ycasper - 2013-08-05 07:45:33

With fast paced action and story, Baccano delivers an unparalleled anime experience, however it’s core is the characters. the show features a fully fleshed out and lovable cast after only 13 episodes, with some characters being more deep than Shounens of much greater length. The series features multiple timelines and yet is still able to tie them together in a comprehensible way. Baccano is, and always we be, a classic to be remembered.

lysanne.herman - 2013-08-03 04:07:55

If it were a western TV show it would still be good, but as anime form, it was perfect. Never had I seen a show with a diverse cast that you can ALL relate with and the crazy plot was wrapped up well even in an illogical manner and under 20 episodes! Until now I am still wondering how it all happened, but applying logic in this show is like applying logic on Gurren Lagan as well, so screw it.

A band of rare beings trapped in a dire situation in which they are interconnected with one another and are forced to deal with in a classy fashion. Never has a train heist got so much elaborate story such as this one. Even the lousiest side characters are given a chance to shine making this an elusive experience in character development.

The animation is fluid and consistent and the soundtrack is one of the best I've heard in recent years. All wrapped up with an outstanding voice acting cast for both Japanese and English dubs.

A must see for people who are looking a different anime experience. Might be too wordy and too gory for some, but get past those parts and you will see what sets this anime apart from the rest.

zbradtke - 2013-07-27 12:02:08

Having just completed Baccano! and the additional OVA episodes that come with the DVD, I can tell you that Baccano! is no ordinary anime. For that matter, it's no ordinary story. At least, it's not told in an ordinary way.

What we have here is a tale of violence, suspense, intrigue and mystery, sprinkled with a little bit of romance and comedy, all mixed in with a sizable portion of the supernatural. Throughout this tale we follow the stories of somewhere in the realm of 16+ characters, none of whom could be considered the one, sole, main character. Then throw in the other characters not on the cover or in the credits, and you've got one jam-packed cast.

What sets Baccano! apart from other shows, in addition to the above, is that the story is told anachronistically, i.e. not in chronological order. This, coupled with just how much is going on in this story (stories, really) can make Baccano! difficult to follow if you don't pay close attention at all times.

There's a lot going on, involving a lot of characters, across four different time periods. The majority of the story takes place during the years 1930, 1931 and 1932, and the show constantly flits back and forth between these years, intertwining between three and four tales that occur during this period, each subtly connected to each other.

The early episodes may confuse you, but the further you get into the series, the easier things become to understand. You'll see things happening from multiple view points, learn about the backgrounds and motivations of different characters, and get a much better idea of what is happening as you go. It feels great when you watch a scene, and then think, "ah, so that's why that happened two/three/four/five/etc episodes ago!"

That said, not everything is made clear just by watching. Even towards the end I didn't realise some things were happening in completely different time periods, although that could just have been me. I do consider myself to be rather attentive though, so the fact that I didn't pick up on or didn't fully understand some elements will reflect in the score.

I did feel like some events were the result of rather coincidental circumstances. Without spoiling anything, I feel that at one point that the tale of the occurrences aboard the train, The Flying Pussyfoot, were a little cluttered and were just happening because it made things more interesting. In the end, it really didn't bother me that much, because it did make things more interesting, and more entertaining.

Since there is such a wide cast, you're most likely going to find a character that you will like. I found plenty, and didn't really have a reason to dislike anyone. Although, I did feel some characters were better portrayed and/or more realistic than others.

Special mention to Isaac and Miria, the comedic couple that appear all over the show in all the different storylines. Although once or twice they were a little too over-the-top, I found their antics very amusing and entertaining overall.

Baccano! has a superb English dub. If ever you were to point to a series with a dub done well, this would be one of them. I'm impartial to the dub vs sub debate, so I really don't mind which version I watch, but with Baccano! being set almost entirely in 1930s America, the dub is the only way to go, in my opinion.

The opening is very upbeat and catchy, and also serves to introduce and name each of the "main" characters (although a few characters who play large enough roles in the story are left out). I quite enjoyed both the music and the visuals used in the opening.

The ending is a much slower fare, but I still liked it. Not much else to say about it.

Despite a low-ish budget compared with other studios, Baccano! is very well animated. It stands up well, but doesn't feel as crisp or clean as other works, which is fine. It still looks damn good, and they don't skimp out on the gore in the many violent scenes.

Personally, I very much enjoyed Baccano!, and I would recommend it to anyone wanting something a little different. It combines elements of many different genres and productions, resulting in something quite unique. It can be a little convoluted at times, but never fails to entertain.

