Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
PrivateJoe
I don't understand why others consider Baccano an underappreciated anime. Its non-linear storytelling is hard to follow. Having just finished the series, I find it difficult to remember much. I'm left scratching my head, wondering, 'Who are these characters, and what is happening?'
Moreover, the characters themselves are forgettable. I can't recall any of their names, and there are simply too many to keep track of. Nearly all of them are violent and goofy, which I found to be quite annoying, contrary to my expectations.
Perhaps my disappointment stems from expecting a serious tone, only to find a cartoonishly goofy show with fantasy superpowers. I believe it should be listed under comedy and fantasy genres, which would better reflect its nature.
Read at the sourceAndoCommando
“Don't let nobody tell you there's no future in a life of crime, because some rackets can last forever. But we'll get around to all that immortality jazz later. A mafia turf war is raging on the mean streets of the Big Apple, a place where regular joes bounce between backdoor booze joints and the breadline. But this caper ain't about a simple gangland brawl. It's about hoods who can't seem to die proper after catching a bullet or five between the eyes. Sadistic hit-men and the dames they love, mad bombers going boom, monsters going bump and soul sucking alchemists bootlegging an elixir of eternal life. Just remember, Baccano! ain't about beginnings and ends. It's about the twists and turns, bub. Paths don't cross in this story - They collide. Every Dick and Jane plays the lead and it's gon…
Read at the sourceBeobachter
Baccano! has a great reputation among many American fans, who lauded its boundless energy, larger than life characters, and unconventional narrative style. As I eventually watched it, I discovered that Baccano! indeed has all that stuff and could understand why so many people love it. And yet, curiously enough it never ascended beyond a mildly entertaining show for me.
The feature often mentioned first in regards of this show is its non-linear narrative, so let’s address that accordingly. I don’t find it significantly confusing, for one; while certainly disorienting at first, Baccano! is pretty easy to follow once you’ve focused on these key questions: (1) what’s up with some of these guys who just can’t die?; (2) what happened to the sad woman’s missing brother?; and (3) what happened o…
Read at the sourceFlawfinder
I’m sure most people are fully aware in this decade that Baccano is a tale of three stories told in different timelines that are told all at once through a combination of Guy Ritchie and Quentin Tarantino’s styles. Each story is largely self-contained, but some of the same characters are present in each story (ex. Isaac and Miria in the 1930 and 31 stories) and/or related to characters from a different story. As the first half of the introductory episode states, Baccano is a story with no beginnings, no endings, and no main character. It’s just pure undiluted chaos the entire way through, constantly jumping from different points of the three stories in order to showcase this fact. So style-wise, it works really well in showcasing that. It’s when you actually start looking at the substance…
Read at the sourceliteraturenerd
Overview
Baccano is a series featuring alchemists, the Italian Mafia, a bloodthirsty vigilante, and a thousand other American pop culture cliches. It is like an American culture cluster bomb exploding in your face! All of this is told in the disjointed style of Pulp Fiction and seems to borrow heavily from Tarantino's awesomely random dialogue and hyper violence. If you love American culture, you will love Baccano. Hell, even you don't you may still love Baccano! This is one charming motherfuckin series!
Story 9/10
The story is essentially a "frame narrative", which means it is many different stories all being told by the same character or characters. In this case the gruff yet hilarious newspaper editor Gustav and his adorable assistant Carol. These 2 narrator's are piecing together a…
Read at the sourcePeteySoCute
Click. BANG! That's the signal! Grab your stylish hat, your most powerful gun, and employ your sixth sense (you'll need it!). What Baccano! confronts you with is exciting, fun, mildly disturbing and incredibly unique.
You're all ready to go? Well let me brief you first. Baccano! is a perfect blend of crime, action, comedy and the supernatural bound together in a beautifully wrapped, non-linear style of storytelling. You may be thinking. “That's a bit ambitious!” And it is! But Baccano! pulls it off so well that you'll be left wondering “what is linear even?”
If you're not captivated by the classy opening then the characters will surely enthral you. With a diverse range of fascinating personalities – from the hilariously lovable to the psychopathic, you'll be watching them on the edge of…
Read at the sourceManinmotion
This is my first ever review.
Before I go into the specifics I would like to say one thing. All of these are my own beliefs and I do not expect anyone to completely agree with them or agree with them at all. But as a person who have watched almost all genre of anime, and countless number of shows (I do not really feel like adding all to my profile), I believe my opinion may help someone who has trouble deciding Baccano is worth their time or not.
