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Year: 2007
Genre: Fantasy, Friendship, Romance, Drama, Tragedy, Historical
Episodes: 24
Rating: 3.75 out of 5
Love. One of the most powerful emotions in the human body. To love someone is to give your all for and to them. To go above and beyond to see them happy and to see them smile. We’ve all experienced love in many ways and forms.
Do you believe in love at first sight? Have you ever felt an instant, over-taking, long-lasting romantic attraction to a complete stranger at first sight of them? Were not talking about lust but genuine love for someone.
William Shakespeare wrote one of the greatest love stories of all-time with Romeo and Juliet. Where two star-crossed lovers saw each other for the first time and fell in love with each other. Where they put their family hatred for each other aside to be with each other.
Romeo x Juliet takes Shakespeare’s classic and makes it into an anime worth watching. Will you hug and kiss the one you love after watching it? Will you see someone tomorrow and instantly fall in love with them even if you don’t know their name or who they are?
Overview:
In the distant past, a land had once been forgotten to the world. The land is called Neo Verona. Neo Verona is a floating island high above the earth. The once proud and happy people of the land unknowingly realize that something terrible is about to happen. Leontes Montague and his men lead a bloody coup and murder all the members of the ruling House Capulet. During the coup, Lord Capulet’s young daughter, Juliet, is able to escape with the help of the former’s king’s personal guards.
Fourteen years later, Leontes rules the land with fear and tyranny. He controls all with an iron fist and kills all that opposes him. His word is the law, and nothing else matters. He has placed a high price for the head of the last remaining Capulet. Juliet, now at the young age of fourteen years old, fights against the tyranny of the Montague’s and his oppressive ways. Juliet fights the Montague’s as the masked vigilante, “The Red Whirlwind.”
Juliet parades around the kingdom dressed as a male to hide her identity but doesn’t know the reason why. She dreams of being a girl just once in the world and doesn’t want to hide her identity. She gets an invitation to the all-important Rose Ball. While attending the Rose Ball hosted by the Montagues with a friend, Juliet meets Romeo, Prince Montague’s son, and both of them fall deeply in love at first sight.
Romeo, unlike his father, is a kind, caring, selfless, and humble young boy. He opposes everything that his father believes in. Unbeknown to them, the Capulets are planning a rebellion against the Montagues. The goal is to reclaim the kingdom in the name of the Capulets.
Once identities are discovered, Romeo and Juliet must make choices that will shape their love for all time. Will they choose love or the right to rule the kingdom? Unbeknown to everyone, Neo Verona holds a deep, dark secret that can change the world forever.
Series Breakdown:
Romeo x Juliet is a beautiful anime that takes the Shakespearean classic and adds numerous new elements and twits to the story. The concept of Romeo x Juliet stays the same as in the play. Romeo and Juliet come from rival households where they meet each other and fall in love. The story takes their love through trials only to endure everything to the very end.
Even with the same concept of the story, the anime throws many different elements. The first aspect is the setting/place. The story takes place in a floating continent. The inhabitants of the consentient doesn’t know the continent is floating. Many years have passed, and no one decided to go beyond the final lands. The second aspect that is different is how each family is portrayed. In the play, we just knew that the families were rivals. In the anime, one family rules overall. At first, the Capulets were the rulers. They were just and kind. When Lord Montague seized power for himself, he became a tyrant. He ruled with an iron fist while massacring the Capulet family only for one to survive. You can probably figure out which one of the Capulets survived. The main storyline revolves around the people serve the Capulets and their quest for the family to take back the kingdom. Juliet falls in love with Romeo. Her passion for him interferes with her duty to reclaim the throne. With all the added twists, the anime turned a classic into one that is very enjoyable to watch at an even pace. As the story progresses, the trials between the two main characters come to light. Juliet’s duty to bring back the Capulet name to royalty while Romeo trying to be a just person but his father being the unruly ruler. The pain that they show but the love that they develop makes you appreciate them much more.
The anime does a great job with character development. Most of the character development revolves around the two main characters. One thing the anime does well is taking the names of the characters from all the plays that Shakespeare wrote. The anime switches the roles of the two main characters, which adds a more appeal to them. Juliet is presented as a strong, independent, righteous girl. She fights for her common man while even fighting against the tyranny of the Montague kingdom as her alter ego, “The Red Whirlwind.” Romeo, on the other hand, is presented as a gentle, loving soul who wants to help the people but is afraid of his father. He seems more like the damsel in distress. He would do anything for Juliet, and his love is strong for her. Another character that takes a change is Tybalt. Tybalt is presented as a mysterious person who is related to both the Capulets and Montagues. He has fierce anger for Lord Montague, vowing to kill him. He only plays by his rules and works in the shadows of the kingdom.
Many other characters are presented that either move the story or flat out makes it unbearable to watch. Lord Montague is a cold person who only loves power over everything else in the world. His love of power is greater than his love of his son. Mercutio is an annoying character. He is a suck-up to Lord Montague and tries to weasel his way into a better life even though he is a noble. When he finally gets what he wants, Lord Montague tests him, which drives him mad. Just an overall punk.
The music meets the story for the anime very well. The opening theme, You Raise Me Up, was at first hard to figure out as the lead song, but after watching the anime, it was a perfect fit. Each character needed each other to raise each other to overcome everything they endured. A true love song for a love play. For the ending themes, they were pretty good. “Cyclone” was a good choice because it was fast and strong. The second theme, “Good-Bye, Yesterday,” was a slower melody song that was okay but nothing special.
After much thought about this anime, I found it enjoyable to watch. It was a different take on the play Romeo and Juliet. This anime was a lot more violent, with many backstabbing. I like how they kept the overall feel of being in love with someone and doing everything to keep that love even until death. Romeo and Juliet met each other many times, and you really see the development of their love. Finally, I liked how the roles of characters were switched by making Juliet more of a hero. This is a great love story with a different twist and should be watched with a loved one.
