Review of Den-noh Coil

Interesting story and concept, but very bland execution. Characters are dull, ranging between being annoying (Kyoko) to lifeless (Yuuko, Kenichi, Denpa), with very little in between. The art, while pleasant on the scenery, is very ugly here giving characters somewhat simian features with horrible pear-shaped heads and ape-like snouts. Only one characters stands out (Megabaa), and it's not for its beauty either. I won't mind a show with visually unappealing characters, but it just adds to the dissatisfaction and when so much of the show revolves around their feelings that stands as an obstacle against relating to them. Were there many redeeming features elsewhere this would'vebeen a non-issue.

Then there's the one antagonist, the Searchy (Sacchi) which is constantly showing up to fire lasers at everything, parroting its one line in a horribly annoying voice, designed like a cheap children's toy, little more than a bloated knock-off Mr. Potato Head that never really poses any perceivable threat to the characters, who often just run around a corner to escape it. Again, just bland and uninspired.

The main problem with this show I'd say is its length. It would've been a much better paced and engaging narrative if its interesting parts had been more condensed. Instead it draws out what feels like 10 episodes worth of material into 26, replaying dream sequences and flashbacks over and over and having characters constantly engaging in long retrospective dialogues (retelling their feelings about what happened on screen) or introspective monologues which add almost nothing to the story and don't really inform the viewer on anything except perhaps the character's motivations and state of mind - which are often too predictable to matter and end up feeling like filler.

All this results in a very unimpressive and unmemorable show. I'd actually seen it before and re-watched it with little more than a slight sense of deja vu on a few occasions.