What is it: After moving to Tokyo to get away from his village, Kyohei realizes that he can never really escape his past or his connections to his village. After an eventful night, Kyohei stumbles upon a body and later finds out it is his old friend is the culprit. To make matters worse, Kyohei's younger sister, Utao, shows up with her kakashi (a wooden controlled god) to help settle things. Based on the manga by Hajime Yamamura, an anime was adapted by Brain's Base and produced 13 episodes.
Why it's special: Despite having a somewhat bland art style, Kamisama Dolls does impress with it's story. What seems like a generic story with a generic art style builds and builds until waiting for more episodes is just unbearable.
Plus One:
The plot: As mentioned earlier, the plot just seems to be sort of generic but turns it's head upside down a few episodes in. Wading through the first few episodes revealed a very promising show that had many tricks up its sleeve.
The battles: Even though one could classify this show as a battle show, it really isn't about them. Yet despite this the battles are indeed epic. The battles never feel too forced even if they happen abruptly. Also some of the battles actually provide comic relief which is great to see that it doesn't take the battles too seriously.
The history: For the middle part of the series, Kamisama Dolls decides to deal with many of the character's backgrounds and why they are the way they are. Many shows tend to either slow down or make it feel unnecessary but Kamisama Dolls does it very well. Not only are characters explained but viewers can actually grow to like some of earlier villains.
Black and white: Generally battle shows portray a hero and a villain. By explaining most of the characters, Kamisama Dolls is able to show that everyone has their own motives and reasons for the path they have chosen.
The OP: I have to mention that the opening to Kamisama Dolls has to be my favorite for the season. For some reason the samba-style music really moved me along with the city dueling the countryside opening.
Minus One:
The art: When first watching Kamisama Dolls, I wondered if I would stick with it due to the plain art style. I am quite the stickler for art and if I don't like it, I won't pay much attention to it. For some reason, Kamisama Dolls is rather plain and nothing every really stands out.
The filler: While Kamisama is generally well paced, for about two episodes near the end it takes a turn and puts in what feels like a filler. Nothing is really gained from those two episodes and would have been better served had they chosen to do something else. There was not even any sort of fanservice in the fillers.
All for One:
Overall, Kamisama Dolls was a big surprise for me. I did not expect to be sucked into this show as much as I was. Despite some minor hiccups, Kamisama Dolls is a very good series that only got better as the series progressed. Kamisama Dolls is a series that could be interesting for most anime fans given the time, despite having a slow start.
Post Script:
Normally I would have been disappointed with how the show ended but at the end of episode 13 a preview for the next season was show. Honestly, where they ended was actually brilliant on their part because I cannot wait to see what is going to happen because episode 13 ends with everything falling apart. Also crazy Kyohei has me very excited.
No comments:
Post a Comment