maximus.heidenreich - 2014-03-12 13:43:28

Monster. It’s something frightening, inhuman, wicked, but is it imaginary? The anime “Monster”, adapted from Naoki Urasawa’s manga, explores the concept and idea of this word. It’s a story about a man chasing after a nameless Monster, exploring human’s nature along the way.

Enjoy the full ED song while reading this review

Story

The story of Monster is nothing short of masterpiece. It was constructed masterfully, as everything was well planned and great pacing between each episodes. Of course to achieve this level of story construction, a long length is required and Monster has 74 episodes to do this. There are various arcs and it was all shown chronologically. Each arc slowly builds itself masterfully and executed beautifully. Some arcs may appear needless but it’s actually building up the world and the characters slowly.

Monster takes place in Europe, mainly in Germany. It’s a fresh change as most anime takes place in Japan and it’s interesting to see different culture and society in an anime for once. The world of Monster is also dark and mature yet it can be fairly bright at times. The whole atmosphere of the show gives off a sense of maturity and it felt like more of a live action show than an anime.

It is also very psychological as it often plays with both the character’s and the viewer’s mind. In return, most of the moments are incredibly tense and exciting. Despite of that, there are lots of emotional moments. I even shed a few tears from time to time. The psychological impact wasn’t just for the intense atmosphere but also for emphasising the emotional moments.

It does not try to pull any cheap comedic tricks, fan service or any other unnecessary form of entertainment. Some show tries way too hard to become interesting by pulling off whatever twist they thought on the spot. This causes the story to become unstable and loses its appeal later on. An example for this case would be Kill la Kill and Samurai Flamenco. However, the twists and turns that Monster pulled off are completely different. They are genuine, contributing to the plot and characters to make it greater, not making it into something else. Therefore, it is often very unpredictable and even after 70 episodes; I get surprised every so often. But this also made the story itself less believable.

The biggest problem I have with the story is that the longer arc contributed so little in the plot advancement yet the second to last arc, which is one of the shortest, moved the plot forward rapidly. It felt like they were rushing it to end. Nonetheless, the final arc was a masterpiece. The ending also bugs me a lot since I feel it’s incomplete and inconclusive. I expected it to end beautifully like how the rest of the series is.

+ The positive:

1.Beautifully constructed story

2.Genuine twists and turns

3.Dark and mature world

4.No cheap plot colouring

5.Fresh change of setting

6.Emotional

7.Intense

8.Unpredictable

-/+ The neutral:

1.Pacing

- The negative:

1.Rushed at the end

2.Story can be a bit ridiculous and made it less realistic or believable

3.The ending feels inconclusive and incomplete

Animation

Madhouse studio is the studio responsible in bringing this masterpiece alive. Despite that Monster was animated back in 2004 it was still remarkably well animated. The amount of details in the background is incredible. Character’s gesture and movement is smooth and balance. During action scenes, the tense of the battle was brought to life by the incredibly natural cinematography. The whole animation was so consistent that it never felt out of place through out the whole show. Well except for that very awkward door movement in the final episode. The character design matches the atmosphere of the show and the background perfectly. They didn’t felt out of place at all. The blood and water animation is especially outstanding, as they felt so natural. The whole animation can be summed up as being natural, consistent and exceptionally detailed. On the other hand, the animation doesn’t stand out much because it really isn’t stunningly beautiful with extraordinary lighting and such. The animation as a whole isn’t anything special and it’s not something that can blow your mind, but it was exceptionally well done.

The animation supporting the suspense nature of the show

Character's facial expression (better frame rate of course)

+ The positive:

1.Smooth and fluid movement

2.Objects have natural movements

3.Great action scenes

4.Detailed background and objects

5.Cinematography emphasis the atmosphere

6.Incredibly natural cinematography

7.Character design blends in perfectly

8.Consistent

-/+ The neutral:

1.Nothing special

- The negative:

1.Lack of lighting

2.Lack of shadow

3.Animation should be sharper

Sound

The background music (BGM) doesn’t stand out much as a stand-alone. Nevertheless, it done its job in supporting the atmosphere of the scenes and emphasise it to its full extend. There are various pieces of soundtrack over the course of the show. It doesn’t felt repetitive for the first 40 episodes but overtime you will feel the repetition. You gradually can know which soundtrack will be playing by judging from the scene. The BGM has done a perfect job in matching the show, despite its low presence.

I watched Monster in sub so I won’t talk about the dub. The voice acting is slightly above average. With unique voice for each main character, you can distinguish them fairly easily by their voice alone. Their performance in was quite superb in bringing the character alive.

The OP (opening theme song) doesn’t change at all through out 74 episodes. I can say it’s one of the most well done OP, with its perfect blend of non-spoiler yet foresight scene and a song that suits the show. Although, it suffers the same problem with the BGM and animation, it’s nothing special. It’s just a really well done OP but doesn’t stand out among others. The ED (ending theme song) changed once. I prefer the first ED since I find the haunting atmosphere to match the show more.

The one and only OP of the show

One of the suspenseful soundtrack

+ The positive:

1.BGM suits the show perfectly

2.BGM greatly emphasise the atmosphere and scene

3.Doesn’t felt repetitive (at least for the first 40 episodes)

4.Slightly above average voice acting

5.Unique voice

6.Well done OP

- The negative:

1.BGM doesn’t stand out as a stand-alone

2.Nothing special with the soundtrack

3.2^nd ED

4.OP is nothing special

Character

I consider the characters as the strongest point in Monster. Each and every character is unique and stands out a lot from each other. Everyone plays an important role in supporting Tenma’s development. Although some characters are forgotten later on, like they have been tossed away since their usefulness to the arc has expired. However, they did get a few extra scenes but it didn’t last long and only gave me more urges to see them come back. Character’s death is also unpredictable since this show has no mercy with killing the characters.

The antagonist, Johan, is the centre of the whole show. He is the mastermind of all and the motivation for the rest of the characters. He really is a unique character unfound anywhere. The way he think and the action he take are completely unpredictable. He is the perfect character. However, his flaw is that he is too perfect. Sometimes he is hardly believable because of his perfection.

All of the main characters are more than one-dimensional. They all have great development through out the show. Whether is it their ideals, believes or personality, all of the main have some sort of changes at the end of the show. The only character that I believe to be slightly one-dimensional is actually the protagonist, Dr. Tenma. He did get a development straight at the beginning but didn’t change much after that. The characters’ morale is not black and white as they show perspectives from both sides.

