Golden Fangs (GARO: The Animation) review
Golden Fangs (GARO: The Animation)
Episodes: 26
Original Airing: 2014-2015
GARO is an atypical superhero series, focusing on the characters and their personal lives in an incredibly hostile setting. I’ve left this review intentionally very vague, as explaining too much would ruin the show.
Story: An ancient order known as the Makai Knights battles demons from another realm to protect humanity. The catch is, the Knights are now being hunted by the people they protect in a massive witch hunt, which has left the order in shambles. Two surviving knights, Germán and his son León, travel from town to town, battling demons while attempting to discover what caused the witch hunts. The story starts fairly bare-bones, but has grown into a character-centric drama about the various characters that are introduced over the first few episodes.
Setting: I don’t usually use this section, but this show deserves a mention for its setting. The nation of Valiante is a Spanish-influenced kingdom. Most of the show takes place in beautiful rural landscapes, or in dark, cluttered towns. Each location the cast visits has its own architectural designs and motifs. One town has dark oak buildings, with muted colors and a thick fog filling the streets. Another seems to consist of dark alleyways lit only by the faint glow of lamps. One is situated in the middle of a massive field, and is structured like a massive plantation. The massive variance in settings for each episode help flesh out the world, and in later episodes, serve as reminders of what happened there.
Characters:
León Luís: The hero of the series. He is an apprentice Makai Knight who has inherited a suit of golden armor known as Garo. His past is dark, and it has resulted in him developing anger issues.
Germán Luís: León’s father. His armor is called Zoro. He saved León when he was young, and the two of them have been traveling together ever since.
Mendoza: The king’s chief adviser, and leader of the witch hunts. Clearly up to no good.
And many more characters, but explaining their stories would ruin the fun.
Animation: The show has good animation when it’s needed, and has no really bad moments. The art style looks like a watercolor painting, and it fits the series.
Music: Does its job. The openings are both fantastic.
Final Verdict: I give GARO: The Animation two thumbs up. The second half of the season is rapidly nearing its conclusion, so now is the perfect time to get caught up. It’s certain to be one heck of a ride. The whole series can be found on Hulu.
