Information:
Other Names: Penguindrum, 輪るピングドラム.
Studio: Brain's Base
Writer: Kunihiko Ikuhara, Takayo Ikami
Director: Kunihiko Ikuhara
Music: Yukari Hashimoto
Length: 24 episodes, 24 min per episode approx.
Type: Original, TV Series
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Mystery, Psychological, Tragedy, Magical Girl
Rating: R-17+
Air Dates: 8th July 2011 - 23rd Dember 2011
Recommendations: Yuri Kuma Arashi & Steins Gate
Synopsis:
Once you make a decision, does the universe conspire to make it happen? Is destiny a matter of chance, a matter of choice or the complex outcome of thousands of warring strands of fate? All twins Kanba and Shoma know is that when their terminally ill sister Himari collapses at the aquarium, her death is somehow temporarily reversed by the penguin hat that she had asked for. It's a provisional resurrection, however, and it comes at a price: to keep Himari alive they need to find the mysterious Penguin Drum. In order to do that, they must first find the links to a complex interlocking chain of riddles that has wrapped around their entire existence, and unravel the knots that tie them to mystifying diary and a baffling string of strangers and semi-acquaintances who all have their own secrets, agendas and "survival strategies." And in order for Himari to live, someone else's chosen destiny will have to change. It's a story of love, fate, life, death... and Penguins!
Review:
Penguindrum, a weird show that blends mystery and comedy in strange and odd ways, while tossing around the concept of fate.
Fate is strange thing, many think it to be a straight line that must be followed and will never be broken, but what happens when that line diverts and becomes a new line, well that is concept of the series Penguindrum, set within a strange world where ones fate can be changed, though not with consequences. This helps create a setting that is rick with good story but still stays fun to watch.
But thanks to great story and directing, this excellency wasn't lost and became something of a special show, with great symbolism behind it. But first I must say thanks to writer for creating a well blend of mystery and comedy, due to unpredictability of the series that will generally have you on the edge of your seat, as the world unravels before you. As said before the show has great comedy written into, though I the humour is mainly told through I group of small penguins that follow around the main characters and that they can only see; the interactions between them are very funny if you enjoy slapstick type comedy as they can't speak.
But back to the story overall the plot was engaging making you think about what happens, while remaining fun to watch with great pacing through near the start of show it can feel like a drag but once it starts going, you won't want to put it down until you reach the ending which ends in a most satisfying way, that just feels as great as breathing a breath of fresh air. Though I felt that another point that drove the satisfaction this fair was the use of the OST in great ways, as the director used the correct music for right scenes making the show more remembrance to me, though it mainly struck me during those really dramatic moments as the sounds become heavy and stand out a lot adding the series as a whole.
But what makes this show what it is?
Well allow me to answer that for you, everything in this show is possible thanks to its characters otherwise it could have fallen into ruin. As each character is complex and mysterious, having a great deal of back-story shown while getting a great amount of development over the course of the 24 episodes; well just the main characters get the development but most of the supporting characters get great roles that show of their twisted and strange personalities to the fullest with some additional back story as a nice bonus.
An additional bonus I will bring up is the character design, know I found not all the characters had the best of designs, the better ones did with some of my favourites being the truly mysterious characters like Sanetoshi who was a true mystery from to start being one of the better characters of the series, though I found the main characters to have fun and different appearances that helped them stick out from the crowd.
Speaking of sticking out, the primary art style used in this series is a great addition helping the show stand out from the rest, which is also helped by the changes in art every now and then to the odder art styles all the way to the occasionally chibi art style. Though this art could have been greatly improved upon if the animation was up to the arts quality, now don't get me wrong the art can look amazing especially during the transformation sequences which are one of the highlights of the show especially when the insert song (Rock Over Japan) is played along making the overall sequence more fun to watch, however the animation outside this is satisfactory at best, adding nothing the show.
This could not be said for the opening animations that play, which are well crafted being one of the highlights in that department, which could be said for the opening music tracks as well as they mix in with the tone of the show, having a very mystic feel to them. This could also be said about the eds as some of them look nice and sound create, however the majority I found weren't worth my time as they felt much hit and miss.
In conclusion if you want a great story driven or overall exciting mystery series this is the show for you, thanks to great to amazing setting that mixes in well with story, while having a rich character base full of twisted and complex personalities.
Story/Setting: 9.0
Characters: 8.5
Art/Animation: 8.1
Sound: 9.2
Final Verdict: 8.8/10
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