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Summary: A bloody, incredibly intense tragedy that isn’t for everyone

Who should watch it: People who want a thrilling show, people who don’t mind gore/nudity/rape, people who like dark animes.

Who shouldn’t: Anyone who felt really uncomfortable during the first five minutes. People who hate fanservice.

Story- 10

Fantastic story. The pacing is good; there are plenty of dramatic moments; events flow logically, etc. Lots of shows have those attributes. What separates Elfen Lied is the intensity.

Elfen Lied is extraordinarily graphic. Blood splatters everywhere, children are raped, animals are brutally beaten to death—essentially this is not the best show for young children to watch. ... Many people hate Elfen Lied because it is so relentlessly dark. But all those elements add an insanity that is simply not present in other shows. The knowledge that anything can happen makes every scene thrilling and unexpected. As a counter-example, I found fights in Bleach boring because the watcher knows that none of the protagonists are going to die. In Elfen Lied there are no such rules, and the reader is drawn in to see what will happen next.

When I first watched Elfen Lied I was so engrossed that I only stopped watching when I realized that it was 2:30 in the morning and I hadn’t done my homework. The show is that gripping.

Art- 7

Art is serviceable but nothing special. Character design looks good although there is a lot of largely unnecessary fanservice. The OP is very well done, with scenes done in the style of Gustav Klimt. The rest of the art is mediocre. Characters look ok but not great. At least they change their clothes (one of my biggest pet peeves is characters always wearing the same clothes. Just silly.)

Some of the directing is really well done. The shot of Lucy walking through the opening out of her cell in the opening episode with her shadow growing behind her is really well done. Other directing choices work well too.

That said, at times the animation seems to suffer from lapses; for example characters occasionally have huge open wounds but aren’t bleeding, and then when they are cut to again they are in a pool of static blood. Speaking of blood, the blood in Elfen Lied looks really fake, which in a show like this is actually a substantially problem.

Basically you’ll never notice the art in Elfen Lied, and that’s just fine.

Sound- 8

Elfen Lied’s soundtrack is very good, but unfortunately quite limited. The OP, “Lilium” is my second favorite OP of all time, and played throughout the show, providing sensational background music. That is pretty much all the music there is to the show, but ambient sounds essentially make up the difference. Elfen Lied brilliantly uses creaks, bangs, whirrs, and other “background” noises to set the tone as music would. There are a couple legitimate musical tracks, and while they’re pretty good, none of them really stand out.

The problem is, the soundtrack is really limited. “Lilium” dominates the soundtrack, and rightfully so, but it gets old after a while. In the last episode, I believe it is played four separate times. That’s ridiculous.

Voice acting is again, good but not great. It works fine though.

Characters- 9

Elfen Lied does not have incredibly complex or nuanced characters. While none of them are at all dull, apart from Lucy none are particularly complex either. Even the key character of Khota is largely a blank.

Fortunately, the characters are incredibly sympathetic, which is a huge plus. You care about these guys, and really want them to survive till the end of the show. None of the characters act totally illogically or lapse into long, unrealistic soliloquies. They seem like real people even though they don’t act like them, which anchors the wild show in some semblance of reality.

The characters are vital to the show, and make it even more intense. These aren’t random people getting hurt (although a lot of extras kick the bucket too). These are very likable characters that the viewer empathizes with going through really rough experiences. I delayed watching the final episode for almost a week because I knew some characters I liked were going to die and didn’t want to see it happen.

Conclusion:

Elfen Lied seems to be a bit of a “love it or hate it show”. Some say its exploration of themes such as redemption and forgiveness is brilliant and the show is a masterpiece. Others contend that it is just violent fanservicy pulp.

First of all, what’s wrong with pulp? Anyone who holds the latter view of the show and liked Gurren Lagann is a raging hypocrite. Second of all, why do people watch so many shows they hate?

