Language Watched: Japanese with English subtitles; English Dub
Licensed? (As of this entry): YES
Licensed? (As of this entry): YES
Genre(s): Supernatural, Psychological, Mystery, Drama
Overall Impression: I absolutely love it! If you haven't watched it, watch it!
SPOILER ALERT WARNING!!
This
review will contain some spoilers -- or rather, there will be a
"Spoilers" section at the end of the review to go into further detail
about certain things. There may still be slight spoilers throughout the
review, but I've tried my best to keep them at a minimum.
PERSONAL STANDING (Pre-exposures, thoughts, etc.)
Back when Mushi-Shi just came out (it's about 7 years old now), I heard almost nothing but praise for this series. I listened to its opening theme, The Sore Feet Song, and was a bit turned off. The song was just too calming for me. It made me think, Is the series going to be just as calm? Then one of my friends told me that Mushi-Shi was actually overhyped and that she didn't like the series at all. That comment was enough for me to put it off my "to-watch" list for a long time.
Then fast forward to two years ago, when I bought the DVD collection during a Boxing Week sale. It's cheap enough... why not see what it's all about?
I'm glad I took that chance. If you are wondering why I am blogging about this now when there is most likely a ton of content on this already... it's because I love it and I want to write about it! I also mentioned wayyy back in an earlier blog that I would write about it, so...
Then fast forward to two years ago, when I bought the DVD collection during a Boxing Week sale. It's cheap enough... why not see what it's all about?
I'm glad I took that chance. If you are wondering why I am blogging about this now when there is most likely a ton of content on this already... it's because I love it and I want to write about it! I also mentioned wayyy back in an earlier blog that I would write about it, so...
STORY
Mushi-Shi follows mushi master Ginko as he wanders from place to place, trying to help / protect people from mushi, as well as learning about them. Mushi are etherial, ghostly-ish beings that can sometimes have a powerful influence over the physical world. I guess you can kinda think of them as spirits. Some people can see mushi; most people can't. And there are many different types of mushi that do different things and have different kinds of influences. Some of the mushi influences can be minor and subtle, while others can be downright crippling and unbearable.
I think the episodic structure works very well. It allows each episode to highlight one mushi type and to allow development for whichever characters come into contact with that mushi.
Overall, I greatly enjoy the episodes. Not all of them are winners, but each episode offers something -- many of them can provoke such deep thought... and such varying emotions, depending on how you relate to the characters or the situations. I can admit to crying to several of the episodes -- even after watching it for the xth time!
I should mention that not every episode ends on a positive note or with complete resolve. Sometimes I go, Ooooooo... at the end, often meaning, 'the ending's so harsh, but soooo gooood', or 'it's not over yet for these guys...'.
I'll list the episodes I really enjoyed in the "Spoilers" section. AND... I will link to Youtube videos for each one. Funimation was really nice to upload the entire series on Youtube, so it's completely legit. :)
Examples of some mushi.
EPISODIC STRUCTURE
Mushi-Shi is entirely episodic. Besides one recurring secondary character (though he doesn't appear in many episodes) and Ginko, each episode introduces us to new sets of characters.I think the episodic structure works very well. It allows each episode to highlight one mushi type and to allow development for whichever characters come into contact with that mushi.
Overall, I greatly enjoy the episodes. Not all of them are winners, but each episode offers something -- many of them can provoke such deep thought... and such varying emotions, depending on how you relate to the characters or the situations. I can admit to crying to several of the episodes -- even after watching it for the xth time!
I should mention that not every episode ends on a positive note or with complete resolve. Sometimes I go, Ooooooo... at the end, often meaning, 'the ending's so harsh, but soooo gooood', or 'it's not over yet for these guys...'.
I'll list the episodes I really enjoyed in the "Spoilers" section. AND... I will link to Youtube videos for each one. Funimation was really nice to upload the entire series on Youtube, so it's completely legit. :)
THE CALMING YET UNNERVING ATMOSPHERE
For me, I find Mushi-Shi's overall tone and design to be very calm, unearthly, and beautiful. Annnnd... at times, unnerving. As I've mentioned in one of my older blogs, "I find that almost every episode has one scene or imagery that just makes my skin crawl." I find it interesting that a series so beautiful can also have such spine-tingly moments. That said, the skin crawling feeling doesn't detract from the series at all. In fact, I think it adds and reinforces the unearthly, supernatural essence of Mushi-Shi's world.
