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Studio : GONZO
Licenced by : FUNimation
Length : 24 Episodes
Year : 2007
Genre : Shounen - Fantasy - Action - Adventure
Synopsis :
The Kannagi clan is one blessed by the Spirits of the Flame and capable of mastering the En-Jutsu, which involves the manipulation of fire in combat. But one of its heirs from the main family, Kannagi Kazuma, had no talent when it came to this technique. He was easily defeated by his cousin Ayano with a single attack in the ceremony to determine the family's successor and shamefully banished from the Kannagi clan.
Four years later Kazuma resurfaced, having taken the new surname of Yagami and having mastered the Fuu-Jutsu, which involves the manipulation of the wind. It doesn't take long for the Kannagi clan to learn of this development, but suddenly three of its members are murdered in their own house. All clues indicate that the killer was one skilled in the use of Fuu-Jutsu, and there is only one known to bear a grudge to the Kannagi: Kazuma. Because of this a battle between users of fire and users of the wind is about to break out, even though Kazuma knows himself to be innocent.
Additional Note: Based on a light shounen novel series by Yamato Takahiro.
Added : 2007-04-15
Synopsis by : leoxjm
Last update : 2008-09-08
Last update details : Modify info
Score : 7.25
Number of reviews : 4
Link(s) :
Official #1 : Official Kaze no Stigma Website (Japanese)
Song(s) :
Opening #1 : Saori Kiuji - blast of wind
Ending #1 : Saori Kiuji - Hitorikiri no Sora
Ending #2 : Ayumi Fujimura, Yuka Inokuchi, Shizuka Itou - Matataki no Kiwoku
Release(s) :
2007-09-25 -- Episode(s) 24 by Shinsen-Subs. BT Link
2007-09-24 -- Episode(s) 24 by AnimeYoshi. BT Link
2007-09-19 -- Episode(s) 23 by AnimeYoshi. BT Link
Found 60 releases. Click here to [ Find them! ]
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Posted by : kevinchaosvs 
Posted on : 2008-05-14 
Story/Dev:(60%) The Disappointing Part
I didn't mind the cliché plot about wizards using elements to fight. In fact, I welcome the idea since, while such concepts are overused, they haven't really been any of such anime these days. Also, the attributes of the protagonist being different from the usual shounen hero is also a welcoming change. So why the low rating?
This anime could have been better. It had the potential to be a decent series. As said, the plot is cliché, but not the downright bad sort of cliché. On the contrary, I actually like this sort of "Element" concept. However, this anime failed in its development.
KnS features rather complex relationships (protagonist being haunted by the ghost of his past etc), romance, humor, action, fantasy all packed into it, but it being a short series prevents proper exploration into the individual aspects, thus making this series rather half-baked. The result is that the anime was too stiff and unnatural in the plot progress and development, and several of the scenes felt rather awkward because its attempt to try to achieve too many things in such short series.
Firstly, for having kicked his own clan member out of the clan, the clan leader seems to make up with Kazuma too easily. And it doesn’t make sense that only Kazuma’s dad and several of the "unimportant clan members" are seen having conflicts with Kazuma. Most importantly, it is weird that Kazuma returns to the clan and assists it as if nothing has ever happened. Upon reading the synopsis, I was expecting some serious, complex conflict or climatic confrontation between Kazuma and his clan. Thus, I was quite disappointed when the feud was being resolved in such a causal manner. In short, the feud wasn't resolved very nicely. The only character whom I can understand (and find it logical) for not bearing grudges against Kazuma is Ayano since they are supposed to be childhood friends. Also she was never part of the idea of banishing Kazuma "because he is weak" to begin with, hence also understandable that Kazuma maintained good relations with her and Ren.
