Customer Reviews

Spice and Wolf: Season One

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Spice and Wolf sounds, by the description, like a typical sudden-girlfriend-appearance anime. Indeed, there are similar "boy meets cute Goddess girl" series out there, like Kannagi: Crazy Shrine Maidens. Spice and Wolf, however, is nothing of the sort.

It is, instead, a very interesting and well-thought out period piece. The antiquated European setting is ideal for the true essence behind this anime--economy. Lawrence and Holo make a cute pair, to be sure, but this first season only hints at a romantic development between them. Instead, the focus is on a sort of budding professional relationship. The two explore the world town by town, with interesting glimpses into different trading practices, different currencies, and different cultures. The religious presence of a Catholic-esque Church is especially intriguing. They are corrupt in trading methods but effective at spreading faith, something wholly believable.

Simple observations like this are one of the things that make this series so great. Its compliment are the characters. Lawrence and Holo are always interesting, and usually funny. Holo's flirtation and Lawrence's inhibitions make for a comedic formula that rarely gets tiring. The best part about their relationship is that, unlike most anime, the audience is not forced to believe in it. The anime takes things slow, letting their relationship build like real ones do--by shared experience. Their frustrations, fears, dreams and humor are all allowed to develop naturally. This may make it seem like there is little character development throughout the series, but there is enough to keep it going.

The series of light novels, off of which this anime is based, are still being published. As such, the episodic nature of the show seems to make it come to an abrupt end. This is no problem, however, considering there is a second season already finished in Japan, with a third all but assured. It is worth the small time investment. As it is only one small part of an anticipated whole, it will not be a jaw-dropping, life-changing piece of art, but it will most definitely make your day a little more pleasant. Is this not one of the most admirable aspects of art, anyway, that it can do something so simply profound as to make one feel better?

Funimation usually does the most acceptable job of dubbing shows here. Fullmetal Alchemist is an example of some of their good work, and they only seem to learn from their mistakes as a company. And for those who refuse to tolerate dubbing, the original Japanese voice track is amazing, and their subtitling is sure to be, also.

This is a series that will grow on you, just as the characters grow on each other. The pace is peaceful, the characters likable, and the story makes the fantastic easy to believe. There is little here not to enjoy.

Like many, the first time I was exposed to Spice and Wolf, I had my immediate doubts. Girl with ears and a tail traveling around with a random guy and occassionally appearing naked? No, thanks. But I gave it a shot (because I really enjoyed the opening song, ahaha), and was thusly rewarded for giving this highly original show a chance. Come for the winning platonic chemistry between the two leads and stay for lessons on the value of currency and the perils of buying on credit! Seriously -- if you come into S&W expecting some sort of moe hijinks, you'll be sorely disappointed, but if you want 12 episodes of something that's not going to insult your intellgience and leave you feeling full and satisfied, it's a safe bet.

Length:: 4:03 Mins

Gina from Haunted Flower reviews "Spice & Wolf Season One", an anime series about a magical wolf goddess, Holo who takes on the form of a woman to seek out the help of a traveling merchant named Lawrence to get back home to the North. Features the english dub voice acting of J. Michael Tatum and Brina Palencia!

You won't find giant monsters or evil tyrants here, this is an atypical anime that doesn't quite fit into any existing sub-genres. Its relaxed pace with emphasis on nuanced dialogue will bore someone who's looking for power-ups or panty-shots, but delight those of us who appreciate a good character piece from time to time.

The story is one of trade, commerce, and a growing relationship between two unlikely protagonists. In a nice change of pace the storytellers here let the characters evolve on their own in a slow progression that feels natural and keeps you interested, rather than through forceful direction. Fans of verbal sparring will love the banter between Holo and Lawrence, and econ majors will feel right at home during the trade deals. I've used 'relaxed' and 'slow' to describe the general tenor of this anime but don't misunderstand, you won't find yourself bored and in fact the episodes will seem to be over all too quickly!

Now I have nothing against dubs in general, it's just that I rarely find any to be on par with the original Japanese audio. Even if the main characters are well done, the overall dub is often brought down by terrible supporting performances. That's not the case this time as I genuinely enjoyed and felt they honored the stellar performances of the original cast. While I still prefer Ami Koshimizu portraying the wise-wolf, Brina Palencia did an outstanding job with the role (and considering how picky I can be that is high praise). I'm actually looking forward to watching the series multiple times with both voice casts and enjoying each on their own merits.

If you enjoyed works such as Haibane Renmei or Kino's Journey, Spice and Wolf will fit right at home in your collection. If it wasn't obvious already, it has quickly risen to one of my favorites and one I will be re-watching for years to come. Here's hoping they continue to translate the original novels (the first volume is available now), as well as the license the second season which I thought was even better than the first!

