so, I believe No.6 has done well to make the plot memorable and told the story well.
However, I must say, I often don't like stories like this, (Matrix/1984...) because I scare easily and I put myself int he shoes of ....everyone. It's a terrible habbit of mine and I just can't process the idea of living in a world of ignorance, run by people who enialate you for so much as doubting the authorities. A false utopia. Somehow, even if you're like me, who dislikes such stories, it won't even matter for this anime-- it's brilliant even so.
I'm not a fan of shounen-ai myself because anime is often over the top, so you know what? Scrub that. I'm not a fan of any romantic animes. I read it was a shounen-ai aniem and groaned, but thankfully it didn't prevent me watching. It turns out, those parts are fairly minor (although pretty major elements, if that makes sense.) and my god, would you believe? I found it cute. ... Odd.
Art - 10
It has been so long since I have watched an anime spent half the time admiring all of the backgrounds. The effort that has clearly gone into the background is quite stunning-- It's jsut such a shame people don't take much notice of them sometimes. The actual character animations are fair, although on occasion they were drawn awkwardly or... weirdly or... something. The anatomy of the characters was also pretty good, and the designs, while plain, were suitable for the setting. I know I like flamboyant designs in anime characters (not tooooo much though.) but you also need to know when to stop, so I thought the designs were good.
Ah yes, the OP was very colourful, which was so unlike the actual show, so I liked it a lot. The ED was a bit more subdued in regards to colour, but I felt it was only appropriate. And it's not like it was bland-- it was all in good taste. So pretty!
On a separate note, the art did very well to show distinct difference between the utopian world of no.6 and the slums of the outwall, so I believe that's soemthign worth noting.
Sound - 6
As an aspiring musician/composer, I can't really say I enjoyed the soundtrack a heap. I mean, I hardly even noticed it was there. I heard no memorable tracks in there, other than the Elyuria song, but that was part of the story so it was hard not to hear it. As for the OP...? Yikes. I really don't like abnormally high voices, and the chorus was terribly bland and didnt' stand out from the verses at all.
The ED was the other way around for me; It was so beautiful and fitting to the story. Oh, and the tears at the very end of the show when this song played... *sigh*
For the sake of... ...Nevermind, I'm just going to separate voice acting from 'sound' and give it an 8 because I thought it was nicely done. I was talking to my friend the other day and I said "You know, for every anime character type, it's as though there is a generic voice for that character type." ... I stand by this, firm. Shion's voice, Nezumi's voice, Karan's, Safu's, all of them: Exactly as I was expecting. Because I've seen more than enough anime to know their character type and the voice that is frequently used for them. I'm a little bit of a fan of Yuuki Kaji's voice so I maaaay be biased, but I thought he pulled Shion off well, in all honesty. Same with Nezumi, he has a deep voice like I expected, so all was well.
Character - 7
The characters weren't terribly cliche. For once. I mean, it's not like the characters haven't already been done, but at least they didn't bore me. Shion was naive and kind at first, but he grew to understand that there was more to the world than the lies the authorities had been feeding everyone-- something Nezumi discovered long before. Nezumi's character was pretty typical in my opinion but I've gotta say... there were some moments for these characters I wondered "Woah. What are they doing..." Safu's little intercourse spiel had me a bit thrown off, I'll admit, and Nezumi's acting, and a few other things.
All in all, I thought the characters and their development was well done, considering there was only 11 episodes to do it all in.
Enjoyment - 9
I don't even know what to say, in order to justify my rating. I know what I like, and I like No.6.
Overall - 9
I'm often against the idea of scoring anything with full marks because I know that nothing's perfect... Well, the review rating chart says 10 = outstanding. This anime was pretty Out-standing for me. It stood out from others I've seen, while it wasn't the best, for sure... it has impacted me somehow, and that means the anime has done something right.
Well done, No.6, Well done.
Jan 30, 2012
I had been wondering about this anime for a while now, but I never got around to watching it. However, When I did, I went through them like a bag of chips, eating one after the other. I wouldn't call it my favorite anime, but I do have some high praise to give (maybe it's because I finished it 5 minutes ago and my emotions still flooding my head and are all over the place; who knows?)
Story - 9 I don't find the story exactly 'Original', because within the first 2 episodes, I immediately thought to myself ".... Matrix meets 1984." (both of which I haven't ... |
