
Quick Stats
Title: Soul Eater
Directed by: Takuya Igarashi (Ojamojo Doremi, Sailor Moon)
Total # eps: 51; 26 currently released
Opening Theme: “Resonance” - TM Revolution
End Themes: “I Wanna Be” – STANCE PUNKS; “Style” – Kana Nishiro
Genres: action, adventure, comedy, supernatural, and a little ecchi for seasoning
Fansubbing: Yuurisan, Rumbel-subs, Saizen (joint with Anime Empire); Tadashi
The Story
Story takes place at a Shinigami school where students learn to become “technicians” to protect humans from evil by using humans that can convert into a weapon. Follow 3 technicians as they try to create a “Death Scythe” out of their weapon by collecting 99 evil souls and 1 witch soul.
What dj thinks: Who knew that being a shinigami was so cool! Now where’s my black cloak…..
This anime series is one of the newer ones out there and was based off of a manga series written by Atsushi Ohkubo, who worked on “Getbackers”. So far, I’ve seen the first 11 eps, and I can tell you that this is a very promising series.
Storyline
The story if pretty simple so far: 3 Soul Technicians who are going to school to learn how to protect humans. Sounds familiar, right? Now I know that by now, all of you are thinking “Hey…this sounds kind of like Bleach!”, and you’re right…certain parts are very much like Bleach. However, unlike Bleach, the overall feel of this anime is a little less intense due to its witty humor. The show definitely got me laughing to the point where I almost forget that they are battling evil souls (the Shinigami Chop is the best). I think a lot of the humor comes from the personalities of all the characters and how they interact with each other, especially when it comes to their weapons.
Ok, now the action scenes (because we all love watching some pwnage). Soul Eater definitely has some great action, and I can see it getting even better later on. The first 7 eps basically set the stage by introducing each character and their weapon. From ep 7 to 11, the story starts go a little deeper as you can tell that the bigger picture of the plot is beginning to unravel. Though there’s plenty of “funny-ha-ha”, the action and fight sequences were pretty exciting. Again, there were some scenes that reminded me of Bleach (Soul Resonance for example), but I don’t think that it really made a difference to me. The action was intense, well choreographed, and well…really fun to watch!
Characters/Animation & Design
The anime revolves around 3 characters and their “weapons”:
Maka – weapon: Soul
Black Star – weapon: Tsubaki
Death the Kid – weapon: The Thompson Sisters, Patty and Liz
Character personality. That’s all I have to say. The character personalities are what make this anime so good. Maka (the protagonist) is level headed while Black Star is loud and cocky. Soul is the “cool” guy, while Death the Kid is obsessive-compulsive. Mix them all together and you get a really diverse mix of character. For example, the self-absorbed Black Star (who in my opinion adds a lot to this anime) is paired with Tsubaki, who is very quiet and reserved. It’s the unlikely combinations that made the characters even more fun to watch, and it makes you want to know if they can all work together. Just as a side note, Yumiko Kobayashi (Azuma in Yakitate Japan) is the voice for Black Star. Would you like some Japan #2 with your soul today? XD
The animation and design of Soul Eater is very creative. First of all, some of the backgrounds are a mixture of both CG and traditional animation, which give way to some nice 3D looking effects. What I like most about Soul Eater is the design. Everything from design of the school to the way the Grim Reaper is portrayed, this anime has some pretty slick style. Even the sun and moon are given a weird and sometimes creepy design.
Closing Comments
I could go on forever, but this is getting pretty long. If you’re looking for something new and fresh this season, definitely give Soul Eater a try. It’s funny, witty, and has a lot of great moments in the current storyline. The one thing that I will tell you is that there are 2 different aired versions of Soul Eater episodes, the “prime time” version and the “late night” late night version. Supposedly, the late night version has more ecchi, but I didn’t notice that much of a difference. Most fansubbers have been doing the late night version anyways (except Saizen…they do both in an MKV). Also, the background songs in some of the fight sequences are pretty sweet. It reminded me a lot of the music in the 1st Appleseed remake. So in closing, here’s my rating for Soul Eater.
Story: 4.5
Visuals/Animation: 5
Entertainment Value: 5
Characters: 5
Music: 4.5
Overall: 4.8
Sun, Aug 3, 2008
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