90%

As many people know, "Another" was based on a novel written by Yukito Ayatsuji and there has also been an manga adaptation in recent years. And the anime was released this January. I saw a poster for "Another" and thought I’d watch it based on how interesting the characters looked; with favourable results!

This anime is creepy and mysterious in a way reminiscent of the Higurashi no Naku koro ni anime - classmates hiding a terrible secret and a possible murder mystery. We are told what happened at the start, but that was an event in the past, not the present (1998) when the anime is set. It seems that there is another mystery that Koichi’s new classmates are hiding. We know what to expect from this anime by reading the descriptions and blurbs but this is one of the reasons this anime draws so much suspense. The characters stay ignorant to Koichi’s questions and so keeps him and us in the dark; this only makes us want to watch more!

The art-style in this anime is very similar to some of the newer anime at the moment in terms of shading and may seem like a shojo anime form the way the characters are presented, but this is not the case. The character designs are excellent and though only two episodes have aired as I write this, I am awaiting the further introduction of the main class’s characters who we see glimpses of in the first episode. In addition, there is a certain gloom and bleakness in the scenery which complements the hidden, underlying mystery.

My only criticism is the soundtrack, the haunting music can be annoying at times rather than scary and appears unnecessary in certain scenes.

To finish, "Another" is a very interesting, haunting anime which I cannot wait to finish watching.

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