Anime: .hack//Sign

Ever since the trapped in videogame type of isekai sub-genre became a fad, you could read some people saying that this one show, the first of them all by a long margin, is actually the best, and since those comments come from people who hate that genre, I always wanted to check it out. I was initially planning to review the franchise as a whole once I finished it, but who knows if that will even happen.

Obviously, this anime is quite outdated when it comes to visuals, for a 2002 anime the artwork is solid and the backgrounds are great, while everything else is just fine, the character designs were once iconic, but now come off as simple and kind of generic, plus the character models can be inconsistent at times. Since the series is dialogue-heavy, the characters remain mostly standing or sitting while talking, which means the actual animation is mostly static, even though there are a few fights in it, which in turn are decently animated for the time but the motions are still nothing very impressive. Coming from that era, most of the special effects are quite good, but there is also prominent CGI that by now is crude and weak looking, not so much as there was in other shows from that time, thankfully, but it’s still there and affects the overall.

The sound department was and is still praised, the sound effects were very good for its time, although a bit outdated by now, the voice acting a bit atypical and very mature for its type of series, with Mitsuki Saiga being the best possible choice for the protagonist, and the soundtrack is easily among the best and most atmospheric in the whole medium, especially the opening. The composer is the well-known Yuki Kajiura, who would go on to make very similar soundtracks in later works, mixing a little bit of different influences depending on the aesthetics of each title. The problem here is the directing, which is weird at times, using the themes in ways and moments that feel misplaced, which is why I have to take a point from the overall sound department.

The plot has to do with people playing a VRMMORPG, but one of them, the protagonist, can’t logout, so it becomes a problem because of the effects that that can have on her body, and for everyone else, who considers her a cheater that’s breaking the game and is responsible for certain things that are happening in it.

The series is not an action adventure like every other that would follow it in its genre, it’s a mix of slice of life, as it shows the role playing of everyone and what and how they do in the game, as well as real life issues of each one becoming important regarding character dynamics, and mystery, as the objective is to find the true identity of the main character, aspects of the videogame they play, and by extension the setting itself, from its very core and beginning, as well as finding a McGuffin that can lead to that, and also, well, prevent the world from that game to crash, of course, that was obviously needed to happen.

The anime shows how some of the characters take the game more seriously than others, some just want to have a good time, some just want to chill out, and others take their in-game roles very seriously, more than they should, which is actually a bit of a weak point from the anime. Well, at least every perspective is explained through the exploration of the characters both in game and also outside of it, though to a much lesser extent, with the exception of the main character, of course.

Some, mainly the protagonist, are there for escapism purposes, others to build bonds that they lost in real life, or to do something for someone else, and it’s interesting to see how everyone is confronted about what they want to do in-game and their way to achieve that, with obviously the anti-escapism of the main character being the main theme, character arc, and message in the show.

And that’s its main difference with the other series in its sub-genre, which would ditch every attempt at a serious exploration of a meaningful message nor care for characterization, and mutate into power fantasies where bland overpowered otaku and/or gamer protagonists with no personality whatsoever defeat one dimensional villains and get all the girls in the world.

.hack//Sign is not like that in the least, Tsukasa is initially distant and aggressive towards others, a loner, cynical even, and although that makes up for a good character arc as she warms up to others and face her reality, it’s true that you don’t want to follow a main character like that all that much. Well, at least her reactions are justified when you take in count that a lot of players attack her out of the blue with no explanation nor much solid justification. That is a nice detail not only because it shows that she is not very liked by others, but also because it establishes her character better than just having her being an antisocial just because and to fit with the emo fashion of the era. I said that but that aspect of her personality is also explored through her in real life persona and drama, which is quite heavy and serious and treated tastefully, and obviously won’t be covered here.

She is also not powerful in the least, if I remember correctly she is a middle level spell caster in the game, and although with very high potential, it also means that could be beat by anyone in a 1v1 in the game, if not for the broken items she acquires at some point, which actually turn on herself after a point for plot reasons.

Another good aspect of the show is showing how the existence of Tsukasa is seen by the rest of the players, as a some sort of threat for the stability of the game and world they interact in and with, leading some to go for aggression, while others try to communicate, reason, understand and bond with her, to get to the bottom of the mysteries of the show together. Eventually this is resolved and abandoned because of the stakes that the show goes for near the end, when everyone unites to face the biggest threat and matter at hand. That is something that I also found to be a positive, compared with other anime from the genre that have high stakes from the beginning, but also characters that don’t care much about them, or give more importance to whatever the protagonists do in ways that don’t feel plausible in the least, and that make them look like idiots.

