Boku dake ga inai mači

It's been a long time since a serious anime caught my attention like this. Everyone seems to see their own thing in it, but I found it quite deep, with an interesting central character who managed to keep her cool and try to save what she could. I also especially liked the symbolism of the color red. When the going got tough, red just figured in there. Not to mention that the opening and ending themes were entertaining and I listened to them every time. But what impressed me most of all – the well done ending. I really liked the ending, and I'm glad they stuck to the subject matter. A weaker 5 stars. (02.04.2016)

Life was strange. An honest storm of emotions that nostalgically recalls childhood, while also having plenty of everyday educational or family tangents (which sometimes make us long for them most painfully). In the realm of memories and friendships, the series is almost flawless; though unfortunately it suffers in the whodunit aspect. The story only returns to this occasionally, while at the same time not wanting to avoid the obligatory confrontation with the culprit. Such inevitability is not directly a disadvantage for me, perhaps just a necessity that I could do without. Nevertheless, Erased is somewhat surprisingly a work for all potential viewers: for mystery lovers, for nostalgics, and for those who, like me, want to drown themselves in the endless possibilities of what could have been and possibly was. (17.06.2020)

After watching Sword Art Online, I had considerable doubts about Tomohiko Itō’s abilities, then after watching the first season of Silver Spoon, I subtly resorted to the opinion that perhaps it was only in the case of SAO that this director had taken on somewhat unfortunate material, and after watching Erased, I am definitively inclined toward the latter opinion; convinced that I could give the same material, had it been produced by other directors and studios, a mere one star without much hesitation. Ito proves here that even from a dubious chaotic subject matter of a wannabe psychological, wannabe sci-fi and wannabe detective story, he can create a well-composed whole narrative and present the audience with a show that, although working with characters who are not always logical in their reasoning and do not always have plausible motivations, nevertheless makes the characters likable to watch. Although the show gradually bears more narrative illogicalities caused by the wobbly rules of time travel, it still manages to somehow hold itself together, and which – though it reveals the killer’s identity very clearly really early on – does not kill the suspense, but on the contrary works with it excellently, manages to engage the audience’s attention quite skillfully until the end, and is very well animated and voiced to boot. In the future, I would like to see Itō and the main screenwriter create an original work, independent of any predetermined subject matter, where they could fully showcase their creative abilities. After all, he is a brilliant director, and even from a material with many holes and silly mistakes in it, he was able to create a piece of work that at the very least is worthy of a strong 3 stars. (25.03.2016)

"Save the cheerleader, save the world!" those were the exact words that came to my mind after the first episode, although I have to say, I felt the same as I did when Hiro Nakamura spoke them in Heroes. I probably watched the most impressive first episode of this season when they introduced us to the main character - a twenty-nine-year-old guy with an identity crisis searching for himself, and I quickly grew incredibly fond of him. It has a fascinating narrative with a great storyline that I just loved and looked forward to discovering more about. I looked forward to each new episode of the first season of the Heroes when it was still good. The only question after such an experience was: "Are the anime's creators able to maintain these standards?". After all, the first episode was impressive, suspenseful, real, and original. Sure, some episodes are not as intense as the first one was, even though they still have something to offer. The main male protagonist is still quite believable, and what is going on around him is still very interesting. Even in the middle, it managed to surprise, and even though you think you know who the suspect is, there are still questions. I was quite afraid of the ending; I have experienced many times before that the very end can spoil everything. Furthermore, my fears grew when I learned that the anime's creators deviated from the manga in the last two episodes (which almost always means big trouble). After that realization, I quickly became familiar with the manga and read it in a couple of hours in one sitting, and I was sorry that the ending was not going to be the same in the anime series. I wanted the same conclusion because the final confrontation is very good in the manga. The anime series worked even though it had a short running time and not much screen time, and I was doubtful even before the last episode. However, in the end, it worked out perfectly! The conclusion of the anime series is full of drama, is unpredictable, and has a very pleasant denouement that I liked and made me feel satisfied. The final confrontation was also good and was perhaps even deeper than in the manga, though again, everything was better developed. My last impression is excellent, and I enjoyed watching it. Erased is a wonderful adaptation of an awesome manga and definitely a highlight of this year's releases. 10/10. (07.01.2016)