In the year 1923, a vampire crisis takes Tokyo by storm. Provoked by the illegal trade of "Ascra," an artificial blood source, the population of vampires begins to rapidly increase within the city. Under orders from Lieutenant General Sounosuke Nakajima, the Special Forces Unit 16 gathers vampires within the military to create a new undercover vampire-hunting unit known as Code Zero.
Leading the unit is Colonel Yoshinobu Maeda. Responsible for locating the source of the Ascra trade as well as capturing and killing vampires, he is pressured into producing fruitful results amidst the growing criticism that threatens to decommission the unit. To make matters worse, the vampires within the unit are struggling to grasp their newfound powers and identities now that they are no longer human. With the world at odds against them, the members of Code Zero must find a way to curb the crisis or otherwise fall victim to their own demonic natures.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Comentários
ExemplarCayman
This review contains an optional spoiler section at the end. - How does it end? - It’s a tragedy. One word: cinematography and theatrics. If someone told me before I have seen Mars Red that it’s a TV anime entirely drawn in cinemascope size (2.35:1), my first thought would’ve been, “Well, that’s pointlessly pretentious. Not like a TV anime is shot on 70 mm film and meant to be projected on cinema screens.” Boy, am I happy to be wrong on this one. Every other scene of Mars Red is an absolute masterpiece of shot composition, properly utilizing the wide aspect ratio for grand panoramic views and pensive camerapans. It wouldn’t be weird to think you’re watching Quentin Tarantino’s work, so skillful the presentation on the pure craftsmanship level is.
And it’s not like I’m implying this is a case of style over substance - in Mars Red style IS substance. The show is adapted from a stage play, and it wears that origin on its sleeve. The cast members can’t walk three steps without quoting some classical drama (the fact that several of them are actual thespians helps). And then the storylines of the early episodes mimic the very same classics in a deliberate, ostentatious manner. So the wide shots don’t just exist for the sake of pretty pictures - they are contributing to the show’s extravagant theater-like atmosphere and to its exclusively visual storytelling, the much-vaunted “show, don’t tell” principle, which many like to use as a buzzword but few appreciate when it’s seriously put to practice, as lack of spoonfeeding makes the story cryptic and genuinely hard to follow (I had to watch the first episode twice to fully understand what transpired there - and I saw many not only completely miss the ENTIRE story of that episode but also miss even the fact that they’re missing something - but more on that later).
Also, it’s about vampires, which I hope is something I don’t have to explain because any self-respecting vampire fiction fan should understand that vampires means pathos and pathos means vampires.
Do note that the show has two distinct “phases”, and so far I’ve been talking about its first half. The second half ditches the episodic structure and the theater homages in favor of a single main plotline, but what it loses in aesthetics gets compensated twofold in weight of its dramatic writing - Episode 6 is a particularly profound highlight.
Here, I ought to elaborate on the show’s setting and how it contributes to the tone and the narrative. It’s Taishou Era (the early 1920s) Japan - no doubt the consequence of Kimetsu no Yaiba’s success, that nonetheless has more significance than just being a marketing gimmick. The Taisho Era was the golden age of the Japanese Empire - coming out of World War I on the winning side with massive territorial gains and ushering the decade of prosperity, progress, modernization, and social change. It’s not an accident that the male characters of Mars Red are manly military men with iron-cast jawlines, nor is it one that the female characters are plucky, go-getting “modern girls” (the Japanese name for flappers). There couldn’t be a better stage for a theatre-inspired story.
So, what the central plotline of the second half of the show does on that stage is denouncing the militaristic ethos birthed from that decade (embodied by the character of Lt. Gen. Nakajima) - the ethos responsible for railroading the Japanese Empire into World War II and spelling its demise. Furthermore, the main plot is counterpointed by personal dramas of the cast members playing out amidst the aftermath of the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 - another defining event of the Taishou Era.
Returning back to the “show, don’t tell” point. Honestly, at times what this series does feels more like “don’t show, don’t tell.” Important plot developments happen off-screen between episodes, with the audience left to figure out wtf had happened only by the breadcrumbs in characters’ dialogues and reactions to the aftermath of those. It’s like the show was purposefully trying to filter out the “plot” audience that watches anime to see if aliens will explode the earth with a blue laser - instead of watching it for character arcs, exploration of themes, or audio-visual presentation - as figuring out the plot here is a nigh-impossible task. This is the first series since The Tatami Galaxy that feels intentionally designed for rewatches. The first rewatch is a much more enjoyable experience than the initial watch-through - and I don’t mean this as an abstract impression, but as my actual first-hand experience. I have rewatched the entire show before it finished airing to confirm for myself if things that I felt were unexplained/plot holes actually were those things - or if I just missed/didn’t get it the first time. Rest assured, it’s the latter - not a single question about the plot points, character motivations, etc. that I had on my first watch was left unanswered after a rewatch. So, yeah, look at the screen when watching anime.