+ The positive:

1.Unique and stands out characters

2.Great supports

3.Unpredictable

4.Johan being the character that stands out the most

5.Lunge being one of my personal favourite

6.Great development

7.Not black and white morale

8.Unpredictable character’s fate

-/+ The neutral:

1.Tenma being slightly too one-dimensional

- The negative:

1.Some characters are forgotten

2.Johan being too perfect

Enjoyment

I never thought I would enjoy Monster nearly as much as this. Monster for me is one of the best anime that I’ve watched in the past 2 years. I genuinely enjoyed this show from the bottom of my heart. I moaned for the characters, I was astonished by the twists, I was left open-mouthed by the beauty and I was awe by the suspenseful atmosphere. The only thing I didn’t enjoy was the inconsistencies in the show’s pacing.

Overall

Monster is one of the best anime ever created. It is the third anime that truly amazed me as I found myself breathless. The near-perfect constructed story and incredible characters made this anime a 100% worth watch. On the other hand, the music and animation are nothing special but it is still amazing in being average and done its job superbly in supporting the rest. I would definitely recommend everyone to watch Monster. For some people, the pacing might slows you down at first but it will gradually pick up. In conclusion, this anime is a masterpiece and go watch it now.

Monster - 9.4

"The big secret to breaking the rules is to make it look as though you're following them."

- Johan Liebert

balistreri.aliyah - 2014-02-15 16:37:58

Monster is a spectacular anime that is really under appreciated.

Story: Monster's story is very character driven, each new event is caused by the previous actions of the characters. It makes it very interesting to watch and see how just one sentence, on action, can affect so many people in such awful ways. The plot itself is mysterious, it never reveals too much information, so you can't really guess what's going to happen next.

The only problem I had with Monster was the pacing. At times the story can be thrilling and gripping and then suddenly it becomes slow and somewhat boring. For the first 3 episodes Monster was very gripping then after that it became very slow until episode 15 or so. Once you hit episode 15 it goes back to being intense for 2-3 episodes then it slows down again till about episode 35-40. After episode 35-40 the pacing stabilizes and becomes interesting till about the last 14 or so episodes. For the last 14 episodes the story takes off and becomes completely addictive.

Animation: The animation in monster wasn't really anything special, although it did fit the story and characters very well. It was very detailed when it came to things like clothes and backgrounds but the faces could have used some work. The style is very different from what I've seen before in anime, the eyes being almost like rectangles. Despite my dislike for the style of the faces they set the mood very well and I don't think Monster could have been animated any other way.

Sound: There isn't much to write about for the sound, it wasn't anything special, but at the same time it did it's job. The music and sound effects in Monster were spot on for setting the mood and the voice acting was amazingly rememberable. The voice actors really fit their characters and did a spectacular job portraying them.

Characters: I found all the characters but one in this series to be very fleshed out and realistic. Most of the characters were very likeable, and even the ones that were unlikable were understandable. The one character that really didn't have a very unique or in-depth personality, I thought, was the main character Dr. Tenma. Over the series Dr. Tenma doesn't really grow as a character, he just wallows in despair. No matter who he meets or what happens he doesn't really change, which is kinda comforting in a way. No matter how much Johan messed with Dr. Tenma's life he never broke.

Enjoyment: I find this series one of the most enjoyable anime I have ever watched. It's a nice break from all the lighthearted, unrealistic anime and it does a very good job looking into the psychology of the human mind.

Overall: Despite Monster's story and character flaws I felt those were it's strongest aspects. They're the most interesting part of the anime and make it worth watching. Even if the story can be slow at times, it's still worth pushing onward to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I hope you enjoyed this review, and thank you for taking your time to read it.

cora35 - 2013-12-23 20:19:36

I have always been someone who has found great enjoyment out of the psychological horror genre of anime, but more often than not I would be constantly let down with the mundane and mediocre anime to choose from. Then I came across Naoki Urasawa’s Monster. I had heard about it before and it’s almost cult following of fans that dubbed it a masterpiece, and wanted to check it out for myself. After finishing all 74 episodes of Monster I have to say that I absolutely agree with all of the hype surrounding it. Take in mind that this is my first review, but I will do my best in reviewing Naoki Urasawa’s Monster.

The story revolves around a young and brilliant neurosurgeon named Kenzo Tenma who seems to have everything going his way; a great job, a beautiful fiancé and the respect of his peers. One day after letting a man die to perform surgery on an important singer, Tenma vows to never put one patient above another and that all lives are equal. This promise leads him to disobey direct orders to save the mayor, and instead he save the life of a young boy named Johan Liebert. As a result Tenma is demoted and stripped of his position, only to be re-promoted after the mysterious death of those who condemned him. Years later, after Tenma has his life back on track, a series of murders leading back to his current patient reveals that the boy he saved years ago is now a dangerous psychopath. So the story continues with Tenma trying to stop the Monster that he brought back to life.

While this concept may seem pretty simple, Monster is anything but. Throughout these 74 episodes, Monster’s plot is shrouded in mystery. It takes countless twists and turns that will have the watcher wanting more. The main complaint I always hear about this show is its pacing, but I had no problem with it at all. I did not find a single episode unnecessary, and even when they seemed out of place, the show has an amazing ability to seamlessly tie everything back together.

The cast list for Monster is a very long one to say the least, but every person plays his or her own role in advancing and developing the story, as well as getting their own development along the way. I won’t bother mentioning any of the characters besides the main two of Tenma and Johan, but I will tell you that this is one of my favorite casts of any anime. Tenma is a great protagonist. He is intelligent, cunning and the audience can really feel and sympathize with what he is going through as he tries to stop the monster he saved. Johan in my opinion is one of the greatest villains in all of anime. He is maniacal and twisted, and the way he can get anyone to do his bidding is astounding. I find it hard to put into words just how thrilling of a character Johan really is, but I can tell you this, he is a real devil.

The animation is actually done very well, especially if you consider that this show is almost a decade old. Monster uses a darker color pallet to match the dark themes that are spread throughout the show. The style is very realistic, especially that of the characters. There are no cliché stereotypes that we so often see in anime these days. Monster does a magnificent job of simplifying its artwork, but still throwing in small and distinct things to characters expressions or backgrounds to elevate it.

The sound does the same thing that the animation does in fitting in extremely well with the darkness that is Monster. The sound track is very haunting, doing a great job of matching the music to the situation. The opening stays the same throughout all 74 episodes, but that isn’t really a problem since I loved it and it works perfectly with the show. As for the sub vs. dub debate, I watched the dubbed and thought that all of the voice actors did a wonderful job. Take your pick because if the dub is good the sub should be as well.

