anime review: monogatari (1st season)

i have already read the light novels of this series and to be honest i kinda watched it according to the time flow of the novel, not the release sequence of the anime.
the story center around Araragi koyomi, o boy who was turned into a vampire then turned back to being human. after he return back to normal human it seems like he life got involve with more Kai (oddities/monster/ spiritual being). this story tell his journey in helping those affected by the Kai and the stor of the Kais itself.

what really got me hooked up on this is two things. the first one is the involvement of supernatural beings in the series. a guess every girl love supernatural things. what make it much more enjoyable is that you could reseach on the kais on your own. the idea of using japanesse kai and folklore really make this story stand out.

the second thing that got me hooked up is the animation. the animator of this anime is shaft studio. i like how they just eliminate unnecessary characters in the anime, even it is a scene in the school but there was no other students, just araragi and whichever girl (hitagi/hanekawa/kanbaru) he was dealing with. i figure out that everything that appear in the anime is related to the story, wheter to emphasis or to give a clue on something. oh and, don't forget the head tilt. only shaft can do it and it convey different emotions,

the plot:
to tell the truth the plot was kinda messed up for first timer.  i already read the light novels so i can understand it quite well. basically it is a story of a former vampire, dealing and helping girls that was affected by Kai or spiritual beings. in a way it seem like those who was affected by kai will always ended up meeting Araragi, or he himself seemed to attract those who was affected by kai.

characters:

araragi koyomi- a boy who was attacked by a vampire and became and vampire during his spring break before third year. with the help of oshino meme and hanekawa tsubasa, he gained his mortality back along with few vampire traits.
he is an honest person and selfless, often hurting himself in order to save the girls. after the mayoi snail arc, he and senjougahara hitagi started going out.

Senjougahara hitagi- one of the girls that was affected by the kai, the Burden/Weight Crab, causing her to lose her  weight. Araragi helped her to gain her weight back and since the she was thankful to him. she consider herself a tsundere and quite abusive towards Araragi Koyomi, even after dating. however she seemed much more normal and opened up after the Tsukuhi Pheonix Arc. despite being abusive, she really loves Araragi Koyomi.

Hanekawa Tsubasa- the epitome of goodness. she is the class representatives in Araragi class. she is so righteous that it sickened oshino memes. however, in Nekomonogatai, it is revealed that Hanekawa has a serious family issues. an issues big enough that a bakeneko possesed her and harmed her parents and lots of civillian in order to release her stress. hanekawa is smart and knows alot of things with her taglile 'i don't know everything, i just know what i know'. araragi first thinks he was in love with her but Araragi Tsukihi said that he just lusted after her. however, she is one among the peoples Araragi trust and cared so much, mainly because he owe her a life debt.

Araragi karen- the middle child of the Araragi household. she is into martial arts and had a lot of energy to spend. she is a part of the fire sister and always ready to uphold justice. she is a bit of hot headed, a trait that caused her to be bitten by the kai bee that caused her a terrible fever.

Araragi Tsukihi- the youngest of the araragi siblings. she is sweet like any younger sister should be but also prone to histerics. she loves to do indoor activity and also part of the fire sister. in Nisemonogatari, it is revealed that, tsukihi is not really their sister but a pheonix llike kai that had taken a residents in their mother's womb and born as Araragi Tsukihi. this pheonix like ability gave her a regenerative ability.

HAchikuji mayoi- a elementary schooler that Araragi met at the park on mother's day. she is playful and always mispronounce Araragi's name. Mayoi is actually a lost snail kai that led those who didn't want to go home astray, a role even she herself didn't like. after the help from Araragi and Hitagi, she become the wandering ghost, which suit her best because she can travel around. while being the lost snail kai, only Araragi and Hanekawa can see her. implying that both teenagers didn't want to go home.

Kanbaru Suruga- a star basketball player that was in love with Hitagi. Kanbaru was affected by the Rainy devils, a power that make her tried to kill Araragi because of her jelousy towards him for being with Hitagi. kanbaru is boyish and always bright and positive.

Oshino Meme- a kai experts that helped Araragi gain his mortality back. he is the man that araragi will consult any girl with kai problems to him.

Oshino Shinobu- a former vampire that bit Araragi and caused him to become a vampire. when araragi return to his mortality, she alse stripped of her power, leaving her in a child body. she suck Araragi blood daily so that she can stay alive. in akemonogatari, she stay silent and brooding in a corner but in nisemonogatari, she lives in Araragi shadows and speak. she has an obsessive fondness of donuts.

Sengoku Nadeko- araragi junior and also one of his childhood friends (friend of his sisters). Sengoku was affected by double curses from both her friend and a boy that she rejected. she had a crush on Araragi and Kanbaru called her the final boss (in relation to Araragi love life)

arts:
the arts was simply stunning. the fact that Shaft used a lot of geometric elements in this make it quite exceptional compared to other anime. it uses the colour that is bright and vivid on the gray background.

music:  the opening song is different on each arc. i like it that way because it won't be redundant. the animation during the opening is also related to the girl in the arc, it gives the hist of the girls feeling and characteristic.

all in all, it is a must watch for those who love anime based on supernatural. the fact that it wasn't gloomy make it much more enjoyable. it is supernatural but it is not represented in a ghost story mode.