C the Money of Soul and Possibility of Control, aside from having rhymetastic name, really left me in an odd situation. On the one hand it's probably one of, if not the most interesting premises I've seen out of the shounen genre. Basically there exists a dimension parallel to our own called the financial district. Here people called Entres wager their future as collateral to gamble for wealth beyond their wildest dreams. Enter Kimiyaro Yoga, a college student working his way to a degree in economics, and not, as his name might imply, a spiritual discipline practiced for health and relaxation. After being approached by what looks like the estranged child of Johnny Depp and Willy Wonka, Yoga is thrust into a world were his very future is put at risk. If that wasn't enough it's got a killer soundtrack by Taku Iwasawa, of Gurren Lagann fame, a stunning world design, a great opening and ending, as well as some good character design. So why aren't I screaming words of praise at my laptop while windmilling my arms erratically? Well, whose to say I'm not? The voice in my head, of course.
What surprised me most about the anime was just how much I loved the world. It isn't like I'd vacation there or anything, but the fact that whenever I was dragged from the financial district back into the real world I would be doing so kicking and screaming, is telling. The art style of this place alone sold me, and return visits boasted some of the more interesting creature designs I've seen since Evangelion. The fight scenes, carry the same dream-like quality, and are a treat for the eyes with no exception. Of course that carries two heavy caveats; a metric ton of CG and the fight scenes themselves occurring with frequency of a blue moon on the day the planets aline. Personally I found the CG, while not a good as Gatchaman (another of the studio's productions), to be pretty harmless—never taking away from the visual spectacle. Be warned this anime is a lot of talking, and while there's enough to distract yourself with in the surreal Financial District, the same cannot be said about the real world.
While the premise is the coolest thing next to a clever analogy related to Spike Spiegel, the plotline itself made as much sense as...the premise, I guess. This really comes down to exposition. I'm seventeen and though I am the son of an economist, I'm not going to pretend like I know how the global or Japanese economic system works. Let me just say that either the anime pulls an Eva at the end or... no there's no 'or'. While the anime had been mostly a well done character study/ action show, the last three or so episodes throw everything and the kitchen sink at you. We get an 'I am your father', space-time technobable that only makes sense until you think about it, and, if I cared about the main character, a really unsatisfying ending. If someone wants to fill me in on this, drop a comment or something. I am genuinely curious!
The summary of the character section is practically identical to a harem anime. Seriously, what is the purpose of the male character in a harem anime? To introduce us to a set of much more interesting characters (and subconsciously or consciously project ourselves onto that lucky bastard) and show a side of them that wouldn't be seen if it were a k-on clone. Yoga is nothing if not a doorway into the exotic realm of the financial distract. He also acts as a way of introducing us to characters who are infinitely more interesting than our main. Speaking of which, the side characters are really goddamn interesting. None of them feel phoned in, even the creep in the first episode—a character who has about a minute of lines—has enough characterization to make me feel something for him. The villain in particular makes for a very interesting breakdown of what one might mistake as the money grubbing CEO. What really surprised me was a certain character who forces the main character to come to realizations about how his actions have consequences. I won't say more because then I'd be delving into the depths of spoilers, but it was by far my favorite part of this series.
Finally we come to sound, which is the other part of the series I have no qualms calling fantastic. The soundtrack combined with the animation never failed to leave me at an emotional high after any fight scene, and made up for some of the slower moments. The opening is by NICO Touches The Walls, who are quickly becoming a favorite of mine, and showcases a really cool animation sequence. The anime is right up there with Eden of the East in terms of endings, which coincidentally has the same band behind it, School Food Punishment. Oh and the voice acting's good.
Would I recommend it? I'll answer with a definitive maybe. C is an anime I enjoyed. I enjoyed it because of its world building techniques, the off-the-wall aesthetic, interesting side characters, soundtrack and some of the plot. The ending screws things up, but not, for me at least, enough to ruin the experience.
Thanks for reading! A like, follow, spreading the word or anything of the sort is always appreciated!
What surprised me most about the anime was just how much I loved the world. It isn't like I'd vacation there or anything, but the fact that whenever I was dragged from the financial district back into the real world I would be doing so kicking and screaming, is telling. The art style of this place alone sold me, and return visits boasted some of the more interesting creature designs I've seen since Evangelion. The fight scenes, carry the same dream-like quality, and are a treat for the eyes with no exception. Of course that carries two heavy caveats; a metric ton of CG and the fight scenes themselves occurring with frequency of a blue moon on the day the planets aline. Personally I found the CG, while not a good as Gatchaman (another of the studio's productions), to be pretty harmless—never taking away from the visual spectacle. Be warned this anime is a lot of talking, and while there's enough to distract yourself with in the surreal Financial District, the same cannot be said about the real world.
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| The CGIIIIII |
The summary of the character section is practically identical to a harem anime. Seriously, what is the purpose of the male character in a harem anime? To introduce us to a set of much more interesting characters (and subconsciously or consciously project ourselves onto that lucky bastard) and show a side of them that wouldn't be seen if it were a k-on clone. Yoga is nothing if not a doorway into the exotic realm of the financial distract. He also acts as a way of introducing us to characters who are infinitely more interesting than our main. Speaking of which, the side characters are really goddamn interesting. None of them feel phoned in, even the creep in the first episode—a character who has about a minute of lines—has enough characterization to make me feel something for him. The villain in particular makes for a very interesting breakdown of what one might mistake as the money grubbing CEO. What really surprised me was a certain character who forces the main character to come to realizations about how his actions have consequences. I won't say more because then I'd be delving into the depths of spoilers, but it was by far my favorite part of this series.
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| The image speaks for itself—which is why I'm writing this... |
Finally we come to sound, which is the other part of the series I have no qualms calling fantastic. The soundtrack combined with the animation never failed to leave me at an emotional high after any fight scene, and made up for some of the slower moments. The opening is by NICO Touches The Walls, who are quickly becoming a favorite of mine, and showcases a really cool animation sequence. The anime is right up there with Eden of the East in terms of endings, which coincidentally has the same band behind it, School Food Punishment. Oh and the voice acting's good.
Would I recommend it? I'll answer with a definitive maybe. C is an anime I enjoyed. I enjoyed it because of its world building techniques, the off-the-wall aesthetic, interesting side characters, soundtrack and some of the plot. The ending screws things up, but not, for me at least, enough to ruin the experience.
Thanks for reading! A like, follow, spreading the word or anything of the sort is always appreciated!