Still, don’t expect a Madoka-tier perfectly-structured, easily-digestible screenplay. Watch this show only if you’d like to appreciate some amazing cinematography and submerge yourself in some stageplay pathos. I really don’t have all that many words to describe those, as it’s kinda a misguided effort trying to describe with words what’s so beautiful about the sunset over the ocean - one just has to see it.
11/10 (on a 15-point scale) for “historical drama that epitomizes the art of visual storytelling.”
P.S. Below is a list of plot points established in the first episode purely by visual/indirect storytelling. The list is meant for those who have seen the episode. It’s there for a case study of how a “deep” anime actually looks like.
*Spoilers begin here*
1) Misaki was Maeda’s fiancee. I’m not explaining this one, it should be obvious to anyone who looked at the screen when watching this episode.
2) Maeda has recently lost his dominant right arm and wears a prosthetic. You can see him struggling to write readable kanji with his left hand around 00:50, as well as generally using only his left hand for everything while holding his right arm in an unnaturally stiff way. Later, around 10:35, Lt. Gen. Nakajima apologizes for summoning Maeda three days earlier [than his medical leave ends] and inquires about the arm, to which Maeda replies, “I can use it.”
3) Misaki’s first name is revealed around 11:15 by a case file, and then her full name is spelled on a letter Maeda holds around 12:45 - and it’s Nakajima Misaki. Meaning, she is a relative (an educated guess would be - a daughter) of Lt. Gen. Nakajima. When Nakajima instructs Maeda to dispose of her if she is not usable, and makes a point that personal feelings should not interfere with the duty - he talks to himself just as much as he talks to Maeda.
4) Defrott is a vampire and he’s the one who turned Misaki. She was mortally wounded in an accident that happened in his presence, and expressed regret about missing the chance to show her performance of Salome to Maeda - and so Defrott gave her a second chance. Defrott reveals his and Misaki’s motives in a conversation with Maeda around 15:30, and then with Salome quotes around 17:30.
Bonus: the title Mars Red alludes to the god of war and the color of blood - it’s a story about using vampires as a military force. Something tells me that the Venn diagram of people that got this meaning on their own and people that disliked this show is nil.
Resident_Green
Pretentious, chaotic, and lazily open-ended. And pure relief when I managed to finish the last episode. ∞ Who is Mars Red aimed at? Definitely not an average anime follower. I doubt that even folks drown to niche shows are going to find Mars Red charming. It's very theatre-heavy and into the most confusing way of storytelling. Don't get me wrong. I love me some mental challenge, but that lack of explanations would frustrate even the most chill person. Those with a degree in English literature could be the ones to enjoy this, but even there I'm not so sure. I still believe that anime isn'tall that deep.
∞ Why so low score? Confusing world. Dull characters. Nonexistent purpose to the story.
World. The more you get into it, the harder it is to figure stuff out. Especially after the major event that throws the world setting on its head. After that, conflicting pieces of information and no answers are the norms. Also, unnecessary time jumps further challenge your ability to piece unexplained narrative turns.
Characters. They all have undeveloped goals and predictable roles in the story. I would be hard-pressed to call any of them relatable or compelling. Initially, Maeda Yoshinobu had the most interesting character concept - a man whose sheer force of will made him stronger than any supernatural being. Sounds amazing, right? Yet he is criminally underused and his impact at the ending is...confusing and infuriating.
Vision. There is no genuine sense of purpose behind anime. Some vamps need to work hard to save their humanity, and some lost it. Vamps are truly fragile creatures. Well-intentional extremism never leads to great solutions in practice. That’s it. The end.
∞ Is there anything salvageable? Of course, but it's not worth to watch the whole season for it.
Designs of background and characters are far from generic and anime is highly atmospheric at moments. Some shots from the first couple of episodes had movie quality to them.
The ending song is great and is a clever way to tell the background story of one of the characters.
klasnix
I really would like to give this one a 8 or higher but these damn plotholes. With every episode you end up asking yourself "did I miss something? When did that happened?“ and that’s the Elefant in the room because the story relies on you understanding what things are happening. There ist not that much exposition or a character that tells you what happened or something like that and that’s a shame. This anime has a fantastic stageplay and I liked the artstyle and it’s simplicity. There is so much potential but it ends up getting nowhere because you can’t follow what’s happening and that’swhy I gave it a 7. It’s nothing more than good and even that is expressed with positive will.
