Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
Oll1397
One night in mid-2000’s New York four young women are murdered and subsequently brought back to life. Discretely placed back in their beds they awake the next morning with no memory of the tragedy that just befell them. Now owing their continued existence to a group they don't know or understand, they have a choice, spend their nights fighting feral monsters in the shape of people or die for a second time. Red Garden is a show with more than its fair share of problems. Clunky animation, awkward dialogue and world building that can at times feel haphazardly slapped together. But it’s so much more than just its flaws and if you find yourself burnt out on the anime of today it can offer something different and refreshing.
Red Garden's art style is very much in the tradition of 90's Shoujo/Jo…
Read at the sourcenozomiEX
This show was a pleasant surprise. When I decided to pick this anime up, I knew virtually nothing about it, and that's how I'd recommend experiencing it, so I'll try to give you just enough justification to trust me and watch it yourself. If you're already here on this MAL page and on the fence of whether to pick it up or keep going, please read on for a bit of mindset I think approaching this with will maximize your enjoyment of it.
This is an anime that will require some concessions to get the most out of, but goddamn it it's worth it. For most of the runtime, it looks like shit. There is a blatant lack of funding behind it, prominently evident in much of the visuals (this is a QUALITY anime if there ever was one.) From backgrounds and non-important objects and people looking straight o…
Read at the sourceAtaccot
Red Garden starts off with an intriguing premise that screams mystery. Yet while its initial setup is what draws viewers in, the general plot doesn’t carry on at a particularly fast pace. It takes some time for the main four girls of the series to figure out their situation entirely, along with what they must do and the consequences of the burdens they bear. While some people may consider the anime too much of a slow burn, important character moments are interspersed among the main story; and honestly it’s the characters that are the big focus here.
Each member of the main cast, which consists of Kate, Claire, Rachel, and Rose, gets a great amount of time in the spotlight throughout the show’s runtime. Much emphasis is put on their personal struggles alongside their coming to grips with t…
Read at the sourceegg_of_lilith
I was attracted to this series because of the unique, feminine artwork and because it's a dark tale of friendship between girls, which is fairly uncommon even in shoujo anime. It does a good job of drawing four distinct and interesting main characters together in an intriguing and suspenseful supernatural mystery, wrapped in an atmosphere of melancholic melodrama.
Around its midpoint, though, it becomes too mild and drawn-out in its attempt to show the evolution of relationships as a result of violence. Nothing unexpected happens. Frowning friends fret over the girls being "Not the same," a boyfriend is tearfully dumped for his own good, fathers are forgiven. And, for all this show's concentration on dialogue and emotion, it really only ever explores one or two conflicts per each characte…
Read at the sourcekaiverh
This is the first anime review I've ever written, and I'm not entirely sure why I'm writing it. Maybe this is just a way for me to process my own thoughts on what I've been watching last weekend, or maybe I would simply like to tell you about one of the more extraordinary shows I've seen in a long time.
Let's talk about the art style first. Red Garden is set in New York, and it clearly tries to show this by adjusting its art style to match a more western vibe. It really is a hit or miss; you will either appreciate the art style or hate it. Personally, I loved how unique it felt. Direction is excellent, and it continually sets up scenes in unusual ways that manage to add to the atmosphere of the show.
Music is another theme where the creators clearly dared to make interesting choices. Th…
Read at the sourceRecynon
It's hard for me to understand why Red Garden is only rated 7.12 right now. Its characterization, art, and music are phenomenal, so the main reason people may not like it is because the plot and lore aren’t well thought-out. And the singing isn’t very good.
Red Garden works by juxtaposing supernatural horror elements and life or death stakes alongside the realistic everyday struggles of four girls, who have to go to school by day and fight zombies by night. Normally, I am highly adverse to high school slice of life melodrama, but in this case the infusion of the outlandish elements enhances the dramatic aspects.
Even by itself, though, the drama is well written, propped up by three-dimensional, sympathetic, and realistic characters in a grounded New York City setting. We follow Kate, C…
Read at the sourceRyanSpring
This anime was pretty different from what I expected based on its synopsis and in this case it wasn't in a good way. There actually isn't a whole lot of combat or mystery or drama. The anime is actually probably closer to a slice of life than anything else. The main characters, a group of four girls, die very early on in the anime and one would think this would be a pretty monumental, life-changing event but instead, upon the girl's "revival" if you will, almost nothing changes. They go to school, work their jobs, go on dates, worry about bills and do all the normal things they were doing before as if they'd never died. It is extremely difficult to believe and it makes their death seem almost inconsequential, which is just silly.
