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Short Synopsis:
Life almost came to an end in the 21st century. To prevent this, scientists in the future have perfected DNA manipulation.
DNA has been made almost "perfect." Abstract emotions such as love are a thing of the past, and the ratio of women
to men is 9:1. A ring threatens this new "evolved" society. An elite group boards the spaceship 'The Bilkis' to
explore the Ring's purposes. Things get even more complicated when the brash Mika Seido must pilot the new military mech,
the Shaft, which still has a few "bugs" in it.
Story: First of all, I'd like to just come out and say it plainly: don't expect an epic here. Plotholes
plague the story. In spite of this, and a sometimes less than exiciting plot, the story here is entertaining. The first few
episodes are nice but can get boring; however, the story really picks up in the latter half of the series. Some good points
are made, but there's nothing too revolutionary here.
Characters: Geneshaft has a ton of 'em! Only
a few are interesting, but at least there a plenty of characters. The main character, Mika Seito, is the spunky, and sometimes
brash, girl who wants to prove herself to everyone. There are a slew of other characters, too, but they fall into the general
anime cliche character molds (I did find Mario and later Beatrice interesting, though). The characters are kind of like the
story: good at times, but far from perfect.
Animation: One of the high points of the series. The
animation here is actually pretty good. The one thing you will notice right away is the CG in Geneshaft. The 'Computer Graphics"
are unusual in the way that you will either think they look awesome or like total crap. I, for one, liked the CG here. So,
the animation is a good point in this series.
Music: The most suprising thing in this series! Electric
guitars are not usually associated with deep space, but they are in Geneshaft. The opening music is a rockin' piece of work.
It teeters between metal and hardcore rock. The ending song is much more mellow. No JPOP here (refreshingly). Overall, the
best thing about Geneshaft.
Dub: It's one of those 'luke warm' dubs. It's not terrible or annoying,
but it's far from being great. Mika's voice isn't bad, but it can sometimes feel scratchy. Most of the other voices are bearable.
It's much like the rest of the series: decent but not great.
Overall: Geneshaft is, for the most
part, a mediocre title. Decent dub, decent characters, and a decent story. Good art and great music save this one from being
totally mediocre (Author's Note: make sure to check out the second half though, it get's pretty good then).
Seth's
Ratings:
Story: 7/10
Characters: 7.5/10
Animation: 9/10
Music: 9/10
Dub: 7/10
Overall: 7.5/10
Final Verdict: Do yourself a favor and at least check it out on G4TechTV or as a rental.
The Good:
+ Geneshaft has some rockin' music
+ The characters and the CG are animated nicely
The Bad:
- The story had some plot-hole problems
- Most episodes are not particularly exciting
The Ugly:
* This series is leukwarm in most areas most of the time
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