Monster is a true masterpiece and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The last 4 or 5 episodes leading up to the final conclusion are spectacular and make for a thrilling ending. While I understand that this show may not be for everyone, I definitely feel that if you consider yourself to be an anime fan you should check it out at some point in your life. I hope you enjoyed my first review and make sure to watch Naoki Urasawa’s Monster .

bart.funk - 2013-12-08 19:52:39

"Tell me, what do you think is the ultimate fear? I really thought I'd already reached the darkest of the dark, but then, ahead of me, I beheld a darkness even greater still." - Johan Liebert

The TV series 'Monster' is a 74 episode long adaption to the manga series 'Monster' which is written by Naoki Urasawa, who has became a quite famous mangaka over the years for manga such as '20th Century Boys' and 'Pluto'. The thing that these stories have in common, is the tale of suspense and mystery. Monster is a very realistic slow pacing, psychological thriller that primarily explores the nature of true evil. For some people, this anime isn't enjoyable as it is for others, but it's definitely something that everyone must try.

Story
Kenzo Tenma is a really talented Japanese brain surgeon who is working in Germany. One night, he is faced with a critical decision whether to save the life of a young child, who has been shot in the head or that of the mayor. He choses to save the young boy's life. The mayor's operation, which is done by other surgeons failed and so he passed away. Tenma lost everything. He loses his reputation and his beautiful fiancé.
Several years has passed, and people are being murdered in the vicinity of Tenma. As soon as he finds at that it is the doing of the boy he once saved, his journey starts to find the 'monster' and to find out who he truly is.

Even if it's 74 episodes, there wasn't even a single filler episode! It may start out very simple, but as soon as the story progresses, it gets really complex and mature. The story itself is really realistic and just brilliantly written. It's just so thrilling, I never got bored while watching this. But beside the suspense in this anime, there are also a lot of sad parts. The drama in this anime is heart-touching and not rushed. Every episode just keeps guessing you of what's coming next. This anime is also very unpredictable, it had some crazy plot twists to it and it wasn't rushed at all. There is not a single answer in this anime left being unanswered. Everything got explained till the end and there were no plot holes.

Art
The art is realistic and detailed that fits the dark atmosphere is Monster. The character designs are probably my favorites of all time. Every single character had a natural hair and eye color. Also the eyes themselves weren't oversized. Every character looked like a real person. This is all a great thing, because this suits the realism of the story. And like I mentioned before, this anime can be sad. So that means emotions are really important, and face expressions need to be visible. And so they were. You can immediatly tell if someone is sad, frightened, angry or happy. Very unique, and there were no characters who looked identical to each other.

The background art is simply astounding. The scenery is very detailed, especially when it comes to buildings. Just by looking at the background art you get the feeling that you are actually in Germany or Czech Republic. It's really breathtaking and something memorable.

Sound
The soundtracks in Monster are the creepiest I've ever heard in anime. The opening theme 'Grain' is really spooky and shows you what to expect in the anime. It's also wise not to skip the OP because it can get you in the mood before watching Monster, so that it's possible you might enjoy watching it even more. The ending theme 'For The Love Of Life' (Sung by David Sylvian) is also really creepy, yet a beautiful song and very memorable. The background sounds were all fitting for the story/atmosphere in Monster and the sound effects are realistic.

The voice acting couldn't have been done any better. Every voice fitted the character they portrayed perfectly, especially the voice of Johan. They expressed the personalities and emotions of the characters really well.

Character
The very best aspect of Monster, the characters. As soon as the story is going to make progress, the characters get very deep, complex and get a lot of development. Every single character reacted in a realistic to the situations around them. About the supporting cast in Monster, it's huge. There are a lot of characters who were only there for a short amount of time. And this may sound a little spoilerish, but a lot of people died. You felt bonded immediatly with most of the characters who died and the people close to them. Most of the supporting characters don't have flat personalities. Some of them also have a interesting past and I will definitely remember a few of them in the future.
The main characters, are the ones that are being developed very deep. The story mostly revolves around Kenzo Tenma. He starts out like a wimp at the beginning of this series, but he gets so much development as the story progresses.

Enjoyment
Because of it's length and slow pacing, Monster may be not the anime for everybody. But, as a fan of psychological mystery thrillers, I enjoyed watching this anime as hell. If you like very thrilling anime, that are full of suspense, and you don't mind the slow pacing, you will enjoy watching this anime a lot too.

Overall (9,6 out of 10)
Do you want to find an anime, that will make you hold your breath?
Do you want to find an anime, that keeps guessing you of what's coming next?
Do you want to find an anime, that will keep you on the edge of your seat?

This is Naoki Urasawa's Monster. A tale full of suspense and mystery. A brilliant story, with an amazing detailed and realistic art style. The best developed and deepest characters ever. Soundtracks that are spooky as hell and perfect voice acting. One of the most thrilling anime, that is highly enjoyable for intelligent people and definitely rewatchable. This anime simply deserves it's praise, and it also deserves to be called a masterpiece.

ada.terry - 2013-11-13 14:49:28

The Story

If anime had a style period Monster would fit in somewhere between realism and romantism. In fact I feel wrong calling Monster an anime, it has no humor, it's not fun, has no fanservice, no badassery, no overblown romance and it's school life free. The story is told slowly, minding evrery detail and it mostly consists of detective work regardles if it's actual detectives doing their job or the protagonists simply investigating. Pieces of the puzzle slowly start to take their place, and interpretations of certain facts begin to change. It is also told on many levels as many different characters try to find out the truth about Johan so characters often do wrong things because they don’t know what the others are doing and the truth passes right under their noses. Also the story isn’t centered around just one person, everyone has a story of his own, even some side characters. The best part of the story is its complexity and mysteriousness and as mentioned before, an almost real life description of how investigations are done. The bad part is its length. Don’t get me wrong the story isn’t actually too long its just told in too many episodes that are stretched for some reason. I also didn’t like how it ends. I just kind of felt disappointed for watching 74 episodes and not seeing an epic conclusion. But that is just my opinion so don’t take it too seriously, perhaps some of you might like it.

The Animation

The anime isn’t exactly new so that’s a minus right there. I noticed that it’s overall very dark, using a lot of grey and those rare happy moments in the anime are somewhat spoiled by lack of color variety. There have been a few attempts to show the sun rising and setting but in my opinion, they fail miserably. The faces are realistic, distinguishable, but unfortunately incredibly static. Even though emotions are shown very nicely on their faces, they lack any actual body movement. On the other hand I have to praise it, the backgrounds are also very realistic, recreating real places and well known architecture from many cities and so are the countryside and the weather.

