good review. I really liked Kara no Kyoukai. The ending was good and the story too. The only thing that I thought
unrealistic was that Kokutou was "immortal" and he never reached a high level at magic that could make that
consistent.
sry for my english.
Probably the most awesome female expression in anime.
Touko and Azaka.
Araya Souren, a magus.
A happy ending.
Kara no Kyokai tv Review
Story & Characters
Kara no Kyoukai (literally translated as "Boundary of Emptiness" or also known as "The Garden of Sinners") is a series of light novel published in 1998, making it the very first franchise of Type-Moon. Thus, it features many elements related to Type-Moon's later works with the protagonist, Ryougi Shiki, possesses a similar power like Tsukihime's protagonist, Tohno Shiki, etc. For a series under Type-Moon, it was once regarded as the least famous and it was not until nearly a decade later it's made an anime movie series.
At the very beginning, Kara no Kyoukai starts with a lot of mysteries, the viewers don't have the slightest clue of what the heck is going on. What's more, the first four chapters don't follow in chronological order, making it's harder to fully understand. However, the quality of the story, once you finish (and of course, understand), is one hell of a ride.
Since it's confusing, I will summarize the synopsis a little: under a snowy night, Kokutou Mikiya meets a young girl wearing kimono. That girl's name is Ryougi Shiki, the daughter of a powerful demon-slaying family and later becomes Mikiya's classmate. The Ryougi family was known for raising children with two personalities, a male personality called the "yang," while the female is called "yin." As Mikiya attempts to get closer to Shiki, he discovers she is connected to a series of bizarre murders have been terrorized their town. Suspicious of Shiki's involvement, Mikiya begins observing her, however, during the ordeal, Shiki gets caught in a traffic accident and is put in a case of coma. Two years later, Shiki suddenly wakes up only to discover that her male personality is dead and she has gained a new ability. In order to recollect her memories, she aids the Garan no Dou agency in handling paranormal cases while facing new foes from both past and present.
As with most movies of this class, the characters are developed strong enough to captivate the audiences' interest. Starting with Shiki, originally an unsociable, rather cold, her interact with others has made her empathetic, sarcastic, life-respecting, yet still a feisty woman who manages to enjoy battles throughly and exposes her femininity. What a highly likable lead, from the moment she waves her jacket to when she bites off her thumb, you know she means business, and she's incredibly beautiful too. It wouldn't be surprising in such a short time, she could do quite the fans. Hah! Who wouldn't love a smexy and strong-determined asskicker.
The rest of the cast wasn't too bad, even the supporters can leave a strong impression. Touko, a magus with a good
sense of humor who spices up when fighting; a young, fun-loving tsundere imouto embodies a cute vivaciousness; a
blood-thirsty mass murderer obsesses with the heroine while tries his best to maintain humanity in front of his best
kouhai. Solely on the basis of their roles everyone did a good job and certainly don't disappoint.
Rating:
Art
If I've ever ignored ufotable because of their anonymity in terms of visual then feel free to call me paranoid, Kara no Kyoukai - the quality is absolute amazing. Example, it captures every single architectural detail within its urban landscape, lighting in magnificent battles, gory effects with flying body parts, bloody kills and highly creative supernatural elements. These are, without a doubt, one of the best to date. The spectacularly blazing action scenes, exceptional character designs, and richly animations make Kara no Kyoukai live up to its name of a supernatural, horror series.
Take a look at the designs of the characters, it should come as no surprise that this title takes a perfect score. After all, they are done by Takeuchi Takashi. There is, literally, something makes me feel slightly different from his previous work and I'm quite familiar with his arts; I can't put my words into, but Kara no Kyoukai's character designs are a bit more differ than the rest. Overall, this part is great, judging on the characters' expressions alone could make it outstanding: Shiki with a haunty cold stare can give you the idea "don’t mess with me;" Fujino's innocent facade covers her joy in murderousness; Touko, normally a joyful woman, yet she puts on such a merciless face when killing her foes.
As I have stated before, Kara no Kyoukai is used as a basis for Type-Moon's later works. I hate it when people complain that Mikiya is a rip-off of Tohno Shiki, while in fact, he was a model for Tohno as well as Azaka, Tomoe and so on. I'm satisfied now that they changed Touko's illustration, hair color to reflect her relationship to Aozaki Aoko, and the antagonist Souren Araya sure does represent Type-Moon's common "big bad boy" and I like the idea of his eyes are barely shown, it emphasizes his dark nature.
Rating:
Sound
If there's anything can equal the visual then it's the music; I must admit Kara no Kyoukai has one of the best soundtracks ever. Indeed, the soundtrack flaunted not only amazing music, but amazingly appropriate music - every single scene was captured with masterful precision from the ghastly, chilly theme used for any psychological moment to its own hollow track befitting the epicness of battles. And then, each chapters' starts out with a laughable clay puppet shows and the epilogue brings the viewers to a captivating symphonic song. Composed by Kajiura Yuki, it leaves me with little else to say; I'm astoundingly speechless.
Great voice actings, Sakamoto Maaya's performance as Ryougi Shiki is to die for. Her voice of an aloof, attractive lead with different personalities make the character very appealing, which is not surprised to see the viewers attached to her. One of my all-time favorite seiyuu Suzumura Kenichi's role as Mikiya was wonderful as well, reminds me a lot about Tohno Shiki. Such top-notch voice actings, boosts the series a second to none.
Rating:
Presentation
There you have it, folks, Type-Moon has done a fine job in creating a successful heptalogy. Kara no Kyoukai, generally speaking, is their greatest hit, far exceed others.
This is not your every day horror series, Kara no Kyoukai is simply spectacular, thrilling and it, at least, provides a satisfied ending. A must-watch, you don't want to cast this one off your collections. Indeed, the franchise has created a phenomenon that a sequel eventually been made (takes place ten years later with Shiki's daughter as the main lead) and Shiki has even made her way to Melty Blood.
It's a little sad that as series with a caliber like that have yet to be licensed is a mystery on par with any
presented in the films themselves. Even at that, its level of production is so astonishing high that I expect it to
appeal to just about any anime fan regardless of taste. If the Kara no Kyoukai's trend ever continues down the path
of greatness, then it already had me keeping my fingers crossed.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Story: 8
Characters: 9
Art: 10
Animation: 10
Voice: 8
Music: 10
Overall: 9
Good:
+Attractive main lead; Shiki and Mikiya have some touching moments that actually show Shiki's solf side.
+Unique in settings, animations, suspense and actions.
+Great music and soundtrack suitable for each chapter.
Bad:
+Weak first chapter.
+Too confusing with gore and nudity might not appeal to everyone.
Rating:
Final Verdict
9.0000 (very good)
Reviewed by Weskalia, Nov 19, 2010
Comments
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ShaDowPoWeR Nov 21, 2010
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Dreadwave Nov 21, 2010
Yes, I agree with this review completely I myself finished watching Kara No kyokai a little over a week ago not only was I on the edge of my seat watching and trying to grasp what the plot was before it revealed itself(I failed but it was satisfying).
Heck I just about told all my friends that were into anime to watch this(they did and were also amazed).@Shadowpower: Kokutou has plot armor that's about the only reason he can survive being bludgeoned,having his head smashed on the wall so many times he should of had permanent brain damage, and having his crush try to stick her knife into his person XD.
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SchRita Dec 23, 2010
I love the art, it's so cool!
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Warpten29 Jan 11, 2011
Thanks for the info!
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