Okay then, as promised, here are my thoughts on Witchblade. I tried to keep things as spoiler-free as possible since you’re all going to be watching it soon. Yes you are. Still, there are a couple minor spoilers in here, so if you absolutely don’t want to ruin this wonderful show, do yourself a favor and stop reading now.

Witchblade

The Characters

First off, Masane is an amazing protagonist. She’s strong-willed, personable, likable, dedicated, and very, very believable. Your heart really does go out to her every time something bad happens to her (and yes, a lot of bad things happen to her in the show, unfortunately). Her daughter Rihoko is also extremely believable and likable; the bond they share is so strong you can practically feel it yourself. Masane’s absolute selflessness when it comes to her daughter is enough to make you value their relationship and recognize the strength of their bond.

There were plenty of other great characters too. Takayama played the role of hard-nosed businessman excellently, and when we finally do learn more about his character as the show progresses, you begin to realize how many burdens he’s carrying. The fact that he can carry them all without complaining says a lot about the strength of his character. When that impenetrable barrier around his heart begins to crumble, you start to see what a nice guy he really is.

Maria was also really well-done. She was…creepy? Psycho? Completely out of her frigging mind? None of these terms seem to describe her quite right, but you get the general idea. She seriously creeped me out, which is what good villains are supposed to do. And as I’ve said before in the past, the best villains are the ones whom you despise for their evil ways while still being able to sympathize with them. Maria was maniacal and dangerous, but I saw where she was coming from; she did everything she did because she wanted her mother to love her. Though she pursued this goal by doing horrible things, her intentions were relatable. That’s what made her such a good villain.

I could go on and on about the other great characters — Tozawa, Wadou, Father, Reina, Chou, etc. — but you get the idea. Excellent characters.

Witchblade

The Plot

Sweet Jesus. “Roller coaster ride” doesn’t even begin to describe it. Every freaking episode, the show throws something else at you that just crushes your spirit. Just when you think things couldn’t possibly get any worse, they do. Masane has so many challenges and burdens and responsibilities thrust upon her, but she keeps fighting on regardless because she is determined to protect her daughter at all costs. Everything just keeps building up and up until the final episode reaches its crescendo. As I’ve mentioned before, this show made me cry twice — once in episode 13 and once in the final episode. That says something about how powerful the plot is.

The Action

Yay fight scenes! The fight scenes in this show are indeed plentiful, but none of them ever feel extraneous; they all happen for a reason and never wander into the realm of “hey, let’s throw a fight scene in here just because we haven’t had one in a while.” Plus, there’s always a certain degree of sadness associated with each fight scene because you eventually learn that activating the Witchblade steals a bit of Masane’s life — the more she fights, the sooner she’ll die. Nevertheless, each battle is exciting, and while Masane doesn’t win all of them, she manages to kick ass and look stylish every time.

The Music

There were some really good tracks in this show, especially near the second half. Some of the music sounds kind of odd at first because they incorporate things like heartbeats and breathing noises to act as the beat of the tune, but somehow they manage to make it work. Nothing brings out the emotion of a scene better than a good piece of music, and Witchblade has plenty of good music.

Witchblade

The Ending

Oh. My. God.

The Pace

You ever watch a show that starts off fast-paced but loses steam and just kind of putters out near the end? Or it starts off unbearably slow and only gets interesting in the final few episodes? Well, Witchblade manages to keep things moving at a good pace the whole time. They also do a great job of revealing information to the viewers a little bit at a time so we won’t get overwhelmed. That’s another reason why I like Takayama so much: he knows everything, but he reveals it all to Masane (and, by extension, the viewers) piece by piece.

That covers most of the main things. It’s an excellent show all-around, and I hope I haven’t set your expectations too high. I’ve been trying to decide whether it’s my new favorite anime or not, but Gurren Lagann doesn’t seem to want to give up that position easily. I’ll reach a decision eventually, though.

And, once again, if you want to watch Witchblade (and I know you do), here’s the link.

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