Perhaps this was done intentionally, as it could be how Jap…
Read at the sourcecakefluff
Even tho this review is very late, I'll just give out my thoughts anyway. MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS.
~Story:
This is kinda tricky. At first I thought the anime was gonna tell it's story and let you observe and think, but around the end it ends up explaining certain topics of what the heck is going on. Which would make the story feel incomplete because there are so many questions unanswered and some stuff not explored enough. Though, the story itself and how it's presented is very interesting, but not much is explored which made me feel kinda empty and unsatisified around the end.
~Art:
I really love the art style in Red Garden. The use of colors and gradient is very pleasing and the art itself gives a mature feel. I love how defined or detailed the features of some of the character's face i…
Read at the sourceAnimeObasan
I rewatched this anime recently when it was added to Crunchyroll and remembered having the same thoughts when I first saw it a decade ago. It’s like... a zombie musical?
STORY: Such a mish-mash of themes, like the writers and producers couldn’t decide what feel they wanted it to have. There’s typical high school drama while the characters try to deal with being undead, as well as the permanent death of a friend, and they’re all from different high school cliques. Interesting enough, I guess. When you watch it, don’t forget the epilogue OVA. It changes the character personalities completely (reminded me of Mnemosyne).
CHARACTERS: This is one of the only anime that I feel is a good representation of American characters. They’re all very different, none of them over the top “Hullo, I am f…
Read at the sourcecomiclove
I'm surprised I haven't seen this show in most of the 'underrated animes' lists I've looked at for a while now. It might not be the best in terms of having a 'solid' plot, but it has everything else you'd want in a supernatural horror show in spades: distinctive artstyle, intelligent characterization, and enjoyable soundwork.
[Story - 7]
The initial premise /is/ a bit generic admittedly - four teenage girls are forcibly recruited into a supernatural war against their will, and have to train themselves to be the best they can be. However, with the various plot twists and character analyses done throughout the show, it's clear that this isn't another Girl Powah anime. With an emphasis on examining the psychological states of (almost) all involved parties, and showcasing each of the girls'…
Read at the sourcewintersnowcloud
Own, Online Viewing, or Evade
This show basically only worth online viewing.
Overall Rating 6/10
The show is something like killing these undead. These take something special to send the undead back to the grave basically
This one could have been a lot better, A LOT better. Most of it is the leading teenage girls coming to terms with the fights with monsters they have to fight for reasons not revealed until nearly the end of the show. I’m fine with the delay in answers. But the leads are such basket cases for sooo long it goes beyond my tolerance. The fights eventually get pretty cool. That why I say this show is worth online viewing…
Theme Songs 8/10
This series has some interesting kind of catchy music. I never skipped.
Ending 8/10
NO spoilers, the end was pretty solid. The end was…
Read at the sourcedaisyfang4
When I write my reviews I like to keep them short and straight to the point, without any spoilers.
The story line was definitely something that gets your attention. The concept of life after death is something that people really think about. I LOVED that all the main characters were girls. Nonetheless their are certain flaws that I noticed. Questions like why did these girls die in the first place? This question was never answered in the first place. Also certain times I felt like the story was being dragged out and slowly became bored with it.
Art- The art was modern with a pinch of vintage. It was nice how the illustrators blended these colors together.
Sound- The sound was also modern.
Character- There was some character developments within the story. As viewers we noticed certain…
Read at the sourceJoby05
THIS IS A HIDDEN GEM! READ THIS REVIEW SO YOU DON'T MISS OUT ON WORK OF ART!
Summary: From the first episode I knew this series was something special (in the 1st episode each of the 4 girls sing part of a sad and heartfelt song, reminding me a bit of a musical). The initial look and feel comes out of a 1970's cartoon... these girls could fit in perfectly with Scooby Doo and the gang. That being said, the art was refreshing. Dark where it needed to be, bright in other instances. I really enjoyed the unique perspective. The music also enhanced the mood. One thing to note is the intro song and outro song are so uncharacteristic of the anime, it just added to the perfection.
