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Sep 2, 2010
Believe it or not, the name "Canaan" is actually a reference to the Old Testament of the Bible, describing a land "flowing with milk and honey". Naturally, the name piqued my curiosity when I first saw it. I was quickly surprised when I saw that this anime is set in modern day, with the protagonist of the show bearing the same name as its title. I was left pleasantly surprised in the end, and found myself considering a re-watch of the show at some point.
Canaan is essentially the story of a photographer named Maria, and her friendship with the mysterious girl named “Canaan”. Maria
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heads to China to do some investigative work, but quickly finds herself in need of protection from her friend as she winds up getting in way over her head. This anime is an excellent mixture of action, character development, and heartwarming moments. I’ve rarely seen a story told so well in so few episodes.
Here's the breakdown:
Story (7/10): You never know what you're going to get with short animes like Canaan. Much to my glee, this show is a gem among short animes. With a grand total of only 13 episodes, it's easily worth the amount of time spent watching it.
The story itself is rather straightforward, and doesn't go through any exceptionally large twists. However, I found that this added, rather than detracted from the enjoyment value. The story is fairly simple, yet leaves you eager to watch the next episode and discover exactly what sinister force is behind the strange happenings.
I won't spoil anything for you with any further synopsis (this anime is frankly far too short to bother with such things), but all you need to know is that while the story isn't the best I've yet seen, it was entertaining and fun to watch. Once again, you won't feel like you wasted your time. (Seriously, it's only 13 episodes, just give it a shot!) If you enjoy action shows, yet feel the need for good character development along the way, this anime would be an excellent choice for you.
Art: (10/10)- This show stands out to me as one of the finest examples of animation out there. Now, seeing as there were only 13 episodes to animate, the creators were able to pay more attention to each one, giving much more care to detail, and smoothing out places other animes would have been forced to skip over. I especially enjoyed the depiction of the Chinese festival early in the show, where there was some truly beautiful scenery, even mixed with some very believable CGI. The various CGI effects are given just as much attention as the rest of the lush backgrounds, creating a very smooth and coherent mixture which is very pleasing to look at. This is probably one of the best drawn anime that I have yet seen.
Sound: (7/10)- this show is superbly voiced. This isn't the sort of show that demands for many truly brilliant performances, but the actors performed the demands made of them very admirably. The one notable exception to this is the role of “Hakko”. I can’t say much without spoiling anything, but Hakko has very little dialogue until the last few episodes of the show. Remaining mute for most of the show (except for a few groans and sighs), Hakko is later given some dialogue that is both immensely important, and emotionally moving. This was no easy task for any actor, especially given the important nature of her few lines. All in all, excellently done!
The soundtrack was a good deal less memorable than the voice acting. It never stuck out to me as bad or unlikeable, but I never found myself thinking about the quality of music. It never really caught my ear, thus I couldn’t rate it as high as I would have liked. In contrast, the opening song is catchy, and very appropriately themed for the show. Overall, the music was probably the weak point of the show, but that’s hardly an insult in comparison with the quality of its other aspects.
Characters: (10/10)- Here is where the show truly shines. The role of protagonist is essentially shared by Canaan and Maria, as they are given about equal screen time and character development. Canaan is rather quiet, stoic, and rough, while Maria is friendly, outgoing, vivacious and fragile. This makes for an interesting combination, with Canaan being an ex-military, trained assassin, and Maria being an inquisitive photographer with a knack for getting into trouble.
These two share an interesting and unique friendship, which, much to my satisfaction, was devoid of any yuri themes. Their friendship is strong, and remains a driving force throughout the show. These two are supported by a cast of equally interesting supporting characters, each of which has a satisfactory, and interesting back story. Refreshingly, the villain of the show was far more than a mindless murderer, but had a story nearly as interesting as that of Canaan herself.
While Canaan can be a bit boring (due largely in part to her stoic nature), Maria easily makes up for this with her lively, innocent, wide-eyed view of the world. Canaan has a darker side to her, dating back to her military training, which Maria is still too naïve to see at the outset of the story. I found Maria to be an extremely lovable, and downright adorable character. While her constant repetition of the word “sugoi!” (amazing) may annoy some viewers, I thought it depicted her innocence and sweet nature very well. Canaan’s darker, quieter side provides an interesting balance to this duo.
