mable.jacobson - 2016-01-16 22:38:36

Jinrui isn't going to be your favorite anime, but it's going to be one of the most simple and intelligent ones.

vidal.hirthe - 2016-01-03 10:16:17

The phrase humanity is on the verge of extinction for most people conjures up a bleak post apocalyptic setting. Not so much in Jinrui. Jinruis world is a world where humanity is dying out but the world itself is colourful and they are being succeded as a race by silly fairies. The faires are massproducing and at times serves as a personification of humanities mistakes. jinrui is a blend of situational comedy and smart satire. The strange world serves asa setup for some really funny comedic situations and some smart social commentary that is funny in its own way. You can enjoy this show for both while disregarding the other. So if social commentary is not your thing, enjoy it for the comedy. 
The visual quality is nothing that will surprise you much but I have to give them credit for creating such a vibrant and colourful world. The artstyle also deviates from the norms and creates a unqiue style that helps make the world seem more surreal and strange setting. 
The sound and music was done well enough an helped creating the world. Especially the opening was very catchy and one of my favourites. The unexpected choices of some of the tracks in the show also helped in establishing the quirkiness of the world. The voice actors did a good job in making the characters stand out from the little time is devoted to them. The characters dont get much focus until the later half of the show and even then it is the situations they are in that is the main star. Not a person but the fairies as a race deserves the position of best character simply because of the weirdness they create. 
Jinrui is a very enjoyable show with some depth, making it suitable for both newcomers and veterans. One fault I have with the show though is that the quality of the social commentary is very uneven. Some episodes can be very smart in its way of delivering it while some are quite lacking in the presentation and weaker overall. This is no way means I think people should stay away from it since the show is unique in its own way and a must watch for people looking for something special. 
Why not enter the world where humanity has declined yourself?

hessel.dariana - 2015-07-28 03:30:26

Oh god. Where do I even start? It's the most random, most ridiculous, most stupid anime I've ever seen, and I love every second of it.

The plot isn't necessarily too intricate, but it becomes more complicated once you realize that after every arc (1-3 episodes), time goes backwards to before the previous arc.

The animation is extremely colorful and it fits the show perfectly. Same goes for the sound. The ED pretty much sums up the show. Not in terms of lyrics or anything, just how it's abnormal but amazing. 

As for characters, there's really only three that are of importance. The main character, a sarcastic nameless mediator between the human race and the fairies, her assistant, who never talks, and the fairies themselves, who look innocent, but can be surprisingly dark sometimes.

I believe the whole point of the show was to criticize the human race and their habits, especially during the stranded island arc, and the fairies and their civilizations are great at doing that. The show basically satirizes human nature in general, but in a comedic way.

tkshlerin - 2015-06-17 19:40:56

Welcome ladies and gentlemen to my review of Humanity has Declined, let’s get started!

The Story
The story of Humanity has Declined is set in a world where the decrease in birth rates have caused the population of humans to decrease giving rise to “new humans” known as fairies who possess technological advancements. We follow Watashi as an arbiter of sorts between the fairies and the humans as she tries to investigate the fairies and their behaviors which lead to some convoluted adventures. 

The main thing to acknowledge about this title is the fact that this is a comedic satire that pokes fun at humanity, and by doing so it hits upon a bunch aspects from society in a silly yet dark way. Consumerism, religion, the manga industry, exceptionalism and much more are displayed in the anime through multiple 1-2 episode arcs that go back in time as the anime progress which in my opinion adds another layer of uniqueness with its reverse chronological ordering. The events are for the majority of the show absurd between shaved chickens running around headless to a piece of bread pulling a Hitler and killing itself. This anime is very eccentric, and I’m glad as hell that the anime utilizes its weirdness properly.

How is the show as a comedy? For me, the humor was fascinating. Not only was it intelligently written but at times it was very sinister and it cooperated splendidly with the thematic elements of the show without ruining what the anime is attempting to critique. However the show didn’t dig as deep as it could within its themes leaving some of them feeling quite superficial. Also, the world and its setting wasn’t fleshed out sufficiently either, why are there fairies? What caused the decline in birth? All these questions and still no answers which is quite a shame.

