Wolf's Rain

Wolf's Rain is a twenty-six episode show which was originally aired in Japan and ranked third best anime series during it's time frame. It also excelled greatly in it's sale in America and was also a two-volume manga.

Characters

In the beginning of the first episode, we are introduced to a lone artic wolf that goes by the name of Kiba. He is dedicated solely on finding the Lunar Flower that aids in the opening of Paradise. Taking on as the leader of the pack, he acts mainly off of his own instincts whether he takes the time to ponder his thoughts or makes the rash decision the minute it sparks in his head.

We are soon introduced to the remaining wolves that follow after Kiba's search for Paradise.

Tsume, a gray wolf with a horrifying attitude, is one of the most strongest fighters in the pack itself. He shows his true feelings and has a rather rude and mean side to him that doesn't make him the most likeable wolf nor does he necessarily believe that there is a Paradise. He too takes on the leader like position beside Kiba out of his trust issues and disagreements, but soon lets the Artic wolf take control.

Hige, a Mexican wolf, has lived his life with a carefree attitude in human society. He takes on the characteristics of someone who doesn't like to be given a lot of things to do and ponders most of the cities with flirtacious behavior when finding a girl he seems to like. Unlike most of his allies, he has a horrendous eating habit where it becomes a burden to feed him later on in the journey to find Paradise. In and out of his human form, Hige wears a collar yet when asked where he had recieved it from, he doesn't remember.

Toboe is a red wolf that is the youngest of the group and referred to as the pup or the runt and only changes the mind of his older packmates when he fights off a horrendous opponent later on throughout the journey. He was raised by a woman who had found him at the edge of the city and still wears that bracelets that she had awarded him with. Due to his upbringing, Toboe is a friendly and polite being who is protective of human figures.

Cheza, also called 'The Flower Maiden', is the key to opening Paradise which is why the wolves come searching for her. She was created through Lunar Flowers and needs such essentials like water and sunlight to survive. She was an experiment and asleep in a lab before soon waking to aid Kiba and the others.

Plot

When an old legend tells the tale of the end of the world, a place by the name of Paradise will appear only for wolves to find. Though, in this setting, wolves are supposed to have been hunted and driven to extinction two hundred years ago yet they exist by taking the forms of a human.

To open this Paradise, the wolves will need to find the Lunar Flower and in a quest for that, Kiba's pack is attracted to the scent which brings them to Freeze City, a place where poverty and hardship flutter through the atmosphere. After finding that the Lunar Flower is an experimental being by the name of Cheza, she initially joins the wolves in their quest and aids in healing and giving them all a peace of mind when needed.

With Cheza's creation meant mainly for the purposes of human beings wanting their way into Paradise, the wolves find themselves finding their getaway as nothing more than a horrendous path to wander. Hunted down by more than one enemy, Kiba and his pack must find the whereabouts of Paradise before time runs out and before the ones who don't deserve a safe haven beat them to it.

Overall

It's been a while since I have seen Wolf's Rain but it was inevitably the first anime I have ever seen with a close friend of mine. I assumed when clicking the first episode that this would be a typical werewolf based story but the plot line and twists in every episode completely caught me off guard.

I recommend this for anyone who has a taste for supernatural fantasy and a heart wrenching attatchment to characters, the story itself, and adventure.