Elfen Lied

Elfen Lied is notorious, at least among fans of anime, for its graphic violence and frequent nudity. However, these aspects are merely part of what is in fact an excellent series. More than just an unsettling mix of cute little girls and intense gore, Elfen Lied is a series about nature vs. nurture, love vs. hate, the future of humanity, and similar themes. Yes, the show is quite violent, but this violence underscores these themes well and as we later learn, is not merely just a product of instinctual brutality. With only thirteen episodes in total, Elfen Lied is short but sweet and well worth watching. Just remember, you'll never look at cat-girls the same way again.

I'll keep this short.

Most of what others have said is true. This is a very well done anime. It has an exremely emotional and graphic story. It is as sad or emotional as "Grave of the fireflies" and as bloody as "Berserk" (I would say its worse).

Although it is fantasy because of the special powers the girls have you should not think it would diminish it. It is about not knowing who or what is good and bad, about tragedy and loss, it is about forgiveness.

Just be ready for this is not for the weak of heart.

I would definitely recommend this anime, its one of the best made anime I have ever seen.

It is an anime series divided in 13 episodes including a DVD special OVA episode for the fans. What you can say about the anime itself is that the story is one of the deepest most touching ones i have ever encountered. If you see the series i can promise you that you will not be disappointed. This epic tale includes everything you could ever wish for. Love, Betrayal, Hate, Revenge, Friendship, Action and more. I'ts story is based on a girl named Lucy with a horrifying past witch has left her life and many others in ruins due to her special abilities. Her tale about herself and her love is one of the best ones ever by my opinion. The series itself is specially directed to you with an open mind due to the strenght of the series. Understand embrace and finally love this anime who has been given a place among the top 5 in the world of anime for it's beauty, passion and strenght. Enjoy.

This anime is near perfect. Despite having only 13 (add 1 more if you include the OVA) episodes in the series as of now, Elfen Lied surpasses all expectations in all aspects. The art animation is beautiful and a pleasure to look at. The story itself is brilliant. A very violent and emotional story about a girl, Lucy, and her life and place in a big conspiracy about human evolution. Honestly, I'm not into violent movies as they usually ruin a movie (because there is just too much blood/gore), but this series is an exception. The violence accurately depicts the mood and tension of the series. Elfen Lied's storyline is rather deep and gripping. Probably on par, if not better, than Square's FF7 plot line. And I love FF7. Elfen Lied is just that good. The music also "clicked" perfectly with everything. The OP "Lilium" is a beautiful piece that I find myself thinking about a lot, along with the characters and the story. Highly recommended watch to everyone, anime fans or not. Take note however, that this anime is brutally violent but still manages a perfect blend of everything else.

One more thing... I haven't seen the English voice overs. I have only seen the Japanese version with English subtitles. Well I hope that doesn't ruin the series... well it's kinda hard to with this series being so great and all...

I watched this series over 2 days which isn't really fair because it's probably about as long as any of the Lord of the Rings movies and I watched that in one sitting. Anyways, this series of anime is my favorite story of any book I've read, game I've played, movie or show I've watched. Even though this series is 13 episodes long, it is really just astounding how powerfully moving it is.

I'm not going to give a description of what it is about because you can find that elsewhere. What I can tell you is that it is the saddest but perhaps greatest love story I know. If you haven't seen it yet, even if you hate anime, see this movie. I can barely even describe the wonders that are packed into this short series.

-thank you