Wolf’s Rain ~Review~
I think this may actually be the most beautiful anime I have ever seen. In the last eight episodes of the series, I was so amazed by everything in Wolf’s Rain and if the whole series was like those last few episodes, this would have a definite chance at being my favourite anime. I think that I would definitely rewatch this series because for the first half of Wolf’s Rain, I did not really know what to expect from it and I was watching it with a different view point then I was in the second half. Nonetheless besides a few things to criticize about this series, which I will get into later in this review, but this was an incredible series that even though it took me awhile to watch, I think its for the better because when it was first released I probably would not have appreciated it as much as I do now when watching it.
The show aired back in 2003 and it is the story of a world where wolves seem to not exist and are only thought to be a legend, but it turns out their existence is not just a story to tell your kids as Kiba, a lonewolf who finds himself in a city where he finds three other wolves who disguise themselves as humans as did he. Together, this new wolf pack decides to set on a mission to go find a paradise, which despite everyone telling them that it is not possible to get to this paradise, they believe that it must be somewhere.
I really did like the characters in this series and almost all of them manage to grow on you at one point. My personal favourite character was Hige who was the most entertaining and interesting, but the rest are good too. Now here is my problem with this series, which is that I never really felt like the main character was interesting enough. Kiba always sort of bored me in comparison to the other characters and being a main character, I just don’t feel like that is good enough. Sometimes it works when a main character “feeds off” of all the other more sub characters who are far more charismatic than the lead, but that happens rarely and I prefer a main character that is more compelling to watch than Kiba. Luckily, I was able to look away from that fault early on and was able to enjoy the series despite that.
If we were just to look at the animation and soundtrack in this series, then I could easily say that Wolf’s Rain was flawless. The animation was beautiful and you could tell right away that so much effort was involved to make this series the way it is. There are so many details that make this series more memorable than most. As for the soundtrack, with Yoko Kanno behind the music, how can it be anything but perfect. “Heaven’s Not Enough”, which she created and obviously not sung, was an amazing song that made so many of the scene seem to be brought to life. I also loved the ending theme and the melodies that played throughout most of the episodes and were some of the main reasons why I always wanted to continue watching this series. The last two episodes in the series were just too amazing to describe. The last episode in the series just took my breath away and it really felt like nothing I had ever seen from any series. Wolf’s Rain will be remembered to me as a series that reached new boundaries and as something I know I will never see and feel again in any other anime.
With all that said, yes I do believe that without a doubt this series should be watched. The more I think about this series the more I like it. I really do believe that before you watch this, you should realize that what you are about to watch i a smart and beautiful anime that will be nothing like you have ever seen before that, and with that, I do not see how you cannot love Wolf’s Rain.
Misu says:
January 26th, 2010 at 8:34 pm
I didn’t really like the ending of Wolf’s Rain because it was sad, especially for the good humans they brought along.
Misu´s last blog ..Kimi ni Todoke 11
Topspin says:
January 26th, 2010 at 8:58 pm
It had it’s moments, that’s for sure (like the part where Darcia snaps over Harmona near the beginning). It mostly just felt poorly-paced and didn’t seem to want to end at first, only to go super weird in the last few episodes. However, the OST was fantastic. The ED remains one of my favorites to this day.
Yumeka says:
January 27th, 2010 at 9:57 am
Always nice to find someone else who loves Wolf’s Rain, which has been one of my favorite anime for a few years. Great music, believable characters, awesome animation, and a unique story. I personally don’t know why people say it has poor pacing. I thought every episode fit into place and nothing was too long or short (minus the recap episodes, but BONES couldn’t help making those at the time of the SARS outbreak).
If you’re interested, I wrote an extensive interpretation of the Wolf’s Rain ending on my site that’s received a lot of feedback over the years: http://www.animeyume.com/wolfs_rain/wrending.html
Yumeka´s last blog ..Why are characters in Japanese and American children’s cartoons so different?
Gargantua says:
January 27th, 2010 at 12:34 pm
The hubs and I enjoyed Wolf’s Rain and intend to add it to our anime collection. I will say that it probably would not be an anime everyone would enjoy. It is philosophically deep, can feel slow-paced, and can be gut-wrenchingly sad. I have noticed that many of the complaints about Wolf’s Rain are similar to the ones I’ve seen about Gasaraki – another anime that makes you think. Excellent review!
Gargantua´s last blog ..Fanfiction Update January 2010
lostty says:
January 27th, 2010 at 3:21 pm
@Misu: I think that humans involved chose their own path even if the wolves did influence that.
@Topspin: Darcia smashing his head against a wall is very disturbing in my opinion…I love the last few episodes x) But ya, the ED is just so beautiful, its fun to watch the video when you speed it up too!
@Yumeka: I completely agree with you. I read your interpretation of the ending, it was a very interesting read. You really cleared some things up for me, I loved the ending already but the way that you describe what you think it means made me appreciate it even more! Thank you!
@Gargantua: I’m definitely thinking of buying this series soon too! Gasaraki hmm…I don’t know much about that series, I’ll definitely look it up. Thanks!
Kitsune says:
January 27th, 2010 at 8:40 pm
Indeed, Yoko Kanno’s music is great
This Wolf Rain AMV with “Moon” is quite good, especially 1:00-2:00 
lostty says:
January 28th, 2010 at 2:00 pm
@Kitsune: Wow! It really is amazing and its done with one of my favourite songs
I was going to suggest you watch the “Heaven’s Not Enough” AMV, but I noticed you already posted it in the related AMVs, well that one is good too!
radiant says:
January 29th, 2010 at 9:40 pm
You seem to be on a good run of older anime series recently.
I guess there really is a lot to catch up on. 
Based on your recommendation, I might have to give this series a try too! I’ve got my fair share of old anime to catch up on as well!
radiant´s last blog ..My Current Collection – January
lostty says:
January 29th, 2010 at 11:27 pm
@radiant: I never pay enough attention to the older series when it comes to animes, so I figure I might as well give it a chance sometime.
I do hope you give it a try! It is really beautiful and wonderful and don’t give up after the first few episodes because it only gets more and more interesting as you go on!