Anime: Madlax
So here's yet another recommendation/review post I was going to write some time ago, but since I'm killing time before leaving for AWA, I'll just write it now. :P
It's really interesting how your perception of what's going to happen in a story, especially an anime, can affect how much you like it. I say "especially an anime" because anime tends to reuse the same plot devices and conventions over and over, so it's not hard for one series to remind you of a combination of two or three others. And that's going to color your opinion of the series--often it's enough to make you decide that you already know what's going to happen, or label the series a rip-off that isn't worth your time.
I started watching Madlax pretty soon after I finished Noir. It's by the same people, it's got a very similar soundtrack (which is good, because Noir's was awesome), and it's got very similar characters. It's very serious like Noir--no chibis and very little humor or fan service (although Madlax pushes the envelope a little more in the fan service department). And, at least at the start, it seems like it's going to be a similar world to Noir's--a world where criminal organizations and conspiracies run the show, and a world where magic doesn't really exist.*
(So if you like these things, as I do, you will probably like Noir and Madlax. If not, the constant flashbacks will bore you to tears.)
The two series are so similar, in fact, I spent the first disc just waiting for it to turn into Noir. I kept trying to figure out what was going to happen to make this occur. That's not really an entertaining way to watch an anime, because you tend to fill in the plot holes that should leave you puzzled with information that's not even applicable to the series itself. So, I got bored with it, and didn't pick it up again until a few weeks ago.
Of course Madlax's pacing didn't help any of this. Noir throws you into the scenario immediately, dives in to some episodic plots to introduce the characters, and then slowly reveals What's Really Going Ontm. In Madlax, you're going to have to go through about 15 episodes before all of the main characters actually meet each other, and even then it's not entirely clear what they're doing or why. It keeps three or four plot threads going on at any given time, constantly pushing them closer and closer together and then forcing them apart before they converge. (I'd argue, however, that it doesn't fall victim to what John calls the An American Tail effect--where characters just miss each other because they happen to be looking the wrong way--because they're actually going somewhere.)
Which is where it starts to get really good, around the middle of the series. There are plots within plots within plots, and so many different connections between the characters revealed that it's almost ludicrous. I'm not sure that I can say any more without either (a) spoiling everything, or (b) sounding like a fanboy ("OMG can you believe what so-and-so did this episode! I can't believe it!").
I'd argue that the end fizzles out, but it's still worth the watch. Once they're done with all the intrigue and have to start actually resolving it, it's a bit of a letdown. They spend so much time hiding what's really going on that there's not really time to make you actually care about it when it's revealed. It's also a little more philosophical than you'd expect it to be--although, again, it's not heavily developed until the end. (I could be wrong about this, though. Knowing what's actually going on, and knowing the questions raised at the end, I think a second watching would be very revealing.)
So, anyway, it's a good show if you like serious drama and intrigue.
* There's a lot of ritual in Noir, but as far as I can remember, we don't actually see it doing anything obvious on-screen.
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