KANLen09
When was the last time we truly got a serious depiction of vampires in anime, much less Frankenstein, Werewolves (e.g. Sirius the Jaeger) and so on? I sure as hell can't remember one in recent memory, not even in the past decade. Hollywood though, has some variables ones like the mediocre Van Helsing movie to the iconic Bram Stoker's Dracula. On the other hand, you have famous people like theater director and writer Bun-O Fujisawa, who is the brainchild for this show: Mars Red, a story of vampires living in the Taisho era of Tokyo. Largely influenced by the learning journey in theater due to hisfamily upbringing, Bun-O Fujisawa experienced many theatrical shows, even trickling down to even opera and musicals. His expedition to London to study theatre in London is quite liberal, and being a native Japanese, he has to prove his skills through his performance of his works in London, orchestrated in a carefully considered and methodically composed manner. If you can notice Fujisawa's trademark in Episode 1, where the "recitation drama" of Salomé, this is the result of Fujisawa having noticed that recitation dramas weren't building any momentum in Japan when that culture didn't exist, only often happening in places like bookstores. What he did was to induce performances almost exactly like a regular theater show with the flashy live band performances and the outfits; the only difference is that the actors remain stationary.
So then, Bun-O Fujisawa's depiction of Mars Red is simply taking the same trope or cliché, but expanding in a way that seems famililar, yet feels differently. The depiction of vampires not as conventionally powerful monsters, but as vulnerable people in society, the theme that humans and vampires alike possess both strengths and weaknesses, or so Fujisawa thinks that essence is very important to the anime (which having experience from similar plays in the past, I totally agree with this unique subtlety of a direction). What makes Mars Red appealing is in what Fujisawa says it best: "Don't you think that the appeal of vampires is that they possess two contrasting elements: superhuman powers and weaknesses? In the show, there's even more of a focus on their “weaknesses” compared to your conventional vampire. They are weak to sunlight, can't swim, and need blood. Because of their heightened senses, the stench and noise pollution of industrial Japan can only cause them pain. In this story, vampires are born within the paradox that is the modern science of the industrial revolution: it supports them in their weaknesses. Even then, science can't do anything about the problems of their heart that they face in eternal life. I hope you can enjoy this new tale about vampires." And indeed he has created his own spin of vampires that has its own charm, though an underrated one to some who can appreciate the enamor.
For more information about that one, I can reference you to ANN's interviews with the creator Bun-O Fujisawa himself, as is debut director Kouhei Hatano and screenwriter Junichi Fujisaku done very recently, paying homage to the legend that is Fujisawa and his Reading Theater stage play (seen in Episode 1). The TL;DR is this: Junichi Fujisaku, having done similar stories like Blood+ and Blood-C from the elusive Blood franchise, if you are a millennial or older who've watched the Blood franchise before, you can definitely feel the similarities in the scriptwriting, though this is an unique, standalone work on its own. It is a throwback to a classic that's made modern with its own flare and feel that makes Mars Red a compelling, moody story.
Stage plays are nothing new when you reference that to the long extensive history, but in anime? This has always been a topic that is very hard to be translated into animation, and somehow Kouhei Hatano and his production team at Signal.MD managed to pull this off with much fanfare, even if the audience population scale of influence is small. Nevertheless, knowing its theater-cum-stage-play influence of a theme, Mars Red uses its many characters to develop their small "side"-stories that will converge to play like a major scene in most theatrical screenplays. Even Fujisaku admits that he tried to arrange the screenplay in a way that follows the source material. However, the format of an audio dramatic stage reading play does not include images, rather, tt uses the voice actors' performances and music to create an image in the audience's heads, similar to the techniques of Japanese Rakugo. Because everyone creates their own images, it may be the case that an anime, which has to portray images in a distinct form, can't surpass those imaginings, which is a huge undertaking to risk spoiling the tight story. Also, because the characters of Kurusu, Yamagami, Maeda, Suwa, Takeuchi, Deffrot, Nakajima, and Aoi all having their own story developments, Fujisaku had a feeling that it might lack dynamism as a series, so the first thing he did was rethink the theme of the anime series: The weakness of vampires is the strength of humans. Regardless, Hatano and Fujisaku made a conscious decision to be subtle with the storytelling, one which compels the audience to understand the time era which this show is based upon (reminder: Year 12 of the Taisho Era (1923), the climax of the source material) and why the dialogue is mentioned as such. At the end of the day, there is no right or wrong answer, and Fujisaku mentions that whatever the answers you arrive at while watching Mars Red, it is all valid.