If you are uncomfortable with the first five minutes of the show, STOP WATCHING. I don’t understand people who persevere to the end and then rant about how graphic it is. Why would they watch a show they knew they would hate from the very first episode?

On the other end of the spectrum, I don’t buy the idea that Elfen Lied is some sort of philosophical masterpiece. While it’s certainly far smarter than shounen, Elfen Lied is not about philosophy or deep thought. It’s more like a roller coaster—thrilling, dramatic, heart-stopping, and ultimately tremendously enjoyable.

Summary: An abstract, dark, really weird, and fascinating look at the effects of technology on people and society.

Who should watch this: People who don’t mind very strange scenes, like intriguing, thought provoking shows, and don’t mind being totally confused at points.

Who should avoid this: People who like easy to understand anime, people who dislike frightening scenes.

Story- 7

As you might have guessed from other reviews and the summary on the top of the page, the story in Serial Experiments Lain (hereafter referred to as SEL) is pretty confusing. Without spoiling anything about the show, it is part coming of age story, part techno-parable, and part ... semi-coherent philosophical ramble. The story muddles along, and may require a rewatch to understand parts. I assure you, you’re going to be very confused for the majority of this show.

However, if you don’t mind being totally lost at times, SEL actually has a rewarding and somewhat logical story. In contrast to, say, Evangelion, where nothing is really resolved, SEL does a good job of tying up loose ends (albeit in a generally strange fashion.)

One of the more interesting things SEL does (and there are a lot of them) is have a lot of dishonest narration. What that means is that characters or the narrator will often be lying to Lain, and she (and by extension, the viewer) has to struggle towards an uncertain truth. This show demands that you watch it critically and are constantly thinking and trying to discover what is really going on. If you want to have your mind messed with, this show is an essential must-see.

Art- 9

SEL came out in 1998, so by modern standards its art looks fairly primitive. However, the show makes up for that by having an intriguing and unique art style, focused on intense contrast between light and darkness. Much of the show is about how reality is fluid and indefinite, and so the art reflects Lain’s perception of reality. The show repeatedly incorporates surreal elements into shots, to show how reality is not as certain as it seems. For example, shadows are not flat, but covered in red, bloody looking stains. Or when Lain leaves for school in the morning, the angle makes it look as if she is walking out of thin air. Other shots cleverly convey information about Lain’s feelings. At school she is working, but all of her classmates are greyed out, emotionless and barely human. Motifs such as power lines are also really well expressed. SEL’s awesome use of a unique visual style merits it a ten.

…Except that the art still looks kinda ugly. Especially when character’s walk in ridiculously stunted ways, shots not colored in weirdness look pretty bad. If you want gorgeous art, look elsewhere. If you want intriguing and unique art, SEL is great.

Sound- 6

The OP is nice, the ED is lame, and the in-show music is largely nonexistent. SEL has ambient noises, but very little background music beyond weird, abstract semi-musical noises. In some scenes the only background music will be a single note, played over and over again. Most of the sounds in SEL are the impersonal and harsh whirrings, beepings, and pulses of computers. It works, and fits in with the show, but it really doesn’t sound that good.

Voice acting is nothing special at all, but it doesn’t really have to be, since there isn’t a lot of talking. The one notable exception is the narration that occasionally comes on, which is delivered in an irritatingly pretentious tone. I suspect the tone was deliberately chosen (you’ll see why if you watch the show! =D) but that doesn’t make it any less annoying.

Basically, the sound serves its purpose, and that’s about all.

Character- 9

As you might expect, Iwakura Lain is the dominant central character in SEL. Fortunately, she is a fascinating and complex character to observe. Even though Lain hardly ever shows emotion, her quiet, introverted, desperately lonely, at times really creepy sides all come out. Character development is extremely well done.

