"Mushi-Shi" is a 26-episode series that follows
the journey of Ginko, a "Mushi master" who travels the land aiding
people in their troubles with these creatures.
Mushi are creatures that only some people are even capable of
seeing. They often appear very
ghost-like or supernatural, and they are often tied to elements of nature. Each episode usually consists of a separate story
in which Ginko must resolve a problem related to a disturbance with these
Mushi. Ginko uses his extensive
knowledge and experience of the Mushi to find ways to resolve these
disturbances.
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| Mushi take all kinds of forms, and influence our world in all sorts of different ways. |
When you watch "Mushi-Shi," you will immediately
be dropped into a vibrant and beautiful world.
The world feels so alive that you cannot help but feel like a part of
it. The setting looks more or less like
traditional Japan, except for the addition of the Mushi. From the very beginning, it is shown that the
Mushi, while being neither plant nor animal, are critical to ensuring that life
continues to prosper in our world. These
Mushi draw from the many of the traditional Shinto beliefs involving
nature. This, along with the detailed
description involving the many different kinds of Mushi, truly makes them feel
as real as any fictional life form possibly could.
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| The world feels so richly detailed you sometimes forget you're watching an anime. |
The characters are all well thought out and don't feel like
the "cutout" characters you might be used to in these shorter shows. Ginko himself is a very ambiguous character
with a past you only get a small view of, but this doesn't work against
him. His role isn't to fill up the
story, but to guide the viewer through this world. Ginko's limited back story does tie in with
the Mushi, but so does everything in the show. Although most of the other characters only
appear for one episode, They often have interesting stories that make them feel
as life-like as the world they inhabit. Also
worth mentioning are the Mushi themselves.
Although these Mushi aren't characters in your traditional sense, they bring
a form of presence to the series that is worth mentioning. These Mushi feel mysterious, and they create
a surreal feel in an already vibrant world.
They are introduced as a somewhat "ghost-like" presence in the
world. This seems somewhat frightening
at first, but before long, you simply accept them as just another part of the
world. You never get bored of them,
however, since each episode introduces new varieties of Mushi. The Mushi are as diverse as the plants and
animals we already know; they all look and behave differently, performing
different functions that fit into the overall natural order.
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| Mushi take on all sorts of different forms, and they tend to react with humans in many different, and sometimes harmful, ways. |
Good:
-Richly imagined, beautifully crafted world, one of the most beautiful I've ever seen.
-Characters all brilliantly written and intriguing, even
though they don't appear for more than an episode at a time.
-Deep narrative themes that provoke a little extra
investment of thought from the viewer.
Bad:
-Not for the action junkie.
To put it simply, "NO ACTION! AT ALL!" But the show isn't an
action series, so this is entirely dependent on personal preference.
-Stand alone episodes might not keep the viewer engaged
Scully
Rating: 8.9 out of 10