This is one of my favorite anime shows ever. It is very different from your average anime or any other form of TV/movie entertainment. Others have summarized the plot line well, so I won't be redundant. What makes this anime special are the two protagonist and the extremely believable relationship that develops between them. As was stated before, from the description you might think this is a "sudden magical girlfriend" story, but it is far from that. The protagonists start out traveling together out of mutual self-interest. Holo wants to get to the her home in the north, Lawrence thinks that he might be able to profit from having a wise wolf spirit to assist him in his business dealings. Underlying both of their rationalizations for traveling together is a common thread: they are tired of being lonely. Holo has been worshiped as a harvest god for hundreds of years. In that time, she has been utterly alone. She is isolated from those of her own kind and in the few times that she have ventured to make contact with the villagers, she has come away empty and discouraged due to the fear she inspires. Lawrence, while a successful traveling peddler, longs to make enough money to set up a shop and become a town merchant. If he has his own shop he can make friends and become part of a community, perhaps even find a wife. Having a traveling companion helps both of them ward off the loneliness of their lives up until now.

As the story progresses, we get to see how Lawrence and Holo begin to rely on one another in many ways. Their relationship progresses at a slow, realistic pace almost unheard of in any form of entertainment. The fact that these characters and their relationship are more believable and realistic than just about any I have encountered in any form of entertainment before despite the fact that one of them is a wolf-goddess speaks volumes about the quality of the storytelling!

The show, based on a series of Japanese light novels, is told in story arcs, with the first 6 episodes telling one story and the last 6 telling another. These two arcs correspond to the first two volumes of the series. The 7th episode is a special OVA (original video animation) that is outside of the main storyline. It is a very nice little side story which highlights the growing relationship between the pair.

While this is not an anime that will match everyone's tastes, it is a wonderful story, well told, and expertly rendered for the screen. Season 2 is even better, in my opinion and I can't wait for FUNimation to release it. The English dub is, in my opinion, extremely well done. Brina Palencia captures the character of Holo with her performance and makes it her own. Considering that the original performance is considered one of the finest Voice Acting jobs in the past decade, it is impressive that she holds her own. I feel that the English voice actor for Lawrence, J. Michael Tatum, did an even better job than his Japanese counterpart. His passion and range is impressive, giving just the right amount of sarcasm and teasing as well as showing genuine emotion at other times.

Finally, I would like to comment on the Editorial Review listed by Amazon. It is clear that he missed the charm of this anime. Perhaps, when one watches things in order to review them, a story that takes its time is a bother? His comment about the "unwholesomeness" of the "fan service nudity" is particularly vexing, as there is minimal fan service and the nudity comes across as natural as opposed to being merely for the titillation of the viewers. The "adolescent furries" comment is particularly off, and demeaning to the show and those who enjoy it. (Very few people would appreciate being referred to in that manner, even if they are adolescents that are into furries!) It is as if he saw the description of the show, decided that it was a pandering, fan service fest and couldn't get past that opinion while watching it. His comment that the show could have ended two episodes earlier without effecting the plot shows that he really wasn't following the story, as the final two episodes advance the plot tremendously. In general, the middle episodes of the story arcs are the weaker parts of the show. However, those frequently have good character building moments and subtle plot points that you don't realize were important until you get to the end of the arc. Each episode carries a small bit of the overall plot of the arc, so those looking for individual episodic plot lines are going to be confused. Those of us that have seen other serial shows and liked them understand how this works. (It's not a sit-com people!)

You can take my opinion with a grain of salt, as I would probably be written off by the reviewer as a "rabid fan-boy" or something like that, but it bothers me when professional reviewers appear to not understand the basics of what they are reviewing.

Spice and Wolf is the story of a traveling merchant and a forgotten wolf-deity who meet and travel together through a fantasy world somewhat based on medieval Europe. no swords and sorcery but excellent character development and fantastic dialogue and interaction between the characters as they mature and develop feelings for each other. Each has a strong personality and uncanny instincts in their respective fields, Craft Lawrence as a traveling merchant trying to score big enough to start his own shop and Horo the Wise Wolf who wants to return to her home in the north and see how the world has changed in the past 150 years along the way. They meet and interact with many interesting characters while trying to stay below the notice of an omnipotent church reminiscent of the Catholic Church of the 1400s-1600s. I can't recommend this series highly enough.

I don't normally write reviews, so keep that in mind when you read what I have to say: this anime destroyed any preconceptions I may have had about it. From the title and one of the main characters, I thought it was a show aimed at young girls which is usually the type my wife likes. I couldn't have been more wrong. Rather than assuming the girl's point of view, this story is told from the male view point of Lawrence which is probably the only reason I made it past the first episode. Lawrence is a traveling merchant who unexpectedly comes upon a young girl who just happens to be a pagan wolf god named Holo that brought good wheat harvests to a local village. The two soon become traveling companions and find themselves getting in an out of troubling situations all the while little seeds of compassion and ultimately romance are being planted. Sounds like a stretch, right? I thought the same thing, but then I found myself watching several episodes in a row, not able to turn away. Not everything that happens is good. Not every conversation is serious as there is a healthy humor to their relationship. There is a genuine "what will happen next?" atmosphere.