While Lain herself is a great character, other characters are terrific as well. Many of them are far more complex than they first appear, such as Lain’s sister, while still remaining entirely believable (not complex as in “omg they’re actually vampires!”, but complex in that they display different aspects of themselves). Unfortunately, some character’s actions don’t seem to make any sense at all, which is really annoying. At the end of the show, there are still some lingering questions about why on earth some of the characters acted in entirely illogical ways.

Those fortunately rare exceptions aside, character design in Lain is terrific.

Conclusion:

This anime is not for everyone, and I’m sure some people will drop it after one episode. But if you can deal with all the weirdness, you’ll see a fascinating, captivating and surreal show that is unlike anything else out there.

If you are even mildly intrigued by this show, I strongly recommend that you give it a try, because there is a decent chance that you’ll fall in love with it. If Death Note is your idea of thought provoking anime, I demand that you give this a try, to see what real artistic anime is like.

Lain is a unique anime experience, which everyone should try.

5 cm per second

Summary- A elegant fable about love and loss, with incredible animation.

Who should watch it- People who want to see amazingly beautiful animation, people who like romances

Who should avoid it- People who hate romances, people who like complex plots, people who like complex and interesting characters.

Story- 8

... The story is an incredibly simple love story. There are a total of 3 (and some could argue 2) main characters and fewer than 10 characters total who have even a single line. I’m including unnamed characters here- the story is extremely barebones.

That is not entirely a bad thing though- it gives the story an almost mythological feeling. Not that it makes the movie seem epic- 5 cm per second is not an “epic” movie in any sense of the word- but it gives it a timeless quality, as if the story is an ever relevant parable (which in many ways it is).

The story is told in a set of 3 “episodes” which makes it even easier to follow. 5 cm per second is a very easy anime to follow and understand (except potentially for the ending, and even that is pretty clear.

While the simplicity of the plot is a good thing in some ways, it hurts in other ways. The whole story seems so platonic that it doesn’t feel real. Life is so much more complex than the world of 5cm per second, that there is a sense of unreality about the whole thing, or that everything is “too simple”. Still, the story is logically presented and does its job.

Animation- 10

Ok, anyone who does not give this a 10 is either insane or blind. 5cm per second features jaw-droppingly spectacular animation. Makoto Shinkai is well known for his terrific art, and certainly delivers here. Backgrounds especially are absolutely gorgeous. The characters are actually very basic (not ugly, just simple), but this is actually a good thing, as it makes the backgrounds stand out even more. My only complaint is that at times the animation is actually too good- real life never looks this stunning. Seriously.

If you like sensational animation, this movie is an absolute must see, if only for the visuals.

Sound- 8

Tenmon did a really good job with the soundtrack, with very nice piano and other fairly light music that is nevertheless emotional and powerful. There’s no bombast, but the music nevertheless plays an important part in the movie, augmenting the spectacular visuals. None of it is that memorable (except maybe the final song, which I actually thought was one of the weaker parts of the soundtrack), but it is all very good. My favorite piece is the music over the credits, which I think also sums up the soundtrack as a whole- sad, soft, and beautiful (Actually, that kinda sums up the movie as a whole).

Voice acting is utterly forgettable.

Characters – 5

…And here’s my biggest problem with 5 cm per second.

There are a total of 3 even mildly important characters in the whole movie, which means that these guys had better be prety interesting, because they're the only ones carrying the movie. Unfortunately, they’re more like blanks. There is virtually no backstory on any of these guys—If asked me to come up with 5 adjectives to describe the main character, Tohno, I couldn’t. That’s a problem.

With Akari, it’s even worse. Tohno loves Akari, but her entire character development consists of a few brief montages and that’s it. I have no real idea why he loves her. The characters seem to be almost afterthoughts to the plot, as if three characters were needed to perform specific actions and it didn’t matter who they were. I looked up the number of people on MAL who have favorited these characters, and it’s a total of 40 people for the three main characters combined (and I suspect a number of those are duplicates who favorited multiple characters in 5cm per second). Ouch.