CHARACTERS
As mentioned before, there are a wide variety of characters, one occasionally-recurring secondary character... and Ginko. Ginko is a really cool dude! He's kinda a go-with-the-flow-type guy, but with strong beliefs and values. One thing that I really like about him is how he tends to take a neutral stance when dealing with the mushi and the people affected by them.
Ginko.
.
MUSIC
I can't begin to tell you just how beautiful and powerful this music is. The tunes sound like a mix of piano and traditional Japanese instruments (most likely other instruments, too, but I don't know). Many of the tunes have a sombre sound, with an otherworldly, mysterious feel. They are also capable of inducing very strong emotions, whether it's a feeling of intense sorrow, bliss, relaxation, horror, or wonderment. At least, that's how it is for me. If I could buy the soundtracks (at a decent price), I would in a heartbeat.
Here are a couple of tracks that I really, really like:
-"Ri (Kotowari)": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSRAYy0ljz4
This is such a sorrowful tune. Sometimes I cry when I hear it. Still like it a lot!
-"Kago no Naka": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPKQMO5nT4E
This is also quite sorrowful, but with a bit of a hopeful feel. It almost makes me feel that there is still some light in the darkness (whatever the darkness may be).
Here are a couple of tracks that I really, really like:
-"Ri (Kotowari)": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSRAYy0ljz4
This is such a sorrowful tune. Sometimes I cry when I hear it. Still like it a lot!
-"Kago no Naka": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPKQMO5nT4E
This is also quite sorrowful, but with a bit of a hopeful feel. It almost makes me feel that there is still some light in the darkness (whatever the darkness may be).
JAPANESE / ENGLISH DUBBING
The
Japanese dubbing is great. The English dubbing -- is AMAZING! And this is coming from a person who generally prefers Japanese dub over English dub. I think the English dub really captured the subtle air of the Japanese dub, and it just fits so well with the series. I want Travis Willingham (the English voice-actor for Ginko) to come to Fan Expo so that I can get his autograph!
MUSHI-SHI AND THE MANGA
I actually haven't read the manga, so I can't comment on this. I'm just leaving this as a placeholder until I do (if I ever get the chance!).
MUSHI-SHI AND THE LIVE-ACTION MOVIE
Ummm... I'd recommend that you stay away from the live-action movie. The beauty that was in the anime was... not here. I am very disappointed.
MUSHI-SHI AND THE OVA
For those who don't know about it, an OVA was released early this year. I actually just found out about it when reading about Mushi-Shi on Wikipedia. The OVA carries the same feel as the series, so I very much enjoyed it. The music was also really nice.
DVD EXTRA CONTENT
Since
I bought the DVDs, there were some extra content. There's not much, but here they are:Commentary (25 mins [go to "Episode" and select "With Commentary" under Episode 26]) -- It's a talk between Travis Willingham and Mike McFarland on various things about Mushi-Shi. One of the things they talked about was the decision of keeping all the Japanese terms in the English dub instead of using English terms -- and then the difficulty of speaking those Japanese terms with the proper enunciation in the English dub. I'm glad they made that decision. They also talked about episodes they liked; episodes that creeped them out; life lessons; and more. Supposedly there is an Easter Egg in the DVD that I have yet to check out. There are spoilers here, so listen to it after watching the series.
Interview with the Director (20 mins) -- This was pretty interesting. I could see that the director really enjoyed the manga and that he wanted to make the series as faithful to the manga as possible. His reasoning and intentions behind the scenic opening theme was also really interesting.
Production Studio Tour (4 mins) -- This was a short tour through "Mushi-Kago" (translated as "Mushi Cage", the building the production studio and director stayed at while creating the series.
Mushi-Shi Manga Pages, Presented by Del Rey Manga (few pages) -- I think this was Del Rey Manga's way of enticing viewers to buy the manga (which I would happily do if it wasn't long out-of-print). Unless you are viewing this on a large TV screen, you won't be able to read anything.
Textless Opening Song -- I'm not sure how necessary this is, but I'm sure some fans would appreciate it. I actually do other things while the opening theme is running.
Original TV Spots (5 mins) -- I was super surprised to find out that Mushi-Shi aired in Japan at 3:45 AM. Crap, that's late! The director mentioned that Mushi-Shi was a late-night show. I never thought that it would be that late!
