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Read or Die
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Animation - 9.3 |
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Sound - 8.7 |
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Story - 7.7 |
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Character - 8.4 |
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Value - 8.4 |
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Enjoyment - 8.9 |
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Average - 8.6 |
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| Average |
7.8 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| Not much to say except I highly enjoyed this OVA. It captures much of the original spirit of the manga, from the plot to the fight scenes and the ever cool abilities of Yomiko Readman. I highly enjoyed the manga, so in turn I highly enjoyed this short story that doesn't have to make sense but is awesome to watch anyways.
Animation: 2001?? Studio Deen!? Okay, so they've had a bad rep recently, but this is some great stuff they drew. The fight scenes were always interesting and there are some cool high quality backgrounds such as the cities, the libraries, and the fortress. I was always glued to the screen to analyze the vibrant colors used and the fluidity of every movement.
Sound: The OP is this jazzy tune that fits like Tank does for Cowboy Bebop. I watched the dub, and I think its awesome. Therefore the original Japanese must have been good, too. The only complaint here is the beginning where the electric man's voice did not synch up and was too loud for his distance from the camera, but I brushed it off as a funny scene.
Story: The manga was already very crazy and liberal with its ideas. This is an original plot, and it captures the spirit very well - a secret organization bent on destroying the world through the secrets of literature. Along the way, there are cool fights with villains of various abilities and some good toppling evil and some laughable evil speeches that are always fun to watch. Unless you try to make everything realistic or want a complete explanation of everything, its an enjoyable story of its genre.
Characters: With only three episodes, not everything is fleshed out, but at least we get to see some cool stuff. Almost everyone relies on a certain degree of stereotypes - the Joker (no, not from Batman) is your typical secret service boss, Yomiko Readman the ditzy librarian, and etcetera. Development is sort of shallow (friendship, time spent together, etcetera) but does not detract from the awesome fight scenes. They did Agent Paper's abilities very well, though I wish there was MORE because the manga went all out on her abilities.
Value: Once I finish my current playlist, I want to watch Read or Dream.
Enjoyment: Read the manga, too. This franchise is fun stuff!
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| Average |
9.0 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Read or Die is a highly entertaining 3 episode OVA released in 2001. It excels in almost every area, and lead to the creation of the popular R.O.D The TV anime series.
The graphics and animation are excellent in Read or Die. The character designs are modern, the scenes are detailed, and the animation faultless. Read or Die has the same quality of animation found in some high profile anime movies, making it a pleasure to watch.
The soundtrack in Read or Die might initially seem out of place, but it is ultimately rather suitable to the OVA. However, it is not a very memorable soundtrack. The voice acting is carried out well, although some of the accents sound faked and unrealistic in the English dubber version.
Read or Die has an extremely interesting underlying storyline, which has been executed very well. Although it lacks some development due to its length, such as the introduction to the story, its fast paced nature and twist in storyline maintain the entertaining elements throughout the three episodes. There are some subtle elements of comedy, but the OVA stays mostly true to its genre as an action anime with elements of drama. With the addition of a well constructed conclusion, Read or Die clearly stands out for its storyline.
Another area Read or Die stands out at is its cast of characters. Most of the cast in Read or Die are historical figures. Although the perception of the viewer regarding these characters might differ significantly form their portrayal in the OVA, the concept is intriguing, and mostly improves the level of entertainment. The main characters in the OVA are well constructed and voiced, although as mentioned previously, some other characters sound fake and unrealistic in the English dub. High levels of character development were not possible due to the length of the OVA, but that was not sufficient to impair the highly entertaining cast in Read or Die.
Read or Die is without a doubt an OVA of the highest quality. With excellent presentation, a creative storyline, a fascinating cast, and a number of interesting twists, I would recommend this OVA to all viewers looking for an entertaining anime. For fans of the R.O.D The TV anime series, Read or Die is a definite must watch.
