Synopsis - Rintaro Okabe (refers himself as Hououin Kyoma) is a mad scientest hell-bent on proving that time travel exists. He later meets Mikase Kurisu, who debunks his theory in class, and embarrasses him. He finds her dead body and texts his friend (Daru) on what he had found. Now here's the twist: He and Daru meets Kurisu, and Daru says that he got Rintaro's text one week ago. Oh, and an organization named SERN is after him, too.
Review - While looking up the Spring season with a buddy of mine, she mentioned this show. I took a gander and thought, "
Hey, what can I lose? The art looks fantastic.". Then, while
another friend was looking for Spring anime, I mentioned this show (without seeing it first). You know, the
I have heard it was awesome line. So, I checked it out, and...
...I liked it.
I really liked it.
The story is very interesting, and in many ways unique. The story of time travel always intrigues me, but when you add a
microwave that doubles as a teleporter, how can you
not be interested? There's also the very strange stuff that happen to our mad scientist, like him skipping time, and while returning, seeing a spaceship crashed on a building. Or when, as stated, he finds Kurisu's dead body and sees her later on? And what about the
gel bananas!!~??
Oh...sorry.
But like I said, the show definitely reminds me of
Half-Life and
Beaker's World, and that by itself is worth noting.
Speaking of Beaker, Okarin (as he's called, but he'd recommend you wouldn't) is a unique character in it of himself. He has a pen name for himself that he demands everyone call him, he owns a special lab that holds three members (Daru, Mayuri, and himself), and he comes up with fantastic scientific claims. His cockiness is what attracts me to him. He truly believes that his wacky experiments will work, from the toy gun that doubles as a remote control, to the microwave that runs backwards and turns bananas into jelly. He truly shows the confidence that is needed to be a successful man of science.
His assistants are just as special as he is. Mayuri is a really simple person, and until a few episodes in, is the only female member of the laboratory. She normally brings food to the other members, while they're working for the benefit of science (~!). Her attitude in life is total change of pace from the dark atmosphere the show's in.
Daru himself, is actually kind of cool, too. I used to forget he existed, but after the murder incident, he is starting to show his character. The skeptic of the bunch, he's normally the first to question Rintaro's motives, and make him look like a fool in the process. He also epitomizes the term
basement nerd, as he is normally found in the back of a maid cafe, hacking a computer, and spouting "FAIL" at people. He's also a bit of a pervert, asking people to repeat what they say if it sounds kind of dirty (
Can you please repeat "who wants to eat a pervert's banana"? And if you don't mind, do it with a mad expression in your face).
There seems to be some sort of camaraderie between the guys, as Rintaro always looks to him for help when something goes screwy.
 |
| Rintaro and Daru |
Since I already spoiled what happened with Kurisu, I'll describe her. She's from America (US, I'd assume), and is more of a skeptic than Daru. She debunked some of Rintaro's theories, which led to Rintaro hating her guts. As a matter of fact, some of my favorite parts in the series normally involve Rintaro and Kurisu.
 |
| Don't call her Christina. |
On the audio side of things, I like it. The opening is catchy as hell. The audio increases some of the tension, and lightens up the mood when needed. The Japanese voice acting was noticeably great. I adore Rintaro's voice, especially when he's toying with someone's feelings (episode 3). Mayuki and Daru's voices fit their characters quite well. Mayuki definitely sounds like someone who isn't there, lol.
The art got me into the show anyway, but when I watched it, it continues to amaze me. I like the artist's style especially when drawing Kurisu and Mayuki's facial expressions. Kurisu looks eternally grumpy, and it looks kinda funny, but in a great way. Not to say the males don't look bad. For example, Rintaro makes for a cool-looking a scientist. One thing that kinda stuck to me was the tone of the show. Now, it may be because I have only watched the first 3 episodes, but this show isn't exactly Darkside Blues. Thankfully, the show does indeed have conspiracies and shocks here and there, but at first, while visually enticing, I was kinda confused.
So, after three episodes, what do I think of this show? It's definitely one of the best shows that have come out this Spring. Its unique story and characters, as well as the situation involving time travel, should be able to hold you throughout the twelve or thirteen episodes it has (I believe). There are even internet jokes dispersed here and there. So, if you hate Bill Nye, you'll probably hate this series, but if you like series involving someone trying to innovate science, medicine and technology (Trapeze), people trying to find answers on what already exists (Mythbusters or Braniac), or just stories of murder and intrigue (Monster, Death Note), then this is going to entice you.
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Story - 8.25
Characters - 8
Content - 8
Animation - 9.25
Music - 6.5
Voice Acting - 8
Overall - 8.5
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10:17 PM
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