With the show’s originality it fabricates a stimulating story that held my attention throughout all of the episodes. The conclusion of the show however was alright, but it tied up our main character’s motivations/characterization very well and even included some minor surprises the show had subtly building up through what some of the characters mentioned in previous dialogue.

The Characters
Watashi as a main lead female role is refreshing due to her detachment from the stereotypical anime archetypes. On the exterior she appears to be pretty, *whispers* to the point where she is on my top 10 waifu list *wink wink* but her cynical, manipulative and sarcastic attitude towards everything is a spellbinding character flaw that brings out some of the best jokes in the series. The way she goes about doing things like procuring information, or messing around with the fairies, or even just her facial reactions are all entertaining as hell to observe. Overall, Watashi as our pessimistic lead character is a blessing with nice as opposed to the standard norm.

The fairies are…. The fairies are…. The fairies are… They’re something else. Their deadpan faces, always smiling no matter if the topic is about persecution, obsessing over sweets, and their mischievous behavior that rivals a child popping a hole in a strange balloon he found on the floor only to realize that his mother got pregnant a few weeks after he popped said balloon. Damn kids, can’t trust them. The fairies are in short weird, they erect societies only to crush them, they react in absurd ways, and follow others blindly, but the petrifying part is the fairies are us. The fairies are an over exaggeration of human society, how we function, develop, digress, think, the fairies though dark and naive are essentially humanity. They are hilarious to watch onscreen as Watashi interacts with them, and as they themselves communicate with each other.

The remainder of the cast is relatively weak with a lack of development amongst some of its cast members, especially from the assistant whom for the majority of the anime is silent. Also more weak characters include a fujoshi lover and Watashi’s grandfather who collects guns just cause. But in their defense they do add a touch of flair to the show that I don’t think any other characters could’ve accomplished.

The Art/Animation
The art for the show looked very storybooky for a lack of a better term. It appears to be pulled right from a kid’s storybook with vivid colors to cover the appealing backgrounds and objects that aren’t trying to achieve any sort of realism. Surprisingly I have to commend this show for its use of lighting because it generates some hilarious moments when the dark humor is utilized in darker areas to juxtapose the seriousness with hilariousness. The character designs are all eccentric but they cooperate well with eachother as a whole with Watashi having a fresh look and the fairies looking like tiny stoners. In terms of animation it’s not the greatest the medium has to offer but it works out well for the series!

The Sound
In terms of sound, the soundtrack wasn’t all that special, it was like having candles lit during sex, they’re there and they add atmosphere to the main event, but lets just face it, you’ll forget all about it.in a matter of seconds. But my god do I really like the happy go lucky nature of the opening and the ending song has become one of my top 10 favorite endings. The voice acting for Watashi and the fairies are top notch and brings the characters to life whereas all the other characters’s voice actors do a decent job at their roles.

Overall, though Humanity has Declined isn’t the best in its character department and feels lacking in explanation of its world there is a great critique on humanity here through the use of extremely well written dark humor and a refreshing female lead. This leads me to give Humanity has declined my rating of Very Good.

kcremin - 2013-09-12 02:11:44

Bite-Sized Review:

Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita is a delightfully ridiculous story about a girl and her fairy friends. Of course, the catch is that humankind has been on the decline while the fairy species takes over much of the world. The show is built around dark humor, most of which revolve around the bizarre and abnormal interactions between the nameless, cynical main character, the strangely disturbing fairies, and the other relatively incompetent humans.

The episodes are not in chronological order and, even if they were, the plot wouldn't be particularly coherent. However, the gist of the story centers around the adventures and struggles the main character gets involved in due to her relationship with the fairies. Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita is blessed by a unique and beautiful art style that suits both the setting and characters of the show.

