A father and son hunt monsters.

What I like the most about Garo is that it doesn’t pull its punches. None of this everyone living happily ever after crap. None of this ganbarimasu will solve all your problems. The world is harsh. Try your hardest and you’ll still fail. Try your hardest again and you’ll fail again and your girlfriend will die too. Try your hardest once again and you’ll fail once again and your father will die. But it doesn’t matter because that’s all you can do.

The other great part of Garo is the characterizations. They’re all multifaceted, acting differently at different times towards different people, but always in one consistent package. My favorite character is the main villain. I actually wanted him to win most of the time… which is another nice part of Garo. Things aren’t all black and white. Often it’s unclear who the villain is and who the hero is. (This isn’t exactly a groundbreaking idea here, but for anime in Garo’s genre it’s pretty unusual.)

• Storytelling – A – Doesn’t do what you expect, heads down dark alleys.
• Voice – B – Nice dark fantasy atmosphere.
• Characters – A – The show’s strong point.
• Attention Grab – B – I think in the earlier episodes my interest waned a bit, but generally excellent at keeping interest.
• Production – B – Looks good.
• Overall – B+

Recommendations – Katanagatari, Shingeki no Bahamut, Gankutsuou