Karin

Adding one anime only character apparently can completely change (Ruin) the entire story, this is NOT an over exaggeration. STORY: This is the adaption of the manga Karin (AKA chibi vampire in the US, and by the way is my favorite romantic comedy manga) which is about a unique vampire girl who instead of drinking blood, shes injects her blood into her victims and the injecttee becomes hyper active for a while. But if she doesn't, her blood literally explodes out of her nose (Which this and the concept itself is what the series is known for). The anime only covers like 20 something chapters of thebeginning of the manga then goes about with completely different story than what the source material did. Which in truth I usually have no problem with that, many anime went this way, Fullmetal Alchemist ended up great, the second Negima anime was okay. And with like most adaptions Karin, the anime adds in a new character, Winner Sinclair ........................................................................................................ ..........................................................................................................huh? Oh I'm sorry I blacked out for a second there. What was I talking about? Oh Winner................. I'm sorry but, I really hated this character, his appearance, his voice (I'll get to that in a bit), his role! His role in the anime is to be the bishonen rival to Kenta Usui, the main male role of the series, for the affection of Karin (The main female role and titular character), but to me (And to hopefully everyone else) he is irritatingly annoying to the point of instant hatred, all this character does is get in the way 24/7, nearly every episode after episode 6. I'm not going to lie, the story is okay, but pretty generic, for the most part and Winner's job is an interesting plot twist which allows an interesting story development, especially the last 4 episodes, but Winner's personality, his presence just ruin's so much of that, he is the annoying kid who hangs around the circle and just never wants to leave. But at the very least winner is the only major headache in the anime, well in the japanese dub. ANIMATION: Okay, not great but good enough. The character designs are true to the source material, but looks like a typical low budget shojo anime, and the opening animation makes the series look like a hentai or something, so it's unclear which audience this anime is made for. Karin's nose bleeds are censored with... flowers... it's unique and a creative way to censor something, but only adds to my argument of who this series is intended for. SOUND: Both theme music are okay, six for both opening and ending songs. Okay I'm going to get this strait, do NOT watch the english dub, stick to the subtitles only (Which gets about a seven)! The english is just terribly bland, typical no emotion script reading with voices that do fit the characters, but are performed so bad. And of all of them, Winner has the most atrocious ear bleeding noise you will ever hear, this is no over exaggeration, no dub hating or trolling (I love english dubbed anime), I really really mean it. OVERALL: + Different story that has an okay plot - Winner Sinclair - English dub - Unclear of who this anime is intended for Adaptions of manga are notorious for messing with the source material, but some end up just fine, while others are a disaster, and it's quite a feat for just one character to ruin an entire anime.