The subject matter may not be for some viewers and there are moments when the story becomes confusing and difficult, but after all 12 episodes, Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita finishes as a wonderfully enjoyable series with a cast of unpredictable characters who leave a distinctly weird after taste.

frederic.baumbach - 2013-09-07 03:23:07

As always, my reviews are spoiler free.

Jinrui is a bit difficult to get a bead on; is it a comedy, parody, fantasy, or something else entirely? How can a totally nonlinear story about characters who are not even given names be so captivating? And finally, what is the deal with all these fairies?

Story - 8/10

In the distant future, declining birthrates have led to a new “mankind.” These tiny creatures are called fairies, and with their tremendous numbers and mysterious technology it has become a necessity for humans to keep peace with them. This falls into the hands of our protagonist, Watashi (the Japanese pronoun for “I”; her actual name is never given). She becomes an arbitrator between the two races at the request of her grandfather, but her job is not as simple as she expected.

The story is divided into arcs, which occur in no particular order. The beginning arc, for example, is Watashi’s introduction to her new job, and the last is her school life directly before. The arcs between do not take place in any particular order either. Luckily, any part of the anime is simple enough to understand given the groundwork laid out in the first arc, and each arc is appreciable in its own right. These arcs vary drastically in style, and somewhat in quality as well.

Her career as an arbitrator begins with the investigation of mysterious goods appearing around town, suspected to have been made by fairies. With the discovery of the fairies factory, it immediately becomes clear that these fairies operate on an entirely different set of rules than humans. This arc exists mainly to introduce the characters, as well as the fairies (who I will discuss in detail later).

After her introduction as an arbitrator, the story takes a turn to the more “eccentric”; the printer and digital media are rediscovered by Watashi’s friend Y, and with them Y gains the ability to reproduce incredible amounts of “BL” comics. This takes the world by storm, and shows another side of the fairies, their desire to copy culture in their own bizarre way.

Each following arc is unique in its own way. From Watashi’s use of the fairies to build her own island empire to battling androids, each arc is fresh but never feels disconnected from the overall theme of the series.

Animation - 8/10

The animation in the series follows a unique style which makes use of pastels. Some backgrounds are actually reminiscent of oil paintings. The character designs are fresh too; they are detailed in such a way to fit perfectly into the setting. The animation itself is nothing to brag about, however. Sometimes the character movements can be a bit jerky, but animation/style package comes out to be well above average.

Animation is pretty unique.

Sound – 8/10

There is actually a relatively small cast of reoccurring characters (one of whom never actually speaks), but each one of their voices are spot on. The sound track is good as well, with the OP being one of my favorites of all time, and the ED being significantly above average. Jinrui also knows how to change the mood perfectly with the music; a quick track change can be used for dramatic (or more often comedic) effect, and several times throughout the series I found myself laughing because of the music combining perfectly with the action.

OP is great, but I can't embed the actual video version since youtube is run by fascists.

Characters – 10/10

I give Jinrui a perfect score for in the character department for two reasons. The first is that the main cast (of one person) is executed flawlessly, with Watashi being one of my favorite protagonists of all time. She is sarcastic and pessimistic, yet is able to accomplish an incredible amount with her quick thinking. She has one of the sharpest wits in recent history. In many ways she acts as a believable insert character into an unbelievable world, her rational attitude and thoughts often synchronizing with the viewer’s own. Her generally dark attitude makes a great contrast to the more upbeat tone of the series as a whole. She was a joy to follow throughout the series.

The second reason for this score is the inclusion of the fairies. I consider them to be one entity, one which is the source of some of the cleverest humor I have ever seen. These fairies could actually be considered a social commentary on modern culture, depending on how far you want to take it. They are driven only by two desires: to get sweets, the one thing they cannot produce for themselves, and to have fun, which causes them to reproduce. Their entire culture is built around these ideas. They are totally fickle, with their moods and ideas changing near instantaneously. Finally, they have an innate desire to copy others for their own benefit and entertainment. You can take these ideas as seriously or casually as you like, but in any case, the fairies really make the show. As a group, they are some of most fantastic ideas in any anime and I cannot do them justice with this short description.