Truth be told, I thought that the 2007 series "Romeo × Juliet" had the best depiction of any old-school classic theatrical shows to date when it comes to anime, of course, the real-life stageplays will always triumph over any form of media that tries to depict poetic stories. But while Mars Red might not break the same bank, I can at least appreciate all the symbolisms and subtleties that this show encapsulated, from the obvious plays of Oscar Wilde's Salomé, to even the whole kinda ridiculous Van Helsing-like vampire setting that when combined, gives a whole new meaning to the theatre act. As for what this show is about, please refer to the synopsis, as it basically tells the underlying story that's the tip of the iceberg, and it's true setting of something even deeper down the rabbit hole. But if that's not enough, Episode 1 is easily one of the best introductory episodes into Mars Red, as foretold by Fujisaku that the story won't work without it, as one of 3 pivotal episodes that will make-or-break the show as a whole.
Being a theatre play, the 21:9 cinematic letterbox scaling is a MUST to tell stories of this calibre, and the dark, somber visuals of Signal.MD's tight production schedule mirrors that of a play that is 13 episodes long (which equals 5 hours of runtime), but feels like we're watching a 2-hour Broadway show at max, if you're the type to appreciate theatre, musicals and the like. The visual composition of shows (not just movies) made purposefully in the 21:9 aspect ratio scaling truly gives shows an edge together with the storytelling elements that remark that of a typical movie-like feeling, if the story and plot holds up together nicely, which in Mars Red's case, can be a hit-or-miss.
The best part of the show has gotta be the music. More than lifting iconic orchestra plays like Salomé to even Frederic Weatherly's "Danny Boy", I just can't get enough of those musical references which play off the show's theatrical themes so well. Not to mention the OP and ED, this is one unexpected pairing that I'm truly thankful for, for being one of my top favourite OSTs of the season. Wagakki Band's OP that mixes rock music with traditional Japanese musical instruments, together with HYDE's incredible ED, is a phenomenal godsend banger of an OST. Even if you hate this show, the music's reason alone to watch this one.
How did this show got so badly lost in the shuffle of great shows in the Spring 2021 season is beyond me. All I know is that Mars Red is truly criminally underrated for its convoluted, yet easy-to-understand plot, and you'd have to be a bit literate in theatrical studies to fully enjoy this anime. Otherwise, this show is just not for everyone, and will only cater to the elitists of the masterfully crafted people who can admire and value the art of theatre.
APolygons2
Show don't tell Is one of the first and most important rules of story telling. it's a rule that pretty much everyone knows, everyone understands why it's important, but next to no one actually cares about it. I mean we all acknowledge that most shounen anime explain what is happening in the fight, while it's happening. and we all make fun of it, but from everything that I have seen rarely anyone actually cares. there is a certain truth that I have learned from looking at people's takes when it comes to this subject, and that's the fact that the casual watcher would rather have info dumps,than to have to pick up small things to get the story.
now don't get me wrong, if the show don't tell is used for a simple to follow enough story like a silent voice, people do understand it's magic, but when it's used on something a little more complex, that's when we reach a problem
which brings me to this show. If you go though and read the negative reviews, you will start to see a pattern. half the people claim this show has many plot holes, doesn't make sense and is boring, and the other half of the people claim it to be absolutely amazing.
there isn't really a middle, people either didn't like or loved the story.
Now here's the thing, 90% of the time, when someone uses the phrase "you just didn't get it" it's just a lazy excuse to ignore actual, real criticism.
or it's used when two idiots are arguing about a show that has clearly left things for interpretation over if it has meaning or not.
but this is not that. this show has a clear story, there isn't anything to be interpreted. so when I say the fact that this show had heavy use of show don't tell is the reason many people actually didn't get the story, I'm not being an asshole, that is actually pretty much the case.
the first episode alone was one of the best first episodes I have ever seen, and you can go read the comments on it. you will find people praising it like it's the greatest thing ever, while also having people calling it dull, boring, and uninteresting.
Now that you know why the reviews are super mixed, and the why the rating is so low, let's get to everything else.
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Story 7.75/10
A semi-historically accurate Tragedy with vampires and military. Just as everything else, the story embraces that stage play feel, which if you didn't know, is what the show is based on.
the show has three aspects to it's story, the character driven subplots, the overall military plot. and the overall tragedy plot.
out of these, the tragedy plot is near perfection and the character driven subplots are amazing...
but the military stuff, their kind of just, ok. that aspect has a villain who is pretty uninteresting and one dimensional. and honestly, it's a little dragged out.
nevertheless, that's only a third of the show, and even that plot line has some great character moments.
