Haibane Renmei - An Anime Review

[@HidinginPublic]

I love this show

[@Ostsol]

I first saw a fansub of _Haibane Renmei_ as it was airing in Japan. I bought the DVD set as soon as I could, though, and I always come back to it. It's such a beautiful series. :)

[@geezee8663]

This review was really well done. I love this anime to death, it means a lot to me, i come back to it every once in a while, and damn it just fills me up.

[@lazylion.productions]

There are some stories that just hold that special place in our hearts and no matter how many times we go back to them it still brings us tons of emotions. We're glad to hear that Haibane Renmei has been one of those stories for so many people, thanks for your comment :)

[@geezee8663]

@@lazylion.productions ^_^ great content thanks for the response

[@julianashavers2958]

And to think I just thought this was just a vague and heartfelt psychological/slice of life anime T_T. All the things you interpreted made so much sense! And as I was watching I felt the same way. It felt like the Haibane were souls who couldn’t die because of their emotional unrest and loose ties from the real world. And the way you explained why they have those limitations was so genius, I never even thought about it that way:0 I’m glad someone is talking about this anime because it’s soo good and there aren’t many videos on it either so thank you

[@lazylion.productions]

We’re so happy you enjoyed our video :) We just think this is such a beautiful anime, and more people should give it a chance. Especially since it tackles some very important and rarely discussed issues.

[@dinodob4430]

First time hearing about this show. It sounds like a show I'd enjoy. It's not an anime, but the German film Wings Of Desire covers similar ground to this show. It's a beautiful film; I'm sure you would enjoy it. Man, I remember how hard it used to be to get access to Japanese animation. In the late 90's, I had to buy mine on VHS from music stores. A company called Manga used to distribute them and they were not cheap. Akira, Dominion Tank Police, Ghost In The Shell, Ninja Scroll, The Streetfighter Movie... Happy days.

[@lazylion.productions]

Thanks for the recommendation :) Already went ahead and checked out the trailer, and it looks intriguing. Definitely comes across as a bit darker, but we can see why you said it covers similar ground. And back in the day, we used to buy all our anime at a store called Metro Video, which was located in an underground shopping district, so anime for us back then was literally still underground lol

[@lazylion.productions]

@Ikyo. Haha we did not know that… Leave it to Hollywood to miss the point. I remember that I saw the movie “City of Angels” when it first came out but was either too young or too unimpressed to remember much about it. Weirdly there’s this Brazilian series that came out recently (2019?) called “Nobody’s Looking” which also has some Haibane Renmei vibes right down to the tiny angel wings, where they make watching “City of Angels” for all of eternity as the highest punishment you can receive should you break the rules, which makes your comment all the more hilarious lol

[@stephanieworld8990]

I am happy you review this show i feel like not many people know about it

[@lazylion.productions]

Thank you! One of the reasons we did this review was to introduce more people to it. We really loved this series growing up, and so we’re hoping that more people will watch it and also fall in love with it :)

[@jesuscabrita3196]

loved the video. You r such a great narrator

[@50srefugee]

Incidentally, this show is best watched by teens and older. No sex or violence, mind, it's just that little kids lack the life experience to make much sense of it. Have them watch, I swear, Sugar: A Little Snow Fairy, which hits some of the same notes but in a perhaps more approachable way. You probably want to watch it with them to talk about it.

[@lazylion.productions]

The first time I saw it, I was an elementary school student. I, too, was drawn to the angels on the front covers. My older sister wasn’t as enthralled with the series as I was, feeling that it was too depressing, but I don’t know, I liked it and requested multiple times that we rent it again. I will admit that there were some nuances and references that I missed while watching it as a child. Things that I only picked up on years later, but even as a child I found the characters relatable. Being diagnosed with a major depression disorder not too long after, this later made sense to me. So, even though I wouldn’t say it's a series for kids, I definitely found comfort in it while watching it as a child.

[@rottingeyes7325]

This is really interesting, going to watch this one next. Great review as usual!

[@lazylion.productions]

Thank you! :) Feel free to let us know your impressions of it after you watch it ~

[@rottingeyes7325]

Back with thoughts after watching it. This was such a touching anime and had great messages, while intriguing by maintaining a mystery aspect throughout. I have some thoughts and a theory I’ll comment on your blog.

[@SeanHenderson]

Ffunimation owns the rights and miraculously chose to put it on its youtube channel FOR FREE! All 12 episodes!

[@GUILLE832]

Quite a good and succint analysis. I'm really enjoying your content; keep up the great work!

[@lazylion.productions]

Thanks so much! Glad to hear you’ve been enjoying it :D We definitely have more on the way that we are very excited to share with you all.

[@josea6553]

wait, this anime was made for the creator of serial experiments lain ?? yoshitoshi abe? plus i love your video.

