This show is about so much more than their relationship and although it may be there, it’s not nearly as big as everyone seemed to make it.
One point this anime makes is: we are all human.
Story - Set in the near future after the last Great War, most of mankind lives in a handful of cities. The story takes place in No.6, one of these cities. Here, life is perfect; there is no suffering, no starving children on the streets. It seems like a Utopia, but, of course, with one little catch - you must be completely submissive to the city and never, ever say anything that would make you seem dissatisfied with how you are treated.
Meanwhile, outside the city walls, there is a civilisation living in squalor. People who are surviving off anything they can, including scraps from the city.
On his 12th birthday, Shion helps a boy after he appears at his window with a wounded arm. As Shion is tending to him he finds out that the boy, Nezumi, is a VC. A criminal. Not that Shion cares though.
Four years later Nezumi returns the favour by rescuing Shion as he is being falsely arrested for a crime he did not commit. They escape to the Western District, outside the wall. And together try to find out the truth about No.6.
Character – I really enjoyed and connected to the characters, how you could see them slowly changing as they got more attached to each other. For instance, normally gentle Shion would get rather violent if someone tried to hurt Nezumi or say anything bad about him. And normally rough Nezumi was more kind towards Shion than anyone else.
The supporting characters were also well developed. The only one that confused me was whether or not Inukashi was a boy or not… I was never entirely sure.
Art – The art was average. It was definitely best during the opening, fantastic detailing and great effects. The actual show, however, had a tendency to slip up. Although there was nothing so bad as to take you away from the show.
Music – The opening took me a while to get used to, since it is unusually high pitched but I also couldn’t help but feel that it really suited this anime.
The background music worked well with the show, it didn’t have much that actually stood out for me, since I remember only parts of it.
But Nezumi’s singing! This was definitely the best part of the music during the entire show. I absolutely adored his singing and kind of wished there was more of it.
Conclusion – Overall, this was a very enjoyable show and pushed me through a range of emotions right the way through. I was smiling at parts and crying at others, something that only the best can do. I’m sure with more episodes it could have done so much more and expanded certain parts but as it is, it’s crept its way into my top ten animes.
As a side note, I have not taken the novel or manga into consideration. So I’m unable to compare them. I’m reviewing it purely as it is.
