27 Jul 2008, 6:10 pm
Has anyone else heard of this anime?
Based on a series of light novels in Japan, Baccano!, Italian for "stupid commotion" or "ruckus," features three plotlines running simultaneously, with tons of different characters and subplots running into each other and eventually connecting up as the story progresses. In Prohibition-era America, centuries-old immortal alchemists live amongst and work within warring mafia families; a state-of-the-art cross-continental train makes its first voyage with a psychopathic assassin, fanatical terrorists, surprisingly resourceful juvenile delinquents, two idiot thieves, and an unseen monster aboard; and a young girl searches for her no-good brother, who mysteriously disappeared two years ago at the hands of one of his many enemies. Though confusing at first what with the large cast and non-linear storytelling, the plotlines eventually converge and explain the people within them as a whole. The show went for 13 episodes, with three extra OVA episodes that were released on DVD.
This show was the best mix of everything. While it certainly isn't for the faint-hearted, possibly rivaling Elfen Lied in terms of gore, it has enough light-hearted absurdity to counteract it and make it far from a depressing watch. The characters, even some of those who cross the line numerous times, are enjoyable to watch and easy to like, and without there being a main character, nearly everyone gets a chance to shine at some point. There aren't any Aspies, at least as far as I can tell, but the cast is just so full of lovable oddballs that this can hardly be counted against it. It's definitely an improvement on some of the more brainless anime in the vein of Naruto that have come to define the genre recently.
Fansubs are available on Veoh.com and similar sites, but since Funimation has recently announced that they're going to dub it, it's unknown how long they'll be available.
Enjoy, or feel free to discuss if you've already seen it!
27 Jul 2008, 11:43 pm
29 Jul 2008, 1:53 am