The romance in the series was not well developed—but I shall not be too critical on that since KnS was not meant to be romance-based. The comedy was rather average, not that amusing
Character/Dev:(57%) The Redeeming Point
This is both the redeeming point and at the same one of the factors that rendered this anime as being merely average. Now, in a very typical situation of having a character (be it a protagonist or villain) exiled/banished/thrown out/cast out of his/her clan/organization, there are only two generic outcomes: A Lelouch-"anti-hero" type of figure who will plot revenge, or the classic Hero who will "forgive and forget". Enter Kazuma, who I consider the "buffer" between the standard Hero and anti-Hero, arrogant and quite heartless at times, nevertheless not as bad-ass as Yagami Light, Lelouch etc. And this personality of him was what made this series different. However, as mentioned, the development of his personality was very lacking, thus making him a rather static and 2-Dimensional figure, not as dynamic as Light or Lelouch.
The main issue was that KnS did not have enough flashbacks. While usually flashbacks are annoying (such as Naruto with its overkill on flashbacks), in KnS I wish there were more descriptions and in-depth looks into his past, to make his current personality more realistic and believable — thus also make the storyline more engaging.
Animation/Graphics/Design:60%
Good, but it’s pretty average design. However, the fight sequences were a letdown; no impressive fight scenes. Also it gets boring watching Kazuma fight after while, as all he does is stand there and command the power of the Element of Wind.
Music:53%
Average, nothing memorable, same goes for the background music
Summary:
Nothing spectacular. Neither is it bad, everything pretty much average, I didn’t regret watching, just wasn’t impressed by it. That’s all.
Personal overall rating: 60%
Posted by : DaLoneWolf
Posted on : 2008-01-12 
Kaze no Stigma is basically an anime centered around character development. There is a plotline throughout the anime, but it is very hard to find. However, despite this, this anime is still very good even without a big plotline.
Characters 8.5/10
This is the part of the anime that the makers centered on. First they brought in Kazuma and made him out to be a self-centered, super-powerful, somewhat cool guy. Throughout the anime, Kazuma slowly changes through interactions with various people. This is an all to familiar theme that's been done in a lot of anime. However, don't let that turn you off, this anime is still okay for viewing.
The other main character is a teenage girl named Ayano. She is basically a loud, obnoxious girl who has a crush on Kazuma but basically denies it throughout the story.
Music 9/10
I really liked the op for this anime. The scenes really fit well with the music and made it interesting. The ED was okay, but it didn't really 'wow' me like other ED's had. =P
Animation 9/10
The animation for this is very bright. If you are looking for dark anime, (ergo proxy like) this probably isn't for you. =/ The character designs were well thought out and well drawn. The place where I docked a point for this is the animation of the fights. Within the fights, the fire that the Kannagi used looked really 'weak' to me. I felt that the people who made this could have made the powers used (fire/wind/earth) more flared up.
Story 8/10
As I said earlier, there is basically no main plotline for this. This is basically small stories woven together to make an anime. I have to say however, the small stories are interesting and won't dull you at all.
Overall 8.7/10 [I didn't want to give this a solid 8 so I rounded up on the stars =P]
Overall this was a humorous and interesting anime to watch. If you're looking for a really deep and touching plotline, this probably isn't the anime for you. Watch this whenever you have free time, cause this is basically broken down into small stories, so you don't have to watch it all in one sitting ;)
Posted by : leoxjm
Posted on : 2008-01-10
This series was a lot of fun. Sometimes I consider my taste to be rather sophisticated, but sometimes a run-off-the-mill shonen story still gets to me... I guess I considered wrong. Anyway, that is what Kaze no Stigma is: a plain old shonen story in which the main characters wield elemental powers to battle against demons, threats to mankind and, once in a while, each other.
When you really look into it, there is little truly special about this series; it's all about the fights, action, and looking cool. However, in a refreshing break from all my recent fight-based shows, the characters of KnS aren't all about the "I have to get stronger!". Kazuma is already at his peak, it's just that some fights require some different tactics, but he's pretty much always in control. Ayano is a bit green, what she lacks is a cooler head and some discipline, but as far as power goes she has little room for improvement, as she's already pretty tough. Ren is pretty much lacking in age and experience, but he's gone as far as talent and discipline can reasonably take him and even a bit more. It was nice to see the characters focus more on how they could do things they way they were than in learning a new skill or training themselves to be even tougher. Oh, and also, it was good that they didn't call out attacks as well (well, the serious ones, anyway). Aside from summoning the Enraiha or Metatron, which would reasonably need their names to be called that one time, I was happy to see that the characters didn't have names for their moves. The shows 'comedy was also rather effective, at least for me. It wasn't fall-down funny, but it really did amuse me.
