Story - 6/10
Now, before I get into any details, let me explain a few things. The concept behind the story of Charlotte is really good. Everything in this anime that is actually present is pure 10/10 material, and would have gotten a 10/10 in my eyes. The reason why I'm giving the story a low-ish score is because of the simple fact that there aren't enough episodes to execute Charlotte to it's true potential. No matter how you look at it, there is absolutely NO possible way to make Charlotte into what I believe could have been one of the greatest stories of all time in just 13 20-MINUTE EPISODES! While watching episodes 1-8, I was convinced that Charlotte would turn out to be the best anime I've ever seen. But as soon as episode 9 finished, I grew worried. Even before the series was over, I knew that Charlotte was doomed. I knew that in the remaining 4 episodes, it wouldn't be possible to fit in this suddenly insanely heavy plot. And to make matters worse, Charlotte just kept introducing MORE and MORE and MORE plot points that even the creators had to have known would only be able to work out if it was a 24+ episode series.
But in all honesty, like I said before, the material of the story was truly 10/10, so I can't give it too low of a score. It was exciting, emotional, and generally fun to watch, especially during the first 8 episodes, which are some of my favorite episodes of any anime I've ever seen so far. And I actually REALLY wish that, even though I'm 99.99% positive it will never happen, that Charlotte is re-made with more episodes, and therefore more exploration of the story's characters, world, and plot.
Art - 10/10
Does anything really need to be said? This anime is fucking beautiful to look at. Everything from the animation, to the color scheme, to the details, everything is astoundingly beautiful, particularly during the opening and ending themes.
Sound - 10/10
Again, nothing really needs to be said, but I'll say it anyway: this anime is fucking beautiful to listen to. The voice actors seem to have done an absolutely stellar job (aside from some of the "engrish" spoken by supposedly english-speaking characters, but that's the very least of my concerns). The soundtrack is incredible, the opening and closing themes sound absolutely AMAZING to the point that, when combined with the stunning art and animation of the themes, make you actually look forward to them throughout each episode.
Character - 9/10
I loved the characters in this anime. Each and every one of them was a joy to get to know and to watch interact with each other. The only reason that I can't give them a 10/10 is because there wasn't enough time to flesh out and explore many of the characters. The only characters that were actually explored in detail were Yu (who's characterization was actually done perfectly. Bravo), Shunsuke (who didn't appear until near the end of the series), and Misa/Yusa (the most useless characters in the entire anime). We dabbled a little bit into the characters of Nao and her brother, and Kumagami, but it still felt like there could have been so more to the characters in this anime. Especially Nao's older brother. I get that the whole subplot with him and ZHIEND was the key to unlocking Yu's memories of that "alternate universe", but I do wish that a little more would have been put into his character.
But at the end of the day, it was a joy to watch these characters (from what we got to see of them). I'm going to stick by my position that Charlotte NEEDS to be re-made with more episodes to give more to both the story and the characters (but mainly the story).
Enjoyment - 9/10
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed watching Charlotte. Like I said, the story has all the making of a 10/10, it just needs more episodes to unlock just how incredible it has the potential to be.
Overall - 8.5/10 (But MAL won't let me give it an 8.5, so I'll have to go with an 8)
I definitely would recommend Charlotte, even though it has its ups and down. Charlotte's high points are some of the best work I've ever seen in anime, and its low points aren't even bad. Just disappointingly unexplored.