"Love is tainting the night deeply scarlet." Karin is an interesting show. At its heart, there is a clear, powerful romance. Add to it a supernatural backstory, and some hilarious comedy, you've got Karin. Meet Karin Maaka. She's a girl caught between two worlds. At first glance, she's just an ordinary, easily embarrassed high school girl. She has a couple of friends, and has a hard time juggling schoolwork and her part time job. But of course, there's a twist! Karin is a vampire. She lives in your stock creepy old haunted mansion on the hill with her vampire family. But, to this, there is another twist. Karinis not a true vampire. She is a blood maker, which means instead of needing to drink blood for her survival, she must inject it into someone else. Otherwise, she has a nosebleed. A very big nosebleed. This causes a rift between her and her family, who all function as normal, viewing her as a disgrace to their kind. The main focus of the series is the relationship between Karin and her romantic interest, Kenta Usui. Although the series begins in a rather cliché fashion for a romantic comedy, the show's supernatural roots prevent it from being too much of a standard anime. One aspect of the relationship I can criticize is Usui. He is nowhere near as fleshed out as Karin, and although he fits the role of Karin's love interest well, we are not given enough to believe the rather convenient romance that seems one-sided. However, by the end of the series, I was forgetting my doubts about Usui, and although he had only changed minimally, the romance is very sweet and believable. Some say it's all about the journey, not the destination, but I believe it was in fact the opposite for Karin and Usui's love. Okay, I have admitted that the romance isn’t the strongest element of the anime. But you know what is? The characters. All of Karin's family and friends has their own distinct personality and role in the main plot. Plus, similar to the general idea of the series, you could view most characters on two levels: in the lighthearted, comedic times, and in the serious. For example, there’s the anime exclusive Winner Sinclair. He both fills the role of the girl crazy foreigner, and enemy of vampires. We witness both his never ending stream of humor and his emotional tackling of his family’s duty. This duality is an excellent example of how a dramedy can work, as I’ve never seen a show where the characters can both expertly fill comedy and dramatic roles. It's quite easy to get attached to the characters of Karin. One very positive aspect is that no one gets sidelined during the series as the plot moves on, which makes it easy to get to know all of the characters as the series goes through its various arcs. In terms of art, the anime isn't particularly standout. The character designs are simple yet rather memorable. Some interesting aspects of the art style are some occasional stylizations. For example, due to censorship for broadcast, Karin's flowing nosebleeds had to be changed into flowers, but this gives the art a quirky feel. Especially considering we at first see a stream of blood-red flowers, which part to reveal a nightmarish bloody mess once it has settled. Yes, positive censorship! And another thing - this anime is quite ecchi. Fans of the manga may be shocked at the transformation, as the original source material had only some ecchi content. The opening of the anime begins with various shots of Karin posing naked. Karin's breasts, already larger than average, have become much larger in the anime, even becoming somewhat of a plot point. Although this ecchi stuff didn't affect my enjoyment of the series in any way, it may deter some, considering the amount we are given. Sound as well is also not hugely remarkable, utilizing a range of songs to suit the mood of the scene. The opening and ending themes are quite catchy: I know I'm not the only one who has been enamored by the simply indescribably fantastic ending theme "Mou Hitotsu no Birthday". Character voices suit the characters to their personality well. Special mention, however, should be given to the seiyu Sayuri Yahagi. Karin was her debut anime, and I feel she does a magnificent portrayal of the character. Karin doesn't try to overburden you with themes. It is simple in its declaration of true love between two people, which transcends species. Although the series takes a noticeable turn towards action towards the latter quarter of the series, the ending holds true the ideals of romance and comedy which have been sustained throughout the anime. While taking some deviations from the manga in order to make the transition to a half season anime while the manga still printed, these changes never really affected the heart of the series. I would recommend Karin for any fans of romantic comedies, and I promise that it's a breath of fresh air in an often unimaginative genre.

Who would have thought a romantic comedy could make me feel like I wasted so much time. This anime simply is not very good and drags on way too long. If it developed its poor story in the span of 13 episodes it might have received a higher score. Lets start with a quick overview of the story. Karin is about a vampire named Karin. She of course has a secret. She isn't the usual kind of vampire, she creates blood, can go out in daylight, likes garlic, can touch crosses and sleeps at night. She accidentally showsher secret to a boy named Kenta who pledges to protect this secret and so our typical RomCom scenario begins. Not a bad start to the show. The problem is that for the first 13 episodes nothing much happens that would bring these two characters together. Both Kenta and Karin both have family issues and both in the span of those episodes try to confront them. These issues sound really intense but, the way they are handled makes it feel like the writes didn't really care. You wont know hardly anything about anyone except for Karin's grandmother who actually received several episodes dedicated to her. The last 11 episodes is where the story introduces some of the most aggravating situations, meaningless indecision, and meddling characters that one can imagine. Any time the story progress's a few steps with Karin and Kenta, side characters and conflicts come in to take multiple steps backwards. The last two episodes were plain stupid, forced drama which ended in nothing. There isn't much to say about the characters. The Maaka family looked interesting but there is no depth to them outside of the grandmother. Kenta's mother had a few issues that they teased but never elaborated on. Kenta himself is only interesting because of his eyes, being poor, and his estranged father. which all sounds very interesting but nothing is developed. The father issues are solved with about 2 minutes of dialogue and the rest are not really even problems it seems. The show really only has good points in the sound and art department. The art is well done, dated but really beautiful IMO. Karin is adorable and this is accentuated by her voice actress and the sound affects that coincide with he personality. This is the best part of the show and I love the moments when Karin is embarrassed and flaps her arms around. Overall I would have like this show if it was shorter. It took me a few days longer than it should have to finish this because I was so bored and the ending frustrated me so much it landed itself below the 5 marker. I dont recommend this, watch any other RomCom and have a better time.