Story: 8/10
A few hundred years from now, the world is a near desolate place. The only bastions of society are domed cities and a legend about a mythical paradise, which lies at the end of the world. However, the only ones capable of finding paradise are wolves who can now take human form but are near extinction. The story focuses on four wolves, which are all very different but they all band together to find paradise. Overall, the story is very interesting and is essentially about hope in a dying world. However, in the anime there are several episodes right in the middle that for some reason recaps everything that has happened so far. I found this very confusing but you can honestly skip this and you wouldn't have missed anything. Other than that, I can't find in serious fault with the show as a whole. The ending was spectacular as well. I couldn't take my eyes off the screen in fear of missing something. However, they left me desiring more, especially since the ending was open-ended. It is definitely left up to your own interruption of how everything comes to an end. Despite this, I don't believe that this is a deal breaker. Instead, it is thought provoking with several plot twists that will keep you guessing all the way to the end.
Characters: 10/10
The characters themselves were a relief, focusing more on the excellent dialogue rather then cheesy angst seen in a lot of anime. Along with adversity and despair, the characters find a strange sense of solace in the hope of freedom and happiness through their journey to paradise. Best of all, the wolves act like wolves, not just furry creatures that imitate human emotion. In fact, the characters only take human form as a survival mechanism. Each one also his own way of looking at things. Yet, despite their differences, the informal pack becomes an extended family of sorts. I've seen both the Japanese and English dub, and I think both are excellent. I normally prefer the Japanese voice acting over the English dubbed versions, but this time I actually enjoyed the English version much more. Perhaps this is just my opinion, but you honestly won't be disappointed either way.
Art and Sound: 9/10
The art is not only excellent but creates subtle and beautiful vistas adding a sense of gloom, like a darkened world. I found the animation to be a step in the right direction avoiding the jaw dropping CGI. Instead it is clean and smooth with fluid movements and perfect timing with every action. Not too mention the music is not only haunting, but mournful as it tugs at your heart strings. I could honestly rant on for quite a while just on the visuals and monochromatic color of the world, but I won't. Instead, I will simply state that both the art and sound of Wolf's Rain was a pleasant change of pace from what I normally see in anime nowadays.
Overall: 9/10
Wolf's Rain is not a disappointment creating not only memorable characters, but convincing. The characters never once lose their momentum and it tells such a beautiful and thought provoking story of hope. Studio Bones has honestly done it again. Kudos to all those at Studio Bones!