The ending is also extremely good, which if you're anything like me, you will care about it a lot.
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Art 9/10 - Animation 5/10 - overall 7/10
the art is stunning, but the animation doesn't do it justice. there is a pretty shit looking fight in the second half. although the last episode fight which was by far the most important was pretty damn decent animation wise.
for the most part, other than that 1 fight ,the animation was good enough when it mattered.
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Voice acting (dub) 9/10 Music 9.5/10
I haven't seen the sub, but the dub was pretty damn good, with a pretty damn well written script
and the music is, one of my favorite soundtracks in all of anime. there is nothing but praise to give it. in fact I'm listening to it while writing this. it's just too good.
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characters 8/10
Not all, but most of the main characters were fully 3 dimensional, well realized, developed characters with clear motivations and story arks. of course there were a few characters that got the short end of the stick, but you can't expect a full cast of complete character arks in 13 episodes.
not every show can pull off an odd taxi.
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enjoyment 9/10
despite the fact that many people call this show boring. I enjoyed every second of it.
I was more hyped for the fights than most battle shounens, even though the animation isn't even that good.
I cried, I laughed, and I Felt for the characters.
and that is something special. I was fully invested, which at least for me, doesn't happen too often.
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Overall my final score is an 8/10
It's certainly not for everyone. but if you think you're the type of person who would like a uniquely directed, tragedy that doesn't hold your hand, watch it.
thanks for reading.
Edit: it's now a good 2 years later, and I finally got the chance to rewatch this series, and frankly, it's far better than what I remembered, so keep in mind that even this review, is underpraising the series. I will likely make a whole video essay on it the first chance I get on my Youtube channel. so keep an eye out for that.
Phantom08
This Anime is really underrated. Artwork is new and catchy, Characters are good, Story is simple and straight forward, but what makes this anime shine is it's theatrics the dialogues scene transitions and emotions they are just breath taking. like books references used in Psycho Pass and Bungo Stray Dogs this anime uses Theatrical(Drama) element which is really beautiful. It's been a long time since we have seen an anime with simple story and stunning visuals with a new element, Mars Red falls in this category. Some people say it's story is not clear but it's just a way of narrating story bythe end all the pieces add up and ending doesn't disappoint us.
It's like watching a beautiful drama played by excellent actors at stunning locations. Give it a try and you will definitely like it.
EDOSHINRATENSEI
This was the most confusing show in terms of storytelling. The first couple episodes were pretty okay as things were slowly set up. However, about after an earthquake, the show spiraled into a mess where every time I watched a new episode, I thought I just missed some episodes before. The plot jumped between characters at a seemingly random fashion that I had no idea what’s going on. Despite this, I still get the general sense of what was going on. The animation was not an issue here. It looked different from other anime, and it made the show felt more mysterious and like aplay. There wasn’t much vampire action, as the animators seemed to try to avoid animating the fight scenes in full sequences.
With a confusing story came confusing characters. Maeda was a MC for the first half, and for some reason he vanished and got relegated into a side characters. There was a relationship between two vampires, Deflot and Rufus that made no sense because they didn’t have a proper backstory at all. Other side characters were also confusing as well.
The ending of this show, again, didn’t hit at all because of how disoriented the storytelling was. Some characters just lost for no reason. The more I watched the show the more “what” moments I had.
Overall, despite decent animation, the jumbled story took away a lot of entertainment that I could have. Quite a wasted potential. 4/10
TimidGazelle
NO SPOILERS REVIEW This show was so frustrating to watch, because it was actually amazing up to episode 6. Then each episode following, drastically got worse and worse. It's like the studio was told they had 24 episodes to work with, and then 5 episodes in they were told they were only getting 13. Story: 3 Poor As good as it was at the start, by the time you finish the show, you'll feel empty inside. Random gaps of events just missing for no reason, extremely predictable, plot armor present. Legit hyped up the same character reveal at the end of the episode six times in a row. Breakneckspeed level of rushing towards the end.
Art: 6 Fair
Pretty good character designs and backgrounds, animations were average, nothing crazy.
Sound: 8 Very Good
The music was very memorable, the OP, ED, and even the BGMs. All of it was enjoyable to listen to.
Character: 4 Decent
Some characters were given backstories and within those, they were good. However most of the characters did not, and so if I were to sum up everyone together I'd say between decent to poor. Lot of cardboard characters unfortunately.
Enjoyment: 5 Mediocre
First half was a 10, and the second half was a 1. Meeting in the middle with 5 only seems right. I loved and hated it.
