Month: October 2019

Introduction

An egotistical high school student with the power to change the world, what could possibly go wrong? Death note is an anime that was released in 2006 and was apart of the golden age of Anime. One of the most widely accepted anime in the western world, it follows high school student Light Yagami as he possesses an all powerful note book called the death note. The death note has many rules involved with it but essentially it is a notebook that allows the user to kill anybody whose name is written in said notebook. Light uses this to kill criminals and eventually gets investigated by other main character named L. Both characters are super geniuses so this anime becomes an intense psychological cat and mouse game between L and Light. For people that are interested in shows such as criminal minds or other crime shows this anime would be perfect because it dives into the psyche of a mass murder and the detective trying to solve the case. This anime is one of the classic ones that everyone must watch when just starting to watch anime. The series is only 37 episodes and develops beautifully into one of the most insane mind bending shows that have ever been released. 

Story 9/10

The story follows high school student Light Yagami and his Shinigami(death god), Ryuk, that comes with the death note. He starts about receiving the death note and questioning his ability. He starts writing names in the book and people actually start dying. This is when Light realizes that him and his superior mind are destined to cleanse the world of impurities and almost become a god like figure. When he starts killing people in prison and on death row the Japanese government decides to get involved with the case. However, Light being to smart for the normal police, the number one detective in the world L was called in to investigate the case. Since Light was the son of the chief of police for the area Light slowly got into contact with L and then worked side by side with him on the case even though he was the one carrying out the murders. Therefore, the show became a massive cat and mouse game to see how Light can out smart L without uncovering that he is in fact the killer. 

 

The structure of the story is actually extremely well done, especially the first half of it. The L saga was done perfectly and really encapsulated the the psychological thriller genre perfectly. However, where the story falls slightly apart is the second half of the story. When the new detectives Near and Mello are introduced the mystery aspect of the story got a little sloppy which made some of the conclusions to the case rushed. Many fans of the show really disliked the second half of the series however in my opinion the show was still just as great the whole way through. It just became less of a psychological thriller and more of a drama anime which is why the anime community felt like the ending was not fitting for the show. 

 

Characters 9/10

The anime had some of the best developed characters that any anime I have ever watched. However, there are a few characters that are extremely well developed and some that could seem lackluster. Starting with L and Light, these characters were beautifully developed in every way. The intellect that they portrayed never seemed contrived and the character development that they went through developed the plot well. Light slowly went from a calm and collected murderer to a hysteric criminal by the end of the show. L although stayed the same throughout the series, he provided an element of sanity that the viewers could root for. The general consensus on this anime is that L was usually the viewers favorite character and I would agree. His deductive skills always put L on edge which made the show significantly more interesting. Where the character development falls short is the second half with the introduction of Mello and Near. Both of those characters do not go through significant character development and stay rather flat throughout the series. This takes away from the dynamic character structure that Light and L brought to the story. However, the characters are some of the most well developed characters in anime and are praised for their love from the fanbase. 

Art/Music 8.5/10

The opening and the closing of the show is actually very good which adds a good element to the Anime. The soundtrack during the show is also well done but where this anime loses some of its points is the art style. It fits the show really well but does have some room for improvement. There are little things that could be fixed with the animation style such as lighting and the way some scenes are portrayed. For 2006 the art style was extremely well done but it does not compare to some of the other art styles I have reviewed before. 

Conclusion

For anyone interested in psychological thrillers or well developed plot lines this would be one of the best anime to watch. With the character development that occurs throughout the story it would only be fitting that this anime is one of the best and most loved all the time. It comes in at number 4 on the all time top 100 list which is extremely well deserved with the influence it had on the western anime viewers. If the more romantic or dramatic anime are not your speed, this is one you should definitely check out which dives into the minds of super genius detectives and criminals. 