The recurring side characters, namely Y, Assistant, and Grandfather, all do their jobs adequately as well. They do not generally stand out (unless the arc is about them in particular), but they can occasionally deliver their own brand of comedy on par with Watashi’s deadpan sarcasm.

Enjoyment – 8/10

The only thing holding Jinrui back is that diversity of the arcs which I mentioned earlier. To put it simply, some of the arcs are far better than others. Watashi’s island empire remains one of my favorite episodes in any anime, and while I loved most of the other episodes, I would occasionally find myself bored. In particular, I think the entire android arc and early part of the school arc hold back the series, as they were significantly below the standard the rest of Jinrui set. They were by no means bad, but when I adored one episode and the next was merely adequate, I felt disappointed.

Watashi seems to be enjoying herself.

Other thoughts

I would recommend this series to anyone, regardless of genre or previous anime experience.

The fairies are an incredible entity but I can’t quite describe them perfectly.

The combination of a superb protagonist, an interesting setting, and great art and soundtrack make this a must-watch for me.

kling.jevon - 2013-07-07 21:04:41

Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita was one of the most refreshing and mind-boggling series I've watched lately, having managed to attain a very special place in my mind.Explaining what Jinrui was or what it tried to achieve is certainly no easy task. A series with an unnamed main character, completely static characters besides said protagonist, no continuous plot developing to an end and no general climax, can’t be judged with the same tools we’d normally use to critique most entertainment media.The premise is both simple and eye-opening regarding a problem we’re very much aware of by now, with many types of warnings – the fact that we’re destroying ourselves and the world. To sum it up and putting preaching aside, the setting is exactly what the title makes it to be: “Humanity Has Declined”. Yes, in Jinrui’s era, the human species now sports small numbers and got back to the rural lifestyle of past times, while fairies became the most prominent species on earth.With such a setting, one would expect the series to give a lot of focus to world-building, yet once again Jinrui surprises you in, giving out the information about the world in the most random and arbitrary way.Now, the last three paragraphs may have seemed full of negative points to you. If that was the case, I’ll make my intentions clear: I’m simply showcasing how unconventional Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita is. And it doesn’t stop there. Complete “wtf” moments in which the viewer has no idea of what’s going on are all but rare, and the simple existence of the fairies is shrouded in impossibility and ridiculousness.Thankfully, such ridiculousness is not a product of chance, but a mean that’s masterfully used in favor of showing the most brilliant, funny and witty set of social critiques I’ve seen in anime to date. With a dark and deadpan humor that would always bring a sarcastic smile to my face, some other genuinely fun moments and a main character with a very human personality, and whose passivity, curiosity and strength of will or complete lack of it (yes, she’s lazy xD) worked wonderfully towards achieving a high-quality first-person narration that’s capable of charming just anyone, Jinrui proved to be the hidden gem I’d first expected it to.From consumerism to Japanese entertainment and fujoshi, passing by “The Story of Civilization – Short 9 days version”, it hit the bull’s eye in terms of both what to critique and how to do it. Something I’d like to point out, specially to those who think this anime uses too much forced preaching at times, is that while it does critique human behavior in the most various ways, it never does so in an inflexible, accusing tone. The main character herself sees most of the happenings as inevitable; she has the independent mind to judge things as wrong, but the humanity to still feel attracted to things that undeniably are so, in spite of their seemingly distant undesirable consequences. As so, I’ve never felt as if this series was trying to force ideals onto me, nor do I believe that to be its intended purpose. What it made me do was to ponder such issues myself, even allowing me to have some good laughs in the meantime.In the technical department, Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita didn’t let down either. The bright and vibrant color pallet contrasts well with the dark humor of the show, and the abstract lines of the art are obviously a perfect fit for the bizarreness of the story itself.But what does really deserve a huge shoutout is the voice acting. The script of this series was indeed very good, but would its worth have been properly conveyed without good voice acting? Thankfully, the voice acting wasn’t simply good, it was great and in my humble opinion, it managed to bring the script to the next level. After all, sarcastic lines do lose most of their meaning and charm without a fitting tone of voice. Special props to Nakahara Mai for her amazing work as “Watashi”.In the end, Jinrui was a truly amazing series I wouldn’t mind seeing more of in the future. I’m not a huge fan of series clearly divided in separate arcs, but I get the feeling it actually worked to Jinrui’s advantage in this case, since… as many compliments as I’ve been giving this anime, it did have its flaws. Arcs like the factory one, the manga arc, the first job the main character took and the island episode were simply amazing. However, I found others to be just so-so – namely the spaceships one. The good points in Jinrui still largely outnumber (and overshadow) the bad ones, though, and as one can judge each arc separately, they’re also easily overlooked.Minor complains aside, there are some other issues I’d like to address. Just because I’m a randomly inserted social critique lover, it doesn’t mean everyone thinks the same way. What I mean is that Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita is an amazing series, but it is definitely not for everyone. Character development is really scarce, but that is definitely not a problem when it’s outside of the series’ purpose. Especially not when the only character that actually matters gets dedicated such a heartwarming arc to end the series. Which brings me to another issue – the fact that there isn’t a climax at all. But why should there be one? Storytelling is a free art. Yes, there are tried and true methods and they are not something one should despise. But thinking outside the box sometimes gives even greater results, and when it does, shouldn’t we simply be happy about it and acknowledge its merit?Jinrui was my favorite anime of this season, and definitely one of my favorite of all time. I was always excited about what the next episode would bring, even though I’d already given up trying to predict what it would be. It truly was a bizarre series, but also really well-written and thought-provoking. And that’s a combination I simply can’t resist.

