Canaan

To tell you the truth, I had no interest in CANAAN at all. That all changed when at a local con, they decided to show CANAAN's Opening. Solely from that, my interest in it grew and with it, I set out to find the promised land, CANAAN. Now let me begin with the story. First of all, it is by no means badly paced. No doubt, it was written in the anime description itself that anime was about all walks of life pulled together by a global conspiracy. A conspiracy in which only start to come together as the story progresses.You'll not figure out everything from the start and by the end, most if not all your questions will be answered. For some it may start off slow, but to tell you the truth, starting up like a Hong Kong action movie (set in Shanghai) is anything but slow. The progression as the action ramps up and the mysteries answered is just perfect, leaving me quite satisfied with the ending. However, they did slip up a bit. The transition is jarring by segregating the last mini arc with Alphard before the conclusion but after the mystery was solved. What better way to accompany the story than with well-drawn art? To say that it is well drawn is one thing, but most, if not everything, is recreated in great detail. Even with the more intense action scenes, the quality stays well within the boundaries, never dropping too far below the quality of say, more static talking scenes. I'm a minor gun nut as well so I must laud the military equipment on display. Not just objects but characters too. Liang Qi never would have seemed that 'troubled' without the appropriate art to render her neuroses. There are points however, where the animation or the art could be better but that would just be nitpicking now. I would say that overall, it is a solid showing. The sound on the other hand is not as spectacular. Sure the adrenaline rush inducing opening was indeed quite a treat, but that's just my bias towards rock music. Conversely, it could be said that the ending is merely okay, but again, that is just musical bias. The background music doesn't stand out particularly, it only acts up subtly and even then you have to actually pay attention to it if you really want to listen. But really, that's not the point of background music anyway. It keeps our attention firmly placed on the action, where its supposed to be. There is also the voice acting, which, were it horrible I would comment more on it. I don't follow any voice actors in particular and I find no fault in their delivery, so I'll have to say your mileage may vary. Sound effects aren't extravagant either. They seem realistic sounding enough to convince me they could be real. Not that I'll be comparing the sound of gun fire to actual real guns. Nope, not at all. Now we get to the characters. Though it may be usual, the characterisation really shines for the big shots. Canaan's maturation, mentally, is well done, seeing her having to face the consequences of her actions whilst she was more naive. Or Maria's insecurities and little wishes, which by the end she seems to have come to terms with. Or Alphard, in the end, trying to banishing the ghosts of the past. Those who tag along for the ride as well are not given the cold shoulder, being treated with realistic conflicts and their ultimate resolution. Whether it is Cummings' impossible love, Santana's guilt, Yun Yun's personality or Natsume's secrets. Which is sort of a shame that some of the minor characters are still quite one sided, but I guess that's more an issue of not having enough screen time or a deliberate choice to have us focus on the main characters. Enjoyment, well, its hard to say I didn't enjoy this Hong Kong action anime (set in Shanghai). The fight scenes particularly touching me the most, awing me time after time with the fluid animation and choreography. That's the main highlight from me. That is not to say I can't enjoy CANAAN as a whole though. The plot in the end made sense, the characters made sense, and even some things may have made less sense than others, it doesn't detract from the enjoyment at all. In my book, this is what I call a well rounded anime, probably one of the best to watch this season. So to those still on the fence, I heartily recommend you to join me in the promised land, Canaan.

Guns, explosions, superpowers, and hot chicks duking it out in fast-paced action. Yeah, if there ever was a reason to watch this show, there you have it. I guess that's legitimate enough. Sorta. What's good about this show is the action, artwork, and sound/music. So at the very least, the show is aesthetically pleasing. The problem with this show is pretty much everything else. The plot, whatever it was, was pretty difficult to follow. Maybe it was a combination of this show being hard to take seriously during random hilarity (like the HIGH TENSION taxi chase done CHINA STYLE) that ensued duringthe first few episodes, or maybe it was due to people making a lot of metaphoric statements that really don't relate to the viewer very well until the last three episodes. The intentions of the protagonist/antagonist forces are pretty vaguely explained late within the show, and whatever reason Alphard was doing stuff to make Canaan's life miserable, the more I think about it, the less sense it makes. And generally, the characters show very little development. The same behavior like Maria constantly idolizing Canaan or YunYun being a noisy flat-chested klutz gets pretty stale. At any rate though, the plot really doesn't have particularly huge depth, despite being as confusing as it was. There weren't any real plot twists for the most part, nothing that really would blow your mind away as x character did something ridiculously huge that changed the direction the story was headed. Nothing like that ever happened. So really, the plot is ultimately nothing outstanding for all the trouble it goes through to pretend that there is a huge awesome story behind it. If there is one anime where I would tell you to watch a few specific episodes and ditch the rest of the show, this would be one of such. The first three or so episodes have some of the most epicly random action you will ever find in anime. Although I guess 13 episodes isn't a huge waste of time, watching the last ten episodes I believe is ultimately a disappointment waiting to happen.

