Noragami is just an extremely solid show, with no real significant flaws in either its story-telling or in the presentation of that story. It’s benefited by having a very intriguing premise, as our main character is actually a minor god named Yato who doesn’t even have a single shrine. Because of this, he pretty much becomes the Gintoki of the gods, doing whatever odd jobs he can find for a mere 5 yen so that he can slowly build up his wealth and one day realize his delusions of grandeur. Our other two lead characters are Hiyori, a sweet high-school girl that Yato saves from dying in a car accident, only too accidently gain the ability to separate her spirit from her physical body and be dragged into the world of gods and phantoms, and Yukine: an angsty teenager who has the ability to transform into a weapon that Yato can use in order to fight against Phantoms: which are your typical Hollow/Kishin/Apparitions/bad souls that you find in pretty much anime about the spiritual realm. All three of these leads receive great development throughout the show, leading to each of them feeling like fully-fleshed out and rich characters. The character dynamic between our three main characters are an absolute blast to watch as well and ends up being the best and most balanced Power Trio from this year.
The story’s sort of a mix of the Monogatari franchise and Soul Eater, since while it’s similar to Soul Eater in that there’s the whole “people that are weapons” thing going on, a lot of the plot focuses more on the character’s backstories and drama related to spirits like in Monogatari. As is the case with both of its counterparts, Noragami is able to balance comedy and serious moments almost effortlessly, leading to you having a show with both some great emotional scenes and hilarious light-hearted moments. So if you’re a fan of either of these series, you’ll probably find yourself enjoying Noragami.
Another similarity to the Monogatari series is that this show possesses a very unique and appealing art style. Every character design is unique and gorgeous to look at and Bones returns to form in order to bring us some downright amazing animation whenever the action ramps up in the series. Alongside an appropriate score, incredible voice acting, and a super catchy opening, there’s really nothing to complain about in the technical side of this anime.
Really, the biggest flaw in this show is that it really deserved more episodes than the twelve it got. It has that typical just “Full-Stop” ending you get in a lot of ongoing manga adaptations and it just left you wanting more from this series. Still though, even with a lackluster ending, Noragami ends up being a great anime that is definitely worth the watch. And if we’re lucky, we might get a Season 2 in the near future!
