Monster - Reviews

Starting out by saying that I only try and do positive reviews, I believe I can continue having the reader of this bare in mind that I will try to stay on the more positive side of things rather than the negative.  However, that doesn't mean I'll turn a blind eye to the aspects that need improvement.  Without furthur a-do, let us begin.

Where to start with this one?  First off, if you're looking for something joyful you'll be leaving right about now.  This anime isn't about happy endings or sweetness.  This anime is about murder and revenge with an end that will leave you questioning your own morality.  But the mark of a great show or book doesn't have to mean that it leaves the viewers with a happy ending, right?  The real world isn't always going to give you a happy ending.  That might even be the very point of this anime: reality isn't always pretty.  And though I do enjoy a happy ending at times, it's nice to know that there are shows out there that turn their backs to that and try something knew.  Monster isn't afraid to say, "People are awful, but they're also amazing and beautiful."

But this anime isn't ddepressing and dark in it's entirity.  The lives the main character touches in his search for revenge leads the watcher to root for him.  The view point of the antoginst is not given a completely evil light either.  The characters were well rounded in the sense that they had flaws; some were overcome, others were not.  That's the mark of a great character. 

The art work I can not praise enough; it has to be one of my favorites.  Unlike some anime where the characters are drawn to semi-unrealistic proportions, Monster kills it with its unquie and refresing art style.  No one has the same face, the women won't be toppling down because their chest doesn't match their body, and every little detail about a person is defined but not so much that it becomes distracting.  The scenery is distinct and well-drawn, but again, not distracting.  The art work is just nice enough that the viewer isn't distracted by too much detail, but isn't so bland that it leaves the audience annoyed.

The music is nearly impossible to comprehend.  It's beautiful!  A mixture of a soothing atompshere but also making the watcher uneasy is a difficult task to take.  The ending song being one of my favorite, is a great description of the story.  "How can the right thing be so wrong?"  

However, the story did take some time to follow, I had to go back several times and rewatch episodes to catch up on what was happening.  First, it was an arc about Kenzo, but then it abruptly switches to Anna.  Though the names were acurate for the time and place the characters were in, there was too many characters introduced at once.  And when it seems like there is someone of importance, they are killed off, but are spoken about later.  This left me scratching my head and saying, "Wait...Who was that again?"  It felt scattered, so if you start to watch, keep track of where you leave off.

Overall, for being a interesting wake up call that caused the viewers to question their own morality and function in society, I give this anime a 9.5 out of 10.

Pocas veces encontramos reviews en español, espero que ésta les sirva.

Éste anime me encantó, tiene una historia muy buena, bien desarrollada y con un desenlace muy bien logrado. En particular me gustó todas la vueltas que le dieron a la historia, y que no sólo se centró en un personaje sino en varios, así mismo, cómo cada una de esas pequeñas historias se iba entrelazando a la principal; aunque dos capitulos no me quedaron sonando mucho (21 y 22), por lo demás es una gran obra de misterio. La recomiendo mucho, para aquellas personas que les encanta el anime que no tenga que ver con poderes sobrenaturales, que tengan gusto por las historias crudas, ya que luego de verla se darán cuenta que está infravalorada, que puede ser mejor que algunas de las series en encabezan el top de ésta comunidad, y que luego les será dificil encontrar otra serie que les llene el vacío de terminarla.

Monster. Is a story that brings an assorted array of emotions, wonderful twist and turns, An ever eerie thriller that never slows down until the final episode credits roll.A constant flow of new characters arrive often.Never swaying in character depth,leaving the viewer with a strong attachment to the characters through out the entire series.

Animation is clean and crisp. Only the finest from the anime house, no mansion MADHOUSE.(Chobits,Hellsing,Trigun, etc.) Sound is very welcoming and responsive for an amazing blend of traditional German Classical music. An intense opening followed with a spooky end. 

We are born into this world with a preconceived notion of choices. One leading into another. What if you had to make the biggest decision of your entire life, only to make the worst mistake of ones life. 

In this case. Don't make the mistake of passing this anime up. For anyone. Otaku to novice welcome.

PandaBeard!

It's Naoki Urasawa. I would end the review with that, but I have to write a certain amount of words praise before it could be accepted. So, here goes a praise-filled review of yet another masterpiece by Naoki Urasawa, now in animated form. With extra praise. But if you don't want to watch it, you can always read it. The only difference is the lack of voice overs and that it's in book form, so you pretty much win with either version.

Having believing that you read the synopsis and know the gist of the beginning, I'm just going to praise it: it starts slow, it moves slow, and it's brilliant for being slow. Urasawa never really rushed things and here for me, it works amazingly well. He leaves nothing out and that also goes with the fact that it's extremely faithful to the manga. And by extremely, I mean unbelievably faithful. None of that filler crap that's only seen in some anime (And not the manga version of said anime) that lasts episodes upon episodes. So instead of filler, we get sub-plots that eventually relate to the main tale that may seem independant at first, but really aren't. As the story progresses, it gets more serious and captivating and doesn't let up, even as it reaches it's conclusion.

The artwork is typical Urasawa, which is quite comforting. And which means first and foremost, no chibi. It's serious business through and through. In all it's seriousness, it suits the story perfectly, even if it may not be the most pretty of the bunch. The environments are beautiful, even when they're suppose to be ugly or depressing (Depending on the area). Also should mention the EP, which plays out like a picture book. Pointless at first? May seem so, but it plays it's role later on. Still looks pretty good.

Dubbed or subbed, you win, simple as that. The casting is excellent, especially Johan. But Johan is perfect, so that is to be expected. The OP is beautiful, all instrumental except for some chanting, which only makes it more... grand. The first EP is both beautiful and haunting and better than the second. Don't know what to make of it, but it's alright.

As great as the story is, it wouldn't be as good without characters of the same calibur. Fortunately, you got lucky. This cast is absolutely brilliant, even the minor characters. Every character has his or her place, does their role perfectly and it feels good. Another bit about Johan, as he's one of the best antagonists ever. Cold, calculating, brilliant, and those eyes... and not to forget Tenma, who is brilliant in what he does and yet is kind, caring and not egotistic with his uber medical skills. Minor characters play greater roles than minor characters should have, and are fleshed out more than they should be, which is quite amazing.

Brilliance. Sheer brilliance and any other adjective for that I used repeatedly in this review. Come for the story and characters, stay for the story and characters. It's as good as the sublime manga, it's as good as his other works, it's as good as the best of the best. Still one of my favorites out there.

The scoring is heavily based on story/characters, which are the driving force of both versions of Monster.

This anime is indescribely the one the absoulute best animes I have ever watched in my entirelife the ending was completely unpredictable and the main characters are a amazing.It will have on your toes in anticapation or at the next mintute crying or even in complete shock & disblief as to whatever just happened i never really wirte reviews and its been at least a month and a half since I've watched it but its truly amazing and worth watching from beeginning to end.1000/10 :)