This set focuses on the first season of the show (a second has already been aired in Japan, so here's hoping it's not too far behind on this side of the world) which contains 13 episodes. The characters are superbly crafted and you'll find yourself invested in their lives by the start of the second episode. The writing is top notch, and yes there is a lot of talk regarding economics and sale of goods, so you may actually learn something. I did find that while watching the original Japanese with subtitles, I got lost a few times with the economic talk so you may want to make your first run with the English dub to make sure you understand some of the trading that is occurring. One of the biggest questions though is: How is the English dub? I'll be honest, at first I did not like the voice work for Holo, even though Lawrence was spot on. By the third episode though, she had grown on me and I really like both of them as they do bring some extra dimension to their characters. My advice is to give it a chance as in some aspects I almost prefer the dub to the original now.

You may find the ending a little abrupt, but do keep in mind that there is a second season that picks up as soon as this one ends and hopefully season 3 won't be too far behind as season two is left with a bit of a cliffhanger with not all loose ends tied up. Coming from a guy who was very content with the likes of Cowboy Bebop, Tenchi Universe, and Outlaw Star, this series is a drastic departure from those, but the characters, story, and, yes, even the romance did suck me in. Hope to revisit this world very soon with Season Two (Come on Funimation!!!). Don't hesitate to give this one a try...

Ill admit, im a dude, in almost every sense of the word. I like action and explosions, violence and blood, everything you could consider to be "manly" in my movies, television and anime. I heard about this show from a friend, another dude, and was both skeptical and intrigued. Mostly becaue i dont normally do the whole romance thing in my anime. I'm not entirely heartless, and can in fact be a really nice guy, but never a "love fool". Which is what i thought this was directed towards.

Long story short, i was seized by my very soul, grasped at the pulsating core of my being by this anime within the first couple episodes. I was frequently moved to near tears, and constantly worried over the budding "relationship" of these two travelers. I've never felt so completely emotionally invested in a mere anime like this since Evangellion was first coming out on VHS. I just couldn't put it down, and watched the entire thing in only 2 sittings, carrying me well into the very early hours of the next day. Upon finishing i immediately sought out the fan translations for the second season, unable to cope until i found out how the story ended, only to be grasped even MORE firmly by the incredible interplay between these two personalities. And i will gladly say i DID sob a couple of times over the second season. Shows like this are one in a million, and if you dismiss it because it sounds "sappy" or "girly" you'd be sadly mistaken.

It's not very often an anime of this quality emerges. On the surface many would probably think this is a typical love story between who happen to meet under odd circumstances. I've seen them and they are predictable. This one is not. I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed it. It easily tops the list of one of my favorites.

This anime is all about story-telling. The story is deep and well-thoughtout. It is very well-written and the character development is amazing, especially into the second season. There is little action, but that is where this one excels. The fact that you could be drawn in without having to resort huge battles, the typical "good vs. evil" ploy, or a predictable romance is incredible. I actually cared about the characters. The feistiness and cleverness of Holo makes every episode a joy to watch.

Overall, this isn't a story of true love or your typical romance. This is a touching and heart-warming tale of companionship and the deep bond that each character begins to develop with one another. I highly recommend people expand their horizons a bit and watch this. You won't be disappointed.

I am not the sort of person to like this kind of stuff. I usually watch more fighting or plot-twisting animes (i.e Yu-yu hakusho or Death Note). It was merely by chance that I stumbled upon Spice and Wolf. I was writing a story of mine, and wanted to show people on the site I post my stories on an anime picture of what my characters looked like. For one of them, I needed a wolf girl. Obviously, I stumbled upon Holo. I thank my lucky stars that I did.

This anime is definitely for more intellectual people. If you like beat-em-up stories that are all about constant action, you won't find it here. It focuses around peddling, economics and, of course, a little romance. The romance, though, doesn't really show up until the second season. While there may be no fighting, however, there are some very intense moments. At times, I found my nose mere centimeters from the screen becasue of how tense the situation was.

The characters are amazing and well developed. Holo's personality alone suckered me into the series. She can be flirty, mean, intelligent and (though not TOO often) very nice. Lawrence is shy, and can come up with his own retorts at times. They are practical opposites, which makes their arguements all the more enjoyable. And the way Holo can easily break down Lawrence's defenses and leave him feeling like a fool is just downright hilarious.

All in all, this series is DEFINITELY worth checking out. It doesn't matter who you are. It may seem like a show mainly for girls, but it really isn't (I know this cause I'm a guy myself).