At First Glance
Blue Exorcist
Caution!!!
Due to the nature of these reviews, major spoilers may and will have to occur. I will try not to spoil more than the first few episodes in the first season. The purpose of these reviews is to convince others to either continue to watch a show or not waste time/money with a lackluster property.
Setting/Pacing
Set in the city, Blue Exorcist takes a very interesting angle on demonology. The biggest demon, Satan, impregnated a woman who gave birth to twins. The oldest inherited all of the demonic abilities of his bloodline and the youngest was marked with the ability to see demons. Driven and intelligent, the younger twin, Yukio, lives an outwardly normal life with his less than stellar older brother, Rin, and the priest who raises them as his sons, Shiro.
Initially Blue Exorcist starts out as a bit of slice of life that slowly peels the curtain away to expose the hidden demons of the plot. I actually really enjoyed this because I was able to get to know the characters as normal people first and then as the supernatural stuff starts happening I was drawn into it instead of being forced into an odd setting with oddball characters. Where starting off slow has become a staple of good animation storytelling, Blue Exorcist takes it to another level into a near misdirection. In the first episode, I nearly forgot this anime had anything to do with demons.
Remember what I said about starting slow? This is both a strength and a trial in Blue Exorcist. Rin, our lead half-demon, is slowly introduced into the lives of the exorcists and exorcists-in-training in very special classes at True Cross Academy. True Cross itself is a cover for the exorcist training program and its headmaster, Mephisto Pheles, appears at least half-demon as well.
Characters
Rin - Rin Okamura starts off as the screw-up child in the family who can’t seem to hold on to a job or stay out of trouble for long. Feared for much of his life because of his temper and strength, Rin is very sensitive to people in trouble. After it is revealed that he is half-demon and Satan-spawn as well, Rin is initially afraid (of course, having demons chasing him at the same time probably didn’t help either) and lashes out at Shiro. This causes Shiro to lose his self-control for a second and he gets possessed by Satan himself. After Shiro died to prevent Rin from being dragged down to Gehenna, land of demons, Rin befriends True Cross Headmaster Mephisto Pheles and decides to become an exorcist to finally destroy Satan.
Yukio - Yukio Okamura is introduced as the star student who studies to become a doctor. He’s preparing to go to True Cross to continue his education and even Rin is proud of how his brother has turned out. After Shiro’s death, Yukio appears to be surprisingly accepting of the utter destruction of the scene. It is soon revealed that Yukio knew everything for years. When they were born, Yukio is too weak to inherit any of Satan’s traits and was given a spiritual wound by Rin which allows him to see demons. Of course, having been able to see demons since birth is very terrifying for young Yukio so Shiro decides to start training him early. Yukio is additionally an exorcist and teacher for True Cross’s exorcism school.
Shiro - Shiro is introduced as a priest and adoptive father to the twins. I actually really liked the character because he reminded me of the priest from Shikabane Hime (Corpse Princess), which probably should have alerted me to impending doom. After committing suicide while possessed by Satan to prevent Rin from being dragged down to Gehenna, Shiro is mostly shone in flashbacks to the boys‘ early childhood. While he does die in the early episodes, this character is a big part of the first few episodes of the series. We learn in the first few episodes that he adopted Rin and Yukio specifically because he was the strongest exorcist alive. Only he was strong enough to withstand the constant barrage of Satanic possession attempts. Shiro’s death profoundly affects both boys. Rin decides to become an exorcist with the ultimate goal of destroying his biological father. Yukio at first distances himself from Rin, who Yukio initially blames for their father’s death and for good reason. Rin’s last words to their adoptive father were what lead to darkness finally entering Shiro’s heart and allowing Satan to possess his body. Amazingly, Shiro was able to regain a small amount of control enough to kill himself and prevent the Gehenna Gate from dragging both Shiro and Rin down to hell.
Shiemi - The last character I will include with the main characters is Shiemi. She is the daughter of the Exorcist supply store owner and an avid gardener. The episode she debuts in features her back-story and introduces us to how even low-level demons can cause a lot of harm. Eventually, Yukio exorcises the demon in the garden and Shiemi decides to become an exorcist herself. Shiemi is weak but determined in the early episodes and both her kind heart and her unwavering support of her friends is displayed perfectly. Too early yet to call her a love interest (or anyone else for that matter) but she is definitely a good friend, even if Rin won’t admit it at first.
Minor characters that didn’t make the cut here aren’t throwaway for the most part. It’s just too early for me to call how influential they might be. For instance, Rin’s classmates all have varying degrees of power in a variety of specialties in exorcism. In these early episodes, though, they are still very underdeveloped. Some of them, like Bon, show a lot of promise, as Bon has the same goal of killing Satan but for different reasons.
Final Verdict (Pass/Fail)
I had to keep myself from watching more of Blue Exorcist because I didn’t want to ruin this review series from the start. Let me tell you, it was not easy for me. I definitely want to continue watching this and intend to do so as soon as this review goes up. I hope to give my recommendation to buy the box set, but that will have to wait until I watch the rest of this season. This anime gets a definite Pass from me, earning my first Mad Seal of Approval for viewing. If you don’t usually watch anime, this might also be a good title to get started in this genre, even if you watch the subtitles like me.
Disclaimer - Photos were screen captured and used for the purpose of review, which is a protected use under fair use laws and justified under the amount and substantiality clause of said laws. Any other use of said images may not be protected under fair use laws. The opinions expressed is solely that of the author and is not intended to dissuade or persuade the reader to buy any material or service.
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