[DreamSword]

FINAL THOUGHTS ON GARO: CRIMSON MOON

I feel like I say this alot, but this show is kinda hard for me to talk about.

For those who read my Blassreiter reviews, you might remember how as the show continued to go, I found myself struggling more and more with actually finding anything worthwhile to say, as I didn't just wanna keep repeating myself about the various issues I had with that show over and over again. So in the end I ended up defaulting to just giving a play-by-play of the plot, because, well, what the heck else could I have done?

When it came to Crimson Moon, I kinda ended up in the exact same situation. Not because I found this anime to bad, not at all! Infact, if you want to just get my verdict right away, I actually liked this show alot! But therein kinda lied the problem. Almost every episode was not only one that I enjoyed, but it was for basically the same exact reasons every single week. So I eventually sort of just defaulted to writing my raw reaction to the scenario at hand for each episode, while doing my best to try and not spoil too much of it.

Not helping things on that front either is that the show is really simple. And if that sounds like an insult, then you should know something about my tastes in stories real quick. I firmly believe in the old saying of "Beauty in Simplicity."

Is Crimson Moon some incredibly complex plot with a ton of factors at play? No. Does it have characters who are super deep and introspective and provide some sort of grand question to make you think about human nature or some morally gray scenario? Also no. Does it do anything to revolutionize storytelling conventions or break the mold to become some standout piece you could never find anywhere else? Not by a long shot.

But you see, none of that matters, because Crimson Moon right from the outset knows what it wants to be and guns for it, and as such, even if you could easily throw out some commonly seen as negative terms such as "predictable" or "cliche" or "standard" at it, it pulls off what it does incredibly well and almost never falters on that front.

See, from my perspective, something alot of people, anime watchers especially, seem to not understand is that when it comes to stories with simpler goals in mind, there's alot less for them to mess up. Sure, plenty of elements of Crimson Moon are things alot of us have seen before, but all of those elements are still done really well in the context of its own story, characters, and atmosphere. To give a comparison to food, it's like how a basic pepperoni pizza is alot harder to mess up and often still tastes decent even if it's not the best. Whereas someone who decides they wanna innovate and puts peanut butter, a shoe, toothpaste, and slices of watermelon on a pizza probably isn't going to have the best results. Is it something not many have done? Will eating it have a big effect on you? Sure. But it's also far more likely to be a giant mess.

Thus, keeping in spirit with the nature of the show, while I a gonna be doing the same sort of pros and cons that I normally do, I feel it's going to be alot simpler and more to the point than normal. Let's get into it.

THE BAD

-Episode 15. This episode's' title is "The Worst" and my god is that appropriate because it was easily the worst thing that this show had to offer. Ontop of having subject matter that is very heinous and disrespectful if not outright sexist towards literally everyone, it's an episode that offers nothing of value. No character development, no advancement in the plot, no good jokes, nothing pretty to look at... Nothing! My advice? Outright skip this episode. You will miss literally nothing.

-The action sequences. This is kinda tricky for me to talk about, because the action scenes themselves and how Crimson Moon utilized them is something that's clearly done on purpose. Yes, almost every action sequence is brief, to the point, and many times isn't anything super stylish or special. But at the same time, it's clear that they were something that the minds behind this show purposely weren't intending to focus on. Every action scene is specifically designed to be something which moves either the plot or the characters forward, rather than being some sort of spectacle in and of themselves. While I personally feel the team made the right decision here, I could easily many taking issue with it since this IS part of a franchise that is somewhat known for its spectacle, fight scenes included. Yes, the fights are weak, but they serve a clear purpose, so I give them a pass.

THE GOOD

-The music. While not as a notable as the soundtrack for The Animation, this show still has some really standout tracks that will not only stick in your head, but tunes that you'll be able to notice and recognize instantly from the first couple of notes. The movie giving these songs orchestral remasters was highly appreciated too.

-The characters. Keeping in line with the anime before it, Crimson Moon's' character writing, while done differently from the style of Carved Seal of Flames, is still very well done. Nearly every character has a very clear cut and defined arc that they go through, ontop of being very likable in terms of personality and how they play off of eachother. Even the villains, despite being very stock for the most part, do a great job at showcasing how things like despair, rejection, and even the world itself contributes in creating conflict and "monsters" of which society at large as to deal with. Never once was an arc fumbled, and there was never a character of which I out and out hated.

MY FAVORITE THINGS

Favorite Character: Hakamadare. This dude is just all around great, and it's very easy to see why. He's got an all around well done character arc, a great voice actor, and almost every episode that focused on him was really engaging in terms of plot and character drama. The way his style of life is like is a total foil to Raiko's' made for some really interesting stuff, and he was always a joy to watch whenever he was on screen. Of the Silver Knights that I've experienced within the franchise so far, Zanga is definitely my favorite.

Favorite Episode: Episode 15: Hakamadare. It's only fitting that the best character also offers the best episode right? This was an episode which proved that the writers knew what they were doing and what they wanted to focus on. The atmosphere was engaging, the character writing was top notch, and it was overall just a really well done episode. In my opinion, it takes a special sort of talent to make the viewer care about one-off characters, especially if they disappear once the episode is over, but man did this episode pull it off fantastically. If you somehow come out of this episode thinking it was bad, then clearly Crimson Moon just isn't the show for you.

With all that done, let's get to the wrap up.

OVERALL RATING AND FINAL THOUGHTS

Garo: Crimson Moon is a show that is simple, straightforward, and to the point in terms of everything that it says and does. It doesn't revolutionize, it doesn't strive to be life changing, and it doesn't pull any sort of out there twists. But that's part of what makes it work as incredibly well as it does. By focusing almost entirely on fundamentals, it allowed the show to just be what it is: A really well told story about the ups and downs of people and society, and how we should always strive to improve upon our ourselves and the situations we find ourselves in.

Is it going to anyone's' all time favorite anime? Probably not. Was the first anime better? I think so. But is it one that I'll remember fondly from here on out? Most definitely. If this really is the worst entry in the franchise, then I should be able to expect nothing but good things from every other entry going forward. In the end, I give this anime a 4/6. Its nothing ground breaking, but it's an overall really well done work for what it is and I do recommend checking it out if you're interested.