Another thing I never liked on later titles is how similar the avatars of the players were to their real life designs, .hack//Sign not only has them looking completely different in game, some even change their gender, something that also happens in our real world and life.

Now for the negatives for which I don’t rate .hack//Sign higher despite my praises.

First, although the protagonist is eventually fleshed out and developed and gets a catharsis, as I said she wasn’t very likeable in the beginning, it’s understandable for the reasons I mentioned, but not many would have the patience to follow a main character so apathetic that also has amnesia, thus being both unlikeable and mysterious in a bad way, since she doesn’t remember who she is, and thus can’t be fleshed out until late in the series.

Then, as well done as it is, this is still a series where people take playing a videogame more seriously than they should, they are not even professional gamers, why do they care so much? It’s kinda cringy to watch.

Then, as much as the series tries to introduce high stakes near the end, at the end of the day, it’s still just the world within a videogame, besides the protagonist, everyone can just logout and unlike later anime, death is irrelevant for everybody besides the protagonist here, so the stakes are not as high as the show tries to make it seem like they are.

Speaking of which, Tsukasa goes through several life threatening situations, which in theory should raise the stakes since she can’t logout, and thus starts feeling the effects of the game on her own body, but something happens to either save her in the last moment, or even after apparently being badly hurt, the only thing that get affected are her memories and stuff, which she regains at the end anyways.

Also, it doesn’t make much sense for the antagonist to let her roam free throughout the series while she needed her, that’s what ends up being her downfall in the end.

Then there is the end of the series, which at the last moment throws a cliffhanger hinting at more stuff to come, which you’ll never get to see unless you read other manga, or light novels, or play the videogame series, or listen to drama cds. The series is just a middle point, and its ending the entrance, to a much much bigger and longer franchise, which tarnish what was otherwise a very solid ending up until that point.

Two ovas were released afterwards, and they are not worth watching in the least. One is mostly and unrelated and irrelevant side story of a character that doesn’t appear in the main series, until it shows a bit of the past of a main character, which not only comes out very late, but it also contradicts part of what was shown about her in the series, while the other is just fanservice for longtime fans of the franchise, since it reunites the cast of the anime with ones from the games, some of which have very similar character designs and thus ruins the uniqueness of the ones from the original, because it takes place after the all the plot points from the initial games are over, thus, if you are an anime only, like myself, you won’t even have an idea who all those people are and where did they come from, and even then, that ova can barely count as an outcome, as it is just a festival for the characters to celebrate, while not bringing closure to the anime in the least.

Its legacy was apparently quite tarnished, since the genre moved on to something completely different than it, and later entries wouldn’t follow its ending, and would mutate to a more comical and lewd approach, thus departing from what gave it its uniqueness in the first place.

Personally, I enjoyed .hack//Sign a bit, for basically being the opposite of what I came to hate about modern anime in later years, but it’s still understandable why it’s not liked very much. It’s visually outdated, it takes a while for the protagonist to become likeable, there aren’t many nor very high stakes, the series is incomplete, and people usually want to watch videogame anime for their takes on the core mechanics and the adventures in the world the makers come out with in their series, not a very static and dialogue heavy anti-escapism series about the introspection of antisocial people or straight up losers. And even I had a bit of a tough time to appreciate the anime, despite loving some heavy dialogue series and movies, because those are usually about existential or psychological topics, while this one is about people taking seriously playing a videogame. It’s worth watching for its themes, messages, character immersion and atmosphere, but the plot is certainly not very engaging and slower than it needs to, and the ending is somewhat lacking, so it’s more of an acquired taste type of show for veteran viewers, the exact opposite of what you’d expect from its premise, and what its genre would become.

.hack//SIGN, the MMORPG anime that dares to break the mold and challenge our preconceived notions of the genre. Prepare yourself for a journey of dialogue-heavy, action-light storytelling that will either intrigue you or bore you to tears. Forget about the generic shounen anime tropes of annoying kids and unrealistic teenagers taking games way too seriously. This anime has bigger ambitions.

Now, don't get too excited, while the premise features players being stuck in a video game, this is not like Sword Art Online or other average VRMMORPG anime, so don't be fooled by the setting. If you're seeking fast-paced action and epic battles, you've come to the wrong place.

