Plot: 7/10
Charlotte offers a slightly atypical look at the common superpower and high school combination genre of anime. Instead of focusing on how these superpowers are harnessed or other common themes, it instead focuses more on the people themselves and how the superpowers afflict multiple aspects of their lives. The plot, however, suffers from poor pacing and disjointed development, all of which can be summed up as convenient. The story moves fairly well for the first couple episodes, but starts getting off mid-series. A major plot point is undone at this point, which just ruins the plot for the rest of show. The ending is rushed at best and leaves the viewer with minimal satisfaction, even if all loose ends were tied up. Several plot points are also inconsistent throughout the series, such as the power supposedly being all imperfect but these imperfections only seem to inflict main characters and even then this ends up not being the truth, and things of significance are glanced over, with incomplete or unsatisfying answers to the anime’s biggest questions.
Characters: 7/10
The characters of Charlotte were generally well developed, with their relationships, past, and feelings being covered extensively. They were all also generally likable, and easy enough to relate to. However, unless you got attached to Yu the most, a lot of the characters end up feeling tossed by the wayside, as they were merely filler or had served their purpose and were no longer needed. This to me was extremely frustrating, as the viewer is almost tricked in a way into thinking characters in the beginning with so much build up will have a dominant presence until the end, but this is not so. The main character Yu is also overpowered in a way, but going into that would cause major spoilers. The undoing of one of the plot points also ruins a lot of development, as it is essentially erased. This leaves some later character interactions feeling forced or artificial, stealing emotion from what are suppose to be tender moments.
Animation: 10/10
As to be expected from Key, the animation in Charlotte is absolutely stunning. With well done character designs and beautiful backdrops, the series definitely keeps things afloat with the gorgeous artwork.
Soundtrack: 10/10
Similar to animation, the soundtrack is well done. It helps make up for some of the lost tense or tenderness, due to flaws in plot or characters, in some scenes. The soundtrack makes an excellent effort, and it definitely pays off.
Themes: 9/10
Salvation and redemption are two of the most major themes within Charlotte, and both manifest themselves through Yu. The beginning of the series shows that redemption is being sought from the powers by some people, but this becomes more explicit how much of a burden the powers are. The redemption is not just from the powers, but also from emotional turmoil, which happens at a couple points in the series in a variety of ways. Yu is the primary receiver of the emotional redemption. Salvation also comes due to Yu, who saves a lot of power users, though other character offer a role as savior, though more subtly, such as Nao and Shun. Other good themes are present, such as family relations and dealing with a burden. However, the show loses the impact of these themes to a high degree through primarily the plot reversal and the rushed ending, and this is another momentum killer for the anime.
Final Score: 43/50
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