Review of Bakemonogatari
To me, this anime is a miracle. Bakemonogatari quickly became one of my favorite anime of all time. Literally EVERYTHING about the anime is incredible. At first, I wasn’t used to the way the anime presents its story in terms of background and text storytelling. But after watching the first episode in full, I was hooked. This anime really knows what it wants to be and takes a step up in presentation in ways I would not have expected. The way the story is presented I consider to be art itself. As someone who’s studying to become a digital artist, I say this with 100%certainty. Never have I seen an anime that utilizes art in such a way that makes each episode feel more impactful. The art style that constantly changes, the usage of colors in scenes, and utilization of text dialogue makes the presentation truly stand out. I believe this anime is a celebration of Japanese otaku culture, and it uses the tropes of it to subvert them and create a surprisingly intriguing story. It encourages you to pay attention rather than require. It’s never overwhelming in any aspect.
If there are any existing complaints, it’s that the story can be a wee bit confusing at very few points, but this might be a result of not learning enough JP culture. I came to this anime with some knowledge about youkai, spirits, a bit of Japanese language, and other anime. I was able to follow the story pretty well and understand most of the references and meanings. Even if you don’t understand all of the cultural references/meanings, I think the story is still engaging enough to really encourage learning more about JP culture. I don’t consider the perverted parts of the anime to be too distracting. I’ve been used to watching anime with many perverted scenes, but for the most part, the perversion is used to progress the story and main character, which I consider the perversion to be executed REALLY well. Not every bit of presentation is perfect, but it doesn’t have to be consistently perfect, as all of its presentation is conveys its message and point very well.
You need to check this anime out, I know things can be really rough in terms of where to start with the Monogatari, but once you research a bit on the watch order of the Monogatari franchise, you won’t regret it. The way the anime presents itself with story and perversion might throw off some people, but once you give it the chance to let the story pull through you, I trust that you will be hooked. It’s one anime that you need to see before you die and one I consider to be almost perfect. I really look forward to watching Nisemonogatari sometime soon, and I hope the presentation stays consistently incredible in the future Monogatari parts.
If there are any recommendations on how to watch it, it’s to not marathon it all the way. Watch one part of Bakemonogatari at a time. By that, I mean watch the amount of episodes a part has. Each set of episodes is basically an arc that focuses on one of the main character’s story. You will see what I mean once you see the episode titles. IMO, It’s the best way to really savor some of the anime’s best moments. I really hope you guys get into Bakemonogatari soon for those who have not watched it.