These characters are placed into some rather emotionally touching situations, even to the point of bringing me to tears. I cannot say why, for fear of spoilers, but I was highly impressed by the clever use of the characters back stories, and even their unique abilities (which are given to only a select few characters) to provide an emotional charge that many action shows lack entirely. You’ll find a nice blend of action, character development, and even heart-wrenching moments that will bring you to the point of tears.
I could go on, but I think I’ve made my points clear. I grew to love each of the cast members, and I’m confident you’ll feel the same way if you give Canaan a chance.
Enjoyment: (9/10)- After all the bragging I’ve done about this show, why only a 9? I had to knock off a point because it felt too short. The show easily could have been extended without dragging, and the ending left me feeling as though a sequel was in store. I have not heard of any plans for a sequel at this point, but the ending certainly left that possibility open. Ultimately, it was an extremely enjoyable anime, but really left me wishing for more.
Overall (9/10)- Certainly not the best anime I’ve ever seen, but an excellent one, nonetheless. I highly recommend it to anyone. Even if you end up not liking it, you’ll only have lost 6 ½ hours of your life, so why not? =)
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Aug 2, 2010
Fullmetal Alchemist: I can't name an anime that I've heard more hype over. A great number of my friends told me it's one of the best things they've ever watched. Naturally, I was excited when I started watching it. However, after all the hype I heard about Fullmetal Alchemist, I found myself slightly disappointed at the end.
Story (7/10) - The story of Fullmetal Alchemist is pretty well known, and you could just as easily look up a synopsis, so I won't bother summarizing it for you. The story left me rather torn, mostly because of the first major portions of the show. The first two
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episodes had me absolutely hooked, leaving me eager to find out what happened next. However, the story quickly drops into what almost felt like filler to me.
Some of the early episodes are interesting, but many of Ed and Al's adventures take them from one fake lead to another, where they think they'll find the Philosopher's stone, but come up empty-handed. It was during this stage of the show that was reminded of the very episodic story of Pokemon, where the protagonist meets a new character, has a nice little mini-adventure with them, and never sees them again. This grew increasingly wearisome for me as the "filler" feel continued for about twelve episodes.
The end of the story is far better, and never falls back into that "filler" feel, but it wasn't enough to redeem the early woes that the story goes through. Perhaps it was unwise of the creators to deviate from the manga. in any case, the overall story is quite good, but seems to grope around in the dark for it's purpose and direction early on.
The last episode doesn't completely resolve the story, leaving the conclusion in the "Conqueror of Shambala" movie. While the movie did provide closure for the series, I really didn't like the story of it, and found that it made the rest of Fullmetal retroactively worse. You'll want to see the conclusion, but the movie will leave you very disappointed.
Art (8/10) - I really have nothing to complain about here. The art was solid, with no noticeable instances of shortcutting or lazy computer animation. Not what I'd call outstanding, but certainly better than many.
Sound (8/10) - While not the most compelling of soundtracks, this one is very good, with the music fitting the setting and themes of the show quite well. It's less memorable than others I've watched, but I found it satisfactory. The voice acting is top-notch, and I was pleased by the performance of pretty much every actor. You won't find too many annoying voices in this anime.
Character (8/10) - While the character development is arguable very good in this show, I didn't find the protagonists (Ed and Al) to be especially compelling characters. Although the two of them go through quite a lot of trials, and come out very changed by the end of the anime, I never loved them the way I loved protagonists from other animes. The one character that genuinely annoyed me was Armstrong. His constant ripping off of his shirt and flexing to supposedly prove a point ceased to be funny after about the third time he did it.
Other characters, such as Mustang, are much more compelling and have great stories behind them. That's not to say that Ed and Al's story is bad, but it gets frustrating when the protagonist who's a famous alchemist repeatedly loses battles until around episode 25, where he finally wins one. Anyway, I've made my point.
