Hakuoki appears to make a dramatized spin on things involving the Shinsengumi as notable members of the famous group of swordsmen from the final years of Japan's shogunate period aid a young woman named Chizuru in seeking the whereabouts of her father. The plot for this series is an engaging one as the Shinsengumi learn of some shady government dealings that Chizuru's father had, dealing with resistance factions trying to crush the shogunate and learning a shocking revelation on Chizuru that leads a supernatural element to the challenges faced by the group. These developments lead members of the faction to make difficult and life-threatening decisions to ensure Chizuru's protection and the soldiers to maintain their pride as swordsmen when dealing with the complicated events that befall them. And the life threatening element is a literal case as several major members of the Shinsengumi are killed in battle through the ordeals they face from the slow and inevitable fall of the Tokugawa shogunate. At the same time, the series is left open-ended as there are still some unanswered questions regarding the supernatural elements revealed in Hakuoki and the fate of the Shinsengumi in the title's finale for its next season.
Characterization in this series is a mixed bag. Hakuoki retains the major historical members of the Shinsengumi as Chizuru interacts with them throughout her adventures with the group, though their personalities are fictionalized to a degree to make them accessible to the audience by making them relatable characters instead of the idealized takes that you would see from live-action chanbara films. This approach may be a love it or hate it deal depending on the level of depth you want from your characters as there is enough depth on characters to give them a defining personality and a few traits that stick out, but nothing too complicated. Also for a female lead, I found Chizuru to be rather bland and mostly worthless as a character. While she doesn't have an obnoxious personality, she has no defining traits that allow her to be identifiable as a unique character compared to the swordsmen that make up the Shinsengumi nor allow her to be effective in supporting the faction in anyway.
The animation in Hakuoki is also a bit of a mixed bag. While scenery and character designs are pleasing on the eyes with vivid color and a great level of detail, the series resorts to a number of animation shortcuts during heated or crowded scenes with anything like speed stripes, pan shots and still frames. If you are going into this series expecting fluid sword action, you will be disappointed here.
Overall, Hakuoki's plot is the driving force that presently has me engaged with its mix of supernatural elements and historical elements involving the inevitable fall of the Shinsengumi and the shogunate period. Despite its shortcomings, I plan to press on with Hakuoki's second season at some point.
