Video Version:
Science fiction is one of the most flexible genres in existence. There are so many creative ideas and messages that can be conveyed through science fiction, whether the story is about a future dystopia or in outer space. However, despite all of these creative opportunities, there are many science fiction stories that don’t actually try to say anything meaningful about their own subject matter. Instead, they opt for the “easy route”, rehashing old ideas and conforming to popular opinions. This is a problem that has also carried over into anime, unfortunately. Most science fiction stories in this medium feature mechs, rip off other ideas, or decide to use the concepts for the sake of comedy. While these don’t automatically make a show bad (ex. Patema Inverted, Waiting in the Summer), I can’t help but feel sad that the uniqueness of the genre has been lost somewhere. Sure, we’ve got brilliance like Ergo Proxy, Paprika, and Steins;Gate, but they’re the diamonds in the rough. This takes us to the topic of this review: Shinsekai Yori. This was a show that had received massive praise from the community for being the most original science fiction story in years (at least, from the small minority that actually watched it). So, I decided to give it a shot. Is Shinsekai Yori as groundbreaking as I was lead to believe, or was it a failure? Sit back, relax, and read on as I review Shinsekai Yori, or From The New World (for the sake of efficiency, from now on I’ll be referring to the show as Shinsekai).
The Setup:
Shinsekai takes place in a version of Japan that takes place around a thousand years into the future. Over time, humans have evolved, and now contain “Power”, which is a form of telekinesis. The people living there live peacefully in their “utopian” society (cough cough), using humanoid rats known as “Monster Rats” to do their labor for them. The show stars five children: Saki, Satoru, Shun, Mamarou, and Maria. We follow them as they grow up, discovering more about their seemingly perfect society and learning more about themselves in the process. Yes, this section was left incredibly vague, and yes, this was intentional. I went into this show pretty much blind, and that’s how I believe you should watch it too. The setup is quite unique, combining the supernatural with science fiction in such a distinctive way. Granted, it doesn’t sound like a huge epic story, but that’s not the point of Shinsekai; the anime, instead, opts for a more subtle narrative…maybe a little too subtle in some areas.
 |
| The story takes place in a world where people can use telekinesis, known as "Power" |
The Characters:
I think I’ve stated numerous times previously that I prefer a character driven narrative over a story driven narrative. My reasoning behind this is because, if you don’t care about the characters, then why should you care about the story they’re going through? Unfortunately, the characters of Shinsekai are very lackluster, though there are a few exceptions. Firstly, there’s Saki, the main character of the entire story. She’s one of the better characters of the story and does go through very good character development, but her characterization, at least initially, is weak. She’s kind, naïve, and selfless, but her mental state is incredibly stable. That’s…kind of it. Though, her character development, as stated earlier, is excellent. Her naïvety fades over time, and she becomes more aware of her surroundings and the consequences of her actions. Not to mention how perfectly her development is tied into the story, which is absolutely astounding. This made her gradually more likable as the show progressed, but that still doesn’t excuse her somewhat bland personality. Next there’s Satoru, who’s my favorite out of the five main characters. Not to spoil the progression of the story, but seeing how he changes as he grows older is very interesting to watch. He starts off as a carefree jokester, then gradually evolves into someone who takes his morals and companions seriously as he becomes an adult. Next, there’s Shun. I felt like he was one of the weaker characters, but that’s due to his role in the story…which I won’t spoil…but I will say that this development does tie into the story, so it’s somewhat excusable. Then, there’s Mamarou and Maria. Mamarou’s very weak-minded and shy, while Maria is outgoing, kind, jocular, and considerate. While, again, they do tie into the story wonderfully, it was hard for me to truly care about them because their characterization was somewhat lackluster. They were still likable enough, but I wouldn’t call them favorites of mine. The other characters are fine, but then there’s one standout that I can’t talk about because spoilers. Let’s just say that, in the latter third especially, he is a very interesting and multi-dimensional villain that I actually ended up sympathizing with, which is something a villain hasn’t been able to make me do in quite some time. Overall, while there are no characters that I would consider worthless, it was hard for me to make a connection with the majority of them, which is a huge flaw for me.
