Shaft

All works currently listed under Studio Shaft are directed by Akiyuki Shinbo.

Akiyuki Shinbo began work on the Monogatari series with the premiere Bakemonogatari (2010) which started in 2009 and was completed in 2010. Too much emphasis is placed on an over-stylized aesthetic.

Madoka Magica (2011), produced roughly a year after Bakemonogatari, attempts to deconstruct the magical girl tropes solidified in decades of anime media. In some ways it succeeds, in others it doesn’t. The core gimmick of the show is the time skip which emotionally separates her from the black haired Homura. The ambiguous Kyuubey becomes the advocate for developing the spirit world, which presents itself as morally grey due to the characters which end up dying because of it. The show ends on a cheesy, overdone, and pretentiously deep attempt at explaining omnipresent being.

The saga continues with Nisemonogatari (2012), which while more coherent than Bakemonogatari, takes root in stereotypical and highly uninteresting plot-points. The show ends on a badly executed resolved conflict between him and his sister. At least the visuals are note-worthy.

Nekomonogatari Kuro (2012), a 4 episode OVA, is the third installment of the series. Nothing of interest actually happens during the OVA, however the emotional conclusion between him and the cat is satisfying to watch, if a little climatically cliche.

Another uneventful release continues with Monogatari Series Second Season (2013). By this point it’s apparent Shinbo has a specific style intended for the series. There are several intertwining arcs of the show, none of which are very interesting. The standout is Nadeko’s arc, which demonstrates her maliciousness under her sweet and shy exterior, and her character receives much needed development.

In 2014, Hanamonogatari (2014). Shinbo takes thoughtful care to bore the viewer from beginning to end, between the uninteresting character development of Kanbaru, and her arc with a past childhood friend. The installment ends with stretching her legs back and forth in a car while having philosophical revelations with her friend Koyomi.

Tsukimonogatari (2014) released in 2014 in the same year. The story highlights the tone-deaf side character Yotsugi and most of the story takes place in the snow similar to Re:Zero - Memory Snow.

Kizumonogatari I (2016) is the first chronological installment in the series. Scenes of excessive gore are juxtaposed against boring artificial scenery along-side excruciatingly long dialogue typical for the monogatari series. Shinbo would go on to produce two more Kizumonogatari movies.

The interesting yet skeletal March Comes in Like a Lion (2017) aired in 2016 along-side the Monogatari series. Kenjirou Okada and Akiyuki Shinbo directed along-side each other for both seasons. A highly stylized opening cinematic presents a puzzle when juxtaposed against artificial interactions between Kiriyama, the main character, and characters related to his Shogi (or otherwise). Some attention is placed in allowing the viewer to understand how Shogi works with a unique song-and-dance intentionally different from the rest of the show. Shinbo experiments in many different styles, some of which are more interesting than others. Lion ends on a peaceful conclusion to a tournament while simultaneously waiting to resolve it’s emotional baggage for the second season.