pierre.boehm - 2013-03-17 12:41:58

I would like to begin this review by simply stating that I do not like comedy anime. I think it has more to due with the cultural differences between me in Canada, and Japan than anything else. Sure there have been some comedies that were better than others, but every time I watched an anime comedy I always had this odd thought in my head that I could get far more laughs per episode in western television. However, with every rule there must be an exception, and I believe that I have found it.Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita, or Humanity has Declined is a post-apocalyptic comedy in which the human race is on the brink of extinction. Taking humanity’s place as the dominant species are tiny creatures known simply as fairies. The story itself follows a nameless woman who acts as an arbitrator between the humans and the fairies to help preserve humanity’s place on earth. With that synopsis the show sounds rather depressing, and in a very small way, it is. What it does however is hide this tiny bit of depression and darkness behind a colourful facade of craziness. This craziness is supported excellently by the very bright art style which really helps you take things lightly and laugh at what would otherwise be a very depressing situation. The episodes themselves are divided into two episode arcs each focusing around different characters and time periods, with only the protagonist remaining consistent. When examining a comedy you have to ask, what makes it funny? For Jinrui it is its characters. The characters in Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita always felt varied and each of them have their own unique traits and there is always more to them below the surface. The most interesting being the protagonist who is easily one of the best protagonists I have seen in general. What made her so interesting is that she was far from stupid and far from cute. By that I mean that while she was visibly cute, she had this maturity about her that allowed me to enjoy her much more as a character. She always gave off this vibe of being very strong as a character and as the series goes on, you begin to learn more and more things about her. The other characters on the show are interesting and varied as well, by that I mean they are not simply “One gag characters” as I am so used to seeing in comedies. I often find that anime characters, especially in comedies seem shallow and are only placed in the show to retell two or three select jokes throughout the entire series. The characters in Jinrui are not like this, they tell jokes that fit their personalities, instead of having personalities that fit their jokes. This allowed the characters to remain vibrant and never become dull throughout their respective story arcs. Hell, even if you don’t like a character, aside from the protagonist you know that you will only have to spend 2 episodes with a character before their arc ends. As a safe warning I will tell you that this show is quite weird. For me that was no problem as I thought it really did add to the fun of the show and really helped to explain that none of the content in the series should be taken too seriously. However, if you are the kind of person who thinks that headless chicken crime bosses are a little outside of your comfort zone then you may want to think twice before going into this with the belief that it is just another comedy. As well this anime can be rather confusing as the episodes are told completely out of order. At first I was against this style of storytelling as it seemed rather pointless and it felt like they were telling it out of order for the sake of telling it out of order. I still treat it as a fault as it was rather annoying in some areas but it was still somewhat fun for me to examine each arc and try to figure out exactly when it takes place.One thing that deserves special recognition in Jinrui is the art as it is very colourful and very different from what we are used to seeing in anime. As I said before, I believe that this art style was put to use brilliantly in order to lighten up a depressing world. It made things seem very cheerful and it made you ignore the fact that you are witnessing the dying days of an entire species. For me the art style, while a little too bright at some points really did fit the show perfectly and I know that it would be far less enjoyable if it did not have this candy-coated look to it. As for the music, it is not the most noticeable out there, but it is far from bad and it does have one of the best ending themes I have ever heard. In the end this show is nothing if not fun. Yes it is weird, yes it has its faults but I still enjoyed every minute of it and it left me wanting more which for a comedy is all it really needs. If odd situations and overly-bright art are not your things, then feel free to stay away. However, I do need to recommend this as it is by far the most enjoyable comedy that I have ever seen. For that I give it a 9/10.

