Let me start by saying that I cannot fathom why this anime has received so many rave reviews. The show starts awfully slow and the story doesn't progress until very late in the anime. There seems to be no clear direction as to where the plot is taking you. You, the watcher, can't help but to feel confused and begin to wonder why are you even watching this particular anime in the first place.
Shinsekai yori takes place a thousand years into the future. A small percentage of the human population evolved and gained telekinetic powers. After endless wars against non-psychic humans, they rise to power and eventually rule the planet. This is revealed to you through the series and is not particularly important until the very last episode.
What you will be watching and following most of the time will be a small group of teenagers enrolled in a school to learn to control their telekinetic powers, referred to as Cantu. Bear in mind, thou, that this show is not action oriented and is not meant to be a pissing contest between Cantu users to prove their powers. For this reason, if you are looking for a flashy anime with cool characters, Shinsekai yori is not for you.
There are no memorable characters worth mentioning. With no one to root for or care about, you are only drawn at the premise of a compelling and unique story. But after sitting through 25 episodes, it just left a bitter taste in my mouth. The plot is dark sprinkled with short bits of surrealism here and there. With the seemingly omnipotent powers of Cantu, the only real threat to humans is their Cantu going out of control. This serves as the center point of the story.
That seems interesting, right? Well, I thought so too. There was so much potential here, which sadly was wasted with the introduction of...mole rats at the service of humanity. Yes, read that sentence again. Mole rats. That final revelation at the last episode, which I wont spoil here, doesn't change anything at all or diminishes the silliness of the whole thing. You have to juggle the dark and (at times) interesting parts of the story focused on the Cantu and it's mysteries, and the ridiculous and almost comical parts focused on the mole rats.
The show takes its sweet time to raise questions and answer them. I found very few plot holes or unanswered question, but in all honestly, I cared less and less about the story as it progressed. The first half of the show is the most interesting and thought provoking part of Shinsekai yori. It definitely caught my attention and got my hopes high, if only for a moment.
If you find slow-paced psychological anime with lengthy dialogues enjoyable, you might want to watch this. However, don't expect your mind to be blown apart by it's not-so-deep plot and/or lack of witty twists.