As with other shonen shows, KnS has also some darker aspects. I won't discuss them at length because they are predominant toward the end and I don't want to give away spoilers (the beginning is more lighthearted), but some things about the series are pretty damn cruel, and Kazuma's banishment from his family is really the tip of the iceberg as far as his problems and trials go.
As far as characters go, the series is pretty good too. Kazuma isn't the typical "big heart" shonen hero. He's laid back, somewhat arrogant, greedy and, plenty of times, a jerk. And yet still he can be sympathetic, even cool. Considering what is revealed about his past, it's actually kind of surprising that he is the way he is. It'd be easier to expect him to be an apprehensive "I wanna save everyone" bleeding heart or a psycho, isolated nutcase.
The one character that really makes this show for me, though, is the fiery Ayano. Her bouts of anger and frustration at her (and Kazuma's) emotional dishonesty were pretty amusing. Her rivalry to the rather ridiculous Katherine, her reliance on her good friends, her eating cake when she's angry or frustrated... I have to say I enjoyed pretty much every bit of screen time she got. She was such a fun character!
In terms of animation, the show is nothing special. Some frames look pretty neat, but mostly the animation is rather lacking in detail and isn't always as smooth as it could be. It isn't ineffective, by any means, but it could have been a lot better. Fans of awesome animation will be disappointed, but since the standards seemed consistent and the show doesn't look ugly, I have to say that it was alright. I really liked it in terms of design, though.
The music is also unimpressive. Some themes worked well, some not so... especially the OP. I typically skip OPs when I'm tired of them or simply not interested, but in this case I really didn't want to hear it at least half the time. It's not horrible, but not good. I can conceive of people linking it... But I gave it a pass
The shows ending is a bit open; it is rather inconclusive. Unfortunately, I don't think KnS will ever get a follow-up, so a non-trivial part of Kazuma's background remains unknown. That might not have been so bad it it were uninteresting, but I really wanted to know more about his character and I was frustrated by the fact that by then end that wasn't delivered. What was revealed seemed interesting enough to pique my curiosity, but unfortunately we only get some of the answers. We get a big chunk of the picture, but not the whole of it... I doubt everyone will be content with that. I wasn't.
Kaze no Stigma remained a funny, action-packed anime from beginning to end. I thoroughly enjoyed that. It has some flaws, but nothing that gets in the way of the shows entertainment value. I would have given it a 7, but I really liked Ayano a lot... so I give it an 8. This is a worthwhile watch for those into action/fighting anime or those who want a different take on the typical shonen genre. Don't expect too much in the way of surprises or a too clever plot, but it's still pretty neat.
Posted by : Yuun
Posted on : 2007-09-25
Let’s see… for one thing, this anime got high potential but no originality. Superpowers like wind and fire controlling humans is quite common and exists since many years ago. Gatekeepers, and Tokyo Underground both is a good anime of such action genre but yea they’re old but Kaze No Stigma is a 2007 production but honestly speaking, I think Gatekeeper’s animation quality is better than Kaze No Stigma in the sense of actions and animation quality.
I can’t help but notice that this anime is but a low budget series and given enough modal I bet this series could be even better. Story wise was quite nice and interesting, the Hero Kazuma is a little anti-protagonist type and unlike some losers, he means business and you gotta love his maniac laugh. Unlike Lelouch from the anime Code Geass, Kazuma is more towards the light side and not a Psycho Genius like Lelouch.
True, Kazuma is super cool (especially his laughter & sometimes evilness), and Lapis is cute with her cool Huge Sword, but that is pretty much all I can remember about this series. The heroine is pretty much a little let down, however I do agree that this anime a good watch. Sadly the characters were under develop especially the supportive characters despite a 24ep series. I enjoy most of it and really look forward to the 2nd season for the ending is left hanging in some ways.
I hope the animation quality improved and more character development in the 2nd season. That is if there’s 2nd season… sigh~~ A good anime but poorly made… what a waste…
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