Overall: 4 Decent
While I honestly feel this show should sit at a 3 Poor after watching it all the way through, I have to give credit where credit is due. Even though all the good doesn't outshine all the bad, it was still initially good.
I highly suggest you stop after episode 6, and just imagine what would happen next. Leave it on a high note.
HenriqueNeves
Mars Red creates a theatrical and chaotic universe, from the way it creates and positions the elements in the plan, to the way the story unfolds. The anime's plan transforms the scenario into a kind of stage, leaving the characters or some object always located in some part of the scenario. These more fixed and direct shots always show something from more objective perspectives. It's notable that even the anime's cinemascope helps make these shots even more asymmetrical. This wider window makes this centering of the plane even more important. In some more specific moments (especially in the first episode), the anime assumes a freer relationship, especially inmoments when the characters recreate plays. The image follows the movement of a character's hand, it moves in its own way, almost as if it had life.
They accustom us and position us in a more objective and asymmetrical perspective, and then invert that perspective to a freer one. The anime creates a kind of “chaos” between these two ways of building the plan.
The way the story develops also highlights this somewhat chaotic relationship. Until the middle of the work, what was being built was a perspective of that society in the fight against vampires, until this relationship is chaotically inverted, and we start to follow a survival relationship that is mostly superior to that of vampires.
issen-ken-taka
Mars Red is a work of art. It's a pity that so many people were unable to understand it and gave it such a low score. The most frequent criticisms levelled against this show are about consistency or plot holes. The problem is that these don't hold water if you were paying actual attention. I myself missed many details. This is a show that requires paying a lot of attention. Rewatches and reading discussions about it online helps a lot. The latter greatly increased my appreciation for the show. TL;DR This is a very good anime, but it's arguably too good to succeed in this age oftrash tier harems and brain-dead fan service.
Banzono
Finally got around to finishing this. What an intresting anime. I have a relatively mediocre impression of it, because there were several things that didn't work for me. I feel like it had the potential to be incredible, but fell quite short. Artistically, I think it had some truly beautiful aspects; Karakara Kemuri's character designs never disappoint and the art was interesting yet comfortable to look at. The animation was just okay, nothing special. The Taisho setting made for some lovely backgrounds, clothing and color palettes. I also enjoyed the music a lot, and the voice acting was very good. Story-wise ... this is where the animelost me. While it's not a plotline that's difficult to follow, exactly, it's told in such a disjointed and ambiguous way that I found it very irritating to watch at times. The focus on plays and using them as motifs was a nice concept, however I'm not sure it was executed that skillfully. And the Salome speech was overused, while Defrott was sorely underused. The episodes seemed rushed in some places, and needlessly protracted in others. The characters are likeable though, and I did find myself wanting to see what would happen to them, and where the muddled plot was going.
I have been reading the manga as well, and I feel like the storyline is unfolding there in a way that makes far more sense, but also feels a little rushed, due to unfortunately being just 15 chapters long. I wonder which adaptation is closer to the stage reading?
Overall, I didn't dislike Mars Red, but I can't say I loved it either. I appreciate the things it did well, and I think it was an interesting take on the vampire genre. My enjoyment was dampened by the meandering narrative though, and it fell a little flat. It's a 5/10 for me.
Skardo
ENG: After I read the synopsis, I really wanted to see this anime and after seeing the first episode, despite it being a bit confusing, I was very involved with the story and just wanted to know more. All the characters revealed a lot of potential to be explored and the story had a lot of paths it could follow, leading Mars Red to end up as an excellent anime. The big problem is that Mars Red starts to get quite confusing as the episodes progress, giving the feeling that important parts of the story were skipped, to the point of making me wonder if Ihad skipped an episode. This feeling starts to be frustrating after some time and I was about to drop the anime several times. However, I saw Mars Red until the end, and, despite all the plot holes, I don't regret it nor do I feel like I wasted time watching this anime. Since the last episode pretty much made me forget about everything else, because it was so good.
When it comes to the animation, I really liked the art style of this anime. The drawing and the colors used play an excellent role in transporting us back in time. This accompanied by a very good soundtrack, raising the quality of each scene to a higher level. The opening is also very good, in such a way that I never skipped it when I saw each episode.
The main characters were well explored, but I feel that a little more could have been given to more aspects of their life and past and to other characters that are involved in this story.
Overall, I think Mars Red is a good anime, I would not recommend it to someone who doesn’t like vampires neither to someone who is new to anime, because in my opinion this anime requires some level of familiarity with this type of anime to understand it.
