Durarara!!

I decided to watch Durarara!! when browsing around on my myanimelist account. I was reading about the show and I was pleased to find it was made by the same gentleman who wrote Baccano! another favorite show of mine. I saw the positive reviews and decided I'd give it a shot.

Hooo, boy. What a show it is. Like Baccano!, Durarara!! has no specific plot. It's not about one particular goal. It's about a whole pile of characters and each of their stories and when their paths cross how they change each others lives. (No matter how brief the encounter might be.)

The entire story takes place in a city called Ikebukuro. Tension is mounting between three gangs and an all out war is about to come to a head. There's a slasher on the loose attacking random victims, and there's the mysterious "black rider" who's rumoured to not have a head...

The show is full of quirky characters bursting with personality, and everyone has a secret. Friendly gang leaders, sadistic deal brokers, angry bartendars, underground doctors, etc, etc. What more could you want?? Even better is that the voice actors do a fantastic job. There wasn't one voice out of place in this set. From the first episode these guys charm you and you won't be able to stop until you reach the end.

My only complaint was with the art style. While I liked the art I got frustrated with the fact that all the faces looked the SAME. With such a diverse cast in personality and age, it would have been nice for original appearances to go along with it.

However, this complaint is small and not enough to change the fact that this is one of the most original anime I have ever watched. It easily became a favorite, and in my opinion, has a very high rewatch value. I love this way of storytelling. It's refreshing to not have a predictable rerun of some anime you saw some other time with the same plotline.

Not to mention there's no spoon feeding the story with inner monologue. Always a treat to have a break from that.

There was one minor let down in the storytelling. I wasn't satisfied with the ending. It felt a tad rushed and a little too perfect for me. There were some things they left in the air -- which suited the series. Something in the ending just didn't sit well with me.

This is just another small fault in my book. It was not nearly enough to change my high opinion of the show. The adventure from episode 1 was so enjoyable and so interesting that it makes it worth it even if the ending wasn't what you were looking for.

Overall I'd give Durarara!! and 8.5 out of 10. I'll definitely be checking out future stories by Ryohgo Narita.

Peace.