Is Guilty Crown Worth Watching?

Guilty Crown is a Japanese sci-fi action anime television series produced by Production I.G in 2011. The series is written by Yosuke Miyagi and illustrated by Shion Mizuki.

The story focuses on high school student Shu Ouma who gains an ability called the “Power of the King” that allows him to retrieve other people’s souls and use them as weapons.

Shu’s terrifying new ability throws him into a war between a high-powered quasi-government known as GHQ and Funeral Parlor, a rebel group that aims to put an end to GHQ’s rule over Japan.

The anime series consists of a total of 22 episodes with each episode being 24 minutes long and is rated R-17+ due to the presence of violence and profanity.

1. Quick Review

Guilty Crown is set in Tokyo, Japan in the distant future. After the outbreak of the apocalyptic virus ten years ago, referred to as “Lost Christmas”, the once-thriving country was now under the rule of the GHQ, a private military power that seeks to restore order to the nation by any means necessary.

Funeral Parlor is a rebellion led by Gai Tsutsugami against GHQ’s inhumane rule and fight for Japan’s freedom from the military force. The main character Shu Ouma gets dragged into this fight for independence when a member of Funeral Parlor, Inori Yuzuriha, runs into him during one of the rebellion’s operations.

 Due to this run-in with Inori, Shu obtains the “Power of the King” which allows him to  draw out other individual’s souls, known as “voids.” As a result of this newly gained power, Shu is now caught in the freedom war and must learn to control his ability to free the nation from the clutches of GHQ.

Guilty Crown is an action-packed series that sheds light on the true power of a rebellion when it fights for the right reasons. The story could have been a game-changer if it wasn’t for its many inconsistencies.

2. Info Card

3. Is it worth watching?

Guilty Crown gets the audience excited with a dystopian political thriller but lets us down with its haphazard storytelling. There are many holes in the story including details about Shu’s “Power of the King” ability. Besides that, the show does pretty well in other aspects.

The animation is fluid and produces some stunning effects and epic action. The show boasts artwork of a modern realistic style. The simple and elegant artwork works well for the characters and adds depth to the backgrounds.

I.Plot

The story focuses on high school student Shu Ouma who gains an ability called the “Power of the King” that allows him to draw out other people’s personalities or “Voids”  and weaponize them.

 This newfound power lands him in a conflict between a powerful organization known as GHQ and a rebel group called Funeral Parlor which aims to free Japan from the clutches of GHQ. To make matters worse, Shu must bear the burden of his powers and face his mysterious past.

The series has great production quality in terms of animation and artwork.

Despite a few holes in its story, the plot of Guilty Crown is interesting and a great watch for those interested in post-apocalyptic themed stories.

II.Characters

Shu Ouma

Shu Ouma is the main male protagonist of Guilty Crown.

He holds a powerful ability in his right hand called the “Power of the King”. Shu’s character initially comes off as a coward and introvert who keeps to himself.

When he does interact with people, he tends to be insensitive as he is socially awkward and doesn’t know what to say to people. After becoming a crucial member of Funeral Parlor, he appears to be more social and brave when put in a difficult situation.

Inori Yuzuriha

Inori Yuzuriha is the 17-year-old main heroine of Guilty Crown.

She is a member of the resistance group called “Funeral Parlor”. Her character is shown to be emotionless and only cares about following the rebellion group’s leader Gai’s orders.

Inori is mostly quiet, only voicing her thoughts when she thinks it’s necessary. As the series progresses and Shu becomes a part of the group, she ends up becoming his partner and starts opening up to him.

Gai Tsutsugami

Gai Tsutsugami is the resourceful and charismatic leader of the group “Funeral Parlor”.

He is a 23-year-old force to be reckoned with as he hopes to use Shu’s “Power of the King” to make the revolution a success.

This charismatic man is initially hated by the protagonist Shu because of his manipulative ways but as the series progresses, Shu starts admiring Gai for his resilience and fighting spirit.

III. Setting

• Location: The series is set in Japan in 2039, ten years after an apocalyptic virus leaves Japan in a state of chaos. Unable to contain the virus, Japan is now governed by an organization known as the GHQ to restore order.