PT:
Quando li a sinopse fiquei com muita vontade de ver este anime e depois de ver o primeiro episódio, apesar de ser um bocado confuso, fiquei bastante envolvido com a história e só queria saber mais. Todas as personagens revelaram bastante potencial para ser explorado e a história tinha bastantes caminhos que podia seguir e Mars Red acabar como um anime excelente. O grande problema é que Mars Red começa a ficar bastante confuso com o decorrer dos episódios, dando a sensação de que saltavam partes importantes da história, ao ponto de me levar a pensar se não teria saltado algum episódio. Este sentimento começa a tornar-se frustrante ao fim de algum tempo e estive para deixar de ver o anime várias vezes. No entanto, acabei de ver Mars Red e, apesar de todos os plot holes, não fico arrependido nem sinto que perdi tempo a ver este anime. Sendo que o último episódio praticamente me fez esquecer tudo o resto por ser tão bom.
No que toca à animação, gostei muito da arte deste anime. O estilo de desenho e as cores usadas fazem um excelente papel em nos transportar no tempo. Isto acompanhado de uma banda sonora muito boa, capaz de acompanhar todos os momentos deste anime elevando a qualidade de cada cena para um nível mais alto. A opening também é muito boa, de tal forma que nunca a saltei ao ver cada episódio.
A personagens principais foram bem exploradas, mas sinto que se podia ter dado um pouco mais de a mais aspetos da sua vida e passados e também a outras personagens que estão envolvidas nesta história.
No geral, acho que Mars Red é um bom anime, não o recomendaria para quem não gosta de vampiros nem para quem é novo no mundo do anime, porque na minha opinião este anime requer algum nível de familiaridade com este tipo de anime para o entender.
SenpaiMars-Barz
I honestly don't at all see how people enjoyed this for more than 3 episodes. The production value is there but everything else is just terrible. My itch for Taisho Era stuff was the only thing that got me through this dumpster fire. The story and characters are especially terrible...well...the story could have been "fine" at least if the characters were well written. I cannot tell you the name of a single character because they really had absolutely zero buildup in the story. You do not get to know ANYONE. There are minimal backstories and minimal setup. You see characters rise and fall before ever evengetting to know them. Everyone seems to have this intricate relationship but because of how the story is told you do not get this intimate understanding.
As it is the big bad villian of this series has absolutely zero backstory other than his goals just being a power trip. They wanted to make this deep but just did not write the story that way.
FlexySpagoot
I think that I probably wasn't quite the right person for this anime. I think that it had some great elements, but it just didn't really grab me, and had some things that detracted from my experience. The story was sometimes really interesting, and other times really confusing. I mean confusing in a bad way, I love me a good mindfuck anime, but this wasn't really one of those. I still think that overall it was a pretty fine story, its just that to me it sort of felt really deep while also at the same time felt really simple. Art and sound was also a mixedbag. The OP was pretty good, but the majority of the music I don't really remember. Artwise it was either really good or really bad. The most obvious example of it looking bad is the atrocious CGI, animations were frequently reused in multiple scenes in very obvious ways, the models themselves looked kind of bad, and they did not mesh well with scenes at all. On the other hand, the show had a really cool and beautiful art style.
So yeah, I find this to be a pretty mixed bag of a show, with its flaws and strong points balancing out to a pretty good time.
GleefulViolin
I can't believe not many people talk about this underrated masterpiece! Yes, this is not merely an anime about vampire, but a classic and poetic vampire story masterpiece! To be completely honest, I could write pages upon pages of compliment for Mars Red. However, I won't do it. I saw there's a review which pretty much shares the same view as mine, and it's very well-written review. So, I won't do it. Since I don't think people will read my review anyway. What I can say about Mars Red is that it doesn't feel like anime, but rather like a very well-crafted movie documentary that directed by Atop class director. It's sentimental and poetic. It's raw and perfectly imperfect.
As an audience, I was taken to a journey I've never experienced and yet by episode 13 I feel like I lived through that era, that classic period. I'm sad when my journey end with Mars Red.. Like the time when the light turns back on inside a studio after the movie has ended, I feel reluctant to get up and leave. I still want to linger and enjoy the movie once again. But when I step outside, I feel glad I come and watch the movie. That's how I feel on Mars Red.
I will surely watch this masterpiece again one day, and recommend it to those who love classical literature, poetry, theater, vampire stories and of course, anime.
