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Spoilaphobic
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: USA
Age: 37
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Quote:
Originally Posted by roriconfan
Spoiler for Space Saver:
MY REVIEW
PROLOGUE
So I have this guy asking me why I gave a good series (his opinion) like RFTF an average mark of 5. And just about when I was going to explain … I froze. Why did I give it a 5 anyway? And what was the story about again? And why don’t I remember anything about a series with such a high average? Hm, might as well give it a second view and find out.
Turns out my memory was whipped just like Zwei’s this anime boasts being a lot more than it really is. And sure, it has many fans and such but then again when was that a proof of anything? Naruto is a piece of tard and has a billions fans while poor old Legend of Galactic Heroes is thrown aside by most because there aren’t half naked chicks with neon swords blowing up huge 3 million polygon mecha in it.
And what did the above rant have to do with the review? Nothing; it’s just nerdrage; moving along to the actual review.
STORY SECTION
The story is somewhat generic. Or it is for someone like me who has already watched live action movies like Nikita or Leon , and anime series like Gunslinger Girls, Gungrave or Darker Than Black. It’s about
I don’t remember
A criminal organization which plans to rule the world
A criminal organization which plans to unite the underworld
Chicks with guns
Chick with gun, plus a token dude
A pair of angsty assassins
Ein showing bare skin while pondering about the meaning of life while shooting stuff
What was I writing about again?
A pair of teens brainwashed and trained to be assassins for a mafia family which plans to be the top criminal organization with the most diplomatic way possible -> killing anyone who disagrees.
But the whole power struggle fuss is left on a secondary level; primarily it’s about the lead duo, Ein and Zwei, shooting stuff and throwing around existentialism dialogues around the value of life and free choice. So here we are with a rather ok background story and a somewhat promising foreground plot around two slave killers. Sounds ok and in theory it should work …
And it didn’t.
The actual story is fine as it is. Mafia families fight to the death, Zwei has morality issues and is eventually hunted by his own masters, there is a lot of shooting around, a lot of ambitious crime bosses betraying one another, some subtle romance, some subtle erotism, and a final showdown in the end. What could go wrong?
Well … the pacing. I have left behind my days where I could wait 5 episodes for a planet to blow up in just 5 minutes. Most people don’t seem to care if it takes 10 episodes to get a beer from the fridge but I do. The pacing is as slow as a crippled snail. I have seen worse but it is still on the slow territory. Supposed this would be counter-balanced by extreme amounts of atmosphere build-up, character immersion and philosophical dialogues.
But no; it’s still slow in a dull way. I never found any appeal in spaced out expressionless characters looking at the ceiling and questioning the meaning of their existence. Or at least not without something eye-catchy to back it up. I mean, amongst my favorite shows are anime like Tatami Galaxy, Ultimate Survivor Kaiji and Neon Genesis. Sure, those also had a ton of talking about deep stuff. But they also had psychedelic imagery and heart pumping action. RFTF does not.
It sounds weird saying that about a series where in each episode a dozen people get shot and stuff blow up. Sure, there is action. And sure, the backgrounds are very well made and occasionally throw around phycho imagery. But it’s not done in a masterpiece level. Just a well done one. Take the action parts for example. To the most part there is no real excitement in them. 99% of the opponents Ein and Zwei face are stupid, slow and can’t shoot straight, resulting to overkill battles that usually last only 5 to 10 minutes at best. Heck, the duo can do air flips, walk calmly towards its target or smoke a cigar for a few minutes and the enemies still are unable to react in time. Not to mention the usual trope where sworn enemies just talk to each other for half an hour when all it takes is to press the trigger. If you have watched the previous works of the same director (Madlax, Noir, El Cazador de la Bruja) you know what I mean. Never liked it then; still don’t like it now.
Anyways, the pacing is so slow I ended up losing all interest (and memory) of most of the show the first time. And during the second go, it felt equally dull, only this time I had to pay some attention in order to write this review. I don’t need to explain anything further; even most of the fans of the series will admit that the first arc is too simple, the second too slow and the third too anti-climactic. That alone is enough for me to give story the base score. It has a beginning, a middle and an ending. But it lacks proper pacing and climax. It could easily be done in half the episodes and with a lot more excitement in terms of action or suspense.
