Pardon the bad grammar and enjoy the review!
Story: 4 out of 10
[SLIGHT spoiler warning regarding the basic structure of the story (as the show is impossible to be reviewed properly without at least mentioning it).]
Guilty Crown's premise isn't anything special for someone who has watched a futuristic war anime before. There are mecha, government conspiracies, a hero given a special power, pretty heroine and so on… the first episode could be very well taken out of Code Geass, for instance. Some fan-service, romance as well as school life is thrown into the mix, all while creating a storm of sour anime clichés. All in all, the whole beginning of the series is very badly executed story-wise, which is probably one the primary reasons why many viewers dropped Guilty Crown off quickly. The main character gets a load of problems laid on to him and everything goes down according to the premise.
Further into the series, my expectations for the story were sinking low until there was a sudden change of tone. It was something that I didn't expect to see: the idealistic, clichéd feel of the series gradually turning over a new leaf and the general viewpoint starting to look more cynical. Although in this case it makes this kind of anime just more confusing and harder to understand, I found out it as a welcome change. It's just the execution that bothers me, once again.
That's where we get to the core problem with the story of Guilty Crown: the pacing. Both idealistic and cynical parts of the plot are paced in a way that the viewer will get numbed out sooner or later. The pacing is very basic: the good and bad parts, the Yin and Yang are stacked in their respective episode streaks and left as they are. This way it seems that the scenes that actually establish the series as a whole are delayed far further than the first couple of episodes. When the plot is played out in this kind of way, it just seems very, very strange.
Overall, despite the very simple, yet unorthodox pacing, I don't remember seeing a show like this before (although there obviously is something similar out there) and therefore I have some respect for the writers to try this kind of approach. Even then I can only give the story a 4 primarily because of the poor execution on many levels.
Art: 10 out of 10
It goes without saying that the visuals are the hook for the series. I have watched only a couple of series from Production I.G., but Guilty Crown is easily one of their works that goes to the "graphical designer's wet dream" -section. There are many pretty visual effects, gorgeous backgrounds and lighting as well as some good character designs. In short it's just too pretty to ignore. The color palette is utilized all-around and the futuristic biopunk vibe is delivered well through the visual style. I personally have no quarrels about the art, so I'll give it a pure 10.
Sound: 8 out of 10
The sound is another good feature in the show. Both opening and ending songs are not outstanding, but they are quite alright in my opinion. The background music was mostly decent, but those chanting tracks and the rock tracks that played during the most climactic parts were very impressing in general, despite making the scene itself a bit cheesy. Sound effects are good, and coming from an amateur regarding the VA front, the voice-acting wasn't anything too bad. So all in all, it's an 8 out of 10.
Character: 6 out of 10
What about the characters then? There's the main character, Shu Ouma, the main heroine, Inori Yuzuriha and the leading foil, Gai in addition to the supporting cast. As different or indifferent the characters' personalities may be, they are certainly not dynamic. You can see heroic determination right away from the start, but disregarding that fact the main characters just feel too static until it already seems too delayed. This supports the confusion that the story has as well, making the feel of the series somewhat out-of-place.
As for most of the supporting cast, throughout the series it was more or less difficult to decipher who actually had a major role in it. As some characters are being shown in the opening and then not shown in the series, the viewer has a hard time making out who is who. It doesn't help that these characters are then suddenly pulled back into the plot after the introduction of various other characters, making things even more weird. I personally liked some of the supporting cast more than the actual main characters, which makes me sad that these characters weren't really explored further.
As a whole, the cast is somewhat decently planned out, but it really doesn't stand out as much as one would hope due to the sheer amount of shifting characters that get dull or non-existent roles. In spite of the fact that I liked some of the more minor characters, the fact reinforces that this section deserves a solid 6.
Enjoyment: 7 out of 10
I had mixed feelings of the show before I started watching it, and while the basic structure of the show lacked a lot, some of the moments after the generally bad beginning made me enjoy the experience. I still can't start recommending it to anyone who is looking for some "glorious masterpiece" -type of anime, because Guilty Crown really isn't one. To the average anime watcher, you can watch the series on a serious note, but it's possible that you'll feel disappointed. On the other hand, if you don't want to give a crap and just want to watch some great-looking and -sounding anime, then go for it! You could be even surprised along the way!
Overall: 7 out of 10
In the end, Guilty Crown is an uncanny, yet watchable show. Although it's being regarded as an abomination by some, it still has its moments. Some of the more negative properties could've been intentional, but the creators' means behind these properties could be disputed ad infinitum. In the end though I think that this show, despite all its flaws, has enough redeeming qualities to be labeled as "good". Hence 7 out of 10 overall.
