Review of Shadows House

(no spoilers) "Don't fret over trivial matters". You will hear this phrase many times while watching this show. It is the Shadow House's Prime Directive, its Alpha and Omega. There is a reason for that that I'm not going to spoil, and this reason is gradually disclosed. In a sense, this phrase is the central mantra of the show. Shadows House is an anime with a very original story, some non pretentious philosophical and existential comments on the individuality (or *non* individuality) of self and on free will, and finally a rather scathing critique of classism, social prejudice and discrimination. I read that the first 10 episodesfollow the manga and the last 3 largely don't, but I cannot compare the latter to the manga since I have not read it. I gave the story a "9" both because it is a very well and solidly written show and due to how original and "different" (in a good way) I thought it was.

The art & animation was quite good but not exactly dazzling. The animators handled the "dolls" well (though rather conventionally) but I think they did the best work with the "Shadows". They had almost nothing to work with, since their entire body was pitch black. And yet somehow -with the help of their voice actors- they managed to give them personality, mannerisms and character! Sometimes less is more, and this is one of these cases. The background art was Victorian-like, dark & moody but quite detailed, and I don't think any low or mid grade CGI was ever used. I think the art is worth an "8".

The music and songs were a perfect fit for this show. There was't an episode I skipped either the OP (instrumental) song or the song (with lyrics) of the ED because I loved to listen to them every week. The intermediate music of Kenichiro Suehiro was also very good and a nice companion for this show. I think the music is also worth a "8".

All the major characters were well developed. The characters of some adults were not, by design, since some secrets about them are reserved for the (potential) season 2. But the major characters of the children were fleshed out more than adequately. The two main leads Emilico and Kate are the most well developed characters, followed by John & Shaun and the story's antagonist Edward. The characters get a "8" as well.

I rated enjoyment with "7" simply because it is not the most cheerful and enjoyable anime of the season, at least according to my opinion. All that soot and darkness might turn your mood a bit sour if it's already sour-ish. Thankfully there was the bright "sunshine" Emilico in every episode, to blow away the soot and light up the darkness! She is not the brightest bulb in the box but she is literally the heart and "light" of the show.

One last comment about this show's genres : MAL has listed Shadows House as a "Slice of Life, Supernatural, Seinen" show. While not *strictly* episodic (particularly during the first half) it is clearly not a slice of life show. It also turns episodic during the second half. I am not sure if it should be considered a seinen or shounen show - that would depend on the precise definition of the terms; strictly in terms of age it seems to be perfectly OK for children 13+, for instance. What's certain, though, is that it indeed has quite a few supernatural elements but above all the primary genre is *mystery*, which is not even among the listed genres.

Overall I think Shadows House is worth an "8", and I really hope we get a second season.