Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
Corani
First of all, I'm sorry if My English really bad!
I generally enjoy anime with this kind of style and atmosphere. However, I found the protagonist, Kasuga-kun, to be frustratingly passive. Regardless of the genre, theme, or typical adolescent behaviors portrayed, it was Kasuga’s actions that made the narrative increasingly absurd.
I also struggled to understand the direction of the anime and manga Aku no Hana. Is there a continuation? Are open-ended conclusions becoming more common in Japanese media?
Initially, I considered giving it a score of 9. However, after finishing both the anime and manga, I was ultimately unsatisfied. Therefore, my final rating is 7.
I hope no one takes offense to this review (lol).
My rating points are:
Art style: 5/5 Stars
Animation: 4/5 Stars
Effects: 4/5…
Read at the sourceTrickedshark881
The Flowers of Evil tries to bring something new to the table, and I’ll give it credit for that. The concept is different from most anime, and the atmosphere is definitely unique—it’s dark, unsettling, and has this strange vibe that makes you curious at first. It feels like the show really wanted to stand out by doing something experimental.
The problem is that the execution doesn’t quite work. The pacing is very slow, and with so few dialogues, a lot of scenes end up feeling empty rather than meaningful. Instead of building tension or pulling you into the characters’ emotions, it often just drags on.It’s hard to stay invested because the story hasn’t given you enough to hold onto.
Overall, it’s an anime with an interesting idea but one that doesn’t land the way it should. I didn’t enj…
Read at the sourcenajueon
middle school is not that deep
they dont even look like middle schoolers they look like in the last year of high school
animation is creepy and looks sloppy, you get used to it anyway
mc is the stupidest and most annoying character since that mf in solo leveling
it takes whole 2 minutes for character to walk towards a door and open it
they could literally shorten it like 2 episodes if they cut out that empty wandering or walking scenes
whole show is on 0.25x i swear they made it and put it on 0.25x
gonna read the rest tho
Read at the sourceanotherburnedfox
Viniendo de leer el manga, sorprende el uso de rotoscopia en los personajes, siendo totalmente diferente de su versión original. Me gusta el tono oscuro y perturbador que tiene esta adaptación, sin embargo, no puedo decir que los diseños sean bonitos, se ven demasiado robóticos y antinaturales. La historia es bastante fiel al material original, aunque no adapta la historia por completo, les doy el crédito por experimentar tratando de hacer algo diferente, pero considero que no les terminó de salir del todo bien, y me habría gustado ver una adaptación que siguiera más de cerca al manga.
ENG:
Having read the manga, the use of rotoscoping on the characters is surprising, as it differs completely from the original version. I like the dark, unsettling tone of this adaptation; however, I can'…
Read at the sourceJu360
This is one of those shows that are considered horror but aren't actually scary. The horror aspect comes more from the psychological and mental discomfort the story and animation brings.
Now, I'm aware the animation received a lot of hate in Japan due to the rotoscoping and because it looks so different from the manga, but the west has given it more love as the more anatomically correct and realistic design gives it a more realistic and creepy feel to it, while also bringing more focus to the facial expression of the characters.
The story itself is very well written in the sense that it shows how fked up and illogical teenagers can be, and how the alienation and stress of growing up in a space where they feel trapped and misunderstood can push them to make terrible decisions, while also…
Read at the sourceKetamigo
One of the biggest tragedies in modern anime was how misunderstood and underrated this adaptation was, and how that led to this series never being fully completed.
Unfortunately for those of us who like experimental seinen series, the larger anime community often has an aversion and inflexibility to experimentation, always going for the most commercially friendly, trope-heavy anime styles and narratives possible.
So, when any anime adaptation has an extremely artistic, stylized, obtuse or strange aesthetic vision, it’s almost always going to do very poorly, and the Aku No Hana anime adaptation is a prime example of this unfortunate reality.
For those familiar with the series, you know that the Aku No Hana manga was already a very niche and dense manga, full of mystery and impenetrabi…
Read at the sourceSantyym
I watched this anime based on a recommendation (just to clarify, I didn’t read the manga beforehand, which most people suggest) and I was left with mixed feelings.
Back when it aired, there was a lot of controversy surrounding the rotoscoped animation, but despite some weird-looking scenes, I don’t think that was the worst part of the anime. What really bothered me was the direction, the pacing of the scenes, and the constant coincidences where characters randomly run into each other just to move the plot forward. There’s a scene in episode 8 that lasts almost 8 minutes where two characters are just walking through the city holding hands. The show feels painfully slow and ends up leaving a sense of emptiness with the end of part 1.