Just like the final run of The Flying Pussyfoot (not a spoiler, they tell you in episode 2 it is the train's last run), Baccano is one hell of a ride.

esta.kling - 2013-07-24 08:58:25

Baccano! A pleasing journey through 1930's America that doesn't fail in its quest to introduce an develop an array of characters and tell a compelling story.The story takes place in America, in places like Chicago, during various years of the 1930's, and follows the proceedings of multiple characters who all meet through-out the storyline. Of course, this time period and setting was rife with organised crime and mafia families; the two play a sizeable part in the series. "The Flying Pussyfoot", a famous transcontinental train, is host to a number of Baccano's escapades and is the scene of a hostage situation, supernatural phenomena and grizzly deaths. The story is interesting, exciting and filled with many twists and turns.The artwork is done justice and is appropriate for the time period; the characters are dressed accordingly. Nothing is so bright and vibrant as to detract away from the focus of the scene and the detailing on each of the characters and backdrops is done modestly. One of the scenes where the art really shone was when a character know as the "Rail Tracer" stood on top of the train, scenery rushing past in the background, with his face crimson with blood accompanied by a wicked smile.For me, the sound was very apparent in the series and it did an excellent job of increasing the atmosphere of any given scene. Especially in scenes where horror and urgency was apparent, the harsh shrills of violins played to bring an airy sense of wariness. Light-hearted scenes were amplified with cheerful music and scenes host to establishing shots of the train were left with but only the sound of rushing wind. The characters are varied and interesting. The two "comic relief" characters of Miria and Issac are especially well done and make me laugh with their every remark. Others include the various members of the crime families like the Gandors. All the roles are played well and all add their own little piece to the series.With an incredible and also vast character line-up, coupled with an interesting story that presents it's self variedly, Baccano! makes for a good time.

orval42 - 2013-07-16 09:56:55

In anime, we should automatically celebrate when something like Baccano is tossed away. We should revel in what a delicious candy we are gorging down... but also realize that its still a candy.It's Toblerone, but still just a chocolate bar (no pun intended on how the title is used in the OP)I've always seen the show as a tribute to gangster/crime tales; it has quite a bunch of gimmicks:1. A Bonnie and Clyde2. Multiple gangs that exist for character development/a place to rest.3. Uncouth scenarios4. Uncouth villains and hearty heroes.5. Intentionally incomplete ending.I could stop here and just call Baccano "fanservice", but since that word has been commonly used negatively to describe shows like Madoka as lazy, I will call Baccano inspiring; especially for an anime.To figure out things is beyond the point. At least for the first time you watch.Yes, first time; its highly unlikely you'll retain any information at the rate the show gives it so you'd better just find something close enough to your liking or risk ruining the show by taking notes needlessly.Why is it needless? Because the show is too short for any notes to really matter; everything that has to be said, is said....you just might see it differently the first time, get it?To mention all the characters and how great all of them are would be a waste since none of them by themselves are that great, and collectively... well, go back to my previous point on "what to expect for your first time".The best characters in the show are based on how they respond to the things that they are not used to, so at least characterization happens the old fashioned way (lol)This makes the stand-outs a very short list, for better or worse.Musically and aesthetically, the show is a tad jaded with character design, but smooth in every other aspect.Brain Base is currently taking precedence as one of the best studios, with Baccano being the tip of the iceburg. For a mobster-esque show to be its stalwart symbol could be the shows highest compliment...Plenty of jazz, plenty of suspense, and loads of intensity. I gladly put chips down on there being something for everyone... but perhaps not laid out equally.I said before that it takes multiple viewings to get everything; a bad and good thing in Baccano's case.Baccano doesn't have much besides fun which congregates that much attention being channeled again. For all of its craft, to be nothing more than an incoherent blast that we can replicate over and over again, only to pick out a few more details each time, doesn't beget greatness.Stuff like Ergo Proxy and Neon Genesis juggle quite a lot despite being vague up until the end.In Baccano's end, be it the OVA ending or TV, has things settle quite finitely going against its source spirit.Hey, I know its unusual in anime but if you're gonna set the bar, you still have to make the jump!So I don't consider Baccano to be new classic as some would put it.It, as its name translates, is way too much ruckus. I could compare the entire series to an extravagant party where everyone has having a rockin' good time... except you're trying to hear what everyone is saying.It's nice in Baccano's case that you can whip up the party at your leisure, but man's senses can only do so much.Takahiro Omori did his best to translate the party from paper to... paper so that, again, is another good reason to watch.Letter Grading Time (LGT)Story: C+ (you're not watching it to comprehend)Art: A- (captures America smartly and smoothly)Music: B+ (works well, but doesn't push itself)Animation: B (a bit stiff and sore, but mans up when necessary)Characters: B- (Not everyone are chess pieces and when they are, they still blend)Enjoyment: B (Is less boring than one would think given its atypical content, but its no Pulp Fiction)Overall: B (Experimental, unstable, and crazy; mission accomplished)

vincenza64 - 2013-07-15 23:48:28

Baccano is one of those rare animes that, from the very beginning, suck you in easily without having to use cliched characters, predictable twists, or, even worse, fanservice.