The Sound

For starters there was only one opening and only two endings on a 74 episodes long anime. All of them are good though. The soundtrack during the actual anime was great, it was at times unnoticable, and at times sort of epic. It showed the emotional states of the caracters, so the name of the game was to make it fitting. Just like the animation, the non-musical elements of the sound like the wind, the cars passing by and the gunshots were realistic.

The Characters

The most important thing I noticed about the characters is that all of them are extremly strong willed and never choose to look the other way. They recive a solid amount of character development and backstory early on, but after their strong will prevented them to advance any further, or maybe its better to say prevents them from degrading, as their morals is on a high level. They don’t simply choose not to do bad things, but also help people who did bad things in their past, believing they can change. The side characters are also well executed, they are not shallow and most of them have interesting backstories, some of which actually become important for the story. The antagonists have solid reasons for their actions and sometimes even reflect on them.

The Conclusion

While Monster is one of the best series out there it is not something I would recommend to everyone, it is a long and hard to watch. A major part of it is perfect, but you will (or at least I got) bored at times. Imagine if Serial Experiments Lain was 74 episodes long. If it were fifty episodes long this would be the best anime ever, this way it is “only” very good.

qmuller - 2013-07-19 20:50:42

If you've heard of Monster, then odds are you've probably heard of the incredible hype surrounding it. For a while, Monster has been the absolute critic's darling of anime, being the poster-boy for lofty intellectual types. Because of this, it can be very easy to imagine Monster as being overhyped.But Monster lives up to every word of the praise it gets.The story of Monster begins fairly simply. A skilled Neurosurgeon named Kenzo Tenma is due to perform an operation on a patient, but is called away to operate on a popular singer instead. The singer's life is saved, but his original patient dies. Dr. Tenma is, soon after, called away from another operation due to the mayor needing his services, but this time, he declines, and instead operates on the patient he was originally supposed to save. The operation is a success, but this time, the mayor instead dies. For his insolence, Tenma is to be demoted and replaced... but at the last second, everyone standing in his way is mysteriously killed.Years later, Tenma's career is back on track, and he is enjoying a successful life doing what he does best. But one day, a string of bizarre serial murders winds up leading to one of Tenma's patients. Amidst the investigation surrounding him, the patient disappears... Tenma follows, only to see his patient murdered before his eyes, by the orchestrator of the serial killings... Johan Liebert, the boy whose life he chose to save those years ago.What follows is 70+ episodes of Tenma's frantic search to find the boy he saved, and fix his mistake. Along the way, we meet some of the most unique and interesting, yet believably human characters in the history of anime, matched with amazing, compelling subplots, with all of these both answering mysteries regarding, and yet at the same time, furthering the question: Who is Johan Liebert, and what is he trying to do?While the 70 episode runtime can be daunting, Monster is a worthy investment of time. While it is driven by compelling mysteries that make you want to watch more, Monster is just as much about enjoying the journey as it is reaching the destination. To hold the viewer's attention for 74 episodes is a feat in of itself, but Monster goes beyond that... it's a show that, once you start watching, you'll never want to stop. Monster is in the master class of suspense. It keeps a constant stream of new twists and developments that, while plentiful, never feel contrived. The characters are both strong and numerous, but while there are countless cast members, unlike many shows where there are large amounts of characters that are completely useless and contribute nothing to the plot, every character in Monster brings something to the mix. Not only that, but they are rarely left open-ended, as Urasawa makes sure to bring back characters from previous arcs, using each one to their fullest extent.The brilliance of Monster also extends past the plot to the production. While Naoki Urasawa's art style is better suited to pen and paper than it is to animation, it doesn't take long to get used to, and the detail is quite noticeable. The genius in Urasawa's distinctive style is in the way he draws faces. The cartoony, yet detailed features have a strange level of warmth to them, but they can also be used to create truly intimidating expressions, ranging from death glares to blank, glassy-eyed gazes. The directing is also top-notch, cutting no corners to create a perfect adaptation to the manga.Also of note is the soundtrack. Every song on it is a fantastic piece of music, beautifully married to the scene it accompanies. Many pieces are subtle, yet brilliant... The Seeds of Time, for example, rather than going for full-on, orchestral bombastics, eases in with quiet, yet tension-ridden power that gradually rises, making for several of the most stunning scenes in the entire series. The opening and ending themes are also very strong... the opening theme, Grain, would have to be, as it is the opening for the entire course of the 74 episode series. The ending themes, For The Love of Life and Make It Home, are strange, ethereal, haunting songs, and match the "Monster With No Name" theme of the series that is used in the ending credits perfectly.As for the voice acting, both languages have a very strong cast. In terms of acting quality, the Japanese is the better of the two, if not by a wide margin, featuring several great performances, the highlight of which is Nozomu Sasaki's dead-on, creepy take on Johan. However, while the acting is slightly inferior in the dub, the casting is considerably better. Richard Epcar is perfect for the role of Detective Lunge, and Patrick Seitz' deep tones and off-kilter performance are a great match for the eerily poker-faced Wolfgang Grimmer. The only actor who seems off in the dub is Keith Silverstein's work as Johan, which feels rather unnatural, and overshadowed by his superior Japanese counterpart. Overall, I would recommend the dub, but it's hard to go wrong with either language.Now, as much as I hate to say it, Monster isn't quite perfect. It's probably as close as you're likely to find, but it does have one problem. Whilst not so much a fault as a double-edged sword, Urasawa's storytelling technique of switching off to another location whenever the plot starts to get tired can be somewhat problematic. Don't get me wrong... as a storytelling technique, it's a very good one. It helps to keep the viewer's interest and stop the plot from getting stale, and also features prominently in Urasawa's later works, 20th Century Boys and Pluto. The problem is that on some occasions, it gets overused. While Monster is nowhere near as big an offender for this as 20th Century Boys is, it goes off on new plot threads that, while enjoyable, don't really lend anything to the plot. While they often develop into full-fledged and brilliant story arcs, they sometimes end up going nowhere, and in a series where the viewer is dying to find out more, this can be somewhat distracting.However, any complaints against this series are completely and utterly silenced by the ending. The final six episodes are probably the best in the entire series. The remaining cast members are all given a triumphant finale, as the tension reaches its absolute peak, and it is thoroughly clear that this is what the entire series was leading to. With the exception of one small Deus ex Machina that I shall not name due to spoilers, everything about it is a flawlessly executed conclusion.Monster probably isn't something that beginners to anime would enjoy. If you enjoy the medium for the abundant exaggeration, then this probably isn't up your alley. This is more of a classic, cat and mouse detective series than anything you regularly see in anime, and if that sounds like your sort of thing then Monster is an absolute must-watch.Final Words: Exemplary in every single aspect, from the story, to the characters, to the writing, to the directing.Animation/Graphics: 9/10Story/Plot: 10/10Music/Background: 10/10English Dub: 9/10Overall: 10/10For Fans Of: Pluto, Gankutsuou.

