The Grimm Variations

The first episode is perfect bait to keep you watching. A new perspective on the original story and characters. It's a representation of what this series should be. All the remaining chapters use almost only the names of the stories and characters. In them, it seems like they did it not to produce a variation, but to push the concept as much as they could from the original. And the places they bring the stories just feel forced.

'Cinderella' is so good. 'Little Red Riding Hood' and 'The Elves and the Shoemaker' had good ideas for the subtext in which they wanted to shift the focus of the story, but they could not implement it very well. In the remaining three, they simply threw story ideas at the audience that they thought would look cool, without giving them any serious thought.

I think they handled a child abuse element very wrongly in the last story, and that bothered me most.

I actually started this series for background sounds. But the first episode hooked me in. It was simple of a Cinderella story but with a twist. The second episode was everything! Finally a show with all the gore and craziness of a MA show needed. The 3rd episode is what I wished Promise Neverland could of been. The Elves and the shoemaker episode was very interesting. Fun mystery type of episode. The town musical episode wasn't that great but it was nice to watch. The Pied Piper was a great story with a silver lining ending.

Each had their own message and stories. Some can say it's a 'Black Mirror' but in anime sort of way.

I hope there are more episodes to come out from this!

CLAMP collab? Definitely here for it. The artwork is lovely, the character designs are whimsical, the Pied Piper episode was stretching into Ghibli-esque territory with their visuals, and some of the themes and elements were downright chilling.

First episode sets you up thinking everything will have this subversive twist. The last episode almost does the same thing, but you are more along for the ride on the subversion train rather than blindsided by it.

But none of the other episodes reach a satisfying level of "unexpected," instead, leaving you with a feeling of wondering what it was trying to represent. The source fairy tales themselves already had their moral lessons and with rare exception, it didn't present any "variation" to the tales or moral lessons. Much of it felt like an artist's rendition of an already known work. Not a copy, but how they see it. And while that can be appreciated for what it is, I felt dissatisfied, wishing it was for the reason of wanting more. But I didn't.

I was presented with a six-course meal and while I didn't leave the table hungry, none of the dishes were anything I would necessarily order again.

I found this series to be very refreshing. Many fairy tale shows and movies today either adhere closely to Disney's versions or the Grimm dark tales, word for word. So, I enjoyed not only the stunning visuals but also the fact that I wasn't watching the same old fairy tale I've seen and heard a million times. Even if the stories are a bit confusing at times, I feel like I understand them by the end, and I gain something from each one. This series also doesn't just rely on horror or being as messed up as possible. It is more mature, for sure, but I know not every ending is going to be super dark. There are happy, sad, and even horrific endings, and each one is written beautifully. So, I don't feel like it needs to be gory to hold my interest. If you want a new, mature, or interesting take on old fairy tales, you should watch this, because I'm sure at least one of these endings will move you and leave you pondering the world each story takes place in, and how the story continues.

After viewing the first season, I'm hooked on this Netflix anime series! This series offers captivating reinterpretations of six Grimm Brothers' fairy tales, each presented in distinct genres. But wait a minute. The Grimms didn't write "The Pied Piper of Hamelin." Anyway, in the beginning of each episode, the brothers and Charlotte, their younger sister, appear.

In my estimation, the most exceptional segments of the series feature a western science fiction adaptation of "The Bremen Town Musicians," in which the animal protagonists are human females. I agree with the anime fans who have seen the series. CLAMP, the creators of "Card Captor Sakura" and "X/1999," originated the concept art for the series, and I love it.

I really enjoy this series because I love fairy tales, though I'm 38 years old, and also because CLAMP's one of my favorite manga artists. So, that's all I have to say about this anime.