Review of given
I’m gonna make a short review because it’s the first time I write one. I’m gonna assume everyone read the synopsis, so I’m not going to write it again. This is the first BL I watch, because I used to think the fanservice for fujoshis in these was going to be annoying. Well, I wasn’t wrong in a sense : pretty much everyone is gay so it isn’t very realistic. But you know what, I’m still okay with that because... why not ? People in TV series and in life in general are usually assumed to be straight, so it changes from the usual, and in theend it’s still the same.
If you’re like me and if you’re scared that the fanservice is too much, don’t worry, it doesn’t really go far. I’ve seen faaaaar worse in animes where the characters were straight, this is just cute. And people who complain about it just don’t like BLs, because look at me : I never even watched one before but it doesn’t annoy me.
About the plot, I’m gonna be honest : it could have been extremely good, but 11 episodes is short and it sometimes felt like things were rushed. The plot is reduced to a very basic thing, when it could have been a magnificent bittersweet story.
However, ONE SCENE is forever going to be stuck in my memories. The whole anime is worth watching, even if it’s just for this scene. I’m not gonna spoil anything, but the amount of emotions I received from it, the amount of pain, of rage, of sadness and yet joy that were contained in this precise scene was breathtaking. The whole plot seems to lead to this moment, and even if the plot could have been better, this scene is absolutely perfect. It’s at episode 9 I think, well you’ll know when you’ll be there.
This kind of scene is CRUCIAL for a drama anime, as it is the first thing you’ll remember when you think about it. It is what gives the overall feeling, the overall atmosphere, basically what will remain of the anime in your memories. Given didn’t fail to create it.
About the music, first : I ABSOLUTELY LOVE the opening and the ending, and the song that you’ll hear if you watch the anime. These are masterpieces, call me dramatic. I gotta find the name of the original band who made them. The OSTs, nevertheless, aren’t that good, sometimes kind of annoying, but that was to be expected since the anime is centered around rock music (I’m not sure of the exact name of the kind of music it is though)
The characters are not really well developed, but it’s still okay. They all pretty much have a background, but 11 episodes didn’t give them the time to become really meaningful. Overall, they’re all pretty basic, except maybe Mafuyu, but even him sometimes felt like a lot of other anime characters. To be honest, it’s rare for an anime to completely create a character with a complex personality, so it doesn’t make the show bad.
The art is average, but it’s okay. It’s just a drama anime, so no need to make an aesthetic masterpiece.
I genuinely liked this anime and I would definitely recommend it, even if it’s just for this one scene in episode 9.