What is ridiculous is that it wasn’t as if there was no time to develop these characters. 5cm per second is a very short movie- adding an extra ten or fifteen minutes of development would have been easy.

Fortunately, the whole movie is so bare and minimalist in terms of plot that using bare minimalist characters actually works ok. That doesn’t mean that these characters are interesting though.

Conclusion-

I wanted to gives this a 10. But I can’t give it a 10 when I did not really care about any of the characters. It’s a terrible shame, because the movie is directed and executed so well.

For example, the last scene at the train crossing is terrific- awesome lead up, great metaphor coming into play, excellent conclusion to the movie- and I’ll admit that I was crying. But if that was Haruhi and Kyon at that station I would have been bawling my eyes out. Hell, if it had been Tomoya and Nagisa (I consider both to be far duller) I would have been really upset. But 5 cm per second wastes its excellent mood and art on really lackluster characters.

That said, I was still crying, which is a testament to 5 cm per second’s impressive strengths. It is an extremely well made movie, that excels at creating mood through animation and music.

This movie is beautiful, in almost every way. It is definitely worth a watch just to see that.

Summary: A beautiful fairy tale of miracles and a group of high-schoolers waiting for spring.

Who should watch this- People who like fantasy, drama, romance, harem, really nice animation.

Who shouldn’t- People who hate Key Animation, want tons of action (there are actually some fight scenes in here, but not a whole lot), are sick of highschool haremy stuff, hate bunnies, like cohesive plots, don’t like fantasy.

Story- 7

It’s pretty hard to keep a cohesive plot going when Yuichi needs to have relationships with about five different girls, and KyoAni only partially succeeds.

My biggest complaint about the show is that the stories seem really disconnected. Yuichi will ... have a relationship with a girl, and then we never see or hear about her again. Even in arcs with really heartbreakingly sad ends, Yuichi moves on to the next girl as if it’s no biggie. Or when two of the girls are in the hospital, he visits her once and then it’s as if she vanishes off the face of the earth until she reappears ten episodes later. Story arcs are really distinct from each other, which isn’t really a good thing.

Instead of tying the whole show together with a cohesive storyline, the various arcs are tied thematically, be echoing themes of dreaming, miracles, love, and hope. All of the themes are wrapped up at the end, leading to a conclusion that is satisfying thematically, if not plot-wise. I do think the last episode seemed a bit rushed, as characters that had vanished for about 7 episodes suddenly reappeared, and the episode blitzed through months of time, moving way faster than the entire rest of the show. It was as if KyoAni was like “crap! Last episode, we need to finish!” I think Kanon would have benefitted a lot from maybe 2 more episodes, or better time allocation in the story.

Also, because girls only get a limited number of episodes, we miss out on some interesting character development. A great example of this is Amano. She could have been a really interesting character, but she only appeared in about 3 episodes, and then totally vanished. I think the disconnected arcs bear a lot of the blame for why many side characters seem uninteresting, and more like mannequins to advance that arc’s plot than actual people (Kuze anyone?).

Despite all of this, the stories within each of the arcs are well told, dramatic, emotional, and often very sad. It’s just that when one of these great stories ends, it feels as if you lurch into a whole new show.

Animation-10

Kyoto Animation lives up to their usual high standard, and the animation looks absolutely gorgeous. Character design is beautiful and backgrounds are also very detailed. My only real critique is that some of the clothing is really weird. Yuichi wears some of the oddest clothing I’ve ever seen.

A vital part of the animation is the town that serves as a backdrop to the whole show. The town seems to be in a perpetual winter, and its snowy charm really helps the show. Maybe I just find snow really pretty, but the mystical and slightly surreal snowy wonderland certainly sets a terrific fantasy mood.

Like in other KyoAni works, the animation goes the extra mile in important scenes, such as the Mai/Yuichi dance scene. CG effects are noticeable, but don’t really detract from the enjoyment of the show at all. Overall, the artwork dramatically adds to the quality of the show, and so merits a ten.