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| Average |
8.2 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
6 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
6 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Read or Die is an deligthful action anime that takes a new outlook to the action genre. While the action might be considered "dull" to hardcore action fans, the mixture of action and a general plot allows the anime to flow.
With cliffhangers on almost every episode including secrets, possible deaths, betrayals, and so forth, the plot proves to be a very promising anime for those who watch an anime for quality.
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Cataphract |
(2007-05-09 00:37:48) 2007-04-29 16:29:17 |
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| Average |
6.5 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
6 |
| Story |
4 |
| Character |
5 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| Because of its length of 90 minutes, you can't really expect much out of Read or Die. Think Mission Impossible (there are even music similarities) but in the anime realm. You've got an oversimplified, generally stupid plot, a decent caste of characters, and a lot of action. Not much else to it.
The animation in RoD is, thankfully, its best trait. Characters are animated very well with fluid and swift movements, making the action scenes come alive. Being that such an OVA series wagers all its success on such scenes, I was not disappointed. Though from time to time the backgrounds were somewhat hastily put together, overall the animation is top notch.
Again we have a Mission Impossible-esque opening/ending themes (which are good) and a decent soundtrack. The musical score fits each scene well, but as previous reviews have touched upon, it's not very diverse. Don't get me wrong, the tracks that are repeated are good and fit the mood, but a bit more variation would have been better in my opinion.
I'm not going to really say much on the story. Typical bad guys are trying to destroy the world and the good guys have to stop them. As usual, Americans are portrayed as trigger happy morons, which didn't really fit my taste all that much, but it's just one of many cliches. It wasn't trying to be original, but I think it tried to take itself a bit too seriously in the last episode. Had the atmosphere from the first episode carried through the course of the last two I think it would have been more successful.
For an OVA, obviously the story/character scores are low. Characters in RoD are average; Yomiko is decent at best and Nancy is pretty good. This review is based off my second watch, and for some reason I remembered Drake having more a role than he actually did; probably thinking about RoD TV. I will point out that Yomiko isn't a super-pacifist protagonist as is seen in many productions, however, she's just emotionally dumb. She was presented in a fashion that implied a lot more depth than actually was developed; for an action OVA, this doesn't do you much good. This is the only time you'll hear me say this but they should have made her character more shallow for greater effect.
All in all, RoD is a fun way to spend an hour and a half. It's almost exactly like watching an action movie. If such is your preference, definitely check it out, and even if not I'd still give it a chance. RoD isn't the greatest thing in the world but it is by far a step up from the worst; an above average production that does its job well.
Recommended.
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| Average |
8.3 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| one of the main attributes of read or die is that it is an OVA, or in other words, very short. this meaning, the main characters weren't really 'fleshed out' as much as longer series. so like the reviewer below stated, you are left with a few questions. such as, who, what, where? when? and how?
this question also applies to the main villains. one of them, for example, shoots massive amounts of electricity, practically annihilating an entire "estate" while also sucking an entire city's electricity. to avoid spoilers, i'll make it succinct: the second encounter with him around wasn't nearly as "intense".
however, due to the short length, many advantages were seen as well. for starters, the animation was superb. action was able to be appear around virtually every corner, from the beginning to end, and this made read or die very ENTERTAINING, which is probably why i think it was so enjoyable. also, the creation of the main character took a lot of imagination, and gets brownie points. totally had me convinced.
weaknesses however result in multiple holes in the anime. for instance, the story was incredibly typical. in addition, many of the other characters (BESIDES the main one) were relatively typical in personality. perhaps this may be my bias, because i like to understand and relate to complex, deep characters. however, i must admit, if you want to rate characters in terms of 'power creativity', read or die does the trick.
many of the characters, aside from their one dimensional personalities, were very creative in "power" design, and that deserves points as well. basically read or die blitzes through its storyline. imagine Futakoi Alternative's first episode, without the rest. whereas Futakoi-Alt. slows down and deals with a serious, complex slice of life issue, Read or die continues a fast paced crazy style.
long story short: read or die is a very entertaining anime worth your time, especially due to its short length. don't expect any depth in the story and side characters wutsoever. but instead, bask in the awesome fight scenes, creative superpowers, and some cool 'paper power'.