Edenharley
Mars Red definitely has a lot going for it but ultimately I found it a little boring, there were some elements that really did stand out to me however, firstly the art and direction. I loved the artstlye and how almost realistic it was, there were a lot of really nice shots too - the 2.35:1 aspect ratio was pretty nice as well. I also liked the realistic take on vampires, it's definitely one of the more unique views on the vampire genre which was nice to see. Overall I think a lot of people would enjoy this show but it didn't really click forme, but there still were a fair few things I did enjoy.
algoPotaku
Vampire anime with a very, very good first episode. I think it is one of the best vampire anime, surely it enters the top 5 but the problem is that after the great first episode the anime declines a lot and begins to have a very slow plot for around 5 or 6 chapters. That's the only bad thing I see. The good thing that the plot is slow is that it develops all the characters that we get to know each one more thoroughly. The last chapters go by very quickly. Very animated fights, you always start because the characters do what they do.The only thing that does not close me well is because the protagonist is not controlled but hey is still very good.
Anyway, if you are looking for a vampire anime I recommend it, it will not disappoint you.
En español:
Anime de vampiros con un muy pero muy buen primer episodio. Creo que es unos de los mejores animes de vampiros, seguro entra en el top 5 pero el problema es que después del gran primer episodio el anime decae mucho y comienza a tener una trama muy lenta por alrededor de 5 o 6 capítulos. Eso es lo único malo que le veo. Lo bueno que sea lenta la trama es que desarrolla todos los personajes que los llegamos a conocer mas a fondo a cada uno. Los últimos capítulos se te pasan muy rápido. Las peleas muy animadas, siempre entandes porque el personajes hace lo que hace. Lo único que no me cerro bien es porque el protagonista no se controla pero bueno sigue siendo muy buena.
En fin si busca un anime de vampiros te lo recomiendo, no te va a decepcionar.
AnimeEnjoyer420
Mars Red is a series whose biggest problems often stem from execution rather than conception. There's definite cinematic ambition here, but the animation production from Signal MD consistently fails to match the weight of its imagery. Likewise, the broad strokes of a good vampire thriller laced with tragedy are here, but the writing doesn't connect the different pieces in a way that's satisfying. Too many things are left unexplained and Colonel Maeda is too much of a cipher for the ending to come together. It's not a series without its merits. Kurusu is a strong protagonist, even though his importance to the story isn't necessarily centeredup front. When the writing is on point, the excellent premiere episode being a prime example, it can be really good. But that ultimately makes it more frustrating in the end because it's not hard to envision a version of this series that's far better than the final product we ended up with. I wanted to like Mars Red more than I actually did, and I do feel more positively about it than the score I gave, but it's hard for me to recommend it objectively based on what's actually there rather than what I was hoping it would be.
SgtSalamander
Mars Red is a flashy, aesthetic anime with a lot of potential that still manages to be thoroughly mid. Beginning with the story, this is the weakest part of the anime by far. The plot is meandering, the motivations are weak, the pacing is all over the place, and things seem to happen during the whole of its 13 episode run not because they make sense, but because the writers decided they need to happen. The twists are contrived, the conflicts boring, and the writing lackluster, all as a result of this design philosophy. It gets so bad at pointsthat the viewer is bored to tears. It oscillates between spoon-feeding exposition and zipping past major plot points without any explanation. There are peak moments of action and drama where I can glimpse what this anime should have been, but they slip away pretty much as soon as they arrive on screen. The story is an overall trainwreck, and it almost feels like the rest of the anime was clumsily cobbled together in order to get to those good moments. Though, while trudging through episode after episode, one just can't help but notice how downright pretty everything is.
The art is excellent, and easily this show's strong point. The art direction is finely tuned to be as aesthetically consistent as possible, and it shows in nearly every shot of the anime. The setting of 1920s Japan is brought to life through the adept use of color, grand architecture, engaging fight scenes, interesting costumes, and uniquely cinematic shot composition. The sheer aesthetic weight of this anime is very impressive on its own terms, and is enough to positively impact the score for the entire show. Though, there were some places where even the art fell through, namely in the awful CG, and the frequency of the 'dreaded mask', where character faces fail to express sufficient emotion. It was because of those two factors that I was acutely aware I was watching an anime; Immersion was totally absent from the experience.
The sound, meanwhile, does its best to rectify this. The music is soaring, beautiful, and complex, adding much needed life and emotion to the show. The voice acting is also pretty good, and the sounds of life are fairly standard.
The characters were just ok, and while they fulfill their purposes in perfectly serviceable ways, there's nothing really that special about them. Overall, Mars Red could have been great if the right team was behind it, but that's not the case here, and the result is a middling attempt at high drama that comes off as simply ok. It attains the score it does solely by merit of its excellent aesthetics.