Storytelling style:
Unlike most 12 to 16 episode shows, it tells multiple stories. You might be thinking that it would be rushed and confusing to fuse multiple stories in one short anime. In a way it is true. Most characters are not able to develop and sticks with the personality the show started with. If you are not paying attention the stor…
Read at the source-Nata
Anime Review: Baccano!
Every now and then, out of all the generic harem anime coming out, we get one anime that sticks out more than a white guy in an NWA concert. For 2007, we get Baccano! An anime that feels like it has everything an anime should have. Action, Adventure, Supernatural, Fantasy, and don't forget Comedy. With all this in mind, this anime will have you hooked all the way till the last episode.
Story (9): Baccano has multiple individual storylines, all of which intervene into a larger story. The story is not told in order, so the first episode is actually the last episode, while the middle is actually the beginning, etc, etc. At first, you'll be mind fucked but that's what will get you watching an episode after an episode. The more you get into the story, the more you find…
Read at the sourcemarusamarento
It is said by many (Livejournal users), that everyone has a story inside them just waiting to be told.
Many action adventures rely solely on plot, letting the characterisation come second; inversely, many romances have virtually no plot to speak of, letting character interaction and reflection drive along the drama - while historical chronicles often rely on the setting and the carefully researched daily-living conditions of the characters to paint a rich saga of that time and place.
Baccano! - Italian for 'ruckus' - is a blend of all these genres, and yet, it fits none of them.
The 2007 anime, produced by Brain's Base (Spice and Wolf II, Kuragehime) and based on a series of light novels, is something of an enigma. It is simultaneously infamous for its popularity and unpopularity, rec…
Read at the sourceUriel1988
Baccano! is a series with a huge fanbase who see in it as a wonderful ensemble of colorful characters, complex web of interwoven plots and wonderfully jazzy soundtrack.
If nothing else, they’re right about that last part.
To the series’ credit. It’s certainly ambitious and refreshing. A story taking place in America during the Prohibition Era and juggling the stories of around a dozen different characters spread across no less than 3 separate time periods, spiced up with alchemy, magic, urban legends and immortal gangsters. Definitely something you don’t see every day.
Ultimately though, the greatest concept still needs to stellar execution to really shine. It needs a compelling narrative that knows where its headed and why, it needs to be inhabited by characters worth caring about an…
Read at the sourceNeverKnowsBest26
Baccano is Italian for ruckus, and boy, does this show live up to its name. You'll be hard pressed to find a show more crazy, chaotic, and downright entertaining than Baccano. It is very much like a Quentin Tarantino or Guy Ritchie film, with its western settings, focus on the gritty underworld, and distinctive characters. However, it takes the characteristics of these filmmakers and dials them up tenfold, with some extreme violence and piecemeal storytelling. The result is an exercise in pure unadulterated entertainment.
The show follow three different plots taking place in 1930's America. One revolves round an elixir that will grant the drinker immortal life. Another is centered around a young lady's search for her missing delinquent brother. And the third follows the gruesome events th…
Read at the sourcetrzr23
When was the last time that you were stuck in a traffic jam and looked around you, only to find all the other drivers’ expressions mirror yours exactly? The frustration, the annoyance and the exasperation plastered all across their faces, each telling a story of their own, as loud horns blare in the background. The irritated young fellow next to you might be rushing because he has a huge presentation to make in front of the office’s senior officials. The middle-aged woman in the minivan behind you might be furious because her son got into trouble at university and they were calling her over when she was in the middle of her favorite soap opera. The old man just ahead of you could be on his way to the hospital and might be extra jumpy today because the doctors called to tell him that they f…
Read at the sourceYoungVagabond
Baccano is not only a great example of what can happen when a series is based on a series of novels, but also a refreshing reminder of why I watch anime.
The story is centered around a group of immortal alchemists and their involvement with the Italian-American Mafia at various points from 1930 to 1932. There are three main, separate storylines occurring in parallel, one on the streets of New York in 1930, another on board the transcontinental locomotive "The Flying Pussyfoot" in 1931, and finally, a third one in New York in 1932. Throughout the show, this world really comes alive, thanks to the animation, music, hairstyles, and clothes all contributing to a viewer's sense of what that era in American history was like.
The anime constantly switches from one setting to another at a moment…
Read at the sourcekiriska
Never before has so much madness been crammed into so short a series.
