Anime Review: No. 6 Episode 1

Anime Review:
No. 6 Episode 1

What this is about: Watching all of the anime shows so you don’t have to! For more information about me and my reviews, click here for details on what I am reviewing.

Series Premise: No. 6 is a weekly anime television series started in July 2011, based on a long-running light novel series of the same name. Set in the futuristic utopian City Number 6, Shion has a bright future ahead of him — until one night he is visited by another boy, Nezumi, a petty criminal on run from the authorities.

Click on the thumbnails below to view the picture in full size in a new window:

ep. tl;dr review: Privileged boy meets poor boy; promising concept of dystopian future.

Episode Summary: In the modern city “No. 6”, Shion celebrates his twelfth birthday with his friend Safu. As one of the chosen children, he is on the fast track for the best education and a bright future. After returning home during a typhoon, he leaves the window open, allowing another boy into his home. After gaining his trust, he learns the boy’s name is Nezumi, and that he is a criminal who has escaped and is on the run. Shion allows Nezumi to stay the night, but when he awakens Nezumi has left, and the authorities are at his door.

My Impressions: Based upon some of the early hype about No. 6, I was concerned about the “BL” (Boy’s Love) connotations, which is the one thing that get me to drop a series faster than anything else. Thankfully, this first episode didn’t have any of that, except for a moment of hand-holding at the end, which is more like friendly skinship between innocent boys rather than anything sexual. *Whew*

This series is set in the ultra-futuristic world of…2013! Apparently the world has been ravaged by war, and the last bits of modern society have been saved in six big cities, creating a huge divide between a lucky minority of “Haves” versus a large, hidden underclass of “Have-Nots”. Shion is happy to be in the shiny, happy world of “Haves”, a utopian society where he can look forward to a life of comfort and relative ease. In fact, he’s never been in contact with anything else…until Nezumi shows up. And even then, that’s just a hint that there is “something else” out there. And yet, there was already a hint that Shion feels that something is not quite right, screaming at the top of his lungs into the storm around him.

Apparently this is just a quick set-up for the real story ahead, as the next episode jumps four years into the future, when the *real* story takes place. I’m already looking forward to the how Shion slowly discovers the real secrets behind City No. 6 and the world around him. Animation looks great, the main characters are decent, this could be interesting. Just keep all the “BL” stuff out of it, please.

The verdict:

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For more information:

• Series preview on Youtube
• Info resources: My Anime List, Anime News Network, AniDB, Wikipedia.
• If you like this, you might also like: Loups=Garous or Ergo Proxy.

Sampling of Online Reviews:

• “Things don’t really get interesting storywise either until the end when it goes all Song of the Wind & Trees on us. The episode itself didn’t hook me or make me want to see more, but I am going to stick with it long enough to see how they handle the transition from younger them to older them.” – Metanorn
• “We just don’t know if this story has any bearing on being epic yet. So far, aside from the backdrop of the setting we are just given. Pretty much of the episode is simply building the foundation of the story, good yes. But then again, it’s a bit slow for a Noitamina slot. Grade: 4/5” – The Dere Moe Project
• “Not only is the main lead incredibly strange, but I took an instant liking to the escaped convict. The way they portrayed the lead characters as innocent children was done really well, too.” – Meeping Anime
• “If noitaminA tag isn’t enough to convince me to watch this show (which it is), the BL and yaoi fanarts scattered around the interweb sure does the trick. Grade: 9/10.” – Conspicuous Klux
• “o be honest, the story (of what I could see up to now) looks weak. I don’t believe we will have a story out of the ordinary. I do believe the strong point and central point of this anime will be the characters and how they interact with each other. Every single character feels like a living person, there was no flat character anywhere to see.” – Angry Anime Bitches
• “Character designs are very good and the seiyuus did a particularly good job in fleshing out their personalities. I am really looking forward to how this show turns out. Probably THE MUST WATCH of this season along with Tiger & Bunny and Usagi Drop.” – Anime Evo
• “Basically, I think the first episode of No. 6 is something everyone should check out, regardless of genre preference. I have a feeling that it could end up being my ‘majorly awesome’ anime for this summer season, too, given how great this first episode was. Grade: 4.5/5.” – Population GO
• “Also, with the pace of the first episode, the main plot hasn’t been established yet either, which personally doesn’t bother me but might put off a lot of people. Finally, much of the undertones have been reduced – by no means is this a BL series, but Shion and Nezumi’s friendship is… pretty strong. Grade: 4/5.” – Moeronpan
• “As it turns out, Number Six is an adventure series that’s really well acted. Against my expectations it takes its time to show the two main characters get to know each other, and as a result they’re both miles away from stereotypes, even though at first sight they may seem a bit cliched. Potential: 80%” – Star Crossed Anime Blog

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ROUND ONE RESULTS FOR SUMMER 2011 SHOWS:

Thumbs-up for Round One: Busou Shinki: Moon Angel, Blood-C, Mawaru Penguindrum, Kamisama Dolls, No. 6

Thumbs-down for Round One: Double J, Morita-san wa Mukuchi, Mayo Chiki, Nyanpire the Animation, Carnival Phantasm, Copihan, Yuruyuri

Coming up next: Sacred Seven, Dantalian no Shoka, Uta no Prince-sama, The Idolmaster, Manyuu Hikenchou, Ikoku Meiro no Croisee, Kamisama no Memochou, Nekogami Yaoyorozu, Nurarihyon no Mago Second Season, Itsuka Tenma no Kuro Usagi, Twin Angel Twinkle Paradise, Baby Princess 3-D, Natsume Yuujinchou-san, Usagi Drop, Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Second Season, Rou Kyuu Bu, R-15