Back to BionicCommando's Profile BionicCommando's Profile

Bakemonogatari,in my opinion is a show that shows great promise in the beginning,but in the end,not (fully) living it's potential.
The opening in the first episode gave me shivers,and having not read the manga(or the prequel to it,which is the story the OP was showing) I had a feeling the show will feature all sort of crazy battles and gore,just like in the opening.
Unfortunetly,no,none of the clips we're in the show itself,as the show tells not the story of Kizumonogatari,which is the prequel to Bakemonogatari,but a completely different story.

---------------------------------------------------------------
Story:
The story revolves around Koyomi Arararagi (funny name:D) which just recovered from a vampire attack and lived to ... tell about it,and how he involves himself 5 girls,each suffering from a certain problem involving supernatural powers and involvement of a deity.
Sounds simple on paper,but...........no,it's actually as simple as that.
The story is divided into 5 arcs,each tells the story of one of the girls.
I thought it was unique,but it just isn't that interesting or compelling,and there wasn't really flow to it as some of the stories we're good,and some we're just sort of boring.
7/10
---------------------------------------------------------------
Art:
Probably the best thing about the show,Shaft did an amazing job.
Not just because of how the characters or the environment are drawn,but the way the show is presented.
All of those creepy flashbacks that pop occasionally,the way some colors are emphasized,the unique close ups are amazingly drawn and of course the opening in the first episode is simply mind blowing.
Also,even though there's not really a lot of battles here,they are drawn amazingly, almost Gainex like.
Can't say it's flawless as sometimes I found a couple of flawed drawing here and there but that's really minor.
10/10
---------------------------------------------------------------
Sound:
The music is cutsie and set the mood for what's happening on screen,though there isn't a lot of it.
The music for the OP suffers the same thing as the story,for every OP is different depending on the arc,and some of them are catchy and cool,while some aren't all that interesting.
The ending,which unlike the OPs is almost identical,is interesting and pretty catchy,though it's not really legendary.
The voice actors do a great job presenting the characters,and most of them are funny,interesting and really great(especially all of Arararagi's monologues,which are usually pretty funny),while others barely talk.
8/10
---------------------------------------------------------------
Characters:
When I say the opening in the first episode,there we're 2 or maybe more characters that weren't mentioned almost at all and haven't been given a proper introduction,which was pretty annoying in my opinion.
However,at least what saves it are the great cast of characters that WE'RE presented normally,Arararagi can be funny as hell sometimes and his monologues and comments are almost as funny as Kyo......no,I'll try not to compare him to other characters. Senjougahara which is the main female role in the show is weird yet a very interesting character,while at first glance she might appear as the everyday Tsundere,which we saw TOO much already,but she's more open with her feelings,even tough she still shows them in a pretty awkwardstrange ways.
While aside from them,the rest of the characters are again somewhat unbalanced,as most of them are introduced once,and when their arc is over,they are pretty much aren't heard of again.
Well,aside from Oshino Meme, a groovy hippy which lives in an abandoned building and helps Arararagi as he strives for greatness...and he's also the one who saved him from becoming a blood sucking maniac.He gets more air time than other side characters and it's really pity not a lot is told about him as he's pretty awesome.
8/10
---------------------------------------------------------------

Closing comments: Bakemonogatari,for me,is somewhat of a dissapointment, as the parts that were shown in the beginning of the series had me drawn in,but in the end,haven't been shown in the series at all and just barely mentioned.
But over all,the show is not bad,far from it,it's unique art style,great characters,and good sound direction,is more than enough to make you forget about the unbalanced story and a few minor direction flaws.
[Also,the series isn't really over yet,as it's still on an unknown hiatus and I still haven't seen the last two episodes,so who knows....]

Overall Score:
8/10

After I finished watching the episode,I could think of only one thing......"Holy S***,was that really aired on TV?"
It's not every day we see a serious anime like this,with all of the popular harem,boing,pantsu, etc. genres so common in the industry ,I personally,simply love series that stand out as much as this one does.
-Story:
So far it's quite unique,if you've loved movies like "Shawshank Redemption",or more accurately,"Sleepers",you'll feel like home.
In short: 6 teenagers are sent to juvenile prison for various crimes,mostly done by accident.In their cell they meet a guy their age,at first,thing are a bit tense between them,but later they learn to respect their new cellmate.
-Art:
The ... background through the entire episode is dark,heavy,and depressing,probably to emphasize the aftermath of the war.
The characters are drawn beautifully,each one with his own unique look.
-Sound:
There's a lot of famous actors here,including the legendary Romi Paku(Edward Elric,Captain Hitsugaya...) and Rikiya Koyama(mostly famous for Mamoru Takamura from Hajime no Ippo...and quite literally,it's fits the character he voices PERFECTLY).
But the main win for the audio design,is the OP,which is one of the best I seen so far.
To sum it all up,the first episode promises a lot,and I hope the series will remain on this positive momentum 'till the end.