Genre: Action, Comedy, Drama, Supernatural
Episodes: 25
Aired: 2011
Producers: Aniplex, A-1 Pictures Rin and Yukio Okumura are twin brothers with very different upbringing, despite having been raised together.
The younger of the two, Yukio has always been able to see spirits at a very tender age. This ability led him down a path of an exorcist - someone who dispels spirits and demons for the good of mankind.
Rin, on the other hand, lives in blissful ignorance until one day his past comes to haunt him, literally. He is actually the son of Satan (so is Yukio since they're twins, but somehow only Rin gets all the blame) and has begun to discover immeasurable powers of blue flames that only he and the Devil possess.
This is an outcome that their adopted father, Shiro Fujimoto, fears the most. But of course, he has always prepared for this day.
Looking at Shiro, no one would have guessed he is the Paladin and most powerful exorcist of the True Cross Order.
He acts downright silly at times but is 101% devoted to his sons. I literally cried when he sacrificed himself to save Rin from Satan early on in the series. But no worries, we will see flashbacks of the old man and grow to like him even more as the story continues.
Back to the boys. With the Paladin gone, the church is no longer a sanctuary for them. Rin then joins his brother at the True Cross Academy, a school for exorcist training. Well, half of it anyway. Most of the student population are unware of this 'secret' training. Not sure why this arrangement is so odd - no reason to combine a normal school and a supernatural training academy. But it is run by an even odder principal, so there you go.
Here, Rin has to learn to control his powers as he seeks to becomes the next Paladin. Yes, the son of Satan wants to become an exorcist. Sounds incredulous to everyone who comes to know of his identity, but no one bats an eyelid that Yukio is already a professional exorcist. Even though he, too, is the Devil's boy, albeit without the unearthly powers. Double standards is what this is.
Anyway, come the first day of school, Rin gets the shock of his life when Yukio walks into class and introduces himself as their teacher.
At this point, it is the first time the brothers come head-to-head after their father's funeral. Yukio naturally blames Rin for the Paladin's death and a fight breaks out. This scuffle ends all too soon, however. The story would have been more interesting if their misunderstanding had dragged maybe a few episodes?
Nonetheless, they simply made a mess of the classroom and made up. Thereafter is the usual anime plot - the bonding of the cast through training, during which multiple assassination attempts are made on Rin's life but the battles only serve to make him stronger, and the final showdown with the Devil himself.
While the story is ho-hum, the ending does tie up some loose ends nicely, yet leave sufficient room for a sequel (hopefully?). Seems like there are still questions floating unanswered.
The biggest question mark lies with this guy - Mephisto Pheles. The late Paladin's trusted friend, he too is an exorcist and principal of the True Cross Academy.
His character design reminds me too much of Xerxes Break from Pandora Hearts - from the flamboyant outfit to the flippant attitude. Also a little like Kisuke Uruhara from Bleach.
Oh, but he can morph into a cute widdle dog! His only redeeming factor.
His true identity is a demon from Gehenna, and from what I gathered, Rin and Yukio's half brother. However, throughout the series, he consistently orchestrates the fights surrounding Rin. He later reveals his hidden agenda to the Order during a trial hearing - that he was drawing out Rin's powers as a weapon against Satan. He made it seem as though this was the Paladin's reason for raising the boys, which is far from the truth. So his statement is highly suspect. But it makes for a compelling second season thus I'll let live.
Despite her obvious flaws, both brothers somehow fall for her. The unblossoming romantic triangle between the three is as uninspiring as it can get. From the start you get the idea that she has a crush on Yukio, but then she opens up to Rin so easily, but she blushes furiously when it comes to Yukio, but she's always so considerate of Rin... gah!
For this big disappointment, my rating for this series is lower than it deserves (if you don't mind a weak female protagonist). After all, the relationship between the characters factor hugely in my enjoyment of any anime series.
Rating: 7.5/10
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