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Summoner |
(2007-05-13 06:54:12) 2007-01-01 04:57:00 |
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| Average |
5.3 |
| Animation |
5 |
| Sound |
6 |
| Story |
5 |
| Character |
5 |
| Value |
6 |
| Enjoyment |
5 |
| To my disappointment Read or Die OVA is not much better than its TV successor, but still it is. This time around characters have a lot of less time to annoy you, while Nancy has her sanity with her. OVA concentrates on action way more than the TV series and that's a very good thing. Since all dialogues and excuses for a story are usually laugh inducing in Read or Die franchise.
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| Average |
7.0 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
5 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
6 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| An enjoyable adventure about a substitute teacher who loves books, Yomiko Readman, saving the world from a bunch of famous people brought back to life with special powers, this 3-episode OVA is too short to create a developed plot and skimps out on some characterization.
The story is fairly fast-paced and interesting; you won't be bored during this anime. However, you will be left with many unanswered questions, such as: who brought these people back to life? How did they get special powers? Why were they brought back to life? We never really find out. We also find out nothing about the history of the "British Library's Division of Special Operations" or how they became so important. We also don't know how "The Paper" got her special powers either.
While the anime is enjoyable despite the lack of answers to these questions and many others, I found it frustrating not knowing the background or reasons for the actions of the characters.
The characters themselves were all very interesting, though not too well developed. The Paper was an interesting twist on the typical "care-free superhero": unlike in Trigun, Rurouni Kenshin, and a host of other anime, the care-free attitude was not merely a mask or facade; that is actually her personality. Drake was more than your typical strong-man character made only to support the main character, though we never found out much about him except that he prizes his "fortune". "Ms. Deep" seems to be as complex as her name implies, though, again, we find out little about her and there is little development.
The animation was terrific: fight scenes were fluid, powers and machines were incredibly detailed and amazing to watch. The soundtrack was decent, but the voice acting was terrific; especially the voice acting for Yomiko and Ms. Deep.
I probably will not rewatch this anime, though it has peaked my interest enough to watch the TV-series of the same name. I found the anime incredibly watchable and enjoyable all the way through. (Though from the start of the anime you the extreme bashing of the U.S., specifically the President, is offsetting. Everytime we see the President on screen he pees his pants and acts insane. Though I voted for Kerry and Gore, not Bush, it is still unsettling to see the representative of my country portrayed in such a light. I haven't said anything in my reviews of the many recent anime which bash the U.S., but this was so obvious that it made me think about it during the anime, which is why I felt compelled to write this paragraph.)
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| Average |
8.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| R.O.D. is a wonderful OVA series that rightfully has earned a place among the "must see anime" of the past decade. While it is not flawless, what anime is (besides the ones I've rated 10 <_<), and can be in just three episodes? The anime is in it's purest form a traditional action-adventure - super-powers, exotic locales, beautiful women - and it is surprising to me that something so enjoyable was able to come out of the traditional formula. It is very technically impressive, so that probably had a lot to do with how enjoyable it was.
Overall, this is just good entertainment. Solid action, REALLY nice animation, and a fun cast make this an entertaining watch. So what if the plot is a bit silly - you just buy it because all the characters are so into it. This is a really fun OVA, and while I enjoy the TV series more, I've watched this about once a year since I've got it, and I hate to watch things more than once. But this is just so easy to watch, you can't help but love it.
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| Average |
9.2 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| This anime blew me away when i first saw it. A story about books and history doesn't seem interesting at first until you meet the characters. Yomiko's paper ability along side her passion for books drew me in. Her paper skills were brand new to the anime world and as far as we know, endless. It was disappointing to not see her do some more innovative stuff but from she did do i was highly entertained. This concept had lots of potential and much is used in the story through yomiko. Her passion for books made me start readin alot more. (parents make your kids watch this anime)
The other characters in this anime were funny and deep at the same time(WINK WINK). their powers were innovative and definitely led to some new fight scenes that i had never seen before. the history angle of it as well added some real life ties and made me pick up some books.
in the end check it out.