Enjoyment (6/10) - Why so low? Because FMA never truly lived up to all of the hype that it received, especially during the long and boring stretches early on in the show. Many people say that Naruto is the most overrated anime out there, but I'm going to be so bold as to suggest that FMA may actually claim that title. It's definitely worth watching, but I went into it with my expectations so high, I was doomed to be disappointed.
Overall (7/10) - As I said, definitely worth watching, but it has a lot of obvious, yet widely ignored flaws. I did enjoy watching it, once I got past the boring stuff, but it took me almost 25 episodes before I wasn't forcing myself to keep going. If you ignore the hype and go in with slightly lower expectations, you'll likely enjoy this anime a lot more than I did.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jul 6, 2010
What if one person was given the power to kill anyone they wanted, whenever they wanted, simply by writing their name in a notebook?
If you’re screaming at me about spoilers, you must not have realized what the title of this anime implies. This question is the basic theme throughout the entire show. While it sounds very strange, I can almost promise you that you have never seen anything like it before. This anime is easily one of my favorites, and I’ll show you why. I’ll also show you why this anime has a few commonly overlooked shortcomings. I apologize in advance for the length, but
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this anime requires a lot of analysis to do it justice.
So here’s the breakdown:
Story (8/10) – It’s going to seem like I’m contradicting myself here. You see, the story of Death Note is simply outstanding. I was completely blown away by it, and nearly everyone I know feels the same way! Now, if I say that, why is the score only an 8/10? Well, the reason I only scored it an 8 was because of how it felt like the show drug a bit at points. Let me try to clear this up for you a bit.
Okay, so the show opens in modern-day Japan. The story closely follows a teenager named “Yagami Light” (a bit of an odd name, but more on the characters later). Light isn’t exactly what I’d call average. He’s a mostly unremarkable character at the beginning of the show, except that he’s extremely intelligent. He’s the top of his class, and is preparing to enter into a prestigious university. Well, Light’s comfortable world suddenly has a very large loop thrown into it when he discovers a “Death Note”. Now don’t freak out on me for spoilers; all of this is explained in the very first episode. Light discovers that the “Death Note” was dropped by a “Shinigami” (commonly translated as “Death God”, or also “Soul Reaper”, if you’ve watched Bleach). This Shinigami explains to Light how the Death Note works. As you may have guessed, the Death Note has supernatural power, granting Light the ability to kill anyone he desires. All he has to do is know their name, and be able to picture their face when he writes in the Death Note. Naturally, Light tests this power to see if it’s for real, and is surprised to discover that the Shinigami was telling the truth. Light holds the power to kill nearly anyone in his hands.
Now, as you can imagine, this has some VERY interesting implications for the plot of the show. I won’t get into any further detail, in the interest of avoiding spoilers, but the outset of this show is simply brilliant. Light goes through some downright incredible twists to try and hide what he’s been doing, and to keep his precious Death Note a secret. The first ten or twelve episodes of this show are very addicting. You won’t want to stop watching, as you’ll never know what’s coming next. Light has to kill off several people in an attempt to hide his tracks, and as the show wears on, you’ll begin to wonder if any of the original cast will make it to the finale.
Now, for the reasons why I only gave it an 8/10. While the first twelve or so episodes had me completely hooked, the initial shock and uniqueness of the opening wears off after a bit. Around episode 18 to about 25, the show slows down for a bit. Now, this is a chance for some very interesting things to happen with the characters, but once again, more on that later. It felt like the show sacrificed plot for character development here, which wasn’t entirely bad, but it did make things a little slow.
Things pick up again around 26 and don’t really slow down until the end. Even though things got more exciting, it never really lived up to the first twelve or so episodes of the show. The ending wasn’t necessarily predictable, but you will come to realize that there’s only one way for the show to end if there’s going to be a complete resolution. The way they arrive at the ending may surprise you, but you’ll likely see it coming.
All in all, I felt like the show was just a few episodes too long. If they had, perhaps, cut it down to 30 episodes instead of 37, it may have helped things to move a little faster. You’ll likely enjoy all of the episodes, and none of them had that “filler” feel that a show can sometimes give you when it’s trying to avoid moving too fast. In any case, excellent story, just told over a few too many episodes.