The GHQ successfully contains the virus outbreak and brings with it a new normal at the cost of Japan’s independence. To make Japan a free nation once more, an organization known as the Funeral Parlor wages a war against the GHQ.

• Animation: The series appears to use a 3D animation style with cel-shading, giving the character’s realistic shadows and fluid movement. The animators also pay careful attention to the minute details of the characters’ features.

• Artwork: Guilty Crown uses realism as the concept for their art style. The realistic artworks do justice to the show because of the creators’ attention to detail when it came to animating the characters and ensuring smooth movement.

The backgrounds in the series add a layer of depth to the scene and have a realistic aspect to them.

IV. Theme Songs

• Opening theme songs :

Title	Original Artist	Genre	Episodes	Reference Links
“Euterpe”	Egoist, Chelly	J-Pop	1	Youtube Spotify Apple Music
“My Dearest”	Supercell ft. Koeda	J-Pop	2-12	Youtube Spotify Apple Music
“The Everlasting Guilty Crown”	Egoist	J-Pop	13-22	Youtube Spotify Apple Music

Both the openers are perfect for the show, however, the third opening by Egoist captures the emotions of the main character Shu Ouma and is a great track from a musical standpoint. The animation of the visuals in the opening sequences are captivating and adds anticipation for what’s to come.

• Ending theme songs :

Title	Original Artist	Genre	Episodes	Reference Links
“Departures ~Anata ni Okuru Ai no Uta~”	Egoist	J-Pop	1-12, 22	Youtube Spotify Apple Music
Kokuhaku	Koeda	J-Pop	13-21	Youtube Spotify Apple Music

The ending theme songs have the band Egoist performing a melancholic ballad “Departures ~Anata ni Okuru Ai no Uta~” for the first ending theme. The visuals show Shu and Inori walking away from each other accompanied by a backdrop of picturesque character art and visual effects.

 The second ending theme song pulls out scenes from the series and images from the character’s school that are displayed behind the main characters. The song “Kohaku” is a pulse-pounding upbeat rock song that is great to listen to but doesn’t do much as a theme for Guilty Crown.

•  Original SoundTrack (OST):  The music used in the Guilty Crown anime composed by Hiroyuki Sawano is simply brilliant. The OST that stands out from the rest in the series has to be the first track Bios. The track initially starts with a techno and tribal fusion vibe which opens into an all-out powerful performance sung by Mika Kobayashi and lyrics written by Rie.

 Reference link for Guilty Crown OSTs: Youtube Spotify

• Background score: The background music is fitting and helps deliver the mood of the show. The music we hear during the battle scenes builds anticipation and suspense which is an essential feature in any good action series.

• Sound effects: The intensity in the action scenes is heightened with the use of apt sound effects. The sound of crashing buildings and whirring robotic sound effects used for the different voids makes the entire scene come together and adds a more believable element to the show.

• Voice Acting: The voice actors in the series are a great fit for their characters. The emotions and enthusiasm of each character are in sync and shines through in every scene.

V. Action Sequences

The series’ A+ animation gives rise to smooth, well-choreographed action scenes and gives the characters nice balanced movements. You can tell the attention paid to details especially in the action scenes where the injured or disabled characters appear to have a hard time walking or fighting which adds the captivating realistic element to the action.

Having said the above, Shu’s “Power of the King” ability introduces many weapons based on the person he retrieves the void from. The transformation of an individual’s personality into a weapon is an interesting spectacle to behold and adds an element of surprise to the action sequences.

4. Grade: 4 out of 5

5. Final Thoughts

Guilty Crown’s most powerful asset is its animation. Even during the most incomprehensible gaps in the story, the series’ animation never fails to take your breath away. The art has a realistic aesthetic that promotes the futuristic setting of the series. The anime’s choice of theme songs is yet another praiseworthy feature. Each song is perfectly suited to voice out Inori and Shu journey throughout the story. If you’re looking for a post-apocalyptic action thriller, Guilty Crown will be a fun watch.