Review of Shakugan no Shana: Season I
With Lodoss, I covered a fantasy anime from an era in which I was born but never a part of. This time then, I decided to cover a fantasy anime from the era when I did become a weeb. Or, well, sort of. Y’see, while there was never a distinct point at which I became a full and proper weeaboo, my transition being a long, gradual one over many, many years, I can safely say that the first time I became a part of the larger weeb community was some time around the mid to late 2000’s. This was the period of the Big Three, auniquely American phenomenon as far as I know, and TOM 3, a uniquely American character as far as I can tell. And it’s during this time that Shakugan no Shana came onto the anime scene.
But y’see, I never actually watched Shana when it first aired. So many other shows I did watch would reference it, and it was a big enough part of that era of anime that I obviously knew about it, but for whatever reason, I just never got a chance to sit down and watch it.
Now that the years have passed though, I’m honestly curious to see what I was missing out on, or indeed if I really missed out on anything. So, let’s examine
What is Shakugan no Shana?--
Shakugan no Shana is a 24-episode anime tv series adapted from a series of urban fantasy light novels. It chronicles the adventures of Yuji Sakai, a young man who runs afoul of some monsters called Rinne, who attack him while coming home from school. Just before the Rinne can eat Yuji though, a flaming-haired girl around his age shows up with a sword and kills the monsters.
The day seems to be saved, but as the girl Shana explains, Yuji is now dead. The Rinne ate his soul and used the indigestible residue to make a Torch, the concentration of the last dregs of his existence. Nothing will remain of Yuji when the Torch goes out, not even his friends’ and family’s memories of him. Not only that, but Yuji’s Torch seems to be a very powerful one, making him a prime target for any vulturous Rinne that want an easy, filling meal.
Yuji is naturally devastated by this news, but instead of letting Shana mercy kill him and be done with it, he decides to use the time he has left to aid her in her duties of hunting Rinne. However, as the days go by and Yuji and Shana grow closer, it starts to become apparent that Yuji is no ordinary Torch.
How does the world of Shakugan no Shana work?--
In the world of Shakugan no Shana, there is a world parallel to our own, the Crimson World. It’s full of nasty beasties known as Crimson Denizens. The most powerful of those are called the Crimson Lords. The most powerful of THOSE are called the Crimson Gods. And everybody in the Crimson World wants to be a Crimson God.
To accomplish this though, there’s really only one quick-and-easy solution, and that’s eating human souls. See, because the Crimson World and our world are connected, the energy of human souls can feed the power of Crimson Denizens. Mind you, siphoning off enough souls to become a Crimson God would lead to a serious power imbalance between the two worlds, which could threaten to destroy them both in the process. But this doesn’t stop hungry Crimson Denizens from trying, alongside their Rinne, which are sentient creations of the Crimson Denizens who help them hunt souls.
To ensure the balance is maintained between the two worlds, certain Crimson Lords and Crimson Gods make contracts with humans. The humans then become Flame Hazes, superpowered beings who can channel the power of their respective Crimson broker, and who hunt down any Crimson Denizens or Rinne who cause trouble in our world. Shana is one such Flame Haze, bonded to her Crimson God Alastor, who channels his power through a necklace Shana carries with her.
Torches are, as mentioned earlier, the indigestible dregs of human souls, which Crimson Denizens cobble together after they finish feeding. Partially this is to cover their tracks, it’s much harder to find a Crimson Denizen if they don’t leave a trail of missing souls in their wake. But partially this is to avoid the destruction of both worlds. The sudden disappearance of a soul creates a massive energy imbalance between the two worlds. So if Torches are made and allowed to slowly fade away, it’s not so abrupt, and the worlds have time to equalize and readjust.
Probably the most novel aspect of the series is how you initially think that Yuji is the hero of the story, before his run-in with the Rinne reveals to us that no, actually, he’s the poor schmuck that dies in the opening scene of a horror movie. Admittedly, he does end up being the hero alongside Shana’s heroine, but this is because of one final loophole in the rules of this fictional world.
Sometimes something extra will slip into the leftover soul pieces when they are reconfigured into a Torch. When this happens it creates a Mystes, a Torch with certain special abilities, like Yuji. It’s not made clear how Yuji became a Mystes in this series, whether it was the result of random chance or some larger plan, but what I love about this is that Yuji’s power comes from outside himself. Perhaps this isn’t the case in the original novels or later adaptations, but for this series at least, Yuji doesn’t have Midichlorians and he isn’t some special Chosen One. He’s just some random guy, who had power thrust upon him, and who decides to use that power in whatever way he can to help the people of his city.
