This is a very old script i was going to make into a youtube video but i think it will go good here as a review as well so here you all go, hope you like it :3

The Horrific Beauty of Boogiepop Phantom

~~~~~~Let me start off by saying that there will be major spoilers in this and I completely understand if someone doesn't like this anime, It’s very weird, creepy, and complicated by the majority of people's standards but that's why I absolutely love it. Also if you want to watch this anime you have to be ready to commit and watch all of it because of how it is laid out, it is made into multiple stories and they all link into each other in some type of way, This makes it to where it won't make sense until the last couple episodes then it all clicks in place like a puzzle in your mind. Now with all that out of the way, on to the review.

Boogiepop Phantom was created by Kouhei Kadono and animated by the studio Madhouse, who also animated other amazing anime like Perfect Blue, the first season of One Punch Man, and Death Note. Boogiepop Phantom was released on January 5th, 2000, Its release here in America was greatly overshadowed by the release of a little show that came out the year before you might know as Neon Genesis Evangelion. If you didn't know this show existed don't worry, a lot of people didn't know either. I wanted to make a video about this anime because I felt as if it didn't get the attention and recognition it deserved, it truly is a beautiful and horrific anime.

You might be wondering, what is horrific beauty? well in the world of Boogie Phantom, I like to put it this way. It shows you reality in its purest form, it shows you what goes on in people's minds, it shows you everyone's skeletons, everyone's insecurities, everyone's imperfections, everyone's intruding thoughts, and what would happen if we acted on all of those things. I find it beautiful because it shows unfiltered reality and I find it horrific because it shows why we need that filter.

This filter, what we know as right and wrong, good and evil, was taken down by the main villain, the multicore, of the show using drugs and psychological manipulation on people whose filters were already getting old and dirty as well as other supernatural monsters and people with supernatural abilities. They were the last straw that broke the camel's back, the one that broke their filter. The loss of this filter causes many things that we saw in the show like how someone can become obsessive and a stalker, what happens if we don't grow up and try to cling on to our childhoods forgetting about the future, and even what happens if you only think about others and not yourself. They started to act and do horrible horrible things because they had lost their filter on reality, and that's where Boogiepop Phantom comes in.

Boogiepop Phantom is a mirror of the original Boogiepop because of the “column of light'' event that split them and the multicore up along with releasing a bunch of supernatural energy giving a lot of people powers because the light “evolved certain people”. Boogiepop is seen as an evil shinigami, or grim reaper, that stalks and kills people; although this can't be farther from the truth. Yes, Boogiepop is a shinigami, but that doesn't mean they are bad. They show up whenever there is a threat that will destroy the world, yet they have absolutely no emotion. All they do is exist when something might destroy the world, seek out to destroy that thing, and this phantom we see in the show also “collects” the humans that have been severely affected by the “column of light” event. I love them because they are that filter, boogiepop is that “slap in the face '' blatant type of reality telling you exactly what has happened, what you did, and shows you why it was wrong. Although they don't have emotion I feel a warmness to them, if everyone knew how they really were it would be comforting knowing that there is this force out there. I feel that's why although Kirima doesn't like them, she just has a mutual understanding with Boogiepop Phantom.

On top of all of this, this entire amazing carefully planned story is a wonderful and perfect art style and animation. The style of this show is very 90’s anime as well as the gain that comes along with it, which I love, but there is something else that is extremely special. In every episode except the last one, the colors are made to look grey and dirty as well as making the corners on the screen darker, which made watching this anime so much better. Though the vision of everything being gray it really does show how that filter of reality had been taken off of everyone and the world had become sad, dull, and depressing. And through all the grayed-out colors what one is the most clear and prominent? Bright blood red. Along with this amazing style of animation is the underlying music. This adds even more eerie and creepiness to the anime making it feel all-around terrifying to watch.

I (Used to be hehe) pretty critical when it comes to anime and this show is without a doubt my favorite anime of all time. The animation, the creepy music, the characters, the plot, the themes, and the unique storytelling, all come together to make a truly horrifically beautiful anime.