Episode 09 –
While Another is continuing with it’s build-up, at the same time it feels as if it is stalling the story a bit. After all, the part where the cassette tape was ruined was just far too convenient when you consider the situation, and is frustrating because it feels like a forced way to stave off the eventual revelations that the tape would have revealed. But heck, I guess having convenient plot twists does heighten the tension, especially when the “convenience” aspect of the twist could be somewhat linked to supernatural occurrences.
That being said, Another has turned into an anime far more focused on the supernatural aspect to the story, as opposed to being a pure mystery. And that’s actually a good move on the storywriter’s part, mainly because it’s extremely difficult to write genuinely good mystery. There are plenty of anime out there with “mystery” storylines that claim to have difficult mysteries, but often are “difficult” due to the main detective magically figuring out some information that had never even been hinted at before, and solving the case. The most notable of such shows in recent memory would be Gosick, where the mysteries were sometimes so weak that I think a elementary schooler could have seen through them.
I am also starting to really appreciate the series’ approach to buildup, where it is slowly throwing more and more suspicion onto members of the cast, and it is completely uncertain as to whom the potential culprit actually is. Not knowing the culprit, but knowing he is blending in with our main characters, adds a intense atmosphere to this show that is becoming more evident with each passing week.
Another is a series that has managed to surprise me over the course of it’s airtime. It started off as a series very much focused on “horror”, only that it had the subtlety of a steel hammer to the forehead. The forced horror aspects have mostly disappeared at this point, and instead we get some genuinely intriguing buildup that revolves around the supernatural, a potential undead masquerading amongst humans, and the ever growing suspicion that one of the members of the main cast is actually the reason for the increasingly brutal deaths.
Overall Enjoyment: 3.3/5
Screenshots are later in the post.
Distant Paradise 