Art (10/10) – After writing rather more than I intended on the last section, I’ll try to be more succinct here. I find the art in this show excellent! The character designs aren’t as creative as you might normally find, but this is supposed to be the real world, not some fantasy, where girls have pink hair and cat ears. Even so, some of the Shinigami are pretty interesting, and no two of them look even remotely similar (except for looking like reapers of death of course).
There weren’t any especially eye-popping effects to gaze at, but then again, this show is a psychological thriller, not an action or shonen, thus, it contains a rather sparse peppering of explosions, so there really wasn’t a need. The animators occasionally chose to animate things like cars with computer animation, but I found that this added, rather than detracted from the overall art design. The art is all based on a rather dark color palette, but I feel that this fits with the dark and ominous themes of the show. I really have nothing to complain about here. This show is superbly animated!
Sound (8/10) – The music in this show certainly fits the mood, but it rarely stood out to me as being excellent. It’s not the sort of stuff you’ll find yourself whistling as you wash the car, so some of it is quite forgettable. There are, however, some moments where the music will give you chills! The operatic, haunting music when people are being killed off by the Death Note is astoundingly powerful! The music in moments like these really helps to capture the mood.
I had to knock down a point for the second opening though. I’m really not a fan of death metal to begin with, but the singer screaming “human f***er!” was just a little too much for me (why are they screaming English curse-words, anyway?). While this probably fit the mood and themes of the show, it made me feel gross, and I skipped it every time after I’d heard it once. The first opening is much better though, and is usually worth listening to.
The voice acting, however, is top notch. The voices are very believable, and stay away from what I often find can be very whiny, irritating voices when a character is emotional. The lone exception being “Misa”, who’s shrill voice did bother me from time to time. On the other hand, the actors for Light and L were outstanding! The voice actors had to pull of some very strange dialogue at times, yet still managed it in a completely believable way. Excellently done.
Characters (10/10) – Ah, the characters! Here’s where this show truly shines! I have never seen an anime that so brilliantly depicts the nature of humans who are given too much power. It takes Light a grand total of about one episode to develop something of a “god complex”. Light believes that he should create his own rules with the new power he’s been given.
While I find the name “Light” to be rather strange, I got over it when I saw what a compelling character he truly is. I can’t go into much detail without spoilers, but the course of events that follows Light as he uses his power is easily believable. The power that Light has discovered changes people into cold-hearted maniacs, and causes them to show their true colors. “L” (yet another odd name) is an equally compelling character, and his skills with deductive reasoning and logic are astounding at times. I cannot say much more about him, but L’s attempts to catch the mysterious killer cause he and Light to work against each other. Light and L get into a number of battles involving mostly their minds, and while the logic used isn’t always flawless, it will still impress you, and leave you eager to find out what happens next.
The morality of Light’s goals and ambitions are highly questionable, and bring up such topics as whether one individual should have the right to decide the fates of others. Should criminals be killed off for the good of society, even if there’s a chance they may change their ways? Can one person be given the power to decide who lives and who dies and not become corrupted? Many, many more questions are brought up than this, but I won’t ruin them all for you.
I really could go on and on about how brilliantly Death Note depicts what would happen if someone were to be given a power such as a Death Note. But, for the sake of time and spoilers, I will not. All you need to know is that this show is eye-opening, thought-provoking, and simply brilliant with its characters. Whatever shortcomings the story had are almost compensated for by the perfect depiction of the corruptible nature of human beings.
Enjoyment (8/10) – While certain parts of this anime were nothing short of brilliant, I found myself rather bored at certain points in the story, forcing myself forward to find out what happens next. Overall, I really enjoyed it, and highly recommend it to anyone. The re-watch value isn’t particularly high, as much of the show’s potency comes from surprise and suspense, but you still might find yourself wanting to re-watch it with a friend who hasn’t seen it yet.
