Shigofumi: Letters from the Departed

Pas · Post by **Pas** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 10:34 pm

Anyone else been following the series? It's ended just recently, though I'm waiting for w 0 0 f to finish the last episode.

This was probably my favorite anime of the new season, and the first couple of episodes led me to believe it was somewhat like Jigoku Shoujo and Shinigami no Ballad, but I was proved wrong as the series went on.

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclo ... hp?id=8760

\o/

Lyrs · Post by **Lyrs** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 2:57 pm

I'm half way through. The first 3 episodes were really well done. I liked the struggle and human drama. They were tragic, hard hitting, and held reasonably realistic storylines regardless of the involvement of spiritual beings.

Normally, I'd recommend a thread for this anime, but seeing as how every anime that I've requested a thread for has turned out to be rather low in Org involvement, I won't.

=P

Ringtails · Post by **Ringtails** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 6:43 pm

Years from now, I will remember this series best for its cat cuteness. NEKO!!!

MioMug · Post by **MioMug** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 7:02 pm

I will say at first I didn't really expect much from this anime, a friend of mine told me to watch it a few weeks ago and I have been following it since, but really at first I only watched it because Ali Project did the opening song.

Like Lyrs said the first several episodes is what really grabbed me, and for the same reasons too. For example the first episode ended completely diffrent then what I was originally expecting, yet was realistic in the same way. If that makes any scene.

Its really no wounder why it was licensed so quickly, shame it was only 12 episodes though.

Pas · Post by **Pas** » Mon Mar 31, 2008 9:15 am

Just finished watching episode 12.

I have to say, they gave it a nice ending. I didn't really expect it to go in that direction, but I'm glad they did.

Also, I agree. A 24 episode season for Shigofumi would have been great, they certainly had enough material to cover it.

Ahh well. All's well that ends well.

OropherZero · Post by **OropherZero** » Fri May 23, 2008 10:58 am

Just started it, saw the first 2 eps and loved it. I hope there are even better stories to come. I find a lot of parallels with Kino's Journey, has the same atmosphere, structure and lead characters, a girl who goes and leaves the lives of people, showing the up and downs of society.

OropherZero · Post by **OropherZero** » Fri May 23, 2008 11:04 am

...thinking about it, 4th quarter 2007 had a damn lot of anime I really enjoy, like 7+ I'm hoping for another one of these epic anime seasons this year

OropherZero · Post by **OropherZero** » Sat May 24, 2008 4:35 am

up to ep9 fucking love this series

OropherZero · Post by **OropherZero** » Sat May 24, 2008 7:28 am

just finished it, really enjoyable, wonder if the glasses guy would have kept going after the shinigami one, err i can't remember names too well because I basically marathoned this anime to completion

Emong · Post by **Emong** » Wed May 28, 2008 1:17 pm

I just finished watching it today after I came home from school. I'm a little disappointed though. Propably because it was a little predictable and the writers always took the safe way out from all of the stories. The series was never really ahead of me, which is a bad thing >_> Except for the ending maybe, which I appreciate. It was just boring all the drama was very typical of anime.

The first couple of episodes were promising though. Actually, the series was at its best when it showed it darker sides. It actually had something to say in those parts. Most often it just simply appealed to feelings, which worked for me. Just like the first story. It would have been terrible with only the first half of it yet it actually gave a try at understanding more than just one aspect of the whole thing, which was quite good. All the endings were quite cheesy though >_>

The bullying episodes were the highlights for me. Really, they hit me quite hard emotionally. It was just sad all around while watching it, especially seeing what was written on the letter written by the bullied one who commited suicide. I appreciate the series took up on the bullying issue, showing just how it can change people. It was predictable, yes, it was very typical, yes, but it's all just not relevant compared to the actual issue.

Fumika's story was really far-fetched now that I think of it. It sort of felt natural for the whole series, but seriously, just think of it outside the anime and it's just really weird. Now I wonder whether the whole thing had any purpose at all. It was just an easy way to victimize the leading character and have some dramatic lines and acts being said and done. It was just absurd, and it wasn't even absurd on purpose O.o

And wow, I wonder how many animes end with those clever, dramatic lines that need to be said so the leading character can understand something important about him/herself. It looks pretty darn good on paper though, but I'm kinda getting tired of seing a desperate girl crying through a bunch of episodes just so in the end she would be said she's not at fault at all and something important about the whole epic theme of the anime everyone already knew about. I thought this show would be different since it was made of numerous different stories O.o

I wish there was continuation though. The episodes weren't really good enough, nor emotional enough to hold up the series, maybe safe from few moments here and there. The supernatural elements weren't really interesting either. It just seemed like the writers had a cool idea of letters being sent from the afterlife and they had to build some drama around it. Would have worked better if the whole thing wasn't from a shigofumi mailman's perspective, imo. More emphasis on the actual stories, please?

And now I think it's the perfect time for the good ol' serious cat