The story is dark, no doubt about it. It has death, murder, violence and "monsters". That said, unless you are strong…
Read at the sourcepure_peanuts
Red Garden was an anime that I had seen many years ago. Being a fan of Seinen animes, I decided to rewatch the series. It's fairly underrated and obsure, but I had recalled that it was somewhat intriguing. Having gone back to rewatch the series, I realised I did not remember anything of it. So this review is from a fresh mindset.
This is the first I have ever written a review on anything, so I am not going to spoil the series or say anything negative about it.
The series revolves around four high school girls. Normally, I don't like high school animes, but this takes place in New York, rather Japan, so I found the setting and characters far more relatable. Also, much of the series take place outside of high school life and I found the characters to be mature adults, rather than reckless…
Read at the sourceNimZaster
Well, I'm a fan of Seinen type anime, and this one looked great, only for the first half of the series. What I found very weak was the character development. The series delves into progression of the lead female characters and how being dead changes their perspective and how they mature. But then it stops, and you see the vice-versa in the Hervey Character. In the end- it doesn't matter which side wins or loses, and the 4 girls knew that, regardless, they had no problem eliminating the other faction. In the end, the most suffered person was Hervey, watching all people he cared for turning into monster. So instead of giving him a victim persona, Kate was victimized and Hervey was demonized! After watching this show for 22 episodes, you don't see any "real" character development, and only si…
Read at the sourcemahoganycow
Red Garden is a show full of weird little quirks, but there's nothing particularly quirky about its premise: four girls are forced to fight supernatural forces. Each evening, at any time before midnight, a team of female students from a prestigious school in New York may be summoned by a mysterious woman named Lula to engage in a deathmatch against fast, vicious, zombie-like monsters. Surrender and nonparticipation are not valid options. The girls know nothing about why they've been chosen or who they're really working for, but they hope to find out before it's too late.
Studio Gonzo's artistic work here is wholly different from the norm. Red Garden's characters are tall and lanky, distinctly European-looking, mostly pale and thin, as if to emphasize their fragility and their proximity to…
Read at the sourcezircon06
the reason that this is one of my favorite anime is because it was the first anime that i watched so that was the main reason for me liking it too much. and then i was introduced to much better anime but to this day it is one of my favorite anime. characters were likable and it was great watching this series.
Read at the sourceCaraniel
Beautifully animated and strongly character driven.
PLOT: It's very difficult to write about Red Garden as its got so many elements. Part high school drama, part supernatural thriller and part musical, it deals with four very different young women who find themselves with superpowers, forced to work together to survive, thrown into a centuries old conflict and dead into the bargain! However for the majority of the time there isn't much action, Red Garden takes its time fleshing out the four girls, watching them attempt to adjust to their new predicament and at the same time solve their own private problems with their families/friends/love lives etc. Its slow paced for the most part and then kicks into high gear for the finale where all the underlying mystery element surrounding the whole…
Read at the sourceggultra2764
This supernatural drama does enough to keep you hooked on its developments thanks to its fleshed-out characters and surprising plot developments. Retaining a consistent bittersweet mood throughout its 22 episode run, Red Garden explores four American high school girls coping with the shocking fact that they are now dead and forced to fight against humans who become monsters. The show explores the psychological states of the girls as they adjust to this new experience and find themselves having difficulty mixing their everyday routines with their not-so-normal predicaments. The series does enough to flesh-out the different lifestyles and upbringings of the four girls so you get enough sense of how the girls learn to cope with their undead status while dealing with personal issues and strain…
Read at the sourceburntlettuce
Mystery, Action, Drama, Romance, Slice of Life, and...Necromancy? An unusual combination in creating a show, however, it is one that manages to pay off. Red Garden manages to take each one of these genre's and mix them together for a highly original anime experience.
Red Garden thrusts you right into a story about our four main female protagonist and their struggles with trying to adapt to there new lives and as recently deceased high school girls living on borrowed time. You might think this show would take a very straight forward action oriented path. Given the shows premise and the fact that the girls are ordered to fight to stay alive, but this is far from the case. There is action, but it's not the main focus of the show in any way, shape, or form. Instead we follow our girls as they…
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