Loveless

Genre: Drama
Format: 12 Episodes
Allegiance: Nanatsu no Tsuki
Director: Kou Yuu
Vintage: 2005
Intelligence Agency Report by: Lady Sage
Twelve-year-old Aoyagi Ritsuka is a changed boy since his older brother Seimei was killed. The troubled preteen meets Wagatsuma Soubi, a friend of his late brother’s, who slowly fills him in on the details of Seimei’s death. Soubi was once the “Fighting Machine” to Seimei’s “Sacrifice,” and fought similar teams – and now Ritsuka has inherited Seimei’s position. He reluctantly agrees to fight in order to find out more about the group called the Seventh Moon and the conspiracy behind his brother’s death, as well as to get to know Soubi, whom he finds strangely fascinating.

Field Agent Report by: Lady Sage 
Plot
Characters
Impact
Visual
Audio
8.00
9.00
8.00
9.50
9.25
Overall 8.25
(not an average)

Dark, violent, and melodramatic, Loveless bears little resemblance to its shounen-ai brethren such as Gravitation. Instead of the lighthearted romantic comedy most fans have come to expect from the genre, fans may find the sinister mood of Loveless off-putting. Nonetheless, those that stick with it will find a series that, despite some flaws, is worth watching.

Very little in Loveless is as it originally seems. The plot begins with an elaborate, twisted mystery around Seimei’s death and the Fighters. It’s a fascinating mystery… and one which unfortunately is not solved in the course of the anime. Instead, the plot begins to focus more and more on the characters, eventually turning to an entirely character-based conclusion.

Because of that, it is fortunate that Loveless has such a solid cast. Ritsuka could easily be your typical angsty bishounen, but instead is portrayed very believably as a lonely, psychologically troubled young boy. Even the mysterious Soubi is realistically done, and the secondary characters are a delightful comic relief, and actually help move the series toward its character-based conclusion.

All throughout, however, Loveless is a sight and sound to behold. The animation and designs are gorgeous, with some of the most innovative fight scenes I’ve seen in quite a while. The music never fails to set up the proper atmosphere, with two lovely theme songs.

Loveless is not for everyone, even with only light shounen-ai content. With dark subject matter, a violent plot, some same-sex kisses, and an ending that doesn’t even try to resolve the plot, more than a few people may want to avoid the series. However, those that stick with it will find ample reward.