Story 9/10

Characters 9/10

Art/Music 8.5/10

Overall 9/10

Introduction

The ability to change the world with the press of a couple buttons comes at the most costly price. Steins Gate is an anime about a self proclaimed mad scientist, Rintaro Okabe who stumbles across a way to send messages and eventually the whole consciousness back in time. By achieving time travel he makes all of his friends life better but it comes with a cost. Secret agents, death of loved ones and mental trauma is just the beginning of what Rintaro has to face when tampering with time. The relationship and world building that Steins Gate creates in the first 12 episodes perfectly sets up the rapid escalation of the plot in the latter 12 episodes perfectly blends together to make one of the best stories that I have ever watched. Relative to all the anime i have ever watched it has to be within the top 5 because of the scientific phenomena that the story is based on while also coupling the heart wrenching aspects of loss and existential crisis.  

Story 10/10

The story revolves around Rintaro Okabe the self proclaimed mad scientist and his “lab mates” that focus all of their time on time travel. He has made many attempts to actually time travel, however when he finally creates the invention of the phone microwave, a machine that can send emails(called D-mails) into the past to alter the future, he starts to mess around with time for his friends and for his sake. However these d-mails slowly start to alter their timeline which in the beginning does not have any adverse effects on his life however it slowly escalates into a conflict that can not be resolved. All the d mails that Okabe sent in order to change his friends lives must be reversed, which usually ended up worse than before. Once he reverses all the emails he is left with a soul crushing dilemma that makes him lose his sanity and ultimately lose interest in time travel all together. 

The structure of the story is an interesting one that the first 12 episodes of the show are actually much slower than the latter 12. This is because the first 12 episodes of the series act as a world building set up which helps strongly establish the relationship between Okabe and the rest of his friends. Due to this people usually drop the series after the first couple episodes, however if you stick with the series you will not be disappointed. The way it uses that world building to further conflicts later in the series is some of the best storytelling that I have ever seen in T.V in general. 

For a science fiction anime, the story progresses in a way that leaves almost no room for any time travel related loop-holes. Obviously, there is no way to determine if anything the show talks about is real however the theories and ideas they propose about time travel are presented away that almost feels completely real. As you are watching the show it grabs your attention so well that it is almost impossible to question the logic that the show presents you with. For the story element of the anime, there is almost nothing wrong with it, which is clearly why it deserves a 10 in this aspect. 

Characters 10/10

The character development of Steins;Gate is what makes the series so amazing. Okabe goes through some of the most complex character development that I have ever seen in an anime. He starts off as a very childish scientist who basically thinks about time travel as just another toy in his big game. However, as the story progresses he slowly realizes the consequences of all the d mails he sent, which sends him into a regressive spiral that makes him grow up and face all of the actions that he has caused. This causes him to go through such intense grief and sorrow that it almost makes completely insane until the end of the series. All of the character development that occurs is because of the actions of Rintaro which is why he bears the burden of all other problems and undergoes the most intense character transformation. 

About the other characters in general there is not much to be said because their role in the series is very contingent on the actions of Okabe Rintaro. However some characters such as Daru and Mayuri do have their own development it is usually due to the actions of Okabe and how those actions affect their lives. However, it did not take a way one bit from the characters because those initial 12 episodes created a world that was so easily to be attached to that the characters just fell into place. 

Art/Music 9/10

The opening and ending songs are some of the best music I have ever heard in anime. The soundtrack although quieter and less involved in the story it adds an element that deepens the emotion of every scene that happens. The music is slightly lackluster however what makes up for it is the amazing voice acting and art style that takes this anime to the next level. The art style is slightly dark and gloomy which juxtaposes the upbeat voice acting of Okabe Rintaro. This art style can foreshadow the dark turn that the show takes during the latter half of the series. The voice acting itself is extremely well developed, every character has a different tone and sound which bring life to the anime. The voice acting brings up the sound and visual aspect of the anime to another level because it would not have the same impact if it did not have the same uplifting voice acting. 

Conclusion

Overall I would give this anime a 9.5/10 because of its ability to take such a complex genre and interweave it into a beautifully written story. On the international anime list it reached number 6 showing the absolute influence this anime has had on the western world. The story and the characters woven together creates a series that has such depth and story development that hooks the audience with the first line of dialogue. If someone is deeply interested in physics or a good psychological thriller this would definitely be an anime I would recommend.