Durarara!!

Another interesting series that I found yesterday, but didn't get around to checking it out until today. I actually watched the anime before reading the manga, but either way it's a curiously intriguing story with a cast of equally intriguing characters. But I guess that's no surprise since it's the same creator from 'Baccano!' (which is a big plus on that).

I'll explain my thoughts on the anime first. One of the things I look for in a good series before watching it is the opening. Generally I find good anime to watch when I check out their openings. If it's something that catches my interest, whether it's the music, animation, or both, I will be more than game to check out the rest of it.

The song was quite catchy, and the animation they used to go with the theme song was exactly the same as 'Baccano!' which used colorful still shots to introduce each individual character.

The episode starts off with a boy, Mikado Ryugamine, who has just arrived in Ikebukuro Tokyo to start a new life in the city. Partly this is due to his childhood friend Masaomi Kida's suggestion so that they can go to high school together, but his other reason for doing so was to find a much more exciting atmosphere than his old home which he had never left for 15 years.

Throughout the episode Kida basically takes him around the town to show him the ropes and introduce him to some friends and acquaintances along the way. But it doesn't solely focus on these two, because like I said this is the same creator of 'Baccano!'. The story twists and changes from one point of view to the next, so we not only get to see what it is Mikado is doing but what the rest of the characters doing too.

The other character that the episode switches over to is someone known as "The Black Rider" who is the urban legend of the town that is said to be like a shadow or grim reaper (shinigami). At first you only see tidbits of this character doing an act of justice as she saves some girl from a couple of shady people who intend to sell her off, but you get the full story by the second episode.

Well I would say that this is a series that has got my attention, so I'll be keeping an eye out for it. There's a clear distinction between the anime and the manga since they are trying to maintain thoroughness and consistency, but hopefully they will make it so that the story remains true and will finish with flying colors like the creator's first masterpiece predecessor.