CHARACTER SECTION
Enough with the story; now a bit of rage at the cast. First of all they really are an interesting bunch as far as sympathy or interest from the viewer goes. They all have their goals, demeanors, and development. The negative part is that most of the focus is given on the main duo. They are really given a deep immersion, understanding and development. All the rest, with the exception of Scythe Master, are pretty much left with their initial demeanor; making them rather stiff and hard to like. Especially when most of what they do is talking fancy for half an hour, and then sending in the Phantoms to do all the dirty work. It gets tiresome pretty fast if you combine it with the slow pacing and the fact that all they do is talking. If they are to be killed, most don’t even put up a fight. Well, talk about all words and no balls.
By the end of the show, I only cared for the aforementioned three, and not because they felt any special or likable. They were simply given all the damn focus to the point where the show could work with these three alone. The cast isn’t bad; just hard to empathize or remember in the long-run. I give it a 7 for being good but killed at the excitement department.
ANIMATION & SOUND SECTION
At least the external looks of the anime are marvelous and you will not be disappointed in this department. The amount of details and colors given to the artwork are marvelous, almost completely realistic and fitting to the grim setting of the criminal underworld. Crime bosses live in ridiculously high luxury and have an army of thugs, casinos, yachts, saunas, bitches, etc. And how nice, most mooks are not identical Men-In-Black like in previous similar anime. And that champagne looks so well drawn, I actually got thirsty looking at it. Acton scenes … well, they are fine I guess but do lack overall realism; the baddies are dumb arses as usual. But heck, there are basic strategies and field tactics used and not ridiculous “one kills a thousand in open field with a water pistol” or something like in Black Lagoon. And then it’s the overall soundtrack which is just an amazing work overall. I have listened to the first opening (Karma) at least a hundred times. The battle theme used in most action parts is also great but it may get tiresome. In fact, I found little variety in tunes but heck, I didn’t mind it as much as the pacing. But more BMG would definitely help go through it more easily. Just look what wonders the different and more variable BMG did in the English dub of the first DBZ. I give both a 9. It would be 10 if most characters would do more and talk less, and if the BMG had a few more tracks in it.
VALUE & ENJOYMENT SECTION
Replay value is so-so because of the pacing issues. Historical value is high; it’s by far the best of all the series the director made. In fact, it probably comes only second to Black Lagoon in terms of shoot outs and it’s still far more than just brainless slug fest. Memorability … well … I did forgot it almost immediately the first time, lol. This has to do with only me of course. I have watched a heck of a lot and this series has indeed overall very little to remember for. It had many tropes I don’t like, such as amnesia, time skips, too many recaps. And the erotism part, ok, it almost felt unneeded in such a setting; just extra fan service. The story is not that special, it is slow as heck, the characters are undermined because of that, the action is not great, and the talking is overdone. I give it the base score.
SUGGESTION LIST
Live action movies: Nikita, Leon
Anime series with assassins: Gunslinger Girls, Gungrave, Darker Than Black.
Anime series with chicks and guns: Madlax, Noir, El Cazador de la Bruja, Black Lagoon.
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Hmmm.... no mention of Cal!? 
I do see what you're coming from but I think the pace picked up a lot after the first arc. I remember not being able to wait for the next episode. I also remember the BGM in the beginning sucking a lot (they even used music from the Matrix).
And the sexual content...this is based on an eroge after all.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zwei
DAAAMMNNN!
Time sure flies by fast....it's been a year since this anime finished its run, and I still don't know what to think about the ending. 
I need to find time and re-watch this series again (even though I rewatched it a couple of months ago), but it still remains one of my top favorite anime, and I must at least watch my favorite anime 3-4 times (I haven't watched any anime in 3 months...need to catch up with other stuff).  |
I might be able to watch it again. I think my heart can take it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kanon
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Does that mean it'll be sold outside of Japan like that? It'd be funny if it wasn't, lol.
And my obligatory... CAAAAAALL!! 
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