Overall (9/10) – Some points of this show were simply brilliant, yet I feel that some of its flaws are oftentimes overlooked. Despite what I find to be a few shortcomings, Death Note is still one of the most thought-provoking animes ever created. I simply felt that I couldn’t quite give it a 10/10, even though it’s considered a masterpiece by many. If it weren’t for the slow parts in the middle, I easily would have given it a 10. I was disappointed that the show stumbled slightly in this area, but I’m trying to be as objective as I can, here. Once again, sorry for the length, but I felt this anime deserved a lot of analysis.
I hope this review was helpful. Feedback appreciated! (And don’t click “not helpful” just because I didn’t give it a 10 =P)
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jun 26, 2010
I've heard a lot of people call this the most overrated anime of all time.
So is it really?
Well, that depends on who you ask. Me? I'm one of the guys who loves it. This is the anime that got me into anime in the first place. So why should you read my review as opposed to the hundred others? Because I'll try to show you both what everyone gripes about and what they love about the show. Bear with me on this review, as it will be a little long, but since the anime I'm reviewing is pretty long, I have a lot to cover.
Story
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(10/10) - Ok, a lot of people gripe about the story of Naruto, saying it's cliche, moves too slowly, isn't interesting, or whatever. I have to admit, some of these complaints are well-founded. So why did I give it a 10/10? Because the story is so complex and well-done. A lot of this won't become obvious until Naruto: Shippudden, but this is a review of the original series, so, I digress.
Naruto is set in a fictional universe where Shinobi (Ninja) are basically the entire cast. Most Shinobi aren't mercenaries, but instead, fight to protect their village, and complete missions to earn money for it. The main character is one such Shinobi, name "Naruto" (hence, the name of the series). Naruto is a rebellious, disrespectful, punk, yet he still wants to become a great ninja. He even aspires to become "Hokage" (the lead ninja of his village). While this may sound pretty cliche, you'll quickly realize that Naruto has a long way to go before he has any hope of becoming Hokage.
This series goes through a lot of twists and turns. The story is too complicated to try to explain in this review, but the further along you go, you'll find that Naruto aspirations aren't easy to live up to. In the very first arc, Naruto and his companions are confronted by a powerful Shinobi who wants to kill the man they have been assigned to protect. The battle that ensued is what got me hooked on this show.
The fights in general are nothing short of brilliant. If you like action, this anime is for you! The battles will have you on the edge of your seat, and you won't be able to stop until you see how the fight is concluded. I also enjoy watching the characters learn new moves and apply them in combat situations. You'll see Naruto change from an annoying little punk, to a ninja who people actually start to respect for his perseverance and strength.
Now, for the things people gripe about in this show. Oftentimes, a fight scene will be interrupted by a flashback or monologue, and this can get dull at times. I didn't mind so much the first time around, but it does hurt the rewatch value a bit. The story can move slowly at times, but most of the slowness is because of how complex the story truly is. The further you go, the deeper you'll see things get.
Another thing people gripe about is the length. While it's true that 220 episodes is quite an undertaking, it's really not necessary to watch more than the first 135 episodes. Yes, you heard me correctly friends. The last 85 episodes of the show are nothing but a desolate wasteland, inhabited by nothing but the pile of vomit known as "filler". I only watched the first 40 episodes of filler before I'd had enough, and skipped on to Shippudden. Some of the filler arcs are truly terrible. You'll sit back and wonder how the creators of the show had the audacity to slap the name "Naruto" to the garbage you've been viewing (if you're brave enough to bother watching it). Hence, my review only covers the non-filler portions of the show. Do yourself a favor and skip the filler. It really isn't worth your time.
Art (7/10) - Here the show isn't as strong. While the art is never distinctly poor, it's also not great either. I suppose at times it can't be helped when making a series as long as this one. The animation is often stepped up for fights, or more intense parts of the show, which does help considerably. The art is at least passable, and I was never really bothered by it. Definitely not a show you watch for the eye-popping scenery, though.