Also, despite all this cool and detailed worldbuilding, the plot is… actually really simple. You can take most of the arcs, the one exception being Shana’s backstory arc, and boil them all down to:
“Oh no. There is a thing. It is eating people.”
“Oh no. We better punch it then.”
“Yeah dude. Let’s punch it really, really hard.”
“Yeah bro.”
“Oh no. I have been punched so hard I am gonna stop eating people. Goodbye world.”
“Alright gang. Day saved. Woo.”
Rinse. Repeat. You get the idea. If you didn’t pay attention to ANYTHING I just said about the world of Shana, it wouldn’t really impact your understanding of the plot too much. You always know who are the goodies, who are the baddies, and who needs to be punched. Or, have a giant sword slash them. One of those things.
Despite this simplicity though, Yuji’s status as a Torch presents some interesting questions, to the point where, when you ask
What does Shakugan no Shana have to say?--
The answer is “A bit, actually.” See, in the first episode, Shana makes it clear that Yuji Sakai is dead. He no longer exists, and the only thing that remains is a Torch. But as this Torch continues to fight and have adventures alongside Shana, they both start to wonder if that’s really the case. The Torch has all of Yuji’s memories, his personality, indeed it’s made from his soul, which, when you think about it, is the most Yuji part of Yuji. And as the Torch keeps living Yuji’s regular life, different characters propose different answers, each with their own valid points.
Shakugan no Shana also examines the idea of humanity with Shana. As a Flame Haze she’s technically more human than Yuji, but she was raised from an early age to focus only on her duties as a Flame Haze. Simple human niceties and nuances escape her, and just as Yuji struggles with the question of if he’s really human anymore, Shana struggles with the question of what it entails to even be human. Just as Shana teaches Yuji how to use his newfound powers, Yuji and his friends teach Shana how to do normal, everyday human things, and together they bring out the best in each other.
Shakugan no Shana never delves too deeply into these questions, because, again, it’s mostly about cool fight scenes and action. But honestly, I find that this makes the series a much more refreshing take on the question of identity and humanity than something like Solaris, which gives the question more focus but also falls prey to some intense navel-gazing and long-winded dialogue. And perhaps in the novels and later adaptations, the question is answered more definitively. But for now, I think I prefer the ambiguity of this series.
Final Verdict--
Honestly, I’m glad I didn’t watch Shakugan no Shana when it first came out. Not because it’s bad, but because, being familiar with the time and place in which it came out, when I saw this show for the first time, it was a wonderful trip down memory lane. Everything about that chapter of my life came flooding back, and it was truly bittersweet.
I still remember going down to the public library and reading old volumes of Ranma ½. I still remember watching Keroro Gunso on Youtube in 3-part episodes. I still remember tuning into Toonami to watch my favorite shows. And Shakugan no Shana brought all those memories flooding back with new, crystalline clarity.
Admittedly, watching Shana during a lockdown, with the fear of COVID still lingering in the air, made Yuji’s fear of disappearing hit on a different level. But I think that made me appreciate the show even more, because I now have a greater awareness of my own mortality and irrelevance than I did back in Middle School. I certainly hope that memories of me will endure even after I die, that I’ll have left something of value behind before I go, but the fear is still there, and Shakugan no Shana addresses that fear with skill and panache.
Also, the dubbing! Oh God, that early 2000’s Canadian dubbing! Pump that shit straight into my veins, brother!
My only regret with watching Shakugan no Shana is the knowledge that this is all there is to it, really. I know there are the original novels and the later adaptations, but I don’t know if they would have the same magic for me, because the memories aren’t the same. I didn’t get into light novels until much later, and the other anime series were dubbed with different actors. Sure I could watch the original Japanese dub, but honestly, silly Canadian dubs were more a part of my experience than shitty fansubs, at least with this period of my weeaboo life. Still, maybe one day, I’ll go and read the novels. The series is good enough that I think I’d enjoy that, even if I’m not rushing out to do so.
On its own, I would give Shakugan no Shana a 7/10 ranking. It’s not terribly deep, but it is well-thought-out and refreshing. And for the memories it brought back for me, it will always maintain a special place in my heart.