Review of Bakemonogatari

'People save themselves on their own. Nobody can ever save anyone else' - Araragi Koyomi To begin this review, I shall say that while there were always disagreements whether a certain show was good or not, no series was ever able to split the community like the Monogatari series does. And there will always be the ones saying that it is the best of the best in the anime world, and the ones that will see it as just a pretentious over-the top harem show. Now, before you cast of my review thinking that I'm just going to praise the show, I'll have to ask you tostay until the end, since I started this anime just so I could drop it because, I too, thought that it was just a philosophy for horny weebs. Let me show you what made me change my mind. I'll try my best to keep the review spoiler-free for all the people who haven't yet seen the show.

Lets begin with what I think is the reason Bakemonogatari excels more than most of the anime you'll run into: the characters. Now, if you ask any qwasy-elitist about the Bakemonogatari characters, he/she will probably tell you that the characters fall very well into the defined tropes of the anime: unassuming/confused lead protagonist, a female tsundere lead constantly insulting the MC, a bratty loli, a shy and innocent imouto trope, and so on. And on the surface, they are right. But as each of the characters develop, they restrain themselves of these labels to the point that it almost reaches the deconstruction of the certain anime character tropes. And what Bakemonogatari does so good, is the connection it constantly makes by bonding the story with the characters, making them equally progress.

So, to further explain the characters, I will base myself on the actual story. Bakemonogatari follows a 18 years-old Araragi Koyomi, who is 1/10 vampire, as he encounters various number of girls. Each of them comes with their own unique story, and a complete arc primary focusing on one specific character. Each of the characters is followed by an apparition (supernatural being) AKA aberration (unusual, unwelcome entity). They are phenomenons of supernatural nature, in which a person is involved, both as a cause and a victim. To be precise, apparitions are the supernatural creations of ones own mind, possessing the host. The story mainly focuses Araragi, with a help of Oshino Meme, the balancer, attempting to help and save those who suffer from such spiritual illness. But then why did I choose that specific quote to begin my review if it now seems incorrect?
And so we come across with what makes Bakemonogatari one of the best shows of all time: it is a metaphorical battle with one's own inner self. Each of the apparitions is carefully presented as a specific animal or a monster symbolizing the ones problem. And it is no coincidence that it turns out that each of the monsters turned out to be projected by humans. Or rather, they all seem to resemble the problems of one's own personality, the parts they try to deny and hide from the others by burying them deep inside, and metaphorically constructing a false reality and projecting them into a harsh enemy: a soul-sucking demons, apparitions. And so the only way to solve the problem is to confront them as what they truly are. the show smartly illustrates the struggle it takes to overcome your own inner pain. And no, that's not pretentious. You need to learn to separate the edginess from the actual depth.

And to explain that, lets move on to the various elements that make the series work, and how they interact. So, storytelling. Through each well-defined arc, we slowly dig deeper into the character, ripping apart the trope, and revealing what lies beneath. This compelling introspection of the characters is what drives the story. Even tho the show contains some nice well-combined comedy and few action sequences, it primarily revolves around dialogues. A well-packed, meaningful and thought-provoking dialogue, with various use. Whether it is used to serve some good laughs, develop the character or advance the plot, conversation is never there just to fill the 23-minutes of free space, which is expected from the Godlike-writer NisioisiN, who's wordplay transcends beyond just a simple rebuses.

But it doesn't just end there. The visual aspect in Bakemonogatari isn't just there for the aesthetic value. Director Tatsuya Oishi takes the whole media into his advantage, making surrealistic and abstractly symbolic visual storytelling. Using the first-person perspective through Araragi's narration, his world remains without the people he has no interest in, whether it'd be an empty street in the middle of the day, or an empty classroom. Every camera angle is focused primarily on what he is interesting in and what he wants us to see, or pay attention to. Otherwise, there is a fantastically fluent animation, incredible use of colors and a regular SHAFT's head tilt.

The music is there just to keep things alive. It never fails to bring a character motion to life and to project the certain emotion, whether it is making you be at the edge of your sit with eyes wide open as the mystery gets unraveled, or it is making your heart break apart from the sadness of the moment. Boosted with various number of melodies and instruments in soundtrack, the enjoyment is guaranteed.

To conclude:
Personally, this show has in itself everything I ever wanted an anime to have. Philosophy, abstract symbolism, depth, fast pacing, interesting and well-written characters, emotional and slightly tearjerking elements, creativity and innovation, and a weird, but unique way of storytelling. All together, an anime that everyone should see, but not everyone will like. It is not a story that will destroy your brain with lots of mindfucks, nor is it one that will ask you questions and make you wonder about the answer. This is not a show that knows everything, but it knows what it knows. It will tell you everything it can and it has the knowledge to.
But what you will do with it
is up to you.