Sound (7/10) - I must say that I really did enjoy the music at first. While it tended to use synthesizers a bit more than I cared for, it still distinctly fit the mood of the show. Some of the battle music was catchy, and managed to combine electric guitar with more traditional sounding string or wind instruments. However, the creators of the show didn't seem to think it was necessary to update their musical score once in awhile. This wouldn't have been a problem if the show wasn't 220 episodes long. Music that I had once enjoyed, began to grow a bit overused by the end of the series. It never grew to the point of bothering me, but had the show gone on much longer before the filler started, I might have thought differently. The music is good, just used for a few too many episodes.
The voice acting was easily good enough for me as well. Not outstanding, but never distinctly bad either. Just don't watch the dubbed version. Naruto's voice alone will be enough to drive you insane.
Character (9/10) - Getting to know the cast can be a bit daunting at first. I've never taken the time to count, but there must be at least 30+ characters who get a decent amount of screen time in this show. While this sounds very cumbersome, it actually helps the show quite a bit. each character has their own unique back story and their own battle techniques. While one might think that ninja from a particular village all use the same techniques, this couldn't be further from the truth. The styles of combat are so diverse, that it makes for some VERY interesting fight sequences. Sometimes one character is at a distinct disadvantage, and is forced to out think his opponent in order to win. If it weren't for the brilliantly done fights and interesting characters, this show would lose a lot of it's value.
There is one drawback to all of these characters, though. Sometimes, a somewhat minor character will have a flashback in the middle of a fight. It does help to have some context for why they fight, but it gets old at times, especially if it's a minor character that no one really cares about. Despite this problem, the show does a good job of somehow making you hate a character in the beginning, and totally changing your opinion of them at one point or another. I can think of several examples of this.
Another problem is that some of the main characters (aka Naruto) are kind of annoying. Naruto is honestly a complete moron in the beginning, and you probably won't like him much at first. He gets better as things go along, but you'll still cringe at him a few times early on. Another annoying character is the lead female: Sakura. Sakura spends the entire series being obsessed with Sasuke (the third member of Naruto and Sakura's three-man team) and never really does anything worthwhile. She spends her time sitting on the sidelines of fights and cheering for Naruto and Sasuke (she gets better in Shippudden, but once again, this isn't a Shippudden review). While this didn't bother me at first, it got kind of annoying when all Sakura could do for the entire series was yell "Sasuke, Sasuke!" But anyway, moving right along. Their sensei, Kakashi, is very calm and cool, and helps to balance out this team of knuckleheads. Naruto's an idiot, Sakura's useless, and Sasuke's a child prodigy, yet somehow, Kakashi turns them into a functional ninja team. An impressive feat, if you ask me.
To sum it up, whatever shortcomings these characters have, you'll still find yourself rooting for them as they are put through fight after fight, trying to protect their village, the people they love, and what they believe in. For every character that annoys you, there will be at least one that you genuinely love. Even though I did a lot of complaining about the three central characters, I still found myself rather attached to them by the end of the series. The characters will do a good job of making you laugh throughout the series, and it helps to lighten the mood when you sometimes least expect it.
As you can see based on the 9/10 I gave the characters, I definitely grew to like them. Despite all the complaints people have, the characters are still very well done.
Enjoyment (10/10) - It's hard to be objective on this part of the review. I enjoyed it tremendously, but there are plenty of people who don't. I'd say give it a chance and see what you think. You'll probably know whether or not you'll like the show after the first arc is finished, which is about 17 episodes.
Overall (10/10)- Were we on a slightly more precise scale, I might give it a 9.5. I've already said that I enjoyed it a lot, but let me try to sum things up for you:
Pros: Lots of action! There are a lot of very well-done fights, which is one of the strongest points of the show. The characters are a good bit better than average, with a few annoying exceptions. The story is long, and complex, but very good.
Cons: It's a long anime. 135 episodes (non-filler) for just the original series is a sizable undertaking. Some of the main characters are a bit on the annoying side, and it takes a few episodes before they grow up a little. The long filler arc at the end also turns people off, especially those who feel compelled to watch an entire anime without skipping the filler.
Hopefully this helps!