 |
| From left to right: Saki, Shun, Maria, Satoru, Mamarou |
The Story:
From the way I criticized the characters, you’d think that I hated this anime. Well, let me change that mindset and now I finally get to praise this show. Shinsekai’s story is absolutely phenomenal, and needs to be recognized as one of the best in the medium of anime. The world building and lore is fantastic, creating an intriguing and fleshed-out setting that always had me wondering what the show will do with it next. The pacing is slightly problematic, but in all honesty it never bothered me too much. However, the best part of the story is its structure and how it foreshadows everythingusing excellent subtlety. I love how the decisions the characters make in this show don’t always face repercussions until later on in the story, and the usage of time skips is very tasteful (unlike some other shows). The foreshadowing is unparalleled, and unfortunately I can’t explain why because of SPOILERS (it’s the nature of foreshadowing, what do you expect?). Then there are the themes. Oh, how I love the themes! The story has the typical, like the values of friendship and family, but then it has the atypical, like stereotyping, racism, narrow-mindedness, and how important it is to be a nonconformist. It reminds me of The Giver, in a sense, because the characters are brought to believe that their society is perfect when it is anything but. I should also probably mention that, unlike most anime, this anime was actually based off of a book. No, not a light novel, an actual book. No wonder it’s written so well. The only other anime I’ve heard of that’s a book adaptation is Another, which I haven’t seen but haven’t heard the greatest things about. Interesting, no? Finally, there's the ending. The ending is perfect. It's very beautiful, satisfying, wraps up all lose ends, and made me come close to crying. That is a feat.
 |
| The story is plain phenomenal |
The Animation/Sound:
Ugh, we have to go back to criticism, don’t we? Produced by A-1 Pictures, the animation is…and believe me, I hate saying this...rather poor, especially since this is coming from a studio that is practically known for its animation. I may not like Sword Art Online or Saekano, but something I can’t deny is that they were animated pretty well. Speaking of, guess what anime aired at around the same time as Shinsekai and got the budget that Shinsekai deserved? Sword Art Online! I’m sorry, but it just angers me that A-1 obviously cared more about a show that they knew was going to be successful and make them tons of money than a show that has wonderful messages and some of the best writing I’ve ever seen. Onto the actual animation, the lack of shadowing on the characters makes them look rather flat, and the lack of coloring on the character designs makes everything look rather dull. The motions are somewhat clunky, but do look nice when needed. The character designs are pretty unique, but again, they look really flat without various colors and shadows. The backgrounds look decent, with some nice detail and atmosphere, but it’s nothing to write home about. The lighting does look really good at points, and the usage of silhouettes and contrast in color did astound me at points…when it’s not overdone. In episodes 5 and 10, a guest director handled the project, and those episodes have some of the worst animation I’ve ever seen period. The textures were weird, the character designs were changed, and the cinematography was terrible. Everything was unnecessarily zoomed up on, to the point where you can’t even tell what’s happening. Anyway, let’s move on to sound. The OST is quite good. I love how it makes everything sound so ethereal and ominous, using a variety of instruments and creepy child choirs. My favorite songs will be featured below. There are actually no opening songs, which is rare, but there are two ending songs. My favorite by far is the first ending. The song is so catchy and calming, and the animation is beautiful. The second ending is fine, and worth a listen. Finally, should you watch it in Japanese or English? I watched it in Japanese because I don’t particularly like Sentai dubs, so I can safely say that the Japanese dub is very solid. I have to give props to Yuki Kaji (Satoru), Risa Taneda (Saki), and Daisuke Namikawa (Squealer) for their wonderful performances as their respective characters, especially the latter third. If you want to watch it in English, go ahead, but it wasn’t for me.
Ending #1:
 |
| The animation can be brilliant at points, but is mostly pretty bad |
Final Judgment:
I’m going to say something that you probably won’t expect, considering how harsh this review was at points: I love this anime. Yes, it has major flaws in nearly every category except in its story, but I still love it to pieces. And it’s for reasons I can’t quite explain. Normally, I can’t get myself to like stories that don’t have fantastic characters, but rules are made to be broken, I guess. Maybe it’s because every time it gets something right, it nails it right on the head. Besides, you know that you truly love a show when you’d readily admit to its flaws, but still love the show nevertheless. At least, that’s what I believe, anyway. I give Shinsekai Yori a 3.75 out of 5, and a recommendation to check it out. It may be flawed, but it’s worth watching despite that. But, like always, it’s up to you to decide your own opinions.
ScoreCard:
Recommendations:
.jpg)
Ergo Proxy
Steins;Gate
I’ll be announcing what my next review will be during my February Special introduction. See you then!