Sound- 8

Kanon has a pretty good soundtrack. Interestingly, all of the episode titles are various musical forms… which often seem to have nothing to do with the episodes. Um, ok.

It’s also weird that in a show called Kanon because of it’s similarities to Pachelbel’s Canon, they only play the Canon twice in the whole show. I expected it to be some sort of recurring theme, like “Lillium” in Elfen Lied. Nope.

That aside, the soundtrack is solid. All of the girls have their own themes which is nice (Mai’s is especially good). Both the OP and ED sound very good, except that the OP ends on a discordant note, which is very strange. Other than that, the soundtrack is unobtrusive and enhances the show, but it’s hardly memorable.

Voice acting is quite good. Many of the girls have their own “catchphrases” (for lack of a better term) and there are a ton of nonverbal uguu~s and the like. All of the girls sound distinctive and emotions are conveyed well.

Characters-8

Kanon is somewhat of a harem anime, so there are a bunch of different girls and only really 1 central guy (Yuichi). Actually, Yuichi appears to be virtually the only guy in this town. It’s as if some plague has wiped out all the males in the area or something. I mean, you don’t even see guys walking around in the street, or in school hallways, or anything. I believe there are a total of 3 male characters with lines in the whole show. Fortunately, this allows Yuichi to build his harem with no competition whatsoever.

As for the characters themselves- Given that there are so many girls, I’m sure each viewer will love some girls and dislike others (personally I loved Mai, disliked Shiori). Yuichi is basically Kyon version 2, albeit a bit blander, so if you liked Kyon you’ll be a fan of Yuichi. Frankly, all of the girls are more interesting than him anyway.

As for the girls, they are all quite distinct and have their own unique personalities. Kanon manages to avoid repetition through character diversity, and the girls tend to be likeable, interesting, and well developed, with some unfortunate exceptions (Sayuri and Nayuki both come to mind). Most characters besides Yuichi and the main girls are forgettable.

Overall-
Kanon is far greater than the sum of its parts (to use an incredibly cliché phrase). Its component elements “work” well together.

For example, much of the show is fairly surreal. But KyoAni managed to keep surrealistic events a constant in the show, as opposed to being random and annoying. By fluctuating between the real world and the mysterious surreal world while keeping them subtly distinct, Kanon handles its fantasy nature extremely well. And this perpetual mystery surrounding characters and places actually enhances one’s enjoyment.

I think that is why the OP starts the way it does- with no lyrics and just shots of sunlight, trees, and snow. Because that’s what the show is really about. It is a fairy tale about a group of students trapped in winter, with the hope that spring is coming, a miracle is coming, and they can begin living again.

Summary: Kyoto Animation’s masterpiece transcends mere excellence to become a model for the potential of anime.

Story- 7
Haruhi is what I would call a “half episodic” anime. Approximately half of the episodes are tied to the central plot and the other half are episodic, creating a weird hybrid, made even stranger by the fact that the episodes are not in chronological order. Typically I don’t like episodic shows, but most of the episodes in Haruhi are just sensational, with some unfortunate exceptions (I’m looking at you, lone island syndrome). The central plot is very good though.

Unfortunately, the plot is confused by broadcasting ... the show in weird, non-chronological order, which gets irritating. While I understand why KyoAni made that choice, at times it detracts from watching the show.

As I mentioned before, I strongly recommend watching the show in chronological order AFTER watching it in broadcast order. Watch the broadcast order first.

As for what the plot is about—well, it’s a pretty crazy highschool romance/comedy/slice of life/ scifi/action/drama/harem/pseudo-philosophical ramble. There’s something for everyone, and it’s fun and fresh.