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|
elle |
(2006-09-28 09:59:09) 2006-09-28 07:54:14 |
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| Average |
10.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| This appears to have no connection to the ROD tv series except for Yumiko Readman. Some of her features from ROD tv and the manga have changed aswell(e.g being able to manipulate any paper; not just magic paper). None the less it's rather original.
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| Average |
8.0 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Read or Die is ridiculously cool. It's nothing deep but it's still one hell of a fun and entertaining anime.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
8.8 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| This is more like a Hollywood action anime. It has a vividly different story than the one in comic. Completely different. I would say the one in anime is way better than one in the comic.
The action of this anime is superb. Not much anime has such good actions. However I would not say this is the best action anime. I would say Cowboy Bebop is still the best.
The worse thing is the character. The depth of character is not good. But given this is only a OVA. I look forward to watch the TV series.
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| Average |
7.3 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
6 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| This is a fun OVA to watch and maybe even watch again. While neither the animation nor the sound are stunning, both succeed in making the anime fun to watch without getting in the way. Since this is a short OVA, there isn't a very in depth story, but even so, the story is surprisingly entertaining. Don't expect an Evangelion style plot, but be prepared to be entertained nonetheless. As with the story, characters don't have much time to be developed so they are mostly static. However, they are fun to watch and each have individual personalities. Yomiko (aka the Paper) is particularly enjoyable because she has determination and power, and yet is still a total klutz.
Overall, I found that this OVA is one of the better ones that I have seen. It is original, unique and most importantly, fun to watch.
7 = Average
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.8 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| read or die kicks a@@ it is a awesome show that has stunning visuals and such a originol cast of characters.
animation- the animation for this series is beyond great its perfect it just doesnt fail its flawless and just looks so well done and very detailed.; the female characters look very nice and sexy especially yomiko and nancy. the fight scenes are also well drawn.
sound- hmmmm this was he hardest part of this review the music is a very upbeat type jazz song similar to cowboy bebops.the sound effects are good you can here the paper cuts bullets and explosions very well.
story-strictly originol no cliches. the plot is about a women named yomiko whos is obsessed with books and reading but she is a secrert agent who can control paper and are now hunting down a book that was stolen along with her team nancy a phaser and drake the army guy.for only three episodes this anime came together great .
characters- yomiko is such a great lead chharacter she has a unique ability to control paper and turn it into swords paper airplanes or whatever she wants. nancy is a very sexy femfatal who can phase and is great with fire arms.
enjoyment- this is a great series it never drags its fast paced action from the begining to end and has great character development for a 3 episode series all in alll this is a awesome anime.
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| Average |
9.5 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| This is one of the most visually and imaginatively creative shows i've seen and after a few minutes i was hooked by everything in it.
I instantly fell in love with the charming Yomiko Readman and her clumsy and adorable personality, as well as her mesmerzing power: paper manipulation.
You see, Yomiko Readman is part of the British Royal Library, which protects the books and knowledge of the world, and is codenamed "The Paper" for her abilities; she can do anything with paper, you name it she can do it, so she is one of their most valued agents. She's also a substitue kindergarden teacher.
In this OVA where also introduced to Joker and Mr. Gentleman, omiko's bosses, Agent Drake, and Miss Deep, who has the power to phase through objects, who also help in the mission.
The story involves a book, revided wise men from Yore, and world domination, and it's actually good, though the action and characters overpower it at first glance.
If you watch ROD TV the OVA's story grabs a lot more of signifance and things will be explained a lot better; both OVA and TV are very related, though not completely neccesary for each other.
The animation and music are both top notch.
Overall i recommend this to anyone as standalone since the action and characters are amazing, and if you want to watch the TV be sure to watch this as it will ehance both experiences tenfold.
