Review of La storia della Arcana Famiglia

When I first read the synopsis, I was hopeful that the reviews were overly critical and maybe, just maybe, I'd enjoy it nonetheless. I found Arcana Famiglia from an article suggesting reverse harems (my current addiction). With a cast of good-looking, weapon swinging young males, it certainly had potential. Sadly, nothing was done with said potential. Even though the characters each appear to have interesting back stories, we never get more than just the barest of glimpses into them. For example, there's constant animosity between Jolly and Debito, Pace and Luca, but the show never explores their past. Same goes for Liberta. There are flashbacks thatallude to a supernatural past but we never really learn his history.

To be fair, the first 11 episodes were enjoyable. The art and sound meet expectations and the characters are all well-dressed in suits or fancy Victorian dresses. It's really when you reach the last episode that you realize that there are more unanswered questions than there are resolutions. The final Arcana duel (that the entire anime is based around) was also completely anti-climatic. In fact, you could even say that it was downright nonexistent. At the pace that the first 11 episodes were moving at, the final episode came too abruptly and does not do the anime justice.

Take away: I wish I heeded the advice of the existing reviews.