Review of She, The Ultimate Weapon
There's no 9.5 option when you come to reviewing, so I guess that a 9 will have to do. Ok, I discovered this anime purely by accident - don't you just love it when that happens? Anyway, a recent purchase and I couldn't wait to watch it. For those who don't know anything about Saikano - the story is essentially a love story, albeit a very tragic one. The anime focuses on the lives of Shuji and Chise, two high school students in Hokkaido who have recently became a couple. However, the happiness that comes along with finding someone tolove is very short lived. The world that they live in is at war, in the anime it's unclear just who Japan is at war with - but in my opinion that didn't really matter.
When the opposing army attacks Sapporo and seals large scale destruction to the city, Shuji is shocked to discover Chise standing amongst the rubble with machinery 'growing' out of her arm. Sometime later, Chise reveals to Shuji that some people came to her house one night and said that she would be a perfect candidate... to become the ultimate weapon. The details as to why this is isn't made clear until the OVA, but I guess that's good to keep the viewer's guessing. The anime then focuses on how the two cope with this revelation, and how Chise struggles with herself on how she is changing into a 'machine' and becoming 'less human'. You'll hear the phrase "I'm sorry" a LOT in this anime - so be prepared for it!
The animation quality is pretty good, it's one of those really nice flowing styles that seem to draw you in. It's certainly easy on the eyes, and I have absolutely no complaints about the music either. The opening theme "Koi suru Kimochi" a really beautiful song, the same can also be said for the closing. Both themes remain the same throughout the series.
The only real problem that I actually have with this anime is that it tends to get slightly repetitive in some cases, what with Chise's constant apologising and Shuji's slight indecision and denial in some cases really get on my nerves. But in saying that it all ties in with the story. In all honesty, the anime pretty much follows the manga fairly accurately. However, I've only read the first 3 volumes of the manga so far, so I'll have to wait and see how it all ends. If you're into the more tragic love story, then I can't really recommend Saikano enough. It's an anime that I actually cried while I watched. There is also a live action movie, if you're really into this anime (like me) which I also recommend as it gives a different perspective on the two.
One thing that I think that I should mention though, is that the ending is pretty confusing - but if you're going to watch this anime, or have seen it... I'll let you draw your own conclusions about that.