deborah.effertz - 2013-07-16 12:23:45

When I was little - I couldn't have been more than 8 or 9 years old - I was watching a documentary about the end of the world. Among the many "possible" scenarios there was a religious one: the coming of the antichrist. I remember that there was a part where they illustrated said creature: among a dozen of furious generals and politicians arguing with each other, he sat calmly at the head of the table and enjoyed the chaos. I can't remember anything about the documentary itself, but that scene has burned into my memory and I can still recall my thoughts; I was amazed by this person. In the midst of the disorder he was order itself, and even more. I thought that it wasn't right to like him, and yet I couldn't help but admire him.

Ever since I had a very unorthodox relationship with evil. While society tells you that what we call evil is bad, in every movie you watch it's the bad guy who's charismatic, intelligent and educated. It's him - or in rare cases her - who sets things in motion, he drives the story. There's even a TV trope for it: Evil is Cool. Why do we - although uncannily - like them; or even those with a consciousness as white as a paper, love to hate them? There is a lot of factor to it obviously, psychology is a science for a reason after all. But one of the most important aspect of it I've already mentioned: they tend to be charismatic. We don't know how they became what they are today, we don't know what they think, but they can do whatever they want, and they very often do it with class. Why am I talking about such elusive topics? Let me ask a question in response: do you think Light from Death Note was evil? If your answer is yes, you haven't seen anything. Meet Johan Liebert, the titular antagonist of Monster.

But before I'd venture to the more interesting parts, please let me finish up with the mandatory chores. Monster is a 74 episode long series that was released from 2004 to 2005 and was made by Madhouse Studios. Those of you who know Madhouse already know the quality of their work. Even though you could call Monster aged, it's still beautiful. It's not the level of Bakemonogatari or Hyouka, but no one should expect that from a nearly 10 years old anime. It does its job perfectly: it sets a gritty, slightly depressed tone and shows the emotions of the characters. More so, there are details that leave you stunned and makes you forget that it's not even close to being HD quality. The characters in rain, for instance, are breathtaking. Their hair gathers the water and reacts exactly how it should, dripping little droplets of rain causing strands of hair jump, being freed from the weight of them.

Another aspect of the production quality is the sound. Thankfully, it doesn't disappoint, the background music isn't intrusive but it supports the mood and atmosphere flawlessly. I personally wasn't too fond of the opening at first, but as the story progresses more and more of it make sense, slowly but surely it grew on me. The ending, on the other hand was ingenious from the very beginning. It was chilling, and though at first the viewer doesn't know what the pictures mean, it's twisted just to the right degree and it keeps you wondering if it should be creepy or not. Perfect.

Now, let us sail to the more interesting parts. The gist of the story is perfectly summed up on the main page. I wouldn't like to go into any further detail, but everything is connected and by the end of the series all of the questions are answered. There are a few "interesting" points in the story which I don't believe would happen in real life as it happened here, but there is no major turnoff or deus ex machina. Also, while having all of my questions answered is definitely a good thing, I'm not sure that everything has to be tied up so neatly. As I've said, it's not disturbing at all, and it's mostly explainable, - also, the story takes place in a more than two years timespan and involves a 9 years jump, so not everyone the characters meet are introduced, making it even more understandable - but the level of connection between people and happenings in the past did feel a little too convenient.

But the main selling point of the anime is indisputably the characters. Dr. Tenma Kenzou is the first choice of "hasubando" for some, and he understandably is. He's the most dependable character I've seen yet while staying realistic and believable; even Johan, the main antagonist is quite fond of him, in his own way. The other protagonist, Nina is the kind of girl who you'd fall in love with on first sight, marry her a couple of years later, have children with her and live happily ever after in a little village in absolute peace. Or at least, that's mostly her personality, because thanks to the fact that her brother is a mass murdering sociopath who loves to manipulate everyone and everything she has quite a few demons of her own, resulting in a less than charming demeanor when she explodes, so instead of falling in love with her you would just want to run the other way and never stop running. Especially since his brother is quite protective of him, and no sane person wants to be in a hundred miles radius of Johan. Speaking of Johan...

Johan is the spirit of the show, both literally and figuratively. You get a little sneak peak of him in the first couple of episodes to set things in motion, but after that for a very long time he isn't there; and yet, you can feel his presence in everything. He's playing from behind the curtains and he does it ingeniously. In the introduction I asked a question whether you think that Light is evil. While we can agree that his motives are questionable, he and Ryuk would run with their tails between the legs if they met Johan. I've read somewhere that if Johan and Light had a duel Johan would just calmly talk to Light for a couple of minutes and after that Light would just write his own name into the Death Note. As ridiculous it sounds, if they were to meet I'm fairly certain that things wouldn't happen too differently. He's an absolutely emotionless killer, without exaggeration he's evil incarnate. Most antagonists, fictional or not, have some morale standard that sets some boundary that even they won't overstep; Johan has no such a thing. He kills children, women and elderly people without a second thought. Or rather, to be more precise, he makes them go through such things that they are relieved when they can finally kill themselves. In the beginning of the review I was talking about the antichrist figure that I couldn't help admiring. Johan is that figure, times ten; I haven't seen anyone with his level of sinister charisma on any medium until now. He's worshipped as a deity among serial killers and it's suggested that his ability to manipulate and enthrall people is far superior even to that of Hitler's - and when you finish the story you'll believe it without any doubt. And yet, by the end of the series you will almost feel sorry for him, and despite the cruel things he did you might even forgive him.

What really makes him terrifying is that while the anime answers every questions and shows everything that led to the current situation, Johan remains a secret. We get to know what happened to him, what he did, everything shown objectively - like in a history book. But we never get to see what he thinks, why he is what he is today, and what his ultimate goal is. Johan is more terrifying than anything you can imagine because by being an unsolved mystery he becomes everything you imagine and more. He really is a nameless monster that you can watch but never see, listen to but never hear or understand. All this while being realistic and plausible.