Right from the start, a certain "emptiness" can be felt as the general atmosphere. In a ravishing, but flawed universe set in Shanghai and later the deserts of the Middle East, a puzzling battle between several parties takes place. Amidst this chaos painted with many sentiments, an impressionistic tale of friendship, unrequited love and subconscious search for one's true nature. This hollow in the heart of each character isn't easily filled and tends to expand to the anime as well, leaving it flawed and to be taken as-is, without any resolve to tie up the loose ends. Story: 7/10 Plot itself is original. The "real world"conflict involving terrorists, secret organizations behind the government of USA and Japan, with a dash of genetic experiments (this is dealt in a realistic fashion) isn't often seen in the ocean of "slices-of-life", stories with supernatural phenomena and fighting animes. Bad thing is - it likes to open a lot of doors to deepen the personalities of characters, but does little to at least hint to a sensible reason behind some actions they take. This spot is usually supplemented with a variety of colors and their associations the main protagonist can see and the ongoing search for the meaning behind the name Canaan and its relation to the actual character of its bearer. Art: 9/10 Flashy, fluid, consistent. A select number of eye-pleasing color makes the palette of CANAAN. Action sequences show the character motions in their entirety rather than resorting to "epileptic" lines in the background as the means of portraying speed and resolve (a major plus). Sound: 8/10 Voicing is good, but I can't really say it's anything more than that; in my opinion, there isn't anything exceptional to it. OP and ED are catchy and fit the anime well, surely worth mentioning. Character: 7/10 They are memorable and lively. Their actions are often confusing though, it's as if the makers of the anime wanted to add weight to their personalities by somewhat random and radical behavior but along the way forgot to fit all the reasons to support those. Enjoyment: 6/10 Here CANAAN fails the most; to put it shortly, although technically you are supposed to be captivated by the bustling plot, action and general turmoil, you simply are not. I found myself often drifting away and forgetting what I was watching, by which time it was difficult to get back and realize what the hell was happening. Overall: 7/10

Canaan is an assassin anime with excellent animation and intriguing fighting scenes. However, Canaan is a sequel to its game called 428: Fūsa Sareta Shibuya de. Unless you have played this game, the story will be confusing as some important events are left unexplored. The strong female leads, Canaan and Alphard, brought on the fast and furious action, but some of the characters were more comical than serious, especially the villains. Character development is quite slow. Some of the supporting characters seem irrelevant until late in the anime. Story (7) The pacing for the anime is excellent. The series immediately begins with fast action and laterbecomes something deeper with tragic and dramatic events. However, the background behind the story is vague and confusing for those who have not played the game. The little of the story that Canaan does tell is pretty interesting. There is not a solid conclusion to the anime, and it provides an open ending. The plot is not exactly original, but it is entertaining. The government is the main villain who are injecting random people with deadly viruses to give them superpowers. Years ago, a terrorist organization called Snake performed an experiment in a ghost village known as Shibuya, which is several kilometers outside of Shanghai. It created an infection called the Ua-virus, which had very few surviving test subjects. The survivors from that village are broken into two categories: borners and non-borners. Borners have a purple mark on their body, giving them special abilities. They continue living by taking medication. Non-borners are like zombies, and their only chance of survival is to wear a special mascot head that blocks out UV rays and sound. No medicine can cure them. If the helmet is removed, they bleed out of their head and die instantly. The job is to stop Snake from creating more victims and find the cure to the virus. Characters (6) Canaan and Alphard (Canaan’s rival) are two active and serious characters in the anime by letting their guns do the talking. They are responsible for the entertaining nonstop action in the anime. Other secondary characters contribute to the series by solving the mystery within the plot. They show relevance to the story that helps viewers understand a few things about the background. Canaan greatly lacks character development, and the relationships between the characters are not fully explained. E.g. Canaan and Maria are best friends, but the series barely emphasized on the background of their friendship. Some characters, including the villains, take away the seriousness of the anime and makes it appear as a joke. Maria is introduced as a character who would play an active role in the story itself, but she turns out to be the character who always needs to be rescued by Canaan. She has a bubbly personality, jumping and screaming Canaan’s name in excitement in the majority of the episodes. One of the main villains, Liang Qi (Alphard’s sister), primary objective is to please her sister by playing the “killer” role in her presence in hopes of earning her praise. This is sometimes done by either pointing a gun to someone’s head or playing with a BB gun. If Alphard ignored her, she’d run off screaming or wailing. Some of the supporting characters appear irrelevant to the plot until near the ending. For example, Yunyun appears out of nowhere at random places but makes a contribution to the plot in the last few episodes. Animation (9) P.A. Works, the animation studios responsible for series like Angel Beats, is responsible for the good quality. The settings are unique and detailed, especially the streets of Hong Kong during fighting scenes. Character designs are pretty good as well, suiting their personalities. For example, Maria is drawn as an energetic character. It distinguishes the characters that are affected with the Ua virus with detailed marks on their bodies, contributing to the plot in general. Sound (8) I recommend watching it in English sub, because Canaan’s Japanese voice actor has a more serious voice that is fit for an assassin. Her English voice sounds dull. The other characters’ voices fit their personality regardless of the language. The background music is not that attractive, but the OP and ED make up for it. The OP has a catchy tune to begin each episode, and the ED calms down the mood with a soothing tone. The closing song was my favorite, because it seems to fit your typical assassin anime. Enjoyment (6) I watched Canaan in hopes of another powerful Noir or Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom, but it was not as exciting because of the characters. Also, I was confused with the plot, because most of the important events are only in the game and not emphasized in the anime. I don’t plan to re-watch it in the future, but its ED is one of my favorite songs in anime. The action is pretty good, too. Overall (6) Canaan has intriguing fighting scenes and detailed settings. It would’ve been a more enjoyable series if the characters were more tolerable and serious for an assassin anime. The minor plot holes and lack of character development are disappointing, unless you’ve played the game.

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