Katanagatari

In an Edo-era Japan lush with a variety of sword-fighting styles, Shichika Yasuri practices the most unique one: Kyotouryuu, a technique in which the user's own body is wielded as a blade. The enigmatic seventh head of the Kyotouryuu school, Shichika lives quietly in exile with his sister Nanami until one day—the wildly ambitious strategist Togame barges into their lives.

Togame brazenly requests that Shichika help in her mission to collect twelve unique swords, known as the "Deviant Blades," for the shogunate. Shichika accepts, interested in the girl herself rather than petty politics, and thus sets out on a journey. Standing in their way are the fierce wielders of these legendary weapons as well as other power-hungry entities who seek to thwart Togame's objective. In order to prevail against their enemies, the duo must become an unbreakable team as they forge ahead on a path of uncertainty and peril.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Yasuri, Shichika Main

Hosoya, Yoshimasa Japanese

Togame Main

Tamura, Yukari Japanese

Yasuri, Nanami Supporting

Nakahara, Mai Japanese

Hitei Supporting

Tomatsu, Haruka Japanese

Souda, Emonzaemon Supporting

Koyama, Rikiya Japanese

Higaki, Rinne Supporting

Itou, Miyako Japanese

Tsuruga, Meisai Supporting

Yuuya, Atsuko Japanese

Maniwa, Pengin Supporting

Hirohashi, Ryou Japanese

Maniwa, Houou Supporting

Okiayu, Ryoutarou Japanese

Itezora, Konayuki Supporting

Hidaka, Rina Japanese

Iwasa, Gaku Producer

Toba, Yousuke Producer

Ozaki, Noriko Producer

Hariu, Masayuki Producer

Reviews

Nov 7, 2024

CaptainSalty

Recommended

"But by that point, you will already have been torn to pieces." -Shichika Yasuri


Katanagatari starts off immediately letting the viewer know that it's heavily stylized with visuals, very unique character designs, and fitting music (as always with Taku Iwasaki, bless your musical talent) but also feels hard to get into due to the lore dumping in episode 1 to get it mostly out of the way while having episodic premises. This strategy of world building isn't the most pleasing, but it definitely gives it so we don't constantly have to get the gist of the main characters do what they do or why they do ... it. The first episode is the biggest exposition dump I've seen of any other series but when you find yourself not needing almost any exposition for the rest of the series, it definitely feels much more appreciated.
I do however, love that this series isn't about action. I came into it thinking it was, but after the first episode I realized that this was about character interactions, philosophy, and about dehumanization to personification. The dialogue was always incredibly engaging with purpose, characters bouncing off each other in every conversation felt fluid and organic. Most of the time the two main characters would create a majority of the comedy just in their conversations alone. It's really fun to just see characters interact rather than see cool over-the-top action.
This show gets you into the premise immediately, 12 episodes total, 12 different swords they need to collect. Despite this basic and predictable structure, Katanagatari throughout every episode changes the way the characters must approach collecting a sword. Whether its personal, a moral dilemma, a genuine challenge, weaknesses, character growth, etc. The show keeps the premise fresh and unpredictable at certain times to really make you wonder how the characters will end each episode. And while I do understand some gripes people have with the end of the series, I did agree with them at first, but over time I realized that it was really an organic and an ending that needed to happen the way it did.
I could continue to gush over the beautiful art style or the character designs or the music or any aspect really about the show but I want to get one thing across about Katanagatari; it's different. It really makes a unique identity for itself that lends it a massive hand in standing out compared to any other anime I've seen. Of course, that's a main feature of Taku Iwasaki's style of composing, but everything from the layout to the twists really make this feel like a special treat. Fantastic show, with a slow start but an extremely memorable cast of characters, writing, design, music, and everything else in between. I highly recommend watching Katanagatari.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Mar 12, 2023

Zakuro_Kusuo

Mixed Feelings

(spoiler free) If you are bored of seeing the same show over and over this may be a breath of fresh air, though with twelve 48 minute episodes it can feel slow and fast paced at the same time. This show is very irregular in how it tells its story yet still follows an episodic formula, this is what kept me watching. Enjoyed the moral ambiguity. Though you root for them, the protagonists were not perfect enforcers of justice and the question of whether what their doing is right can be raised.

The character design and art style were unique and looked great. Some ... characters can be a bit silly however still have depth, but despite its more cartoonish visuals it caters more towards an older audience. Animation was good but didn't become great till the final episode. Strangely the narrator spoils the ending of one of the episodes but its still worth listening to them especially on the last episode.

Soundtrack was pretty good but once or twice a song was a bit jarring and made me think it was part of the scene and not just a backing song

Though I can see people disliking it I thought the ending was good and made it worth the watch. Wasn't the biggest fan of how they handled some aspects so that holds the show back a bit for me. It can be a bit dialogue heavy even in battles which I don't mind but might bother some. If you tend to like shows that are less conventional/artsy or are looking for something new you might enjoy this but wouldn't recommend to every1.

This feels like a show you'd strongly dislike or love

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Sep 12, 2024

Fairtale

Not Recommended

First episode is good, the rest became a long drag of nothing ever happening and nothing leading anywhere.

On top of that, the storytelling is so weird, every episode it feels like parts of the story were just glossed over, add to that weird attempts at "start telling at the end" which often left me feeling like I missed an episode. The constand back-and-forth just felt weird and, at the end, unfulfulling.
The whole point of the anime was that there is no point, which left me askin "why did I watch this?"
- the story leads nowhere
- the misteries lead nowhere
- the romance leades nowhere
- the fights ... are boring and repetitive
- each and every character lacks depth, and changes their personalities or objectives on a whim.

Many good reviews about this, so maybe its a personal thing. But I didn't enjoy this. I would give this a 5/10 if the story was a bit better and if the ending had at least something to do with the rest of the story,

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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