Made in Abyss

You can tell there was a ton of effort put into this series. As someone who doesn't like the current trends in anime these days, I found massive enjoyment watching Made in Abyss. This might not make sense, but it feels really pure and new. I highly recommend just diving straight into this series without knowing much about it.

Rarely has a show annoyed me so much like "Made in Abyss".

The anime is actually extremely well done in many ways. The presentation is really very good and made me very interested in how the story will unfold and how the characters will develop.

To stay with the characters - they were often really well written and the relationships between the characters also developed in a meaningful way.

The look of the anime and its animations are also extremely lovingly designed, so that you enjoy watching it.

The anime really could have told an extremely interesting story about children entering a world unknown to them, unaware of the dangers of it...

Apparently the author thought there was one thing missing - the sexualization of children... In the first season you got some very questionable scenes - sexual violence on children, very scantily clad children, children getting to know each other's bodies.

Normally I would have stopped the anime a long time ago, but here I looked past it and said to myself that everything makes sense because I was really interested in the story.

But in the middle of the 2nd season I finally stopped the anime - here really no option was left out, if it was possible to portray the characters in light clothing or to sexualize them in some other way.

Without all that weird stuff, the anime could easily have gotten an 8/10 or 9/10 from me, but because of all that slightly pedophilic tinge, I can't give it more than a 6/10, unfortunately, even though the rest was really good.

Throw in some Etrian Odyssey and you get a rough idea of what Made in Abyss might be.

But those may be a bit obscure as references so what does all that mean? This isn't a Studio Ghibli work, but it has a real organic, curvilinear art style that could be described as a child like look that really fits the characters who are all very young. If you know Ghibli art, you know how detail oriented it is, and how it's style really lends itself to fantasy based environments.

There isn't a more mature environment that the one presented in Dark Souls - it's all about brutal enemies in dark surroundings with no mercy given to those who participate. And this is where Made in Abyss really separates itself from the look, and truly becomes a mature story of life, love and survival. There is a quest, and one of the main characters is especially well suited to travel and survive in the brutal realm revealed as this anime unfolds.

Lastly would be Etrian Odyssey, which is another video game where you build a team and descend into a subterranean realm, each level down more challenging (and mysterious) than the level above. This is exactly like the realm in Made in Abyss - though in typical (manga) anime fashion, the abyss is far more complex than that presented in Etrian Odyssey. It has a life blood of its own, effects those in its grasp, and even can make literal changes in the characters to descend too far, or spent too much time in the harsh/unpredictable realm.

The two main characters are interesting and become more interesting as the story progresses. One character is augmented, has very obvious mysterious qualities, but the other main character may have a more bizarre background still! And added to this she appears completely normal.

But nothing is ordinary here. It's like some far distant lost civilization that lives on the edge of a great trove of artifacts. The explores descend the abyss for relics, but also out of wonder lust, and desire to understand and exploit its power.

I love this anime. The environment is complicated, but revealed in ways that serves the story and characters. The characters aren't just likable - their lovable, and to see them suffer hurts in ways that is difficult to explain. It is worth noting that this season has a lot of build up, complete with excellent foreshadowing. The season really picks up in the last 5 episodes, the last one being double length. I completely approve of the design. The build up establishes so many important story element and characters, all needed to really give the final third of the season such emotional intensity.

Even incomplete (the Manga is still being written... but there is enough content for 12 more episodes!) Made in Abyss is astonishing. It taps into so many things I love: exploration, science fantasy, a quest, a mysterious and dangerous environment with beautiful characters who support each other.

Made in Abyss is high art - 10/10

An absolutely fantastic anime with solid world-building, likable characters, and a gorgeous art style. The first episode immediately pulls you into the show and introduces you to the cast of characters and the beautiful world, and from there on it hooks the viewer with its fantastic lore and world-building, something which many shows are unable to do effectively. I'm telling you, go watch this anime right now; it's a unique gem that you absolutely will not regret watching.

PROS: + Absolutely fantastic art style and music + Great lore building + Characters are all likable and have interesting backstories + Manages to be both cute and serious

CONS: - Some minor pacing issues in the beginning but nothing serious

OVERALL: 10/10

Still we're well into 2018 and no anime came close to Made in Abyss.

Emotional, brutal and beautiful. Don't believe the 1/10 reviews out there, it's being praised everywhere for a reason.