Some may find .hack//SIGN slow and boring, but that's merely a testament to its dedication to story progression and character development through dialogue, emotions, and background information. Instead of mindless battles and defeating antagonists, .hack//SIGN sets its sights on solving mysteries and delving into the psyche of its characters. It's a role-playing game where growth occurs both inside and outside the virtual world. Who needs action and excitement when you can have long, yet meaningful, philosophical conversations and emotional introspection?

'Don't take it too seriously; it's just a game'.

.hack//SIGN is generally gloomy, but not completely devoid of lighthearted moments. We have Mimiru, the young and slightly childish character who provides some much-needed balance to the show's serious and depressing atmosphere. And then there's Tsukasa, the cynical loner with trust issues. Together, they embark on a journey of character development and slowly but surely, Tsukasa learns to trust and open up. It's heartwarming, really.

'Do you know the story of the Little Mermaid? The princess who reveived beautiful legs...but lost her voice so she could see the prince. But the prince married someone else...and the mermaid disappeared in bubbles of light.. She shouldn't have wished to leave the sea. Don't you think so?' — A short tale from the anime that perfectly captures the essence of the protagonist's inner struggles. It's deep. It's meaningful. It's... well, you get the idea.

The animation, despite its age, holds up fairly well. The character design and use of colour are commendable. Sure, there are some moments when the animation feels a bit fast and funny due to a lack of in-between frames, but hey, the occasional shortcomings in animation are compensated by the beautiful background art. I suppose that's a fair trade-off.

Combined with the intricate background art, the lovely background music deserves a moment of appreciation for the work of the great composer Yuki Kajiura. The beautiful and fitting music adds depth and atmosphere to the series and is one of the highlights that truly elevates .hack//SIGN above the generic MMORPG anime crowd. This comes as no surprise, given Bee Train's exceptional sound directing.

In the end, .hack//SIGN is not a successful anime for the masses. It's an anime that appeals to a niche audience or gets mistaken for another run-of-the-mill isekai anime. It challenges conventions and delivers a unique experience that may not be everyone's cup of tea. So, if you're looking for a typical MMORPG anime, you might want to look elsewhere. But if you're open to something different, something that dives deep into character psychology and offers a thought-provoking narrative, then .hack//SIGN might just be worth a try.

.hack//SIGN does not quite fit in a genre.

In order to properly review this anime, must set aside my nostalgia, so here it goes...

The World is an MMORPG that has captured the attention of humans worldwide. Players can move about freely, give facial expressions, and speak to each other in this virtual reality world. People are able to customize their characters to look how they want them too, and can choose from 6 classes how exactly they want their character to fight. There are blademasters, heavy blades, heavy axe-men, long arms, twin blades, and wavemasters.

A wavemaster by the name Tsukasa is being hunted down by the Scarlet Knights, a group of players who act as police in The World, because he was spotted with a suspected hacker. Tsukasa can't be caught however, as he seems to bypass many of The World's rules, and can warp from place to place as he pleases. A young female heavy blade named, Mimiru befriends Tsukasa and attempts to help him avoid the Scarlet Knights, along with a man named Bear. Any smart player would just turn off the game or start a new character to avoid being hunted down, however the only issue is... Tsukasa lives in The World.

If you are looking for something new, this anime is pretty original, and there is a strange charm behind the anime taking place in a video game. It makes you wonder what these characters are like in real life, as opposed to their online avatar. The characters are all unique in their own way, and do not feel so cliche. Each character seems to have their own plan and they do not exactly work together, because it is only a video game to them, so they play the game however they see fun. The plot is a great attention-grabber and really makes .hack//SIGN feel like a mystery anime more than anything.

Fall-backs
Not enough action. The reason for this is simple, the anime is not an action anime.... However when the entire anime takes place in an MMORPG, and everybody is carrying around huge swords and spears and can use magic, you expect to see some action. Especially considering the amount of conflict between characters, there would be plenty of room for some fight scenes. Also, the ending is a cliffhanger.

Where it shines
When it comes to the soundtrack in an anime, it really has no effect on how much I enjoy the anime. A bad soundtrack will not ruin a good anime for me. But this anime's OST is so good, it actually makes the anime BETTER! This is the kind of anime where the music is imprinted into your ears, and once you ear one of the tracks, you will reminisce. It is honestly the best OST to an anime I've ever heard.