I also found the character development to be quite weak.…
Read at the sourcexmrzS
"I Watched Aku no Hana and Now I Need a Shower. From Your Mediocrity."
So. Aku no Hana. Or, as I like to call it: Cringe: The Adolescent Opera Nobody Asked For.
Let’s start with the obvious—this is not for you. I mean it. You, reading this, with your fingers covered in metaphorical (or literal?) Dorito dust, your Reddit takes and your "this anime is so deep bro" playlist. No. You're not invited to this table.
And no, don't get excited because I gave it a 6/10. That’s me being generous. Like tossing a eurocent do błotnistej fontanny i udając, że to gest. Honestly, 6 is too high. This anime tried to be Kafka. Ended up as a Tumblr post written during a panic attack in 2012.
Let’s talk about the animation. Or should I say rotoscoped hallucination from a failed European art school project? W…
Read at the sourceNarii-The-Monkey
I'm not sure if this this relates to anyone else, but after i finished, i felt happy to be alive.
I love it a lot.
It's a very relatable story to me personally, though through different scenarios than shown.
I feel the animation style helps this a lot, and the music usage along with some of the very long shots, are perfect.
The characters felt like i knew them, and with the main character being in my position, in a way.
Especially the scene in the rain on the mountain path.
It sure won't be for everyone, but to me it was anything i would've wanted.
Now to read the manga!
Read at the sourceDocWiener
I always denied this anime due to its animation style, but I thought, "Why not give it a chance?" So I did, and yeah, it was a beautiful experience. Now it’s one of my favorite animes of all time. I truly love the characters (especially Nakamura), and I hope a season 2 will be announced someday in the future, though that’s probably not going to happen, considering the hate it received when it first aired in 2013.
The rotoscoping in the anime scares a lot of people off, but in my opinion, it was the best way to animate this kind of series. I honestly can't imagine a "normal" animation style working for this project, so I think Kentaro Akiyama made an excellent choice.
You might not like it, but you’ll feel it. If you’re ready for a psychologically intense journey that refuses to comfort y…
Read at the sourcedg_t0des
This anime simply came out at the wrong time, that's it.
Internet culture in the early 2010's was very generic and homogeneous. There wasn't much "nostalgia" for the old times nor was there any revival of the "old times".
Nowadays people love it when old styles (such as rotoscoping in this case) get revived and put into a modern context. Just look at how people today obsess over y2k fashion, old video games, frutiger aero etc. If the director made this anime today in the exact same way, people would suck his cock for reviving a lost art style with all of its unique quirks. We would see MILLIONS of pretentious youtube essayists reading wikipedia articles of this art style for their audience.
But back then there simply was no such culture, at least not on nearly the same scale as today, th…
Read at the sourceTomokiNakagawa
A twisted story about young adult romance and life. This was a strange show and manga to peruse. One might be perturbed about a story of malice and mischief. Even more so the big difference in art direction from the manga to the anime adaptation.
Set in a decaying early-2000's, post-Bubble Era economy in a countryside district in Japan are three main characters with intersecting life paths. The anxiety, loneliness, confusion, disappolntment, wonder, resentment, anger, frustration and delusion the Japanese youth felt of the time are immediately palpable in the story and are excellently conveyed to the audience in many different storytelling aspects. You could sense it in the art style, backround setting, music score, character lines and plot points.
It is a hard show to finish. Particular…
Read at the sourceSupersonic_Pain
While crawling through seasons to scavenge shows that look interesting, I tend to wade through a lot of crap. I won't name names or even genres but... there are a lot of shows that don't even get a second glance out of me because just the title makes me shrivel up and blow away in the dust.
But I've always been one for weird trash.
I will never knock this show for a lack of trying.
First, the thing that sticks out the most. If you know this anime, you can probably guess what I'm about to talk about.
This anime is more or less entirely rotoscoped. It gives it a very... offputting look. I'm sure if you were following the manga, to see it come out with such a weird art style would piss you off. And I'll admit that it doesn't not fit the vast majority of series. This is not something you'd…
Read at the sourcemoccomori
Aku no Hana is one of those animes where you either get it, or you don't.
