Aggroe's belated anime talk~

Good morning all!
I finished watching Dangan Ronpa: Zetsubou no Gakuen to Kibou no Koukousei (Dangan Ronpa: Academy of Despair and Students of Hope) last night, as I was planning to post this review then.

So I really like this genre of anime, and I'll probably be biased towards it. Murder mysteries, connection to the characters, I really like that whole theme.
Dangan Ronpa is based off of a PSP game of the same name. It's pretty cool, actually, I wish I could get my hands on it. The basic storyline is that there is a school for talented/famous high schoolers. EVERYONE wants into this school. They are entered based on talent, but every year, when freshmen enter, there is one chosen as the "Super Duper Lucky High Schooler". Their talent is luck, or lack thereof as you will see later. There are 15 students in total. These 15 freshman soon find out that it isn't an ordinary school. Not only are they trapped, but in order to graduate, they have to slaughter each other!

I give the OP theme 5/5, it had a cool upbeat song, and the pictures and sequences were just generally epic.
The premis is very interesting. I really enjoyed it, the first episode captured my attention. Curiosity was piqued from the very beginning. Naegi, the lucky one this time around, wakes up in the school. Why? How did he get here? Was this Hope's Peak Academy? Why are all the windows and doors sealed?

Sakura-chan

Yasuhiro-kun

I also liked the characters a lot. Every character had something unique, and every one of them challenged social norms in some way. Despite being buff and masculine, Sakura-chan is a gentle, kind girl who enjoys tea with her friends... She is just strong. Yasuhiro is actually into things like tarot cards and crystal balls, sort of a mystic~. Social norms are challenged and broken, and I love that! Any anime that does that is a good one in my books. I won't tell you the others, as many of them are important to the storyline and spoilers are for later, but here's a few of my favorite characters.

"AHO AHO AHO!"
-Leon

Sybil anyone?
....
Fukawa, her name is Fukawa

Chihiro-san, the Programmer

I give the character design 4.5/5, all the characters had something to bring to the story, and all of them were unique and intriguing.
The ending was magnificent.
~SPOILER ALERT~
As far as the ending is concerned, I really liked the ambiguousness of it all. There was no reason to show us the outside world, so they left it up to our imagination. It was wonderful. I had a feeling that was where they were heading, and it was nice.
Although, I didn't see Enoshima being the mastermind. That was kind of a shock, I'll admit. At first it seemed like Deus Ex Machina, but it actually fit very well. All the clues led to it, and I don't see how I didn't see it coming.
~END SPOILER ALERT~
Still, it felt sort of like they could have done better with the revealing of the mastermind.
I give the ending 4/5, as I liked it, but I feel that it could've been a lot better. It was sort of anti-climactic.
The art in this show is beautiful, I really like the way it flowed. There are parts where the art style switches, such as the death scenes, but I enjoyed the change. I give the art 5/5.

All in all, for an anime based on a video game, Dangan Ronpa is a well drawn show with unique, interesting character that really makes you think about the world. There is a lot to ponder in it, especially once you see the ending. What will a person will do for freedom? Dangan Ronpa asks us this question and offers up its own answer.
.....
Also, it's just extremely entertaining~

Aggroe's Overall Rating: 9/10

~Aggroe~