If you have a thing for a new atmosphere or creative and deep characters, then you should definitely give this anime a shot. If this doesn't seem like your cup of tea, I would still suggest checking out the OST at least.

This anime is consistently mediocre: it's not very good, but it doesn't get worse.

Good points:
There were some nice surprise moments.
Some decent animation, good artwork and a nice setting.
The whole idea of this kind of stuff happening in a real world is pretty cool. I think they could have gone about it a lot better, though.
The story is compelling enough to keep watching, even if there's an occasional plot hole.

Bad points:
There are a lot of long waits in which nothing much happens, which is annoying.
The opening and ending are rather boring, so I usually skip them.
The music usually doesn't fit the surroundings or mood at all.
The World doesn't really feel like an RPG in general. Characters are too emotional over some things you'd never get emotional over in a game, and concepts like debug rooms and items are explained in a ridiculous way. Also, the game is moderated like shit, apparently.

In the end, I watched the thing through to the end. It doesn't seem like it ends here, so I might be getting the next season/sequel somewhat soon. Even with all the negative poins I don't mind following the whole thing to the end.

ANIME MARKETING SERIES
Full list of the review series can be found on this page, 3rd post from bottom:
http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?uid=251338&show=userpage&do=blog&blogid=29009&page=0

TEASER: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43O7Dyd3QtU

WARNING
SPOILERS! Lots of them! This is a review for those who HAVE SEEN .hack but understood squat about the story or the plot. You have been warned!

Most anime fans prefer a balanced pace of a good story, along with cool battles in between to keep them on their toes. .hack is limited to one of the two main things: Talking with a deep meaning behind it. That made it quality material but hardly bearable. It cares too much on having long philosophical discussions or aimless walking around, while neglecting entirely to tell the otherwise good story. Full Metal Alchemist for example had a bit of everything and is worthy one of the best fantasy adventures ever made. The plot here is all talking and no fighting, a thing that DID make me watch most of it at X8 speed. And, no, I didn’t miss any important voice acting or music themes this way, as the pace remains the same in all episodes. If I were otherwise left to choose between talking or fighting, I would definitely pick the first. Series that are only about fighting and shallow talking/storytelling are AWFUL. Just try to watch Devil May Cry and you’ll understand what I mean. That is the only reason I didn’t give Enjoyment a score of 3 or lower.

Other than that it is boring; something which is self-given if you are aware of the studio which animated it. Bee Train’s trademarks are the extremely moody shows, full of nice soundtracks and slow plots, with very dull or unexiting action. .hack is like that too but at least in this case there was far more context in the story than just some chicks with guns acting all emo and shooting people in the most improbable ways.

The story AROUND the plot of .hack is AWESOME and it’s a real shame most won’t get to figure it out because of boredom or lack of motivation to search further. In case you want to learn about it, read the bottom entry of this review. The backdrop story of the show is incredibly detailed and captivation yet the series hardly evolved it any further. It focused almost entirely on getting to know the characters and exposing the main mystery by feeding you with a spoon. All that hardly needed a full season to be told and thus the only bad thing in here is the dreadfully slow pacing and absence of action and tension peaks.

Tsukasa is the protagonist. We originally know nothing of him, he knows nothing of himself. The whole “amnesia” theme is so commonly used in movies and series, that I almost stopped watching .hack because of it. I mean, the main character is a wimp who doesn’t trust anyone or fights anything. He was just talking about how harsh life is and the like. But, as the story goes on (in a very slow pace as always), I loved the guy! Why? Well, for starters, because he is not a guy! He is a girl playing a male character! She was being beaten by her father in the real world and when Morgana gave her the chance to escape reality, she willfully trapped her consciousness in the game permanently and erased her memories to forget the cruel past (all these, thanks to the Key of Twilight). As Tsukasa, he/she was avoiding others until other players (mostly Bear, Mimiru and Subaru) help him/her face reality, just to be together for real. His/her character development can’t get any better, as he/she is 180 degrees different when the series end. Go Tsukasa!

Besides Tsukasa, all others are there for flavor. Sure, it was interesting when they described what they do or how they look like in the real world. But besides that, they didn’t really do anything else other than talking and giving advices to Tsukasa. Not that they were shallow, it’s just that they had weak presence in the series or before Tsukasa’s character. Only the few points in the story, were some try to deceive others or criticize their actions in the game were noteworthy. Subaru is the only other character that truly develops, as she dismantles an entire organization and even falls in love with Tsukasa (a possible yuri relationship is blooming here!). If the show was just about these two alone, I would gladly give the cast a 10 but unfortunately it is far bigger and far less interesting.

