The Yoshinaga-family has won a rather strange prize in a local lottery: a talking gargoyle who acts as their gatekeeper. Through the course of 13 episodes, it explores the lives of the Yoshinagas, this particular gargoyle (also hilariously nicknamed “GAR-kun”) and the people from their neighbourhood, with some very strong references to the practices of ancient alchemy. With a lot of writer’s freedom, that is.
My main problem with Yoshinaga-chi no Gargoyle is that it has a number of the most excellent characters, but refuses to use them well. Futaba is a true delight to watch when she is in action. Too bad that this only happens in three or four episodes. Osiris and her owner make a perfect team. Unfortunately, they never get the chance to truly show their personalities for more than ten seconds. Gar-kun is one of the most original characters I’ve ever seen. Too bad he also has a dull side, which he shows more often than not. Futaba’s mother and father also make a perfect team. It’s just too bad that it’s only till the final episodes that the two of them get any decent development. Takahara Iyo works great if she’s the main focus of the episode. Too bad that only happens once of twice.
Ironically, most of the time in this series is wasted on a character who actually works best as a side-character: Hyakushiki. His background is also one of the more unbelievable of the series, and especially the middle episodes keep on dabbling about useless things that don’t even matter. Other episodes focus on rather dull cases, and only the first two episodes and the final two episodes are the ones in which the characters are really showing the best sides of themselves.
If there ever was a series in need of a remake, it’d be this one. It’s got some of the most amazing characters. If they’re actually used well, they’ll definitely make for an awesome series. But because it dabbles away too often in dull elements, it turned out merely above-average. Still, this anime was definitely worth seeing. The good episodes were a delight, and even the bad episodes showcased at least a bit of the different characters’ brilliance, making them a tiny bit enjoyable after all. :)]]>
Yoshinaga-chi no Gargoyle Review – 76/100
Wow, I hear ya! Saw all the episodes and it was interesting, but I think that they really should have showed more Osiris!! I even made a fan club ^^(it just started today). But I hope that they do a have a remake or continuation because we don’t know what happened to those two guys really…at the end I mean. Thanks for the post :D!