Reviews for Another (6.33) 1s5t41

Let me preface this review by noting that I am by no means an expert in this genre, I typically stick to much lighter toned works. However, due to this aspect, I found Another to be anything but just another series. However, this type of series is tremendously hard to describe without spoilers so bear with me.

I'd say there are two types of horror: there's the Doom 3/Zombie approach and there's the psychological approach. The first one is pretty thrilling during the watch but due to the implausibility the effects are (whew) temporary. The latter approach sticks with you; once you've watched The Ring you can't go back, for example. Another is theoretically more of this second type, however due to the remote nature (at least for some of us) of the setting it doesn't really have the lingering gotta look over my shoulder feeling. What does that mean? Perhaps this is better categorized as a mystery/thriller, more along the lines of the early episodes of Chaos Head, before they started unraveling all the mystery.

If you're looking for a hard core horror/survival tale that is gripping and epic, my recommendation would be to buy/build yourself a decent rig and plug in Dead Space. If you're looking for a change of pace from your typical slice of life and are okay with a bit of gore (think Elfen Lied-ish), this might be a good one. I personally don't do well with horror in general, but found this a pretty captivating series that required utter chainage.

Animation:
I'm apparently one of those thousands of PA Works fans that are lulled into thinking that a series is awesome if it contains moe girls and some occasional flair. I'm actually totally okay with this as I believe the presentation of this series was very well done. In general, the series had unexpectedly detailed backgrounds and a well-chosen color palette (think rusted-like similar to the one used in Kara no Kyoukai). The overall animation was crisp and gave a very tense atmosphere (pressure cooker). One thing I still haven't yet figured out is the usage of shots of creepy dolls.

The character styling was a bit lax as there are plenty of generic-looking forgettable classmates. There are a ton of characters in this series, luckily only a select few are important enough to influence the plot. As for character expressions, you're only going to get four in the entire series: confusion, sadness, fear, and anger (pretty consistent with the pressure cooker atmosphere); don't expect any upbeat characters to lighten the mood. I believe this is intended as it just adds to the mystery surrounding the class in the early episodes. This series also caters to two peculiar character traits in the same character, eye-patches and heterochromia; both of which I will never understand...

Perhaps my eyes have been blinded by the likes of Maken Ki and like ilk as I don't recall any fan service in this series. Much more prominent are bloody scenes as unlucky classmates and relatives meet their untimely fate. The camera angle often saves you from the worst of the gore but I couldn't imagine watching this while eating a bloody, rare steak. As for the "horror" aspect, there isn't much here that will cause you a heart attack or induce a seizure, but the combined visual/audio does cause for some surprise moments.

Sound:
The OP to Another is unique, it's very chromatic and sets the tone quite nicely for the series. The ED is most probably intended as a break from all the madness, a chance for one to catch one's breath before moving on to the next episode; it's a mellow yet slightly dark piece, and it goes perfectly especially at the end of the series. The BGM is mostly forgettable as it's really the sound effects that matter here. You'll get lots of your traditional horror-thriller sounds here ranging from jarring, eerie utterances to sudden, LOUD gusts of wind. I found that it combined with the animation formed a compelling atmosphere.

You're not going to hear an energetic performance from anyone in the VA cast, it just isn't that kind of series. I think it was required to maintain the severity of the tone though yes it would have been nice to have a bit more emotion at times.

Story:
I'll it it. There are definitely flaws to the story. Certain plot elements were cheap. But to be honest, many of these realizations are in hind sight. In general, the story does a good job of keeping you guessing what it's all about, and slowly luring you to believe something only to pull the rug out and surprise you. It's a very intriguing setting/premise and I think this is one of the better executions this season.

I liked the pacing of the series, it introduces you fairly gently at first but then quickly picks up, never to really let up until the ending. On the topic of the ending, many people have complained that the ending is horrible; it's fairly inconclusive and doesn't really go into any falling action. I actually think it's okay to do so in this case, and it does leave open the possibility for a follow up series.

Looking back, there was plenty of foreshadowing, as well as fake-outs, to try to work out what it was all about. I had a lot of fun trying to figure out all the plot twists, and must it that I didn't see the final ending coming until the very last moment. Props to the series on that.

Character:
The characters are a bit dry, it may be intentional but overall bland faces definitely will discourage certain viewers. This is most annoying in Mei, as I have no idea why Kouichi finds her interesting at first. There are a lot of students in the class, and believe me there is a good reason for why the class is so large. However, I never got the feeling that the class was a unified class. Character relations in general are weak at best, epitomized by the shallow-seeming connection between Mei and Kouichi. Likewise, none of the characters are ever given any background, though there is at least a reason for this. Basically, though the characters do feel a bit weak, it's mostly to maintain the mysterious tonality demanded by the plot.

Value:
I'm not going to try to act macho and say "yeah I've seen a lot worse this is nothing". I found this a very entertaining watch that did increase my heart rate at times. The atmosphere, though nowhere near the utter envelopment which is Kara no Kyoukai, is a satisfyingly dark tone that just begs you to turn your lights off and watch with the sound on max volume. At least for those who don't have much of a horror background, this is a palatable series that keeps you gues to the very last episode.