People trapped in a magic computer hell ruled by idols try to escape.

This was a total mess. Thematically it was a disaster, there wasn’t any message here that wasn’t cliche and hasn’t been communicated a million times much better. Most of the time I was trying to figure out what the hell was going on. There were too many characters to keep track of in any meaningful way, and even the ones I could keep track of were rushed and, more importantly, not particularly interesting to start with.

But, the one thing I did enjoy about this show is when it went off the rails crazy. My two favorite episodes were: 1) the episode where the super fat girls have the most disgusting tea party, and 2) two of the characters compete in the most absurd beauty contest. I don’t know what the hell anyone involved in either of these was thinking, but it worked. It was amusing and kept my interest (even if mostly by shock value). I wish the rest of the show had been more like these episodes, instead of lots of pointless drivel about how lonely everybody is and half-assed battle scenes.

• Storytelling – D – What in the world.
• Voice – B – A pretty good sense of style.
• Characters – D – Weak.
• Attention Grab – C – A few good episodes, mostly forgettable.
• Production – C – Looks fine.
• Overall – C-

Recommendations – Angel Beats