In short: if you want a character driven thriller with an exciting story and a meaning that you decide for yourself, give it a try. It's not going to be as amusing as Code Geass nor as entertaining as Death Note. But it's going to have a much bigger impact on you than either of those.

shanon.mertz - 2013-07-03 16:15:51

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS.It has been 5 years now since I saw the anime in question "Monster" and I felt that it was about time that I write a review on it because no one else seems to have spotted the problems with the series that I have.Story: 10 Don't let my harsh opening fool you. I am in fact a massive fan of the story of "Monster", I find that it has very many unique and interesting concepts that it builds on ranging from "Neo-Nazism and the results of the post-Cold war period in Europe, interesting concepts of identity, brainwashing, superhuman experiments, conspiracy, political turmoil, historically and contextually accurate responses of certain post-war events, the effects of being a refugee and political conflict in Czechoslovakia and Germany. All these elements elevate "Monster's" score and set it apart from many other anime series that are currently available. That said it is probably amongst the handful of reasons as to why this show is so popular. Now here is where my problems start. I don't like "Monster" as a show, and here is my problem, if you say those exact words someone somewhere will dismiss you as a person who does not understand the story of "Monster". This in my opinion is absolutely insulting to a humans intelligence. I do not understand how anybody could not understand this show. This show is the absolute pinnacle of being over-told. Sure, if a person doesn't understand the context of the story that is a little more understandable but I am specifically referring to the actual story that is presented to us within the anime. Monster's story is fantastic but is poorly executed, it fails in one of the most important story-telling departments, "Less is More". No statement applies to any other show I can think of more than "Monster" at failing in this department. Now, an argument may be presented to me saying that I don't like slow-paced anime, which does hold a little bit of relevance, however, when I am able to predict the actions that are to be carried out 20 to 40 episodes before hand, the show begins to get very dull very fast. That said, I predicted the fact that Tenma was not going to kill Johan by the end of the first 15 episodes, it was way to out of character and by the style of storytelling that was presented to me, I predicted that the author was not going to build a plot convenience in order to develop the story. Though contradictory to my previous statement, the fact that the show does not build "plot conveniences" carelessly is in itself is a presentation of very good storytelling, the fact that the show does not rely on events that are coincidental nor are they entirely irrelevant to reach its conclusion raises the bar even further and is probably the reason as to why I gave it a 10 out of 10.Art 6/10 Being an artist, I can appreciate the artwork in any anime, and "Monster" is of no exception to this rule. For what there is, Monster's artwork actually works very well, it is very realistic in its take on the human figure and does not present any examples of clichéd body architecture present in most anime, and for this I appreciate, as it is a breath of fresh air which is something that the series seems intent on offering once again, which is in no way a bad thing. The animation being realistic also contributes massively to the atmosphere of the story where the animation is at times very dreary and this in itself helps set the mood. But for highlight's Monster does have its fair share, and I will always remember the animation from the recital piece of "A Monster Without a Name."Sound 5/10 In the sound department, nothing really stands out after 5 years of having seen the series, the thing that stands out the most is in actuality the opening sequence in the sound department, whilst I remember the ending sequence to being a little irritating on the ears, but remember it setting the scene quite well once again with its mellow, calmly menacing undertones. As for the rest of the soundtrack, as said nothing stands out, but it is not bad in any sense of the word, as it gets the job done in setting the mood for the atmosphere.Enjoyment: 2 Maybe I may have enjoyed Monster more if I just hadn't thought about it is my conclusion in this department, it is for this reason that I found Monster to be absolutely insulting in how it treated its audience, it gave you everything on a silver platter so you did not have to think for yourself and that for me was where the series practically destroyed itself, it took a very complex storyline with complex characters and it over-simplified it to the point where at times the characters felt that they had very little substance even though you knew they did. As I said before, it might have been the slow pacing that killed it for me, or the fact that I could predict what would happen quite a ways beforehand, it may have been a fluke, but I was overwhelmingly irritated that I actually figured out that Tenma was not going to kill Johan by the very end of the story. Building on to that, the time it took to get to that point was absolutely appalling, I am going to say that Monster could easily have fit into a 40 or 50 episode period and still have adapted the manga completely maintaining all the contents and still have had the same if not stronger impact, in fact, if Monster was 40 - 50 episodes long and was a complete adaption of the manga, I imagine I would be at the forefront of the crowd of people worshipping the series as the next testimonial chapter of the Bible. To be fair, the series is at times very thought provoking, but these periods I thought were very short-lived and they were few and far between each and every episode adding onto the already dismal pace and the inability for the series to recognize importance in certain characters over another by wasting too much screen time on characters whose characters could have been established with the same level of development in less than half the time that they were given on screen. "Monster" was all in all, a drag to finish, I found myself being bored quite often and constantly checking when the episode would end and with the constant introduction of new characters to maintain my interest for short bursts before becoming bored again.Characters: 10 One of the strongest aspects of Monster's storytelling is the characters department, the characters in this series are so well fleshed out that if you walk down the street, you can label many people with the characters in this series and they may be excruciatingly accurate replica's of their behaviours, attitudes and motivations. In fact, what Monster exceeds in is its ability to replicate characters so closely to the plot and story being told that the story seems to be the characters and not the story in question. My criticism for Monster doesn't actually go to the characters but in actuality goes to the allocation of characters in the story. Whilst none of the characters can be dismissed as irrelevant or unnecessary to the conclusion of the story, some of the character's contributions to the conclusion are so minute that it may as well have never happened. This is what Monster suffers from, there are so many characters though not unnecessary but quite contrary have received way too much development, now again this could be argued as a favourable element to the story, but given the stories execution and the time spent on each and every character, they quite frequently, especially towards the middle of the series become anecdotal and very repetitive, where points made about a persons actions and the establishments for motivations are recalled more than once, twice and thrice and this is where I found that the series became absolutely appalling. So, the characters are absolutely amazing in the sense of the word, however what destroys them for me, is the series subjection of these characters to constant reinvestigation which really deems the act of translating characters for yourself absolutely worthless because as I said before, it left nothing to the imagination and I found myself time and time again saying, "yes, I know".Overall 5.32/10.00 I am in no way an elitist nor am I a conformist, that said, I do not let people's opinions influence how a perceive a work, and that said "Monster" as anime I believe is overhyped. However, "Monster" as a story is Underhyped. I see very little problem with the story of Monster, I see a lot of problems with its execution, relying on many anecdotal side-stories that do hold relevance but act as deterrents from the over-arcing picture that the show is illustrating, which is at times lost due to the length of the series. "Monster" is by no means a bad anime series, but I think it lacks a distinct shine that makes other series far more memorable. That said, my initial reaction to my being disappointed with the anime of "Monster" led me to think: "I wonder if the manga is any better." Quite thankfully, I read the manga, and I must say that it is easily my favourite book that I have ever read.

