*SPOILER ALERT*
When I first finished watching the anime, I found the ending quite abrupt and did not know what to think of it. I mean....atomic bomb ticks off, protagonists die, bang bang bang the anime is over. At first I was like...what just happened? But after mulling over this anime for a while (and reading several comments), I took away a few things/lessons from the ending.
First off, they committed such atrocities in the first place because they wanted attention of the world. Growing up in a hellish institution, nobody needed them. They were ignored and neglected. They were treated like test subjects. They just wanted people to notice them... Again, to think that they committed such horrible crimes just to gain attention of the world is...so pathetic that it makes me sad. They also committed such atrocities to expose the government's corruption, so yea. Justice is served via death of terroists and a string of unexpected events? (Also, VON means hope in iceland language! So by sacrificing themselves they...resemble hope in some way?)
Also, rarely do we get to "see" things from terroist's point of view. So this anime has been particularly engaging.
Pros:
- Great art and music! Attention to color and detail is simply amazing o_o
- Ending may seem abrupt at first glance, but is actually quite profound and thought-provoking (in the long run...)
- Favorite character is probably the lonewolf detective! A lonely but interesting man. Stubborn, too. Ha. Don't know why I am so attracted to this character. I remember rooting for him since his debut in this anime.
- I am a huge sucker for literature so I absoltuely LOVED how the artist/author incorporated Greek Mythology into this anime! It was a pleasure to watch, especially since I just studied Oedipus in English Class. I also learned more about the myth...and I thought the riddle was very intriguing (walks on two legs, four legs, then three legs). That was just...wow! Yep. Awesome stuff.
Cons:
- Could have been more character development.
- I found Lisa kind of annoying towards the end, but she actually let me see a more human side of Twelve. I feel she could've been more "useful". I just remember I wanted her to stop crying whenever she encounters a hardship, lol. She was a nuisance, but again she let me see Twelve's fragility and vulnerability... so props to her? (which is to say not all terroists are cold-hearted! They have a heart, too)
- Five. Five. Five. Again, a lot of people don't like her but I actually..well, I was quite fond of her. I liked her overall style and characterization. Everything about her just pops, whether it's her personality, appearance, or resiliient/condescending demeanor. I really wish she had more screen time, though! She only appeared for like what, three episodes? I want to see more of her and get to know her better. I want to know her backstory. In short, she is probably the character that left the deepest impression on me (and this is exactly why I like her so much!)
- Yes, speaking of backstory...I feel like the artist could have further developed each character's backstory. Because there are only eleven episodes and I feel like I don't really 'know' some of the characters really well? Overall, more episodes would do the justice.
All in all---- I know I listed a bunch of CONs, but I actually quite liked the anime. The soundtrack and art was on point. The storyline was novel and atypical, the ideas conveyed via the ending were profound and thought-provoking. All this anime needs is MORE CHARACTERIZATION/CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT and MORE EPISODES! Thus, I will rate this anime 8/10 ^^