The story is told in a very smart way, though it may be a little difficult to follow if you're not paying attention. I say it's smart, because it adds to the message that everything is connected -if you've watched the series, then you know what I mean. I've heard some people say it's too confusing, or even pretentious. Well, maybe they weren't trying too hard. I recommend watching this series twice: the first time to understand the characters' dynamics and relationships, and the second time to tie the story together in a logical way.
Yes, this anime demands that you think things over.

As mentioned, the characters are unique in their own right, and most of them don't fall into any evident trope. By the way, there are a lot of characters. Luckily, the brilliant opening sequence helps a lot, but don't feel bad if you still don't know the names of half of the cast by the end of the series. There's always re-watching.
Don't fool yourself, though: the fact that there are many characters does not mean most of them are underdeveloped or boring. On the contrary, Baccano! finds a way to make each person identifiable and understandable, and that lets us empathize with most of them -even if they are enemies to each other. This means that, even if we like one more than the other, we can actually understand both sides. They managed to create human characters in human conflicts, now matter how freaky the situation is.

That's another point, the supernatural aspect of the series. Honestly, I think I would have enjoyed it even more if that didn't exist. But, it does, and it works really really well. Nothing in the logic of how this world works feels pushed, and you end up buying the whole explanation.

On to the technical aspects, there's nothing else I can do but to take off my hat and wholeheartedly applaud the musician behind this masterpiece. I mean it, the soundtrack is just amazing. You can download it and show it to your grandpa, and he'll smile, thinking about the old times.

The animation is good. It's the kind of thing you see in, say Naruto, once in a while, when the animation style changes completely to give life to a really fast fighting scene. It's kind of like that. It works really well with this anime, though. The art is nice and dynamic, and the colors were very cleverly chosen for each scene and environment.

All in all, Baccano! is a top notch anime, specially if you're a history nerd like me :D.

joaquin.dietrich - 2013-06-28 08:18:32

Baccano! Review What to Expect from Baccano!

• A lot of action, blood, gore, you know, awsome shit.
• An awesome cast of characters, all with their own unique personality and character designs.
• 3 average stories. But because they are being told simultaneously it makes all of them much more enjoyable that usual.
• A Great Dub
• An Amazing Soundtrack
• Good Visuals

• Some Deep, multi layered story or some thought provoking themes. this show is just a shallow action show, so adjust your expectations accordingly.
• A cast of characters that develop throughout the show. Most of the cast are already adults, or have been around the block a few times, so you won't be getting much in this department. Basically, just sit back and enjoy the show.

For starters lets get some stuff out the way. The story isn't anything special, but what is special is how it is told. It gives you everything out of order, and you have to connect the pieces yourself. This isn't unlike the first season of haruhi or the Kara no Kyokai movies in this regard. It also likes to show you the same scene from multiple perspectives, another fun effect that shows you what other characters were doing at the time of an important event and such. if you have seen the movie Snatch, you'll know what I mean (if you haven't seen it watch it). Speaking of Snatch I should probably mention that Baccano! is sort of inspired by Snatch, going as far as mimicking the opening to it. But what makes Baccano! more impressive in its storytelling than Snatch or Kara no Kyokai is that it's telling THREE stories like this all at once. So in one episode you might see the setting change 3 times. 3 different stories, all taking place in different times and places, with different characters being introduced in each. It should be a clusterfuck, and for the first 3 episodes or so it is (until you understand whats going on), but after that it's pretty amazing how the director had it all make sense in the end. The Setting is also something very well done if you ask me. The show did a good job blending 1930's America with fantasy elements like Alchemy, Immortality, and the like, and it never felt out of place. The story loses points because while the storytelling is good, the stories themselves are nothing too earth shattering, just your usual modern fantasy action story. The first 3 episodes also make it a difficult series to really get into because of how confusing it is.

The cast while very entertaining, doesn't get much in the development department. like I said previously, this is the kind of show you just sit back and enjoy, not really something to over analyze. Still, the show has a huge cast, and each of them have their own distinct personalities and are really enjoyable to watch. Each one also has a very distinct character design, so you'll likely never mix them up with other characters from other series. Because the series takes place in New York, I highly recommend the Dub.

This show has moderately High production values. The music is pretty damn amazingif you ask me. The opening perfectly encompasses this show, and is one of the best openings I have ever seen (even if it's inspired from Snatch). The rest of the score is great, and just fits with the overall theme and setting very well. Perfect musical choice. The ending is not amazing, but not something you'll skip.Good enough would be the best words to describe it. It doesn't take away from the show, but it doesn't add much either. It does gain some points for character designs though. I admit I'm a little biased because animation doesn't really matter to me so long as it isn't noticeably bad.