fleta.abshire - 2013-03-15 08:28:53

A lot of people have deemed Jinrui to be a highly intelligent and special anime, one which manages to punch them in the feels and is a strong contender for their personal Anime of 2012. There are also a lot of people calling Jinrui the hipster's anime, in both the positive and negative sense of the word.Jinrui is a weird series, and in fact the weirdest thing I've seen in recent memory. Yet, it stands out from most of the other "weird" anime, in that there's not really anything stereotypical about it's weirdness (in contrast to other weird shows such as Full Metal Panic or Sora no Otoshimono.) You've got cat-eared androids, suicidal toast robots, and "paradogs" (paradox dogs), among other ridiculous concepts throughout, and you get the feeling that the weirdness isn't simply done for shits and giggles, or just for the sake of being weird; rather it adds depth to the series.The android-arc brings forth yet another "Do Androids Dream" story, but does so in a way that's both original and thought-provoking (and not simply because the androids are cat-eared,) and the fairy societies of episode 9 and 10 are analogous to how fickle many societies are in the long run. Even the many improbabilities within the setting contribute to this by giving the setting a fantastical and whimsical atmosphere. I imagine there are plenty of fans who love Jinrui simply because of how different it is (i.e., the hipsters,) but coincidentally it's the things that make it stand out that make it so intelligent.None of this is quite evident until episode 6, however. The first five episodes, almost half of the series, utilize an excessive amount of dialogue and deadpan snarking to the point where it undermines any of the good qualities. The dialogue gives the impression that this is a poor adaption of a light novel, while the deadpan snarking just makes all the wittiness seem snobbish. It's boring, and doesn't engage you. There's certainly thought-provoking things to be found, but you're too distracted by the show's faults to really care.Ironically, when Jinrui isn't bogged down by dialogue and snarking, it' stands as an anime that showcases all of animations strongpoints as a story-telling medium. The visuals and sound are put to much better use to express the emotions and plot of the story, instead of spoon-feeding it with dialogue; giving the series an atmosphere that only animation can accomplish. Many of the shows weirder elements are also things best told with animation, similar to the likes of FLCL.Although the plot is nice and well written, the characters themselves are overtly simplistic and uninteresting. They all do well to move the plot forward, but it's never more than five minutes that each character ever becomes compelling in and of themselves. A big exception to this would be Watashi and Y, who both undergo some heavy character development in the final two episodes.Another thing is that Jinrui presents itself as comedy, and although it may be intelligent, it's just not as funny as it could be. All of the jokes have potential, but more often than not they're not quite executed well enough. This also likely due to poor adaption of the source material.All in all, Jinrui has its fair share of mediocrity--especially with the first five episodes, and it's not quite a great as people claim it to be. But it certainly has its moments of brilliance, full of wit and emotion.