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Kugli |
2006-06-03 12:10:26 |
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| Average |
9.5 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Read or Die isn't much of an anime series--especially considering it is only three episodes long at about thirty minutes each. It's probably more of a movie of sorts with the way it was made, with every episode following up on the last. And as far as I was concerned, I definitely wouldn't mind paying that 7.50 these days to watch this instead of some of the BS that hollywood is putting out these days.
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Ed |
(2006-08-22 18:59:30) 2006-04-23 16:44:13 |
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| Average |
8.2 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| The equation for density is mass over volume, or generally translated to substance over number of episodes. If this equation were to be applied to Read or Die, we'd have about the densest anime ever.
Read or Die doesn't spend much time to explain the motives of the antagonists or elaborate on the plot, but the characterization accomplished in 3 episodes is fascinating.
The animation was smooth and convincing. The beauty of the last episode was 30 minutes of heaven - the suspense that every movement contributed was a divine momentum. Lovely stuff.
The sound was also a strong point - Readman's voice acting was perfect, and everyone else's was decent enough to support the characters. The songs were only OK, but I'm still in love with the voice acting.
The story is where Read or Die starts to get a bit iffy, but it's probably because I haven't seen the main TV series. The story as it was given by the OVA was OK at best because the purposes of every character were ambiguous, but for the temper of each episode gave some kind of undulating life to the anime to partially relieve the missing background story.
I was surprised by the amount of characterization that the anime had in just 3 episodes. This is because every little thing counted - every word that the characters uttered, every small movement that the characters made, every note in the music accompanying the scnces all contributed to the characterization. It's almost like anime poetry. Again, however, the lack of characterization of the antagonists cripples the anime to a certain extent.
Read or Die is a great 3 episode treat for anyone. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and being that the anime is only 3 episodes, rewatches aren't as hard to do. The fansubs were sufficient, and the overall worth of the anime is excellent - it's more of an example and a guide to other animes on how to fit as much action into 3 episodes as possible.
Density, my friend, density.
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Tatsurou |
(2006-04-17 14:16:00) 2006-04-17 14:13:03 |
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| Average |
8.7 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Read or Die OVA is 90 mins of fun and entertainment. It's rare for an anime to pack much of a storyline in just 3 episodes, not to say squeezing in alot of action and other stuff in it too which many anime with more episodes fail to do. RoD however didn't felt short at all. Of course, there are still questions as to all the mystical things that happen in it, but somehow I just don't felt like asking. Just open your mind and you'll get to enjoy this short and sweet anime.
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|
| Average |
7.0 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
6 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
6 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| Read or Die is pretty amazing in terms of what it is able to accomplish in just three episodes. It manages to incorporate some interesting action scenes that are definitely very original in both style and choreography. After all, where else would you find people whose special abilities include manipulation of paper or the ability to make one penetrable at will. Furthermore, although not as cool, each villain also has their own interesting technological weapons. As a result, a whole bunch of interesting fights can be enjoyed in this series.
An interesting combination of the ridiculous and the serious. Yomiko/The Paper is a very ridiculous character. Her actions and manner are very clumsy, but the things she does as an agent is quite serious and violent. The whole atmosphere of this anime managed to make all the violence and tragedy quite toned down, the level of blood was also minimal.
The story elements are quite serious as it involves this grand master plan of killing everyone in the world, but the actual villains themselves are pretty mild. You don't really sense some deep dark hatred or violent intent in the villains. they're pretty comical or amusing in general.
As a whole, this anime is mildly entertaining but I don't feel a sense of completion after watching it. Added together, the 3 episodes make up the length of a typical hollywood movie however the pacing is that of the typical one episode one villain. As a result, the way they touch upon everything as a whole is very shallow. The Paper is an interesting character with very fun powers that i'd definitely like to see more of, but as a whole this short OVA series is not that great.
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| Average |
8.3 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| An unexpected piece of greatness. I delayed watching this due to the description, but once I started, I got sucked in. The idea might be weird, but it gives the show an extra punch.
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