Review of Bakemonogatari

Bakemonogatari. This is a series clearly targeted at those with more esoteric tastes, with intent at creating a cult following. Despite this, it has attracted a large general audience and strong critical acclaim. In this sense, I would declare it the ‘Pulp Fiction’ of anime, or something akin. With that in mind, I came into this series with high hopes and no expectations. I left very satisfied. Bakemonogatari is the definition of a stylistic triumph that drives with gorgeous directing, striking minimalism, and sharp dialogue. Many elements of the series are unique and run counter to conventional anime storytelling, but these elements congeal to forma fulfilling work that leaves the audience wondering — “Why isn’t this done more often?”. It's a solid series. I recommend it to anybody who into more art-house work and doesn't find themselves to be 'above' this level of perversion. I will continue the series for sure.

[Rating]
Story: 8
Art: 10
Sound: 9
Character: 9
Enjoyment: 10
Overall: 9

[Story: 8]

The story of Bakemonogatari is structured in by stringing together several small arcs. Every episode belongs to a chunk from 2 to 5 eps long where Araragi finds some kind of supernatural disturbance and has to unravel and solve the mystery behind it, much like Mushishi. Of course, this is barely the point of the series, but more like the vehicle in which the series travels by. Really, it is about Araragi, our protagonist, interacts with and develops relationships with his harem. Yeah, it's a harem anime. I don't know if that is a debate or not (I don't see why it would be), but it's a harem show. However, this is the first harem show that really impressed me, it managed to create more dynamic and tense relationships between our hero and his ladies some of the others (SAO) I've watched. There is one primary romance, Senjougahara, and many potential romances which are obvious 'temptations' for Araragi, and I find them pretty fun to watch. Beyond that, the show has a solid amount of mystery built up, and it builds slowly and inconspicuously. I like that. It does a great job as the first entry in the series; it holds on its own but also makes you wonder just what exactly happened during Spring Break or Golden Week. Each arc does its job well, is interesting standalone, and advances the relationships between the new and existing characters. Solid story. Solid start. Can't wait to see how it builds up. An interesting note is that, although you could definitely consider this a romance series, it has few drama elements. I would call the romance more suspenseful than dramatic, since all the women are so stingy and unpredictable.

[Art: 10]

The most observable facet of Bakemonogatari that differentiates it from the pack, the art is defined by careful shot composition, quick cuts to innocuous shots from unusual angles, minimalism, sleek color palettes, experimental styles, and some pretty anatomically astounding necks. It performs all of these things really well, and there’s potential for an essay on each of them. Let’s first talk about why it works.

Of course the quality here is strong. Shot composition and animation have some global criteria for being ‘good’ or ‘bad’, regardless of the context of the work as a whole. This series is on the ‘good’ side. But Bakemonogatari supports this style with the nature of its storytelling. Most of Bakemonogatari is focused on dialogue, almost entirely. Conventionally, this is something that can be troublesome to work around. But Bakemonogatari dialogue isn’t normal dialogue. It is sharp. It stings and bites and intoxicates the audience. It has tempo. This is the heart of the series, and the visuals work around it. The dialogue is fast and chock-filled with content? Maybe we don’t need so much attention to background characters and the hustle bustle of a city, it could overwhelm the audience. Let them focus on forms created by grand structures or endlessly repeating objects. Let the shots hit in how the characters react to the punchy dialogue, let Araragi sneak a glance at the girl’s legs when he feels aroused. When tension gets higher, make the cut timings more erratic; it’s great way to build even though nothing is physically happening. Use palettes that often shift in hue to guide the audience’s mood. Use quick text panels to recenter the audience's view and allow them to more easily follow the focus of the quick cuts. There's a lot going on here. And it works really well. From a stylistic, directing perspective, Bakemonogatari floors many of its peers.

There are a few more artistic points worth mentioning briefly. Bakemonogatari, despite its focus on dialogue, has great action scenes that feel punchy and kinematic. I find this to be a trend in anime these days: the series that focus less on action tend to make it better... or maybe just have more impact. Bakemonogatari is also inclined to switch up its style and incorporate neat and fresh ideas all the time. It executes well and does it in places where the tension is light, so it works. Good job!

[Sound: 9]

The voice acting is quite good, and it needs to be with the amount of dialogue going on. The tracks are sometimes annoying/repetitive, but sometimes they just perform wonderfully. The ambient sound design is fantastic. Many series either fail to take a proactive approach to sound design or make the attempt but execute on it quite poorly. Bakemonogatari makes it happen. That's all there is to it. The sound also has the benefit of being very focused: there is really no reason to use sound for anything other than the task at hand, since the world is hyper-focused on the characters and the settings are generally still and minimal.

[Character: 9]

Bakemonogatari comes with the benefit of running with a small cast. Hell, beyond the main cast of Araragi and the girls there are only a few others characters that ever appear on camera. Well, the perverse nature of these characters allows them to feel totally fresh and allow them to create strong tension in their relationships. Obvious standouts are Senjougahara and Hanekawa. But really you enjoy seeing every character.

Since this is a harem show, special attention has to be brought to how this show avoids the classic harem problem. The problem is that, often, the harem master has no discernable character traits, the girls that like him are lame and like him for no reason, and these qualities make the harem master be a great means of attachment for lonely teenage boys. Now, in essence, Bakemonogatari nearly follows the model. However, Araragi has an interesting and layered personality, even if it isn't necessarily conventionally attractive and he still manages to attract many women by being 'nice' to them. The main differentiating factor is that Araragi's perversions make his relationships with these girls all interesting. It isn't the case that he doesn't desire the women, but moreso the case that he has priorities, and will indulge in his perversions, but never crumble. Also, these girls are generally interesting, and their interest in Araragi is a little spicier and more developed than just 'Araragi is a nice, honorable dude, I like him', despite what Senjougahara might say. Perversion and sharpness allow Bakemonogatari to overcome many of the character issues that come with the harem package.

[Enjoyment: 10]

I could see some audience members who aren't into the writing or cinematography having a difficult time with this series. Much of the pull of the series is rooted in these attributes. However, I thought both were completely intoxicating. It feels like this is so much to learn from watching this series, which is something I love to be able to say. I am definitely pumped to continue watching.

[Overall: 9]

Nothing more to say.