Sleepy Impressions: RIN-NE
Also known as Kyoukai no Rinne, RIN-NE is a new anime that's currently airing. It was originally a manga series written by Rumiko Takahashi, the creator of some major anime works, such as Urusei Yatsura, Ranma 1/2, and InuYasha. I was really surprised when I found out! I actually watched the first episode of RIN-NE without knowing the creators, but after a few minutes I could spot those character designs anywhere. Brain's Base is the studio that animated the anime adaption.
RIN-NE is about a girl named Sakura Mamiya, who can see spirits, and a boy named Rinne Rokudou, who sits next to her in class. The boy is unusual from the get-go, but it soon becomes apparant that there's more to him than meets the eye. Sometimes he's visible, and sometimes he's not! It depends on whether or not he is wearing his haori from the afterlife. How did such an item happen upon his possession? He is a shinigami, or kind of like one, according to him.
Sakura's character is weak! She has so little personality and she just accepts everything she sees. It bothers me more than it probably should. It somewhat makes sense since she can see spirits, but at the same time, there has to be a limit. She'd never met a shinigami before, I bet, yet Rinne's character is a peace of cake for her to take in.
While I'm majorly disappointed by Sakura, Rinne's character is pretty interesting. He actually has a personality, and the running gag of his poorness, yet all his spiritual items requiring yen in order to work, is actually amusing. He also has a certain level of mystery to him that keeps him intriguing.
I can guess that this anime will become episodic, but I don't really know yet as we only have the first episode so far. If it does become episodic, with each episode about helping a different spirit rest in peace, it'll be pretty boring. On the other hand, if they've got a deeper story than that to tell, there could be something there worth watching.
There was a lot of comedy in this episode, and it was pretty old-fashioned, too. Some of it was funny, and some of it fell flat. It was pretty much hit-or-miss.
Overall, it's hard to tell where this is going, but the first episode was pretty average.
First Impressions: Average
