Tensai Okamura Wolf's Rain (TV series)

Plot

Wolf's Rain takes place in a worn down world of the future, where it is believed that wolves have been extinct for a couple hundred of years. However, it seems that wolves still exist, but have adapted by taking the form of humans to blend into society.

The main character is Kiba, a lone wolf who is searching for the lunar flowers. It is a legend to the wolves, that those who follow the scent of the lunar flowers will find a way to paradise. The scent leads him to a girl named Cheza. From here, they meet up with a few other wolves, escape the city, and try to travel to paradise together. Along the way they meet heavy resistance and a man named Darcia.

Audio and Visuals

The soundtrack to the series is beautiful. The ending theme song, "Gravity," happens to be one of my favorite ending songs. It fits so well with the show and helps make a nice closing to each episode. The English voiceovers are well done as well. The Japanese was good, but I prefer the English on this one, which doesn't happen often in anime for me.

The visuals were good in the series. The characters weren't really amazing in terms of visuals, and there were moments that looked below average. However, there were plenty of moments that made me impressed, which made up for the few flaws.

Story and Character Development

The story was good, but was slow at some points. The one thing that made me uneasy was the four recap episodes they had halfway through the series. However, it was full of action and remained engaging.

If you can get over the slow parts, then you will enjoy the majority of the story. I will warn you that the show can be confusing and the ending might do the same. It is left open for interpretation as to the meaning, which isn't something I like about anime endings most of the time.

The mood of the series is pure drama and fantasy. There is no comedy relief, and very little romance to give you a break from the depressing and serious nature of the worn down world. So, it is for people who like a serious show with action.

The wolf characters demonstrate less than human qualities in their behavior, which helps to show the fact that they are still wolves and can't adapt fully into human society. That is what made me like the character development in the series.

Final Thoughts

Well, despite the fact Wolf's Rain can get a little slow and the ending was a little confusing, I still say watch the series at least once to get your own opinion. The action and good story makes it worth a run through, but watching it more than once might help you to understand certain parts better.