olin99 - 2013-06-16 19:54:50

The Story

If anime had a style period Monster would fit in somewhere between realism and romanticism. The story is told slowly, minding every detail  and it mostly consists of detective work regardless if it's actual detectives doing their job or the protagonists simply investigating. Urasawa Naoki clearly left nothing to chance or improvisation in the creation of Monster. His meticulously conceived and astoundingly immersive plot is certainly the result of countless hours of historical, geographical and cultural research. Monster is set against the backdrop of a Germany reeling from its internal division by the Berlin Wall, all the while struggling to cope with the conflicting ideals of democracy and authoritarianism within the same country. This dichotomy between the East and West German governments, along with the long-term consequences for the citizens on each side of the Wall are subtly referenced throughout the plot. Realism on this level is something that no author can fake. The actual plot idea behind Monster is one we have all heard before. A doctor is under suspicion for murder and flees the authorities to find the villain and clear his name. But with Monster, it is not so much the originality of the plot, as it is the masterful storytelling which puts Monster in a category of its own. 
Urasawa's style is one of sublime efficiency - not a single scene is wasted and every piece of information revealed to the audience is ultimately significant. A single glance, a dark shadow, the sound of a footstep - these are the precise and parsimonious tools Urasawa uses to tell the story of Monster. His narration is immersive and gripping, but never once does it feels heavy-handed. The flow from scene to scene always feels completely natural, and deftfully avoids any appearance that the writer is forcing the plot in order to create drama or suspense. 

If anything, it is just the opposite: the main story is advanced through the exposition of tangential subplots. As a result, the hero is constantly hot on the trail of the antagonist, but only ever able to gain information from indirect witnesses, friends of friends, people only remotely related to the search at hand. Consequently, the antagonist's screen time is so rare that each appearance might even be considered a cameo. And yet, Urasawa's villain is easily the best characterised and most memorable in all the anime I have seen to date. I stand in awe of Monster, for this is storytelling at its finest.

The Animation

muted colors and dulled edges, make this macabre tale all the more haunting.
the animation frame-rate is flowing and faces are quite expressive. Detail levels are quite decent, although exterior scenery is rare, given the dark nature of the story. The few scenic moments I do remember in the anime were well-drawn. I know the following will seem odd for a mystery and suspense thriller, but the food shown in Monster is extremely appetizing; I distinctly recall feeling hungry several times while watching the characters eat. Prior to viewing Monster, I had never craved German food, but I must admit that the anime actually convinced me to seek out a place where I could eat some the things I saw.

Sound

Obviously, in a suspense/thriller anime, you would not expect to find highly memorable or catchy tunes. This is the case with Monster, the anime relying more heavily on silence, foreboding sounds, and the occasional eerie music to set the mood. Despite being 74 episodes long, Monster had only one opening and two ending themes. From a vocal standpoint, both singers featured in the ending music are quite mediocre. However, the suitability of these two pieces for the overall atmosphere of Monster is ideal. Both pieces are only very lightly orchestrated, with contrasting emphasis on echo and proximity of voice to the microphone, resulting in an altogether unsettling and haunting feeling which is completely appropriate for the series. 

It is the voice acting, though, which gives Monster its unforgettable immersiveness. The seiyuu cast succeeds brilliantly in adding to the overall atmosphere. Though the anime involves a wide spectrum of emotion, the seiyuu convincingly convey each emotion to perfection. Sasaki Nozomu in particular deserves special commendation for so vividly bringing to life the role of the main antagonist. It is no easy task to credibly portray the voice of a person who commits brutal murder without a trace of emotion, and yet possesses the gentle charm and seductive charisma to beguile and manipulate countless others.

Sound

Monster is intricately woven with a relatively large cast of characters to carry out the complex series of events. But each character has a role. A purpose. A distinct personality. You see every supporting character develop and change as the story progresses. And the character development of the leads…Dr. Tenma, Nina, Eva and even the third person perspective we’re given of the development of Johan are all spectacular. SO THOROUGH. These characters are so complex and fleshed out… they seem real. We see their strengths, their flaws, their beliefs all play out. Every character is multi dimensional….we’re given views of each little facet of their personalities as the story goes on. Ah. Monster is a rare example of characterization done perfectly

Sound

Wow..

