Another, A Horror and Gore Anime

Another is a horror, mystery, school, supernatural, and thriller anime that first aired in 2012. This 12-episodes anime managed to get a high ratings on the MyAnimeList website and became one of the best anime in 2012.

Another story was initially present in a novel by Yukito Ayatsuji and published in the literary magazine Kadokawa Shoten. It was then adapted into a manga drawn by Hiro Kiyohara in 2010 and published in Young Ace magazine. In 2012, Another was released as an anime series produced by P.A. Works.

If you like stories full of puzzles, Another is one of the best. This anime manages to incorporate the mystery element into the account quite ideally, so that if we are not careful when watching it, we may not know that this scene that doesnt look meaningful is one of the keys to the answer the mystery that appears in the story. The story is also full of plot twists that we won’t be aware of, so when we arrive at the last episode, the satisfaction will be felt when the story’s climax turns out to be full of surprises that we would not have realized before. It can also be said without the gore elements shown, this anime is already quite interesting with the story it brings.

Sakakibara Kouchi (Atsushi Abe), a 15-year-old teenager, transfers into Yomiyama North Middle School in grade 3-3 from Tokyo due to his father’s job that required him to live with his grandfather, grandmother, and his aunt. After being treated at the hospital, he began to take lessons with his friends and finding an unusual atmosphere around his classmates. There he also meets a mysterious, beautiful girl with an eye patch named Misaki Mei (Natsumi Takamori), and for some reason, her classmates and homeroom teacher don’t seem to know about this girl’s existence. She is like something that doesn’t exist in the class.

Regardless of the warnings given by his friends, including Mei herself, Kouchi gradually grew close to her. Until finally, there were incidents that caused the loss of the student’s lives in the class or those close to them.

It was extremely satisfying from very early on in the story till the climax of it all. Another never steps in the tracks of the expected, which is quite something for a horror story. Though progressing somewhat slow in the beginning after the third episode the series boosts away and rarely stops to let you take a breath.

The anime’s story is thrilling and mysterious but the anime was too short. The anime mainly focused most of the screen time on the main characters. Starting from the dull colors used to create an eerie vibe to superb sound effect. Great character development of the required characters in such a short span of episodes which is really impressive. The aura of each episode is filled with eeriness, suspense and uncertain dread feeling. Each episode ends with huge suspense which gets you hooked up on a spree to watch the next episodes.

In addition, the characterizations in this anime were pretty good. Although the portion obtained from some characters is relatively small, it is enough to explain how the character were. The rottenness of a human being is described so great that it can ignite the audience’s hatred when they see characters who behave like that.

The psychological effect of this anime also feels very strong when we know the secret behind Misaki Mei’s character, who wouldn’t sympathize with her. The many burdens she has to face affect our assessment of the characters in this anime, especially when the main character Kouchi is also dragged into it. Then the emergence of supporting characters strengthen the story in this series and succeeded in adding spices that make the dish taste more delicious.

In terms of graphics, this anime has pretty good detail in the animation. The rusty pillars, broken glass, and the extra characters are perfectly depicted. The character design is also quite interesting, and we will agree if the nature described in the synopsis as a beautiful character is true. In terms of sound, although the soundtrack is relatively ordinary, knife stabs, and conversations that are perfect for television animation.

There aren’t many shortcomings in this anime. Everything in it is in a pretty good category, even though it can’t be said to be perfect. Maybe for lovers of the gore genre, Another doesn’t seem enough to fulfill the desire to see blood splattered everywhere because the appearance in this anime, it somewhat seems lacking.

You are very wrong if you think this anime is like most horror anime. Another is one of the best without having to display a monster or merciless killing to add a creepy impression to it. The strength of this series is in the story, so this anime does not need these things to get its appearance in the eyes of the audience.

Our Score (8/10)

Title                : Another
Genre             : Horror, Mystery, School, Supernatural, Thriller
Studio             : P.A.Works
Producer : Lantis, Kadokawa Shoten, TOHO animation, Toho, Klock Worx, Bandai Namco Live Creative, NTT Docomo
Voice Actors : Atsushi Abe, Natsumi Takamori