Story: The story is about 30 men and women, some younger and some older, who go to an unmarked village to escape reality. It's very vague. And the show likes to keep it's entire story vague. For the mystery genre it works quite well since we are always second guessing ourselves and trying to play detective, but it also does have some faults. Until the very last episodes you don't have a clue what is going on, at least not for sure. And as you desperately search for answers you get more questions. While this can be also a strong point, it retains a sense of mystery to everything, I think that it to many viewers can be a weakness. People may not understand what is going on in terms of plot so they just label it as bad and move on. While I think that the bigger story of what happens in this village is quite good, I think that it would have been better if it could have been a 13 or 24 episode series as I feel that it needed more time to bring the story justice. That being said most of the characters had their own stories. In many episodes you see glimpses to the past that show how they got to this point and why they ran away. I wish that we could have seen it with more characters and I think that it being a longer series would have helped with that.
Story: (8/10)
Art: Each of the characters in the series had their own unique look, so even if you didn't remember their name (although some of them were quite memorable such as Assbound, I mean Hyouketsu no Judgeness,) you will remember them by how they look. The setting was an abandoned village in the middle of a forest, so there was plenty of opportunity for beautiful artwork. In my opinion, they took it. The building had a great look that combined the old and abandoned with still usable. SOMEWHAT SPOILERS AHEAD: The "monsters" (because I don't want to spoil too much) also have a weird and interesting art style devoted to them. And yes scary. Some of them are just not as scary by nature, but one of them... I couldn't sleep after them. (Spoiler: It's the boob monster.) SOMEWHAT SPOILERS ENDED. Also a particular scene in with the starry sky was just done so beautifully, you could see each little star, and even though nighttime in the series is usually dark and dangerous, in this scene if was a serene setting that really let it become something touching.
Art: (9/10)
Sound: I think that both the opening and ending were very good songs that complimented the series, but that's not all the sounds that the anime had to offer. Throughout the series music was used, whether it be from the hippopotamus song to the gentle theme that reoccurs. In both cases I think that the music added to the series instead of distracting or taking away from it. I have to admit though sometime's when Koharun sings it seemed a little sudden, although it did have a very creepy vibe, I'll give it that.
Sound: (9/10)
Characters: This show has thirty characters. I repeat this show has thirty characters. Every single one of them has a personality. While other characters are introduced throughout the series, I'm focusing on just the thirty that come into the village. Many times there is an anime that has a couple main characters and then several supporting characters, the supporting characters are shoved to the side and receive no personality. Even if the amount of screen time for the characters can sometimes be small, each one of them has a different personality and way they act. Even in the background these characters remain consistent. That being said there is character development and growth. The most obvious one being Mitsumune, even though he still has that naivety and weakness to him, he becomes much more than that. I thought that he was a wimp at the beginning of the series but by the end he had my respect. The other characters have their moments as well, but I feel like too much details would give away spoilers.
Characters: (8/10)
Enjoyment: I'm giving this a ten for enjoyment, because I enjoyed this series so much. I came expecting a good series, but had no clue really what it would be. Horror mystery murder? I wasn't sure. This series made me want to find out though, I waited, not so patiently, to be able to watch each episode and each time I did I was rewarded with something that I loved and was curious about. I wish that the anime had more than twelve episodes for this reason, at first it developed very slowly, giving you things to question and to wonder about, but never giving you enough answers to be able to fully grasp what was actually happening. I think that was a strength of the show. If anyone checked out the reddit thread for Mayoiga you will see countless confused people making theories, believing the more implausible ones because the nature of this show says regular logic won't work. The show makes the viewer curious, want more, and really wonder what the show is about. I think that made the show great, and for me enjoyable.
Enjoyment: (10/10)
Overall: I liked this series so much, and while I don't know if I can really recommend this to others, if you happen upon this series and are curious about it I highly recommend it. If it were just up to my personal opinion I would have given it a 9/10, but I'm not. I'm doing this because I'm trying to see it a little more objectively than I just love it. There were definitely some flaws to the series, but I think they can be overlooked once you factor everything else in. Especially if you follow the Reddit thread I think this will be a good watch. While this show can be a miss with some people, I think a majority people if they just give it a chance and watch it all the way through would like it more than they think. With all the theories and second guessing, it was actually a mystery, despite the plot not being a traditional mystery. I'm one of the people who watched this show genuinely, although I am able to see from the eyes of those watching it as an unintentional comedy. It does have a WTF factor. Either way you watch it, I think Mayoiga is a series that can be easily enjoy and does a good job at what it does.
Overall: (8/10)
TL;DR: While Mayoiga is an anime which right now is highly contested as good vs. bad, I think that it completes it's duties as an anime and is very entertaining. While some consider it bad they have still watched the anime and been hooked, which makes me question if that just means it is good. It at times can be confusing or WTF inducing, but all the other factors of the show along with how addicting it is makes it a good show. Whether you are watching it as a joke or genuinely I believe you will be able to enjoy the series.
