Gungrave

Already familiar with Yasuhiro Nightow's Trigun, Gungrave is a vastly dark, yet richer story. In this world, there are no good guys. Trigun's Vash was a kidder, but deadly with the steel. These guys hardly joke at all and it's a tale of struggling to survive at any cost. There's a theme of brotherhood, loyalty and betrayal almost like a John Woo anime. Soft spoken Brandon is mostly enigmatic and prefers action rather than words. But don't be mistaken: Brandon might even give Vash a run for his money. There are gang hits, conspiracies, and full out urban chaos and it becomes amazing watching it all progress. Hell, I found myself rooting for the gangsters to win! No lives are spared and people don't miraculously dive out of the way of bullets. Mixed with a great soundtrack and some great character designs, Gungrave is raw, gritty and, after finishing it, it even offers hope of brighter days.

Gungrave is a brilliant anime. The construction of the story, the characters, and the motifs/themes are all outstanding. When I watched this anime I was addicted after the 3rd episode because of the story and characters. The anime plays like a revenge tragedy, a Doctor Faustus of sorts. Except the way the story is told is all jumbled up which reflects back on the mind of the character Beyond the Grave. The entire anime reflects the mind of Beyond the Grave and in the end we understand and know who he is even if his actions sometimes confuse us. By doing this we see the past that lead Beyond the Grave to revenge in the same way that he remembers the past. We learn with Beyond the Grave what cause The Organization to become corrupt. And the evolution of the human psych drives us to watch further and deeper understand the relationship between the characters. These characters raise questions, motifs, and themes that make the viewer realize that The Organization is more complicated than the mafia may have first looked. Motivation for sins, for betrayal, and loyalty are core concepts in this anime and by the end there will be more questions than answers. But the anime closes as nicely as it unraveled with the story clear but the implications of the story sticking with the viewer long after it is over.

So far all of that is outstanding but the anime does falter in the actual animation. There are times where the animation feels forced or awkward. That being said it hardly takes away from the experience and will probably be only a slight annoyance in the beginning

Overall I gave Gungrave a 10/10 because all together the simplicity and precision of the anime overall the slight imperfections.

This is one of my favourite anime's. The first episode throws you in a battlefield in the middle of the anime. A big gunfight with no introduction at all. In fact the anime really starts with the second episode. Slowly you'll get introduced to the characters and the organization. After you've watched half of the episodes of Gungrave you'll start to see things of the first episodes. Slowly you'll build up to the situation of the first episode.

!Do note that the first episode isn't the last episode as well. The story goes on after that!

+ You really see how the characters change and the situation. That has been done outstanding by the creators of this anime + It's an intense story. When you watch the anime, you feel like you are in fact IN the anime

• AND + The first episode should've been deleted. Puts some people on the wrong track. Although after watching the first episode I decided to watch Gungrave.

No Doubt, one of my favourite anime series I ever watched. A class. Definitely, one of the best.

There are very few films that have touched me as deeply as this anime series. It is unfortunate that this series isn't more well known. Everything about it is terrific. The story, voice acting, music, and animation is excellent. I have to say that the ending to Gungrave is hands down, the best ending to an anime series I have seen. It broke my heart and pieced it back together all at the same time. There is also the themes explored through this series mainly dealing with loyalty, love, and friendship that is expressed so well in this series. I greatly recommend this series to anyone who loves anime. It's definitely worth it.