
a review by AmishaelAL

a review by AmishaelAL
This was, on the whole, a thrilling yet thought-provoking anime. Not the one to watch if you’re looking for some mindless fun, but apart from that it has almost everything necessary for a good anime - even a brilliant one.
There is a defined, clever and well-paced plot, a fair amount of character development (not for all the characters, but the main few characters are nicely developed) and some strong feels, shocks and tear-jerking moments.
Plot – not necessarily original, but done ingeniously. It started slow but then picked up. There were some times I wished that it would move a little faster, or where the character did something frustrating that seemed purely for the plot’s sake
Warning: the plot is quite technical though, if you dislike science as a subject it might take away from your enjoyment a bit.
Art – really good. Alternated between dark and light shots to suit the mood, characters were drawn well – particularly Okabe’s expressions – and the visual effects (e.g. the ones surrounding the time travel) fitted the theme perfectly.
Sound – was nice. Initially I didn’t like the opening theme song, but it grew on me. The soundtracks and ending theme matched well.
Character development – whilst the anime didn’t focus on developing every character – Daru and Mayuri received very little character development - it shone in relation to Okabe. We see him change from a delusional, somewhat irritating and essentially carefree character to a haunted and even deranged one. He learns that all actions have consequences, and goes from taking everything for granted to appreciating what he has and becoming much more selfless. And it actually feels believable, which is rare when a character changes to this extent.
Kurisu’s character is also developed somewhat, although nowhere near as much as Okabe’s
Enjoyment level – very high. This anime made me think. At some points it made me go “wow!” at some points “NOOOOO!” and at others it almost made me cry. There were also times I just ended up staring at the screen trying to reconcile myself with what I had just seen. Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a little – there were some points where I became annoyed after all, but, all in all, it was brilliant, and its place on the scoreboard reflects this.
I did struggle with the rating a bit, because I rarely give over 90s and this anime did have its faults, but after sitting back for a little and thinking on it I decided to give it one. When I was scrolling down for the ratings, I was reminded that 90+ is for ‘masterpieces.’ And this was overall a masterpiece.
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