Animation- 9
When the show came out in 2006, it had sensational art for its time, incorporating lots of CG effects, along with sophisticated character designs and backgrounds taken from real locations in Japan. Now, two years later, large use of CG effects has become much more widespread, and subsequent Kyoto Animation works (such as Clannad) have used them even more heavily, so Haruhi does not stand Nevertheless, the art still looks terrific. Characters dress in a variety of clothing (one of my pet peeves is when characters only seem to have one set of clothes in their wardrobe), but where the art of Haruhi really excels is in its rendering of the characters faces. Characters’ subtle expressions are conveyed beautifully (Nagato and Koizumi especially) and the characters even blink, which only adds more realism. The cg effects are used effectively, and are generally fairly unobtrusive. For certain scenes, such as the concert scene is episode 12, live alive, KyoAni ratchets up the animation even further, boosting the frame rate and adding even more detail. Details in general abound throughout the show, as comical (and occasionally somewhat important) interactions often can be seen in the background while central characters are in the foreground of a shot.

My only quibble with the animation is that at times it can “loop”—ie characters in the background perform the same action over and over again. This was most egregious in the concert scene of live alive, when members of the audience made the same cheering motion again and again. Nevertheless, that’s a minor complaint, and the artwork of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya looks flat out terrific.

Sound- 10
Most of the Soundtrack for Haruhi is solid, but hardly spectacular, and none of the background tracks really stands out. However, Haruhi augments its standard soundtrack with excerpts from pieces of classical music at particularly important points in the show. These add a whole new level of epicness, and work extremely well. Additionally, Haruhi boasts original songs in the unforgettable concert scene (wow, this is now the third time I’ve mentioned it), which actually sound really really good. This supplementary music turns a good soundtrack into a great one.

Voice acting is also terrific. Aya Hirano is sensational as Haruhi, a role that may well be the defining one of her career. The other 4 voice actors for the central characters give strong performances as well (I’m especially a fan of the job that Minori Chihara did withYuki), and even some secondary characters such as Tsurya-san sound great. Most of the secondary characters sound very average, which isn’t really a bad thing.

Finally, I think I’m one of the few people out there who wasn’t a big fan of the OP or ED. They sounded okay, but I don’t see how the Hare Hare Yukai set off a goofy dance craze. Nevertheless, a very strong soundtrack coupled with terrific voice acting gets a ten from me.

Character- 10
This was a really easy 10 to give. Haruhi manages to take stale character archetypes -the tsundere, the silent girl, the moeblob, etc- and make them seem new and fresh (well, not so much with the moeblob, but most of them seem fresh). What makes the show really work is the interactions between the characters. Often, characters will interact in really subtle ways, showing emotion silently through facial expression. However, it is difficult to find yourself not liking these characters- they are all somewhat more complex than they appear (yes, even Mikuru).

The character which large numbers of people seem to dislike is of course the title character, Haruhi Suzumiya. Yes, she is totally obnoxious to Kyon initially. But she also has many redeeming qualities, and develops very well as a character as the show progresses. Haruhi’s determination and manic energy colliding with Kyon’s hilariously cynical nihilism is what makes the show tick.

Finally, I recommend that this show be watched twice- First in broadcast order, then in chronological order. The second viewing really helps clarify and enhance character development, making the whole series more enjoyable.

Basically, the characters in this show are awesome. Even minor side characters are really enjoyable to watch.

And Yuki is love <3 <3 <3

Enjoyment- ? What does this mean? Isn’t this the same as my overall score? K…

Conclusion:

I chose Haruhi for my first review because I doubt I will ever give out this many tens again, so I figured this anime was the best one to begin with.

Haruhi is often accused of being “overrated”, and Haruhi nuts can be annoying, but frankly it deserves the glowing reviews because it genuinely is a masterpiece, and I am sure that it is going to become a classic. Honestly, there is no reason for one not to watch this show. Romance? Check. Fanservice? Check. Space battles? Check. Homoerotic males? Check. And it’s freaking hilarious.

Now if only season 2 would come sooner…