Reviews

Mini-review: "Erased" seems to me to be a story that grew beyond the skill of its writers & directors. The initial episodes drew me in with art and sound production far beyond the norm. Character's emotions were beautifully rendered and the subtle sound design delivered points of emotion well. The characters themselves were also incredible. The dance of emotion and tension between Kayo and Satoru, for example, hit a level of realism and profundity few anime ever hope to. However, at the height of this development, things took a lazy turn.

I've heard the manga takes a different direction but I cannot comment there since I haven't read it. All I can say is that it seemed very much like the writers/directors/etc. had a very clear way they wanted the story to end. The logical force of the narrative was going somewhere completely different, but they decided to shoe-horn their ideas in anyway. I was conflicted with this one as the general story and even characters themselves seemed to be done a disservice.

Still, I highly recommend giving this one a go; the art is beautiful, the voice acting is sublime, and the character development is fantastic. The twists and turns of the story will hit each viewer differently; personally, they took away from my enjoyment as the series closed. I feel this one will hit everyone a little differently.