Note The review will contain minor spoilers any major spoiler is within the spoiler tag Among the fantastical creatures vampires are the ones Im least fond of. They just dont excite me anymore since most popular media have produced some sort of vampire related works. So as expected I didnt fully care for Mars Red either. But with the finale I can say that I didnt despise it either. While for most part it is flawed it still had its moments and the potential was there. Img420https://64.media.tumblr.com/92fb203de30ce3640ae59035adb0903d/e6d3eff621edaef717/s540x810/3670b4f0d4d0834f4757979bc84584c65044f223.gifv Ill start with the drawbacks: The story of recruting vampires as a military branch to eradicate the others was intriguing but sadly it doesnt go beyond that. We dont understand much of what Nakajimas plans are or why he deployed the troops on the civillians by introducing that vaccine. The case of vampires is also still a mystery not a single one except for Kurusu gets much backstory and it truly hampers the connection the audience would build up with those said characters. Also the arrangement of events is messy scenes transition from one to another in the blink of an eye and confuse us further regarding what the story is trying to show. The pacing is awful a lot of the early episodes are uselessly spread out without any important information or character moments to demand the need of such scenes. And as it is an adaptation of a stage play we can also notice the mistranslation in transferring the story between the media. The overdramatic dialogues and continuous references to popular plays become a little too much to handle. Then there is the romance aspect of the show where except for a few situations doesnt really pay off. Then there are missing plot points which have impact on the story but we are never shown. As for the good most of it revolves around Kurusu. Yup he is the only reason that I kept on watching the show despite my disinterest in some stuff. His va is a major reason for that. The va who also voices Reki from sk8 brings this form of allurement to kurusus character you cant help but want the best for him. In fact the story shines the most when it is solely focusing on kurusu with Yamagami at times. He is detached from the whole disgusting plan and even towards the end he tries retain his kind hearted nature. I dont think he is an exceptional character but he is enjoyable to watch he has led to some of the most enjoyable moments in the show for me. If I were to revisit Mars red I would do it for the sake of kurusu. The Misaki subplot was also well done it is more than what you expect at first it is what connects all the characters. I enjoyed Misakis improvements in acting you could hear it in her delivery. Also one particular thing that I liked about Mars Red is that it treats the vampiric situation as a tragedy and doesnt romanticize it. Throught Deffrot Kurusu and those kids we do see the frailty of their lives despite having long lives even if the show lands halfhartedly on the tragedy bit. Img420https://64.media.tumblr.com/0a89b7517f13d28c81419d819aeee736/c00f89ba7aa3043f1f/s540x810/6efdcc7766488cdabd3641d2ca37d7bff54d6d1a.gifv As for the characters like I said before Kurusu is my favorite he sees decent development. Aoi is alright too and Maeda isnt bad either. Deffrot was the most interesting character while he wasnt used to his full potential whatever we were shown regarding him was satisfying enough. Him being the narrator of the story makes sense at the end and does tell for why the storytelling feels so dramatized. However there are also missed opportunities. Rufus arrival or the concrete reason for him overtaking are only hinted at but he doesnt make for an appealing antagonist he lacks an unique personality and is your typical drama villain. Suwa and Takeuchi are misses as we hardly learn anything about them and all the subplots with them dont make much sense as you dont see how they reached that point. If there is one thing that Mars Red is consistently good at is its visuals and music. The ost is gorgeous the lush strings and symphonic arrangemnts take the scenes to a different level. The opening sequence is good may not be an outstanding musical piece but when paired with the visuals does capture the feel of the show. The ending song on the other hand is a huge miss its electronic sound just doesnt fit with the show it is way too glossy for its own good. The artstyle is quite simplistic though at times it becomes difficult to distinguish between characters and the art isnt really always expressive. The aspect ratio does add a theater feel to the show which Im quite fond of. There is apparent cgi which at times distracts from otherwise beautifully drawn and animated backgrounds. There is a lot of visual symbolism which were cleverly used to get the messages across. Usage of colors is also done well. There are a few action sequences and they had decent animation. Overall while having a strong finish it becomes quite difficult to ignore the early parts of the show which are very messy with slow pacing and nonlinear plotpoints that have no lead up or foreshadowing. Many subplots are discarded but when it lands Mars Red does make an impact. And as it boasts a good production value it would all come down to ones preference. This is hardly a show that will appeal to most so anyone who is interested in it should decide for themselves what they think of it.