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Mushi-Shi is peaceful, creepy, mysterious, intense, and beautiful. Even with all the unnatural tendencies that happen in Mushi-Shi's world, it poses many thoughts and ideas that can be relayed back to our everyday lives. I mean, do I feel overwhelmed by the uncertainty of the next day? Would I want to completely start my life over? When I think I am, am I really accepting others as they are? Even though I've already had some of these thoughts before watching the show, it just reinforces them so much more, seeing how the characters deal with these thoughts and ideas.
As I mentioned before, Funimation was really nice to upload the whole series on Youtube. The entire Japanese dub with English subtitles is uploaded, but they also have the first four episodes uploaded in English dubbing, so you can hear how amazing it is (the English episodes are in this same link): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=ELMvwzjNR4c5A
If you want to see which episodes I really like, get to the spoilers section! I'll put a bit of commentary next to each one.
And... after watching the first season on Youtube, get yourself to Crunchyroll and watch the OVA, and then Season Two, that's currently airing as of this blogging!! It makes me so excited that more episodes are being made!!! :D I should note that non-premium Crunchyroll users will be hit with commercials throughout each episode, so don't be surprised.
Thanks for reading! If you want some more input about something I didn't cover, feel free to ask. :)
So I'll do the scrolly thing and the "Spoilers" section will appear after that. Then I'll add some more scrolly things after the "Spoilers" section in case anybody wants to comment, but not see the spoilers.
I'll list the episodes I really enjoyed in the "Spoilers" section.
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As I mentioned before, Funimation was really nice to upload the whole series on Youtube. The entire Japanese dub with English subtitles is uploaded, but they also have the first four episodes uploaded in English dubbing, so you can hear how amazing it is (the English episodes are in this same link): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=ELMvwzjNR4c5A
If you want to see which episodes I really like, get to the spoilers section! I'll put a bit of commentary next to each one.
And... after watching the first season on Youtube, get yourself to Crunchyroll and watch the OVA, and then Season Two, that's currently airing as of this blogging!! It makes me so excited that more episodes are being made!!! :D I should note that non-premium Crunchyroll users will be hit with commercials throughout each episode, so don't be surprised.
Thanks for reading! If you want some more input about something I didn't cover, feel free to ask. :)
So I'll do the scrolly thing and the "Spoilers" section will appear after that. Then I'll add some more scrolly things after the "Spoilers" section in case anybody wants to comment, but not see the spoilers.
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SPOILERS
I'll list the episodes I really enjoyed in the "Spoilers" section.
And here they are! There are a lot, hahaha. Unless I mention it, the links are to the Japanese dub with English subtitles.
-The Green Seat (English dub link) -- Really nice.
-The Pillow Pathway (English dub link) -- Makes me go, Ooooo.... what an episode.
-The Traveling Swamp -- Bittersweet.
-Those Who Inhale The Dew -- I like the thoughts in this one.
-The Sleeping Mountain -- So sad.
-One-Eyed Fish -- This is also sad.
-One-Night Bridge -- This one, too.
-Inside the Cage -- This makes me cry every time.
-Sunrise Serpent -- I hope something like this never happens to me.
-Pickers of Empty Cocoons -- I like the hopeless / hopeful feel of this episode.
-String From the Sky -- This makes me cry every time.
-A Sea of Writings -- I really like the story in this.
-Cotton Changeling -- Oooo...
-Shrine in the Sea -- I like the idea in this episode.
-The Sound of Rust -- It's a bit tough to watch, but I like it.
-The Sound of Footsteps on the Grass -- I like that it was told from another character's perspective.
I debated whether to have more scrolly things after this... these aren't really spoilers... but I think I will. Thanks again for reading and feel free to comment :D-The Green Seat (English dub link) -- Really nice.
-The Pillow Pathway (English dub link) -- Makes me go, Ooooo.... what an episode.
-The Traveling Swamp -- Bittersweet.
-Those Who Inhale The Dew -- I like the thoughts in this one.
-The Sleeping Mountain -- So sad.
-One-Eyed Fish -- This is also sad.
-One-Night Bridge -- This one, too.
-Inside the Cage -- This makes me cry every time.
-Sunrise Serpent -- I hope something like this never happens to me.
-Pickers of Empty Cocoons -- I like the hopeless / hopeful feel of this episode.
-String From the Sky -- This makes me cry every time.
-A Sea of Writings -- I really like the story in this.
-Cotton Changeling -- Oooo...
-Shrine in the Sea -- I like the idea in this episode.
-The Sound of Rust -- It's a bit tough to watch, but I like it.
-The Sound of Footsteps on the Grass -- I like that it was told from another character's perspective.
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