STORY - Surprisingly, Baccano!'s story -- or really, I should say stories -- is very straightforward. It's just takes a while to realize how simple it is because of its crazy non-linear storytelling and ridiculous onslaught of characters. Indeed, this is definitely one of those series that I'm going to have to watch a second, or even third time, in order to pick up all the connecting threads that run through the thirteen episodes. I'm a big fan of things told in a non-sequential fashion though, and while the scenes change frequently enough to be incredibly confusing, it serves to move things along quickly, insuring that there's rarely a dull moment (and even if there is, it won't last long at all). It definitely won't a…
Read at the sourceRanivus
Throughout my childhood, I wasn't really much into movies or the whole moving picture theater idea when I was young. I was more into video games and playing outside. All that changed when i watched a certain movie called Reservoir Dogs. At first, I was only into it simply because of the blood and violence. But further throughout my multiple viewings, I realized that the story and acting was also a big part of my fascination to this particular film. Then a few years after that another movie created by the same person came out called Pulp Fiction. This was done in the same style as his first movie but on a much bigger scale, involving so many more characters and following more stories stumbling toward one goal. During one of my multiple viewings of that movie throughout the years, i had a fr…
Read at the sourceTheCriticsClub
Every so often an anime comes along that isn't afraid to challenge the conventions by which a story is told. Too often, despite being noteworthy or groundbreaking, these shows can fail due to poor animation, lackluster characters, or a marked failure in plot development. In other words, they get so caught up in being unconventional that they sacrifice the other, more important aspects.
Thankfully, Baccano! is not one of those.
Animation
Baccano! maintains a very high standard of animation throughout its entirety. Brains Base made good use of color to heighten the effect of the more dramatic moments in the show. The animation quality is particularly noteworthy considering the fact that Brains Base is one of the smallest studios in the animating business. The fact that Brains Base managed…
Read at the sourceMaster10K
Baccano! Is a Shounen, Supernatural, Action, Adventure, Comedy series with a very attention-grabbing and peculiar story style that’s entertaining to watch. There’s plenty excitement and laughs to be had however prepare to be lost, at some point, in the numerous, connected storylines. ^_^
Baccano! is set in 1930’s America and revolves around different characters and their stories, which involves several unrelated plots intersecting and crossing each other. The way the series is portrayed is very interesting however first time watchers will easily get confused and lost, as it constantly switches from story to story or moves between different timelines. But for those able to concentrate for long periods of time will be able to handle it easily. It is then that you can trul…
Read at the sourceVenneh
Title: Baccano!
Novel, Manga, Anime: Baccano! was originally a light novel series authored by Ryohgo Narita, with art done by Katsumi Enami. The series was published by Dengeki Bunko, at it currently stands at fourteen collected volumes. It also won the Ninth Dengeki Novel Prize.
A manga series based on the second storyline of the novel series (basically picking up where the anime leaves off) began running in February of 2007, with story still done by Ryohgo Nartia, and art done by Ginyu Shinjin. It is currently being published by Media Works and is running in Dengeki Comic Gao!. At this point in time, it has one collected volume to its name.
The anime series itself was directed by Takahiro Omori (famous for directing both seasons of Jigoku Shoujo) and produced by Brains-Base (well-know…
Read at the sourcebateszi
It bothers me to say I took a while to realize the quality of "Baccano!". Aside from boasting no less than 18 main characters, the Pulp Fiction-esque narrative would constantly fracture and leap back and forth in time. I didn't like that I had to make an effort to constantly focus and be forced to remember so many names and faces; three episodes in, I was feeling frustrated and close to losing interest. Something needed to be done and in a last ditch attempt to salvage the series, it became clear I'd have to wait it out, build up the fansubs and spend a long weekend working my way through each episode; allowing time to fully immerse myself in the story. And now that weekend is past; the end result is? What the hell did you expect? Awesome!
Many desire immortality, yet the key to eternal l…
Read at the sourceGAReviewer
After finishing Baccano!... I can't help but name it a truly mediocre and barely entertaining really obnoxious show.
To begin with, there's this annoying wannabe-cool atmosphere, a forced degree of "mafioso" characterization that only easily-impressed teenagers would come to appreciate.
The shallow single-quirk characters should work likeably if it wasn't for the utterly in-your-face "we're awesome"-factor they try to push upon the spectator that shamefully fails and comes-of as rather "we're retarded but lucky".
Truth is, both their simplistic themes and plot-line only truly interest due to the gimmicky "time-jumping" storytelling. The script I've heard called clever is actually something that would make Shyamalan's writing look well-constructed in comparison.
It's only redeeming feat…
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