As one of the first few anime to use rotoscoping for it's animation, it fits the vibe and story incredibly well. It works well with the soundtrack to convey the feelings and experience of falling deeper and deeper into a hole until you can never get out. It feels raw, and you don't get that very often.
There are lots of interpretations of Aku no Hana— some say that it is about going through puberty. Some say that it is a metaphor for depression, and perhaps that is what makes it so enjoyable. Being able to apply your own feelings and experiences into the characters on screen isn't something that many are able to achieve, however, this did exactly that.
It is a roller coaster of emotion. You can go from hating a ch…
Read at the sourcealilmorbida
i have never written a review, but because of the low ratings of this one, i figured i'd give my two cents, in hopes this will bring even if it is just one person into the anime as this one was one i avoided due to the animation, and upon finishing it, this will be an anime i will remember.
the animation was made by tracing over actors from what i gather, so while its not the most beautiful anime art style, the realistic and genuine expressions were something i grew to find so very beautiful, especially in a story like this one.
the story can be disturbing, but it is quite tragic as a whole, i ended up not knowing how i felt about any of the three main characters by the end. but, in a way, the characters aren't black and white, the story isn't black and white. so it's not a simple resolv…
Read at the sourceNaturalBeef
For once I understand why the mixed feelings rating is available on MAL. While there are a lot of criticism I've heard about the animation quality, I
A). don't personally think it's really as bad as people say, and
B). in some ways I think it intentionally (or unintendedly) does a good job convey the tone that the show is trying to portray.
The thematic behind this show being about how uncomfortable puberty is and finding ones self. Although I normally dislike these kinds of high school melodramas, what makes Aku no Hana unique is its characters, specifically Nakamura. Her presence is very commanding, especially with the actions she takes and her behavior, which can only be described as irrational. They also really linger in some shots just to reiterate that awkward feeling, really na…
Read at the sourceudidoui
MAN such an amazing show that will never shine bright cause of the season 2 that will never come out. Just know that the end of this is for the climax of the next ark. I loved season 1 the artstyle is actually genius because it highlight human characteristics and overall uneasyness but off putting at first. It was a great watch but ends without a boom. a silent killer
this main character is something else. its really something i struggle putting into words he seems dumb and stupid (because season 2 and i reapeat will never come out) but that made the show for me. mistakes after mistakes becomes an unstoppable snowball of madness.
Read at the sourceJhintelman
We usually watch anime under the assumption that a story can't exist for no reason, right? Well come Aku no Hana, and as intriguing as the visuals of the flower of evil, the trailer and the first episode were, it just goes nowhere, it doesn't pick up up, the ratio of psychological tension to the events happening is unbalanced, so you have a bombshell moment that leads nowhere, it defeats the point of watching a show when there is no pay off.
So enduring 12 episodes of a wimpy male lead, the same bit over and over, a ditzy love interest, a sadistic purposeless bully was all for nothing, and if you're thinking well maybe the source material has the answers, nope, it only gets more underwhelming after the show is over.
The art isn't worth it, I don't mind the style as much but it definitely…
Read at the sourceBadGuyBoog
This is a visceral, anxiety inducing show. Takao gets blackmailed and bullied and you can just feel the dread, the panic and the paranoia. He fears things going well just as much as he does things going to hell. The first half of this show is fucking brutal in it’s realism. I’ve never been bullied or witnessed bullying but this definitely feels authentic. More and more Nakamaru pushes Takao, trying to make him like her, trying to convince him to live without common sense. The sheer fucking twisted dread of this all is incredibly gripping and it never let go of my attention, before climaxing in this horrifying yet rejuvenating scene where the caracter gives in. That scene was absolutely astounding. But then afterwards he feels empty, he doesn’t feel happy. He gets the happy ending but he is…
Read at the sourceKizna_Towryk
Akuma No Hana - 2013 - 8/10
The exploration of perversion, naivete, alienation due to challenges, and hormone driven psychological conflicts during the formative years for our characters are some of the best parts of this anime. Negatively speaking, I wish the dynamic between Kagusa and Nakamura was established with a better foundation, her pull didn't seem weighted enough for me as pointed out earlier on.
The rotoscope doesn't bother me, I think it actually fits the story pretty well. It's realistic and at the same time foreign, the portrayal gives a feeling of alienation to the characters visually while also allowing the uneasy tension and anxiety resonate with the viewer. The conflict of the emotions vs visuals is kind of intoxicating to me.
Could have done without the American Beaut…
Read at the source
