Yumekui Merry - Review

Title: Yumekui Merry, Dream Eater Merry
Genre: Action, Supernatural, Comedy
Rating: 6/10



Summary:
Ten years ago Fujiwara noticed he had a power to see multicolored auras surrounding people's bodies. Ever since then he's been having a weird dream about a war with cats. One day he meets a mysterious girl, that, after being picked on by crows and fallen from a tree, goes to search for her lost hat. Later that day, Fujiwara finds himself in a daydream, being attacked by the same cats he fights at night.

Story: 5/10
Yumeji Fujiwara has a unique power to see colors that determines what people would dream of. He had been having nightmares lately about cats that are pursuing him and someone named John Doe who wants to possess him. Then one day he met a girl named Merry who lost her memory and apparently can't find a way back to the dream world. When Yumeji is strolling around town he was drawn into a 'Day Dream' where he met John Doe again and this time he won't let him go until he took control of his body. Thank goodness Merry was also drawn in that 'Day Dream' and saved Yumeji from that Dream Demon. Our good natured Yumeji was very thankful and offered Merry a place to stay and even offered his help to Merry to uncover her memory and also help her find a way to send her back to the dream world. As he help Merry he was able to meet other Dream Demons and also some humans who are possessed by those demons.
This is one of the most interesting premise last winter but too bad it wasn't able to utilize the setting. The first few episodes are interesting as we get to know the dream world, the existence of dream demons and why/how they possess humans. I like how they take it slow in the first few episodes and let the audience wonder week after week on what are dream demons, what is Merry's past, why do they possess humans but too bad as the episode progress little was revealed and there are more questions than answers. It was really doing great in the first few episodes and they even revealed someone named Hercules who is behind everything but he was immediately forgotten as the focus of the show shifted to another character named Mistletine who eventually hunts down Yumeji's childhood friend Isana. Really, the pacing was all over the place with the first few eps being slow then when it was nearing its end they just rushed it. There was little impact specially the last episode where Chizuru and Leon sacrificed themselves.
Overall, interesting premise, pacing is all over the place and a story that has a lot of plot holes like a swiss cheese.
Character: 6/10
Actually, I didn't find any of the characters appealing even though their character design is oh so adorable mainly because their personality/character feels mediocre but I think that's the fault of the story. Our protagonist Yumeji, is someone who likes helping other people but even though he's weak, he never gives up and always give his best. I might say he's very naïve and a bit stupid for dragging himself and even other people just to help a girl he barely knows but I have to admit he is cool sometimes. Merry on the other hand is quite interesting in the first few eps but as the series ends we still don't know what she really is but still she's really adorable (I definitely won't forget that navel haha!). Characters like John Doe and Heracles were introduced but heck they didn't appear in the last few eps and here I thought they have a huge part in this series. Mistletine is a antagonist you'll love to hate and even Iijima-sensei is one annoying bastard.
Animation: 8/10
The character design is really appealing and honestly it kept on pushing some moe buttons on me. The style of the animation on the other hand is similar to Casshern Sins which exudes an air of mystery since sometimes the environment of the dream is like an abstract painting. The action scenes are really engaging but I got the feeling that the animation got lazy at the last part of this series.
Sounds: 8/10
The OP and ED song of Merry is one of my favorites last season. The OP "Daydream Syndrome" by Marina Fujiwara really makes me bang my head to the music and it even reflects the mood of the series. The ED song "Yume to Kibou to Ashita no Atashi" by Ayane Sakura is really catchy and light hearted and it ends the series in a high note also I enjoyed seeing those nicely animated roses fly off Merry's navel haha!
Enjoyment: 6/10
Well I have to admit I enjoyed watching it in the first few episodes but when they got to around episode 9-10 watching this show felt like a chore its as if I'm watching it for the sake of adding another series to my list. If ever there'll be a season 2 I think I might still watch it if they would tackle a part of the plot they left in the middle of this series
Overall: 6/10 (Low Priority Watch)
Until then…
~ ja