Thanks for reading! Feedback appreciated.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Jun 25, 2010
Mai-HiME...ok, I know what you're probably thinking. "Who wants to watch a show that's considered a shonen with the word 'princess' in the title?" My thoughts exactly when a friend of mine recommended this anime to me. Just looking at this show at a glance, I was very skeptical. However, I highly recommend that any of you with this opinion reconsider your perception of this anime.
I eventually did reconsider, mostly for the sake of my friend, and I decided to give it a shot. After watching just the first episode, I was already curious to find out more about the story. Mai-HiME picks up
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speed as it goes along, which kept me wanting to watch more. By the time I was finished, I was completely blown away! I found that it was easily one of the best I'd ever watched.
Let me break it down for you:
Story (8/10)- This anime is backed by a surprisingly good story. This won't be apparent for the first few episodes, as you'll get caught up in a lot of silly/funny moments that ultimately don't do much to advance the plot. Even so, such moments are still fun, and good for a couple of laughs. But around episode 7ish, the deeper aspects of the plot become apparent. The setting is light and happy at first, but the show gets some darker, more intense themes as things progress.
Things open up pretty calmly, where a wide variety of students have been brought to a very prestigious, student-governed school. The focus is on a group of girls called "HiME's", which apparently is an acronym for "Highly-advanced Materializing Equipment" (though this is only shown in the title sequence and never in the actual show) who attend the school. Not all of the girls know that they are HiME's at the outset, and quite a few discover their abilities as the plot progresses. Unbeknown to them, many of the girls were recruited to the school because of their powers. As the name suggests, the "HiME's" have the ability to summon weapons of different sorts. They can also summon a "child", which is basically a large creature that fights alongside them. The HiME's don't know it, but there are some distinct risks to using their "childs"...
I won't spoil the whole story for you, but there are some pretty intense fights as things really gets thick toward the end. Not only that, but the fights are very emotionally charged as well. You'll begin to wonder if any of your beloved characters are safe during the last several eps. I was brought to tears once or twice as one of my favorite characters was put through some rather strong emotional torment.
Overall, I loved the story. It wasn't the strongest point of the show, but there weren't any gaping plot-holes to be tiptoed around, or any super cheesy moments that made me raise my eyebrows. Solid story that will keep you hooked until the end.
Art (9/10) - The art isn't the best I've ever seen, but it's definitely quite good. There were some pretty cool effects with the different creatures and surprising number of explosions for a show about a bunch of girls. You probably won't sit back and gawk at the art, but it's more than good enough to suit me. No glaring instances of short-cutting, or blandly drawn characters keeps the art up to scratch.
Sound (10/10) - Excellent soundtrack! The opening theme is one of the most addicting openings I've heard, and I often found it stuck in my head throughout the day. The anime is rather short (26 episodes) so you won't get tired of hearing the same music throughout the series. The music during the more intense battle sequences fit the mood perfectly, and the slow, sad singing during the emotional parts will bring you to tears. One of the strongest points of the show.
Characters (9/10) - The character development was outstanding throughout this show. The main character (Mai) is one of the most lovable and charming protagonists I've ever encountered. I may be biased, because she reminded me of someone I know, but regardless, I really grew attached to Mai as the plot went on. There are many other memorable characters too, many of which you'll grow rather attached to in addition to Mai.
Now, if the characters were so great, why did I only give it a 9? Simply because there was one character who made some lifestyle choices that I really didn't care for. I cannot say who or what, because of spoilers, but I found it annoying, nonetheless. Despite what I thought was one blemish on the cast, the rest were enjoyable, fun, dynamic, and fit their roles perfectly. Be prepared to cry as these poor characters are put through a whole lot of hurting.
Enjoyment (10/10) - If it's not obvious by now, I absolutely loved this anime! I would probably call it my second or third favorite of all time. One of the few reasons I only gave it 9/10 is that I wished it would have been longer. It seemed to me like much more could have been done with the characters and story. I was still satisfied with the ending, but it left me wishing for more.
Overall (10/10) - Aside from a very select few shortcomings, I was extremely surprised with this anime. I'm glad I gave it a chance, as it's now one of my favorites. Anyone still doubting should give it a shot; you won't be disappointed.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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