You will love the visuals if you’re into MMORPG and phantasy worlds. They lack stylized CG and flashy effects, but I didn’t care about that; the atmosphere rocked for its time. It is true that it may seem like a generic videogame setting but unlike all other adaptations, it really did its best to make the world look dreamy and scary at the same time. The production values are high and there are lots of details which make each area to be like a fairy tale. The only problem is the lack of motions; the characters will be too stiff most of the time and there is not much action for you to stare at. It’s closer to a well made picture book than an animated feature.

Hands down; .hack has the best music themes and amongst the best voice acting I have ever heard. They may talk all the time and most music themes repeat too often to the point of boredom, but nevertheless they are exceptionally great to listen to. You may not like the show but the OST is to die for. Even the dialogues are there to provide immersion to the characters and hint various things around the mystery, so even those serve their purpose.

There is nothing else exactly like .hack//SIGN; even its sequels are very different and inferior to it. Its originality in setting, scenario, and way of storytelling, make it special and memorable even if you hated it. A perfect mark for a controversial series that alters the way you look at “childish cartoons”.

SUGGESTION LIST
Welcome to the NHK, Zegapain and The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya are also about people who are absorbed in their worlds and refuse to face reality.

Mamoru Oshii’s movies, such as Ghost in the Shell and Sky Crawlers are also mostly about dialogues, interesting concepts, and character immersion, rather action and big explosions.

And now for some excused scorings.


And now something extra for those who care:
THE BACKDROP STORY OF .HACK (spoilers follow)

.hack//SIGN is an anime you will probably either love or hate. This is an anime with a very slow pace, lots of dialogue, and not much "action". Even though characters carry around swords and know spells, it is not often that they are used, and when they are used, it is not for long. This anime is primarily a mystery/character development-driven anime, and thus has a slow pace throughout the 26 episodes. Sure, the story could be condensed to less episodes, but you would lose much of the mystery and character development that made this story so interesting.

I truly enjoyed the dialogue and character development in this anime; I love tragic characters like Tsukasa, and even characters that I ended up disliking (Sora, the annoying brat with the sing-song way of speaking, and the Silver Knight, with his holier-than-thou attitude) were developed well. Heck, the fact that I disliked them because of their personality flaws just shows how well the characters were made. I loved the relationship developments between characters, especially the friendship between Mimiru, the friendly and outgoing young girl, and Tsukasa; the love between the quiet and noble Subaru and Tsukasa; and the paternal relationship of the philosophical Bear with Subaru, Mimiru, and Tsukasa.

However, as I stated, characters like Sora, Crim, BT, and the Silver Knight are a bit annoying (BT is so smug and thinks she is so clever, Crim and the Silver Knight are holier-than-thou, and Sora is just annoying) but if you can put up with them it is worth it in the end, as each develops beyond their initial flaws and becomes a better person.

Also, many times during the anime they seem to forget that they are only playing a game; much of the time events in the game seem to be taken way too seriously by the players(especially the Crimson Knights), including "death". I guess this is the way it is in real life also, so I suppose it can be forgiven.

The story itself focuses on how Tsukasa, the main character, is stuck in "The World" and the efforts of people, especially Bear and Mimiru, to help him and interact with him. The story also focuses on the search for the "Key of the Twilight", especially by BT, Sora, and Crim. The story evolves pretty slowly, and I don't want to say any more because it might give away some of the plot and mystery which is at the heart of this anime.

The story isn't really too complex, and many things are left unexplained, but I liked the ending even so.

As for the animation: the animation is spectacular. This anime creates a vivid, detailed, and diverse world with a variety of costumes, characters, settings (towns, cities, forests, fields, tundras, and many other settings). There arn't too many special effects in this anime, but the ones that do occur are done very well.

The soundtrack for this anime is truly special; this ranks right up there with Noir and Hellsing for the best anime soundtrack of all time. I would reccomend purchasing or listening to the OST; it will truly blow you away. As to the voice actors: each one performed very well and were able to draw me into the world and convince me that these events were really occuring.

I would reccomend this anime for those who don't mind an anime with slow pace and can enjoy an anime with heavy dialogue.