KANNAGI: CRAZY SHRINE MAIDENS
Another reason why atheism is so appealing
Review by: Craig “Spiritus Sancti” Norris
Length: 13 episodes
Genre: Supernatural, romance, slice of life
Watched: All, subbed
I’m always on the lookout for anime with goddesses in them. After all, one such series produced the love of my life (and I’m only half joking about that). But after such lofty standards have been set, how can an anime possibly produce anything that comes close to the perfection that is Belldandy? I was hoping this series held the answer.
It didn’t.
Plot synopsis: For his school art project, Jin Mikuriya carves a statue from a piece of a sacred tree that had been felled. To his surprise, out of the statue springs Nagi, a girl who claims to be the spirit of the tree that was cut down. Having no other place to go, Nagi begins living with Jin and sets about the task of removing bug-shaped impurities from the land. However, their life together is constantly interrupted by Jin’s childhood friend Tsugumi, Jin’s fellow art club members, and Nagi’s sister Zange.
Artwork: One aspect of the animation that struck me is how fluidly the characters moved. Not one frame is spared as each character is articulated as seamlessly as if they were real people. The backgrounds have a somewhat dusty, worn-out appearance compared to the sharply-rendered character designs. This provides a contrast that is a bit difficult to get used to, but is not a significant hindrance. The art is at least on par with other contemporary series, and even exceeds them in some respects.
Music: Considering the genre and the series length, I wasn’t expecting a great soundtrack, and this anime did not exceed those mild expectations. The opening/ending follows a standard formula, with the opening being bouncy J-pop and the ending being a somber ballad. In-episode stuff is nothing to get excited about. It’s standard, it’s okay, it’s there.
Characters: The story revolves (as it so often does) around the nondescript male lead, Jin. He is very stressed out about Nagi living under the same roof with him, and is often frustrated by her antics. He has the ability to handle impurities that Nagi must destroy; something that normal humans cannot do. Jin also gets involved in misadventures with the art club, including ghost stories, karaoke, and rumors of illicit relationships. Nagi finds that, because there is no more sacred tree to anchor her powers to the land, her powers are at a low level, and she needs Jin’s help to exterminate the impurities. In order to gain more power, she must gather followers; therefore she attempts to become a popular net idol. Also, Nagi knows that she has spiritual responsibilities, but she is unsure exactly why, or what her true purpose is. Tsugumi is Jin’s childhood friend who has been entrusted with looking after Jin, due to his father being away the majority of the time. Predictably, Tsugumi begins to see Jin as more than a friend, and predictably again, Jin is totally ignorant of her feelings. Tsugumi is very leery of Nagi living with Jin, even though Nagi was able to convince her that she is Jin’s half-sister. Zange is Nagi’s sister, and chief rival for the attentions of the people in town. Because Zange’s tree is intact and she has no earthly vessel, she possesses a girl named Hakua. Hakua allegedly allowed this to happen because she believes Zange can get her close to Jin, whom she has a crush on. However, Zange also wants Jin’s attention, mainly because she wants to pry him away from Nagi. The plot may involve divine beings, but the characters are suited for little else than a standard school drama.
Plot: This is a tricky section to analyze, because there is actually very little plot. There’s a bit of time devoted to several things: Jin and Nagi learning to live together, Nagi’s true identity, the finding and destruction of impurities, Zange trying to out-compete Nagi, and Tsugumi trying to get Jin to notice her feelings. However, none of these could be considered central issues. Instead of being held together by a central plot, the anime is a collection of vignettes that have little in common aside from the characters. The plot is disorganized, and generally uninteresting.
CHICKS!: The chicks in this series are about as uninteresting as the plot. Nagi, more often than not, comes across as baggage, and never does anything or develops to a point where she could be considered truly desirable. Zange seems to be conniving and contemptuous of her sister, despite her veneer of offering help to the public at large. She may be cute, but my guess is she would eat your heart after she stole it. In a very rare scenario, this anime features the token childhood friend that actually overshadows the supernatural characters in terms of desirability. She seems to be the only one that conveys a genuine care and concern for Jin, and as such makes her the only one worth paying attention to as far as I’m concerned. When the top chick is the normally shoved-in-the-back-of-the-closet childhood friend, it speaks volumes about the overall dearth of chick quality.
Overall: It’s usually very hard to get excited about an anime where nothing really happens, and this one is no exception. There’s nothing holding the romantic tension, introspection, and random magic together, and after 13 episodes I couldn’t help but feel a bit cheated. Like a sandwich without meat, a frame without a picture, or a schoolgirl without white cotton panties, there’s a lot missing from this anime that leaves one feeling very unfulfilled.
IN A NUTSHELL
+ Great artwork
- Characters don’t match plot
- Not much plot anyway
- Not very interesting
Rating: 4/10
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