Elfen Lied: ANIME REVIEW

How do you pronounce this anime's title? Is it /leid or /leed or /lead? There are a lot of people arguing about this. It is even a discussion topic on My Anime List. My answer: This anime's title takes its name from a German song that is featured in it. That's why, in my opinion, we should stick to the German pronunciation which would be /elfen leed, and when you translate it into English you get the title of the anime I am reviewing today, "Elve's Song". But because Elve's Song sounds kinda strange I'll keep on saying Elfen Lied. 

 Plot and Story Line 

Imagine now you live in a world where mutated homosapien beings called Diclonius exist. Sounds really creepy but looks so amazing and epic. Still, creepy. Exactly this describes the setting of Elfen Lied. It is dark, it is frightening yet good. One of the most important things that has to be said is that this anime does not lack in brutality and bloodshed. You really should not watch this with your younger brother or sister. This show is even worse than Tokyo Ghoul. Produced by "Arms" this anime hasn't been censored, not even a little bit. The result:  "poorly dressed character scenes", violence and blood everywhere. I actually got used to that while watching anime, but I still have to close my eyes at one point: Beating up children, or "children like beings". I really can't stand that one. But what is the story behind Elfen Lied now?

Everything starts with Dicloniuses. As I said in the beginning they are mutated homosapiens, but that's not all. They are said to be selected by God, and will eventually one day lead to the destruction of all mankind. What's more, they have a pair of horns, but not creepy ones. They actually look like cute, little cat ears. The thing that makes this creatures so terrifying is their "sixth sense" which gives them telekinetic abilities. One of those Dicloniuses manages to break free from the laboratory where they have been captured. Lucy, the fled diclonius, murders most of the guards on her way out and becomes also shout in her head. Next time she wakes up, she finds her self naked on the beach, unable to remember anything. The only thing she is repeating is "Nyu". That's when two teenagers, Kouta and Yuka find her and take her to their house. Yeah, why not take a strange girl, with cat ears on her head that is just saying "Nyu" to your home? That will probably be fun. And it was, for me, not for them. Not at all. 

Now to make some points about the plot and story. 

Firstly, Elfen Lied's main story line is in the past. That's the focus of the story. And I have to say that it is very interesting despite the mainly poor present-plot-development. The way the retrospective story keeps you on tenterhooks the whole time  is amazing. You just can't stop and the number of thirteen episodes is perfect. 

Secondly, Elfen Lied also turns into a love story from time to time. Into an annoying love story if I may add. At one side you have a boy and a monster he was in love with when they were kids. But you can't love or live with a mutant, can you? On the other side you have a bossy-older-sister-acting girl that is also in love with that boy. Now he is kinda being torn apart between those two. Sort out your priorities Boy! 
When it comes to the genres this anime belongs to, you have a couple of them: Action, Horror, Drama, Romance, Supernatural, Seinen and Psychological. Let's focus on this Psychological because after Horror I'd say that this is the genre Elfen Lied belongs to the most. As in many Anime before you have the inner fight of a person. The good and the bad person are all the time in conflict. In our case you have the cute, little Nyu and the creepy Lucy. Now I think that Nyu also stands for the cute little Lucy she was before and the calm, lovely Lucy she can be sometimes. I don't know why but I'm starting to love these psychological fights more and more. Still I believe that everyone has two personalities inside, and don't say that you can hide or control the other one. 
Now in the end, the thing that makes people love Elfen Lied so much is its uniqueness. You can watch a million of Anime and you won't find a similar one. And despite the not so good developed story line, and a few annoying parts Elfen Lied rocks because it's story is so unique. And one more thing, in short, you really don't want to miss the epicness of action Elfen Lied has.

Characters 

If you looked at LUCY's personality you would say that she is a supportive and not s main character. There is I think not a single thing, except the mutant being, that makes her special. I know this sounds ridiculous but she reminded me of one of that high-school-mean-girls that takes away the boyfriend of the nice girl next door. I found it kinda funny. Still, for a mutant Lucy shows a huge load of emotions and feelings. I also felt really sorry for her in the end, because however she tried she couldn't live the life and be the Lucy she wanted to because of her Diclonicus side. 

Now if these two weren't annoying, than I don't know. KOUTA and YUKA, although being cousins fell in love with each other, or Yuka fell in love with Kouta. I am sure that it was a one-sided romance, because Kouta never stopped loving someone else. He was a guy that didn't know what he actually wants and always tries to make everyone happy but ends up disappointing everyone. She on the other hand, is a bossy character that is too stiff for her age. Stop acting like that, your not his mother girl. But it was always funny to see her being jealous every time Kouta gave Nyu more attention. Being in love sure is difficult. 

 Animation and Style 

Oh my, 2004 was long ago and you can clearly see it at the animation of this anime. It really took me a lot to overcome and start watching Elfen Lied because I hate bad animation. The style is nothing better, just as every other anime of that time. But the dark animation age also has some light points in Elfen Lied. First of all the way the makers presented Lucy's telekinetic abilities was awesome. Invisible hands, I love it. The second thing is definitely the opening. It really describes the atmosphere in the show and the Latin opening theme gives you the extra creep. Here's the Link to the opening. By the way, I love the cover. 

 Conclusion 

To conclude, Elfen Lied is first of all an anime you shouldn't watch if you can't stand blood and brutality, because this anime is rich in both aspects. Next, it may have a poor present-story-development but the background story is very catchy and you won't regret watching it. It is also unique and with 13 episodes full of action loaded fights, you can easily finish it in two days without any problems. I know it is 11 years ago since Elfen Lied appeared but it is still a classic in the Horror-Anime genre.

Your AnimeGirl <3 

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