[@lazylion.productions]

Thanks so much, we’re glad you liked it :) Yoshitoshi ABe is the creator of Haibane Renmei, but I believe he only worked as the character designer for Serial Experiments Lain. ABe has collaborated with Lain’s creator Yasuyuki Ueda on a lot of other projects though, such as NieA7 and Texhnolyze.

[@brettcoster4781]

I bought the individual volume DVDs as they were released monthly here in Australia, issue 1 came with a slipcover to contain the whole series so I had an incentive to buy them all. Why was I prompted to buy them? The store I bought them from (JB HiFi) had a cardboard cutout/poster of Rakka, so I can say the advertising definitely worked. I do wish that I asked for the poster, but didn't. They were released here by Madman, who are still going (same with JB) and have expanded from anime to other films. They did the same for Last Exile and other series. I've never regretted buying Haibane Renmai and see it as a spiritual journey, a very good one with many different pathways. Terrific show.

[@lazylion.productions]

Some people will never know the struggle of getting ahold of anime back in the day XD Most of the time, all you had was the cover to go by, so you literally had to judge the whole series/film by that alone. Sometimes the gamble paid off, and sometimes it didn’t lol Like you said though, Haibane Renmei is definitely one that’s worth it! I only wish I had been able to get my hands on a copy for my own collection (╥﹏╥)

[@SeanHenderson]

Shout out to Suncoast video! I had to order them in a racist mall with racist security to individually buy these precious episodes! But miraculously pioneer that turned into Geneon that finally turned into funimation phew! But in 2004 i bought the box set! Rest in piece Suncoast videos i bought many gems from you.

[@lazylion.productions]

Lol the lengths all of us anime fans had to go to! But it was worth it! However super glad it’s evolved to streaming - it makes it all so much more accessible.

[@50srefugee]

I didn't rent my first copies of HR, i downloaded fansubs on my office internet connection via a standalone torrent client. The Web was as yet barely a thing. It's still one of my favorite stories in any medium. I don't even recommend it as intro to anime generally, because there's simply not much else like it. If you are watching it for the first time, avoid looking for reviews. One of its great beauties is the way it unfolds its secrets; I am not usually spoiler sensitive, but this show is an exception. Watch it as cold as you can. All I had to go on was a picture of an angel, dressed in brown, sitting outside and smoking a cigarette. That was enough. Once you've finished it, watch it again. As I always say, things you didn't even see the first time will now glow with meaning and emotion. Good job Lazy Lion for this largely spoiler free review. I also recommend the review by Beyond Ghibli.

[@lazylion.productions]

Thank you. We would also recommend going into it as spoiler-free as possible. Treat this less as watching a series and more as having an experience. An experience, that once you’re through it, will give you some better insight about yourself. Everyone will have their own interpretations or feelings or thoughts about the series/journey and that’s ultimately what the creator envisioned.

[@50srefugee]

I must emphasize the music for the show. Not just the OP and ED, both of which are beautiful, but the soundtrack throughout. Only Cowboy Bebop matches in quality, though the style is quite different.

[@NoOne-ix7dg]

The man reasponsible for music is the same who made music for 'Shadow of the colossus

[@NoOne-ix7dg]

Gorgeous, sweet, emotional. Soundtreck deserves attention on its own. Warning: may hurl you into existential crisis and need to read 'The sickness unto death'.

[@lazylion.productions]

We completely agree. We didn’t have time to cover the soundtrack, but it is definitely a crucial part of the storytelling in Haibane Renmei.

[@NoHandle44]

Is this anime like "Bunny Girl Senpai" that tackles serious emotional problems that people go through?

[@Dirdle]

Absolutely. You don't *need* to read it metaphorically, though. It works just fine as a charming story about a strange world.

[@lazylion.productions]

@SwiftBlade4, Dirdle pretty much said it. I’ve only watched a couple of episodes of Bunny Girl Senpai so far, but from what I’ve seen, I’d have to say that even though they have different approaches, both animes still deal with complex emotional issues that many people face.

[@takashimizutani1808]

Bunny girl senpai is bad but this is good there you go that's the difference

[@Wind_Falcon]

I still don't get why you refer to "us" in plural when speaking. Is there a history behind this channel before it existed that I'm missing, is there a team behind it, just a quirk to stand out? Nice content as usual otherwise.

[@lazylion.productions]

Haha, it's definitely not a quirk to stand out - We really have to get around to filling in the “About” section… We’re actually a sibling duo, and since we pretty much had the same anime experience it just feels right to say “we” or “us” as a collective. Some people are more familiar with us due to our blog or Instagram accounts which we have linked up in the description. So if you're still curious about the team feel free to check those out, we have comics and stuff :)

[@Wind_Falcon]

@@lazylion.productions Haha thanks for answering. A sibling duo is rare but nice!