Another Anime Review: Is it enough to give you goosebumps?

I used to get impatient for the release of Another Anime episode. This anime had me waiting eagerly for the new episodes, and I’d always wished that the weekend would end sooner.

 Yukito Ayatsuji has written a very interesting out of the world Japanese horror novel, namely “Another Anime,” published on October 29, 2009, by Kadokawa Shoten. Hiro Kiyohara published a manga adaption based on the same novel, which was serialized between May 2010 and January 2012 in Kadokawa Shoten’s Young Ace issues.

Both the novel and the manga of Another Anime have been licensed in North America by Yen Press. Soon after the release of the novels, one-cour anime TV series was produced by P.A.Works, which aired in Japan between January 10 and March 27, 2012. A live-action film of the same name was released in Japanese theatres on August 4, 2012.

The Plot of Another Anime

Even though happy faces will exist, but there’s nothing but darkness behind them. The story takes off when a Yomi North student in class 3 dies in the middle of the school year. Misaki, a dead student, was popular amongst the teachers and the students. All liked him. It was a shock for everyone when he had an unnatural death. And yet, everyone acted like he was still alive even till the end of the school year.

26 years later, Kouichi Sakakibara, a young boy, transfers to Yomi North’s class 3, where he comes across a “Weird girl,” Misaki Mei, whom everyone ignores. After the talks and becomes close to Misaki, strange deaths occur among the relatives and the students themselves in class 3. It is now up to Kouichi and Mei to unravel the mystery behind the deaths before they eventually get killed.

Where to Watch?

• Netflix
• Crunchyroll
• Cartooncrazy
• Anime Kid Tv

Review of Another Anime

Another Anime is an amazing series. Now some viewers will ask the most common question, which “what’s even so special about Another Anime?”. My answer to the question is that the Another Anime series is short and crisp, with an exciting clever plot having a brilliant resolution. The animation of Another Anime is outstanding when it comes to all the blood-splattered scenes. People who are weak-hearted shouldn’t watch this anime alone, but I’d still like to recommend this anime to everyone. I can guarantee you that it’ll be worth your time.

Try watching a review video for a better understanding.

Storyline

Tantalus (using some greek mythological reference as an example) was a man who was exiled by the gods to the underworld for eternity; he was immersed in a pool of water and was not allowed to drink it, and then he would be placed underneath a tree laden with fruit which he could not reach.

Similarly, even Another Anime is not too swift or leaps. Still, this storyline will make you feel tantalizingly close to the answer, but then a sudden twist will result in new character development, and you have to start all over again. This series is very much unpredictable as far as the story goes, but the good thing about it is that it didn’t get complicated at the end, which is quite an achievement.

I’ve read and watched many mystery and fiction stories, and most of the time, the storyline gets ruined by an overloaded storyline and a huge ensemble of characters. But Another Anime series storyline is well written and stitched together in a fabric called “darkness” with a pre-planned storyline involving a relatively small number of characters, which proves surprisingly entertaining as a twelve-episode series. Nura Rise of the yokai clan is also another supernatural/horror anime with a good storyline. You can try watching it too, but read the reviews before you dwell in.

The writer also managed to throw in new interesting variations now and then. The little hints and strands dropped by the author in Another Anime were on point, bringing us to the last episode and wrapping up all things together with a well-maintained pace.

I think the final twist in Another Anime was absolutely unpredictable and one of the best parts. It was also the most emotional part of the Series. I don’t think there’s anything else to mention about the series. You must try this if you’re into supernatural/horror/mystery.

Art

The art of Another Anime is outstanding. Not all the series can manage horror/supernatural art well, but Another maintained its level throughout the series. The characters aren’t much unique except for the girl, but the backgrounds were well defined; they are just a bliss to watch. The art signifies death, lots and lots of death, with some dismemberment and gloomy atmosphere thrown in. even Bungou Stray dogs put in a lot of effort in background detail.

In most of the scenes in Another Anime, there’s a sense of decay, everything looks quite rusty, the buildings look dark and deserted, and there’s also been the use of deep, dark reds wherever possible. Even If the characters are outdoors, there are crows perched on the roofs, looking hungry.

The indoors remind me of hospitals, as the lights are dim and flickering occasionally. The use of dolls, often missing limbs, was not scary but well designed and appears to have more significance to the I’ll sum everything up in terms of art and say that the art successfully set up a dark atmosphere for the anime. 

Sound

Next is sound. Sound in many anime plays a key role in the aforementioned atmosphere. From the beginning of the series, music creates a sense of eeriness; from simple melodies to electronic effects and string, it’s difficult to describe or explain. I would like you to imagine a full orchestra having a psychedelic freakout with a selection of electronic hums and whines that’ll give you goosebumps, and then multiply that into ten.

Unlike lighter series, the music is never-ending; it doesn’t have constant music but actually drops right down to a few notes on a piano and gives you the sense that something’s always just about to happen. The OP song can be a little weird for viewers who just started watching anime because the unsettling vocal melodies create tension, stress, and suspense.

But after a few episodes, the ending theme grabs more attention as; it has strong vocals and a few chords on a piano that is more effective than the aural blitzkrieg, which we usually listen to and also brings a sense of peace and serenity to the end of the episode. Overall the soundtrack works perfectly with what’s on-screen.

Characters

Now moving on to characters, I’d say very little information was revealed about them; it was mostly vague and overshadowed by mystery. But they did it for a reason, so it’s acceptable. The characters are quite weird and unusual, and they’re all either ruthlessly blunt or ignorant evident from the way they talk. The character development is excellent, just like Seven Deadly Sins Anime.

As you can imagine, this makes the dialogue writing quite weird. Kouichi Sakakibara, a genius who came up with a character like the transfer student, also did some background work explaining why he was transferred. Mei Misaki’s character development was weird at first but subtly converted to a person dealing with a frustrating situation. If you watch the first few episodes, she might seem like a bizarre person, but her character development gets much better as the series progresses.

Izumi Akazawa, the class representative, is blunt and rude, which also makes him the perfect deceiver and manipulator behind the scenes; as it later turns out (Sorry for the spoiler), Reiko, at first glance, would look like a stereotypical ‘ridiculously youthful, kind and caring female relative,’ but later turns out to have quite a temper, and also appears to have a few dark secrets. The bottom line is: don’t judge them too soon.

Final words

If you are still reading this review, I would recommend you watch Another right now. It’ll only take a few hours of your life but trust me; it’ll be worth it. However, I’d also like to add that I try watching it at night alone to feel more involved in the anime. I don’t know what others feel about this anime series, but for me, it’s a thumbs up and one of those anime that I’d recommend to my friends who like to watch supernatural/mystery/Horror anime series.

FAQs on Another

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