quentin.bernhard - 2013-05-18 10:39:36

"Monster" may not be the most popular of anime - unlike say, "Death Note" or "Full Metal Alchemist", there are still plenty of people who haven't seen it - but it has attained this almost mythical status as one of the anime that's come closest to being flawless. Could this really be the Holy Grail of anime? Now, being the opinionated jackass that I am, I've never shied away from obnoxiously airing my unwanted views loudly and with extreme prejudice, however controversial they may be, and a fair share of popular anime ("FLCL", "Elfen Lied" and "Clannad" to name a few) have felt the wrath of my uncompromising rants over the years... but if you're looking for one of those ludicrously rare negative opinions on *this* anime, then I'm afraid to say that you won't be getting it from me. This is because, like virtually everyone else - the harshest of critics included - I found myself reduced to fanboyish gushing upon finishing "Monster", having been totally stupefied by the mind-blowing awesomeness of this magnificent series (see what I mean about the gushing? :P). Just like its main villain, "Monster" comes off as almost glowing with the aura of perfection - without a doubt, this epic is one of the all time greats."Monster" tells the tale of a Japanese doctor named Kenzou Tenma, who starts off in the series as the young and talented star neurosurgeon at a highly reputable hospital in Germany. His working environment is a highly political one, and one day he has to make a decision between saving a boy with a bullet wound in the head, and a major benefactor of the hospital who was rushed there in an emergency just as Dr. Tenma was about to operate on the boy. Little did Dr. Tenma know that the choice he make would have such extraordinary consequences. Soon, mysterious deaths starts to occur around Dr. Tenma... and the prime suspect is him. Having found out that these events aren't completely unrelated to him, he starts tracking an elusive figure who he believes to be the one responsible for the deaths. His investigations take him across Europe, uncovering countless mysteries and dark secrets along the way, all the while being pursued by the police. The strength of the story and the plot development of this gripping series are nothing short of phenomenal, and easily surpasses any anime that I've watched previously. Usually, something this long would get dull and/or repetitive, but "Monster" not only successfully avoids this, it miraculously manages to pace itself far better than most 26 episode series. I found myself on the edge of my seat with eyes glued to the screen for the duration of its 74 episodes. There are a huge number of plot twists - every episode seems to end with on a cliff-hanger, and it's fiendishly difficult to find good places to stop watching and do overrated sensible activities such as eat. And maybe sleep.First and foremost, "Monster" is a suspenseful, psychological thriller... and it more than delivers as one with its overwhelmingly powerful and dark atmosphere. What struck me immediately while watching it is its great use of sound. If I just listen to the "Monster" soundtrack by itself, I'd most likely find it to be rather unfulfilling. However, within the context of the anime it's nothing short of amazing. And I'm not just talking about the music alone - the use of sound is not limited to the background music, and "Monster" successfully demonstrates this by putting to good use an astonishingly wide array of ambient sounds. A lot of it can be more accurately described as noise rather than music, and the unsettling atmosphere created through the skillful use of these noises, combined with sheer ruthlessness with which "Monster" frequently kills off its characters, ended up inducing a kind of paranoia in me while I was watching it. I found myself jumping at every background sound and every change in the tone of the music, and nervously chewing my nails whenever a character is left alone, wondering whether that character would be the next one to meet an unfortunate end.The artwork also suits the gloomy atmosphere. Instead of the typical, huge-eyed kawai type character designs that you often find in anime, "Monster" strives for a much more realistic visual style. A lot of people have said they don't like it, but I personally love it. With the exception of some slightly off walking motions, the animation is really good. Just like with the sound, small details are manipulated with a deft touch that can nevertheless bring about significant tonal changes. A great example is the facial features of one of the characters Eva Heinemann, who comes across in the beginning as one of the bitchiest characters you're ever likely to meet. But with the simple unarching of her eyebrows, Eva's face can suddenly soften and the usual trace of bitchiness across her features just melts away. These kind of subtle touches and great attention to detail are used to brilliant effect within the anime. What's more, everything about "Monster" clicks together, and preciously little screen time is wasted. Even the ending credits is utilised to tell an intensely creepy, macabre fairy tale. It isn't just any fairy tale - as the story progress, you'll come to realise that it's a fairy tale that not only plays a significant role in the plot, it also reflects some of the underlying themes that underpins the main story. If you skip all the ending credits, you'll be missing out on some details that, though not quite crucial, certainly serve their purpose in making the series a richer viewing experience."Monster" isn't all about the presentation and the production values though - it's a series backed up by solid substance and it provides more than enough material to mentally chew on after watching an episode. It easily lives up to its its title. The monstrosities that can be witnessed (a lot of which are committed on innocent children) in the anime come across as both shocking and horrifying. Thinking back on it, it's kind of ironic that what initially kicked off the chain of events in the series is a choice made on the moral grounds that doctors should treat all lives as equals. In fact, there are many strong underlying moral themes in "Monster", and it thoughtfully explores many questions such as whether someone deserves forgiveness, however much atrocity he has committed. Parallels can be drawn between the paths taken by "Trigun" and "Monster", but the latter presents a far more convincing case than the former. In both cases I don't fully agree with the answers provided, but in "Trigun" I find myself siding with the villain as the hero (Vash) came off as more stupidly naive than anything else, whereas in "Monster", the hero (Dr. Tenma) cuts a much more mature, saintly figure. One of the things that makes Dr. Tenma's case more convincing is that, even though he might seem too much of a perfect goody goody, he doesn't start off this way - he is initially introduced as a snivelling coward, a pawn in the political games played at his hospital. His moral stance evolves along with the strength of his character as he perseveres through the harsh trials that's thrown at him in the duration of the series, and this makes it difficult argue against the views he eventually settles on and the decisions he eventually makes because you know that he did not reach them lightly.A lot of intelligent anime can often come off as a little cold and aloof, just look at "Boogiepop Phantom", an anime that is similar to "Monster" insofar as it's also very dark, very clever and has a lot of substance to go with its ostentatious presentation. But unlike these kind of anime, "Monster" is by no means souless, and this is because the characters. Dr. Tenma may be a fantastic character, but he is actually made to look rather ordinary by the the rest of a very stella cast. It should be noted that the size of the cast of "Monster" is rather large. Now in most cases, large casts tends to spell trouble, and any anime that attempts to cram in a lot of characters usually end up with an extremely dull selection that are underdeveloped and forgettable. But "Monster" is not just any anime. Despite having so many characters, it's hard to recall a single bad character in the entire series, and in fact most of them are nothing short of fascinating. Who can forget the likes of that detective with an alcohol problem, or the constantly smiling Wolfgang Grimmer? A lot of these characters only appear for a short while, but it's more than enough for them to make a big impact. As for the re-occurring ones, virtually all of them undergo superb character development. One such character is Eva Heinemann. She stands out for having one of the most dynamically developed personalities, and also for changing from a character I loathed to a character I came to like very much. The main villain too, is one of the most charismatic, sophisticated and terrifying villain ever to grace the medium. Instead of scaring people outright with brute force, he induces a psychological fear by getting into people's minds, psyching out their darkest secrets and manipulating them using soft power. And this makes him far more compelling than your average mass produced brawn-over-brains "final boss" style villain, who usually comes fully equipped with a single digit IQ, some basic, primitive cunning, and the ability to manically laugh for an hour or so. Despite the quirky and distinctive traits that a lot of the characters have (for instance Runge with his constantly typing hands), most of them come across as genuine, real people caught up in crazy situations. Virtually all the characters are much more than what meets the eye, and many of them are burdened by dark pasts that they are trying to put behind them. The characters are fleshed out through their backstories and, as the plot often takes turns to unfold through their different perspectives, it's really easy to connect to and sympathise with these troubled characters. "Monster" is a series with plenty of heart and warmth because it makes you care about its characters for all their very human flaws: it makes you smile with them through the good times, tighten up nervously when they are in danger, and it makes you want to weep in frustration and anguish when they are killed off, often just as you're growing fond of them.Admittedly, I'm not too keen on the ending of the series, and I still have a few lingering questions about certain plot points, especially ones concerning the villain, and the almost supernatural way he seems to be able to always get what he wants. But aside from these very minor complaints, I honestly can't find any aspect of "Monster" that isn't outstanding. With its masterfully told plot, unforgettable characters, paranoia-inducing dark atmosphere and profound depth, "Monster" is a colossal masterpiece in *every* sense of the word.