So long as you have you expectations set accoringly, by that I mean don't expect Evangelion depth and characters and whatnot, Baccano! is a pretty damn amazing show if I do say so myself. Pure, unadulterated enjoyment at its finest.

vicente14 - 2013-05-18 10:39:36

Fast paced, funny and stylish, "Baccano" is a gem of an anime that simply oozes class from every pore. It's an anime that will satisfy critics and mainstream audiences alike, a hugely enjoyable series that sets off like a rocket and doesn't stop till the end.But what is "Baccano" exactly? Kinda hard to describe. I guess the best I can come up with is that it's a whacky adventure that's both funny and violent - often at the same time - and contains elements of mystery and intrigue. First thing to note is its highly non-linear story telling method. The main bulk of the anime takes place in three different years that are told in parallel. Focus often skips from one time line to another to keep things interesting. Although initially I found this gimmicky way of telling the story to be quite fresh and entertaining, I do think it gets a little tiring after like the 56th change in a single episode. The extremely fragmented storyline means that it takes a while before you can get an idea of where it's going. However, despite the fragmented and non-linear nature of the story telling, it's actually surprisingly easy to keep track of what's going on. I suspect that a lot of this is down to the fact that when a new scene joins onto a scene that has already been shown previously, the overlap is just a bit longer than the ones you tend to get with other non-linear shows, and this extra bit of reminder is often just long enough to coax out from your memory what happened before. It's a fantastic feat to achieve this kind of clarity in this type of show. "Baccano" is primary about entertainment, and entertain it does. It has a fantastic sense of humour that's somewhat over the top but not annoyingly so, and it delivers plenty of laugh-out-loud moments. It's also a rather violent show. Looking at the light hearted comedy, you would never have guessed how bloody it is in places. The stark contrast between the happy-go-lucky-style and the violence is slightly reminiscent of Tarantino's movies, and in fact nothing encapsulates this feel better than the dissonant scene where the sadistic Ladd Russo cheerfully beats a man to death with his bare fists, grinning all the while as the blood splatters onto his own face and clothes. Ladd Russo is a delightful character who breathes fresh life into the rather stale psychotic villain mould. His constant jovial mood is always accompanied by a sinister aura, and this contrast makes him a scary but strangely compelling character. In fact Ladd Russo made such an impression on me that since I watched "Baccano", I'm now readily able to identify the characters played by his voice actor - he's been in a surprising number of anime (Maes Hughes from the FMA franchise, the music critic Manabu Sakuma from "Nodame Cantabile" to name a couple), I just hadn't noticed it until now.Ladd Russo is not the only great character, and in fact "Baccano" is blessed with an extremely large number of fabulously diverse and colourful personalities. My other favourites include Issac and Miria, who are a pair of wonderfully entertaining thieves who seem to be in the story for no purpose other than clown around continuously... but considering how good they are at doing it, I wouldn't really want it to be any other way. But although most of the characters in "Baccano" are pretty interesting, it is a bit guilty of having *too* many characters, as there are a few don't really make much of a splash and aren't very memorable in any way, and took up screen time that could have been given to more interesting characters like Firo.I also found the way everything is wrapped up to be a little disappointing. Part of this is probably because it's so much fun watching "Baccano" unravel its plot with delightful eccentricity that the ending feels very plain and anti-climatic in comparison. There is no shocking last minute twists or anything particularly clever etc, everything is resolved rather conveniently and I was left feeling like I just watched a magician who's finally run out of tricks at the end of a performance. Still, it's a very small complaint to make when you consider how spectacular and enjoyable the rest of the show is.

gmckenzie - 2013-04-25 22:18:23

A rare anime that doesn't revolove around tried-and-tested cliche characters and scenario's in order to attain popularity, but instead, creates a complex storylines and equally complex characters to portray them...The initial plot being 'greed and immortality' is a basic one, there are many series's out there inwhich a character wants to live forever without threats to his/her status being in the picture, yet hard work has gone into this series in order to grip an audience by standing out.The first episode pretty much informs the audience that there is no main character, instead, we have no choice but to follow the journey of many mains, who all have detailed stories to tell and a future ahead of them.The characters are quite unusual; personalities differ, yet it's arguable that there isn't a hero or a top villian - all characters are far from saints, everyone is a threat, yet the portrayal of them is very neautral, as if the writer doesn't want us to simply label people as 'scum baddie' and 'lovely goodie'.The story this series covers is quite complex, delebratly so, in order to keep the viewers mind keen; we switch at random between a number of years inwhich key events occured and are then left to connect the dots.

ptromp - 2013-04-15 17:31:48

I really liked this one. The characters are hilarious and the story is told in a great way. Here and there I didn´t like some of the animations but overall it´s well done.

8/10