The Plot 4-
The plot is ridden with convinces. Even from the first episode where the bullet 'conveniently' doesn't kill Lucy and 'conveniently' gives her amnesia. Therefore, she can 'conveniently' meet her only true friend, Kouta, while he is 'conveniently' at the beach with his cousin. At first glance you expect the show to be constantly on the edge like Higurashi... Well it is and it isn't. Elfen Lied switches tones like it is bipolar and can't make up what type of show it is. There are always random ecchi sequences including, Nyu and Kouta and after awhile it gets a bit obnoxious. The story also likes to be deep and tackle gripping issues which it just kind of fails at and becomes hilariously laughable. At times the story can be entertaining, but it isn't really supported by it's rank plot.
The Characters- 2
This is absolutely the weakest part of the show. Many of the characters who appear are either rancid or forgettable from the nihilistic Bando, who sounds like a bloated muscle-head or even our protagonist, Lucy who conveniently switches between her two personalities. Another thing that plagues these characters are their tragic backstories which just aches bad characterization. Almost every character has some tear jerking story that involves murder or rape. It desensitizes the viewer in a since because when you see the same traumatic backstory over and over... It gets old! Even removing their melancholy pasts you are left with a bunch of blank pieces of paper. Especially, characters like Kouta who is just used to as a dildo between Lucy/Nyu and his cousin, Yuka. Obviously, people don't watch this show for its engaging characters.
The Sound - 8
The good thing about the sound is the music. Mainly the piece, 'Lillium'. It is absolutely beautiful. Each version used is truly amazing and one of my favorite parts of the show. My only complaint it gets a bit repetitive after thirteen episodes.
The bad thing about the sound is voice acting which is atrocious. It is really bad, especially for Kouta who sounds horribly bad in the dub. The other characters don't fair much better usually sounding quite out-of-place.
The Animation - 7
The animation here is pretty decent for what it is. Nothing was jarring except for the diclonius hands which look like crappy CG. The backgrounds are spectacular and are really nice to look at. Although, the 2-D characters don't mesh well on it. To continue on the character designs, many of them are pretty copy pasted like Kouta's and the other diclonius seem to look to similar. All in all it is pretty standard anime fair.
Enjoyment- 8
I really enjoyed this show because of how fun it was to watch. Despite the lame plot threads and equally bland characters it managed to surprise me and keep me watching all 13 episodes. It is really good popcorn material.
Overall- 6
This show is nothing grand like people portray it as nor is it complete garbage like others say. It is pretty middle of the road horror-esque anime.
It contains a lot of laughable and lame moments, but some of that can be forgiven because of its auditory and visual aesthetics. So give this show a shot, but be prepared to turn of your brain.
