Review of Devilman: Crybaby

Having previously never seen or read Devilman in any medium, I really didn't know what to expect going into this. I'd heard some things on different websites - people seemed to either love this show, or hate it. I, personally, loved it. Having absolutely nothing to compare it to (like the source material), I was blown away by the complexity of the characters, the interesting story, and the shocking finale. I've never seen an ending like that before. It was astounding, heartbreaking, yet so clearly purposeful and had such narrative weight that I didn't feel insulted as a viewer, robbed of what should have been somethingelse. It was so symbolic and beautiful, and resulted in an amazing development of character that tragically could never be translated to something meaningful for his actual life. I can't think of any other anime that's done something like this.

The only flaws were the pacing, which was far too fast at times, and the gratuitous nudity, fanservice, and sexual content. However, the pacing is understandable due to the small number of episodes and the amount of content they have to squeeze in, and I've come to accept fanservice in anime. Still, it did grow to be annoying and distracting eventually.

I also loved the cinematography/art design, the sound design, and the script - flawless execution. Very stylistic, but if you go into it with an open mind and a willingness to embrace something different and unique, you'll be blown away.