Shakugan no Shana: Season I

KaminaKai★ 8

"You are not a human. You are an object." If you were told the above, what would your reaction be? Sakai Yuji, the male protagonist of Shakugan no Shana, was thrown precisely into this chaotic situation one day while walking home from school. At the same time, viewers were introduced to the main theme of the anime. What if no one will ever remember your existence in this world. Being dead is one thing, but if everything about you will be erased from this world when you die (that includes people's memory of you), the thought alone could be terrifying to many. While at first glance Shakuganno Shana may seem like just another anime with the protagonist being thrown into a world he never thought existed. It really make itself standout from the rest if for no other reason than the spectacular introduction to the theme of the story. The story develop itself rather slowly midway through the series as the viewers were taken back in time for some background learning that lead us to understand certain characters better (more on that in the character section). Overall there was no rush to the story as events unfold themselves in a very elegant and comprehensive manner. It should, however, be noted that since this is just an introductory season to the Shana saga (there is a season 2 to Shakugan no Shana and there will most likely be more in the future), not a lot of questions were answered ... but many were raised and leave people in confusion at the end. Though it can't be considered a masterpiece in animation, it is in fact still pretty top notch, especially the battle effects (flames for example, were animated in great detail and looked very awesome). If there's anything to complain about, it would be the over-sized eyes on most characters. But once that's accepted, everything else about the animation should not hurt your eyes. While the OP were very catchy, I didn't quite like the ED much (personal taste). Sound tracks were great as they match well with the intended scenes, some can even help drive your emotion a bit. In addition, the seiyu are quite famous: Shana voiced by Rie Kugimiya whose famous for her role in Full Metal Alchemist as Alphonse Elric, Nena Trinity in Gundam 00, and Louise Françoise in Zero no Tsukaima. Kazumi Yoshida voiced by Ayako Kawasumi who voiced in Fate/stay night as Saber, Kanokon as Chizuru Minamoto, and Otoha Sakurano in Sky Girls. Shakugan no Shana also stars Hitomi Nabatame, Shizuka Itou, Mamiko Noto, and many many more talented voice actors/actresses. Characters are what make this anime shine like a star. Due to the "non-rushing" nature of the show, each character (even the supporting casts) present their own background history and overtime we get to know their personality more and their "behind thoughts". This result in a very real and believable group of fantastically designed characters (both in terms of the "realism" and the "looks"). Definitely not something you see often in anime these days. The drawback is that some viewers may find it boring or made the stalled the story development. While not quite a masterpiece level anime, Shakugan no Shana is still a show that is very successful in every single aspect. Personally, this show started out quite a bit like Busou Renkin and Bleach (while others say it is similar to Fate/stay night), but it ultimately delivered a much stronger impression on me than the ones mentioned.

Xenith★ 10

Okay, for my first ever review, I thought I'd review one of my all time favourites, Shakugan no Shana. Before I start, let me say that this anime is not everyone's cup of tea. Some people love it, some hate it and some are in between. As for me, I love it to bits so if my review seems a bit biased, I apologise right off the bat. First off, the storyline, I'm sure there are a few anime out there featuring parallel worlds or dimensions but I really enjoyed the way it's portrayed in this anime. The main reason for this being that, with such agrim and mature-ish beginning to the anime that gave it such a depth to storyline, the anime does also get lighter by mixing it with some other elements as well and I enjoy these lighter moments as much as the more intense parts of the anime. And mind you, this anime does seem to make the world around the main protagonist, Yuji, to seem hopeless at the start but it grows to become more light-hearted while still maintaining its original premise. The artwork is rather good in my honest opinion. The characters are reasonably well drawn, although they are of the large-eyed variety as seen in many anime, they are still pretty decent to look at. In my opinion, the artwork shines the most during the fight scenes. The fight scenes never seem to leave you disoriented since it is laid out in such a way that makes it simple and yet, an enjoyment to watch. For the sound of the anime, I have found nothing I am particularly unhappy about when it comes to the overall sound of the anime. Basically, everything sounds alright, with no flaws or anything that I have found. The voice acting was also pretty decent, and I know some people would beg to differ right here but I liked the way that Rie Kugimiya voiced Shana to be very child-like to mirror Shana's original age and her true child-like self. I did also really enjoy the opening and ending themes of the series. The animations during these are pretty decent as well. Now for my favourite part, the characters. The characters really do grow on you in this anime. They also really do have some growth, even the less important ones do have some development to a certain degree. The most of development however must happen to the main characters and this series does not disappoint. First off, the main male protagonist, Yuji Sakai, there is a good deal of development especially at the early stages of the series when he is thrust headlong into a reality that seems so hopeless for him, and yet, he grows to understand and accept his situation. Second, there's Shana, the main female protagonist. Being a tsundere(wiki it if you're wondering what this means) character, she does have a lot of development as a character in the story throughout the series as she grows less cold toward Yuji, as she originally viewed him as little more than an object, and instead begins to grow more fond of him and these feelings really confuse her as she still has to maintain her duty as a Flame Haze. Now for the enjoyment factor, I really did enjoy it. Especially in the later parts of the anime, the plot and the characters did leave me feeling more and more attached to the anime. Most of all, I enjoyed watching the development of Yuji and Shana's relationship together since it's not your typical boy likes girl, girl likes boy drama, it's a lot more complicated than it appears. Overall, this is a great anime to watch with characters that begin to grow on you after a while. I definitely would recommend watching it. And it's also a must watch for any tsundere fan out there as well.