Anime Reviews Anime

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR="DarkOrange"]Well, they made one in the music and video games section... so why not make one here, too? Review thread FTW. Purpose? Really getting a thorough opinion out on a show/dvd/manga/light novel. You can be as brief as you want and use whatever format you want, just make sure to give a definite 10-scale score.

Here's one I did recently hoping it gets accepted over at AniRec.

[B][SIZE="3"]Baccano![/SIZE][/B]

[B]Story: 10[/B]

Wow. To say I was completely blown away by Baccano! might be a huge understatement. Gathering it's charm from the wild antics of cramming 3 novels into 13 episodes, Baccano! is one of the most intense, unique, and downright fun shows to ever come into existence. Comparing the plot to any other anime would be impossible; between cannibalistic immortals, New York gang violence of the late 20s, a clash of forces on the Transcontinental Railroad, a dubiously fortunate pair of thieves, and much more, one's mind can only be boggled by how all of it is fitted together naturally. Linearity is non-existant in either the timeline or presentation of the show itself, which opts instead for throwing out pieces of the story and letting the viewer put everything together. In addition, there is a massive cast, and all of the characters are equally important. Despite the number, though, all of them have refreshingly unique personalities - both from each other and from convention.

Using this combination of crazy characters and wacky storytelling, Baccano! never looses it's energy over the course of it's 13 episodes. Every moment succeeds in shocking, wowing, and bringing a smile to the face of the audience, be it through an exchange of witty dialogue, an electrifying battle, or a mysterious, dramatic occurrence. More importantly, though, is that despite all the madness going on, everything comes together seamlessly by the end of the series. Backing up all that energy is the uber-badassery that oozes out of every second of every episode. Baccano! is incredibly violent and unpredictable, crating scenarios of totally unforeseeable outcomes and holding no life sacred. Blatant usage of plot devices such as deus ex machina help give the feeling that the show really does whatever it wants.

By accomplishing a sort of completion in which every moment has to be taken into account to appreciate the whole while making every moment thoroughly enjoyable, the series could be considered structurally perfect.

[B]Visuals: 9[/B]

Combining western pulp styles with seinen-anime designs paints a thick layer of style all over Bacano!. 30s New York and the massive train The Flying Pussyfoot are beautiful and intriguing, besides being carefully crafted (especially the train which is an environment that anime often does wrong or blandly). Heavy emphasis on color also livens up and deepens the overall atmosphere. Thanks to some great directorial decisions and intense cinematography, the fight scenes are always a joy to behold and well-animated. Because most of the cast is immortal, there are quite a few scenes with heavy gore and dismemberment, often proceeded by the re-attachment of a limb and culmination of blood as it re-enters the body. These scenes feature the coolest effects; the first time a character gets his finger severed and the blood and limb float through the air and re-attach themselves, I remember saying aloud, "that's freaking awesome." Talking scenes get less treatment, naturally, but they are rather infrequent.

Character designs in Baccano! are all wonderful, featuring a wide range of age groups that are all given equal treatment to look as cool as possible. Admittedly, there is a disturbing number of blondes which confused me at first, but once past the initial who's-who the unique designs are greatly appreciated.

[B]Audio: 9.5[/B]

"Guns and Roses," the thickly stylish jazz opening is probably the most well-known feature of Baccano!. Hearing it, you know immediately that something great and fun is about to begin. During battle, the energy-filled themes are immersive and add another layer to the fun. Like the visuals, care is taken to make everything ooze with the stye of fast-paced and exciting pulp.

[B]Characters: 10[/B]

Rather than selecting a main character, Baccano! features a self-proclaimed ensemble cast full of equally important and developed characters. Admittedly, there are certain characters who deserved more screen time (especially eye-patch-and-glasses-wearing girl Nice holystone) however, there is still a thoroughly impressive effort to connect the viewer with every character. One of the most difficult things is just picking a favorite. Isaac and Maria, the energetic, idiotic thieves always bring a smile along with their hilarious antics and lovable dumb luck. Jacuzzi Splat, who begins a hopeless crybaby but develops into a brave hero as well as his partner, the voluptuous Nice Holystone bring in the rebellious do-gooder spirit. The young mafia boss, Firo, has the most main-character personality and gentlemanly attitude. His relationship with a certain homunculus is one of the most involving plots. And those are just the nice guys. Szilard, the show's most prominent villain, is utterly hate-able and really evokes a deep rage, to the point that you're just begging for him to get his *** kicked. Next we have a cult full of masochists who's psycho leader is obsessed with killing people 'who think they are safe'. His is one of the most delightfully demented personalities I've had the pleasure of enjoying. However, my personal favorite had to be the man with the powers of god; the inhuman Rail Tracer. Even now, I haven't covered all of the major characters, so you can get an idea of how crazy it is. Characterization is definitely the strong point of Baccano!.

[B]Overall: 9.75[/B]

Baccano! is as close to perfection as I have ever seen in an anime. Stylistically thorough, interesting and entertaining for every last minute, and with my personal choice of the greatest characters ever, it doesn't do a single thing wrong and presses all of the right buttons. No other series maintains such a balance of fun, thrills, and nonstop badassery like Baccano![/COLOR]

[Panache]

[B]Kamichu [/B]-[I]Anime[/I]

[IMG]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb213/Aboywearingvans/050721_cd_kamichu.jpg[/IMG]

This anime is basically a slice of life romance deal. It's about a girl names Yurie Hitotsubashi who is in middle school and figures out one day she is a God. They don't really explain how or why she became a God but it turns out not to be not that important surprisingly enough. It goes through her day to day life and the day to day lives of her friends.

[B]Characters [/B] 10/10
The characters are all pretty loveable. Even the secondary characters. From the small little God helpers to Matsuri, Yuries rambunctious friend you can always find things you like about them. Really the development of these characters make the anime since the anime has basically no plot(there is nothing you could really call a plot till near the end but I still wouldn't call it that). Even though that's the case it really works for the anime.

[B]Pacing[/B] 8/10
Well the pacing is really slow in this anime which is surprising for what it is. Especially since it's a rather short anime. But this actually works in it's favor as the little characters are given time to grow and the main characters develop much more.

[B]Animation/Art[/B] 10/10
The art is fairly unique and the animation is pretty clean. It has a very Miyazki like feel to it. It is like a mix between whispers of the heart and Spirited away almost.

[B]Dub[/B] 7/10
I noticed some poor lip movement with the voices now and again but overall it was a good dub with good voices.

[B]Overall[/B] 9/10
This a a Geneon gem that should be checked out before it goes away. I definitely recommend it if you don't mind slow shows with cute and fun characters.