It’s only fair to warn you - it’s not for the faint of heart. There’s a lot of gore and blatant nudity, all displayed in the most casual matter. Still obviously fanservice, but they manage to pull it off without looking like they’re trying too hard. The violence is mind-blowing, and being completely ripped apart limb-from-limb happens to be the most common cause for death. In short, they forgot how to censor. A bold move, and it had me really close to exiting my window within the first few minutes.
But I didn’t, because then the plot kicked in. And it’s one good plot. Highly original, predictable in some places, but still holding some great twists. It’s a tight plot too, and the characters tie together quite well. Pacing is perfect.
Characters range from average to amazing, and from simply detestable to lovable. The writers do a great job of attracting your sympathy to the right places. Lucy seems almost justified in her murderous attacks. Her psychology and background are well-explored, and more than once you’ll find yourself taking her side over the humans and their unfortunate cruelty.
The animation is alright. Music sets a decent mood. The OP is rather creative, although I admit I found myself skipping it a few times, but only because I wanted to get to the action. An instrumental version of “Lilium” is played as background music, and it gets stuck in your head. Good thing it’s a beautiful tune. The ED sounds a bit out-of-place, being J-Pop, but it’s still a good song. Voice acting is great.
I loved this show. It kept me on the edge of my seat, absently wondering who was going to die next and tensing whenever Lucy’s eyes narrowed, yet hanging on to every word of the dialogue and the plot development. Elfen Lied is highly enjoyable, raises interesting psychological questions, and plays well on the viewer’s emotions. A true masterpiece.
