What comes to mind when you think about the unique experience that you can only get in the Monogatari series?

Is it the part where the characters, particularly the female characters, tilt their heads whenever they face the camera?

Yes, you tend to see this stuff in the Monogatari anime a lot more than in any other anime with many female characters.

But I won’t go as far as saying it’s a Monogatari series thing considering that I see pretty much the same tilting motion in Koufuku Graffiti anime as well.

If anything, it’s more like a Studio Shaft thing rather than the Monogatari anime thing.

So, if the tilting head motion isn’t the thing that makes the anime unique, what is it then?

Is it the unusual fanservice where Senjougahara seems more than happy to be in the nude right in front of Araragi?

Perhaps you can add this fanservice into the mix as well when Nadeko wears nothing but a bloomer as she tries to trap the God Nadeko.

Of course, the answer is no.

Fanservice is certainly not what makes the Monogatari anime unique in any way.

If there’s one thing that makes the Monogatari series unique is none other than the visual aspect of the anime.

You only see this in the Monogatari series

Okay, I admit I’m not the sort of person who tends to be critical of the animation quality.

So, I’m fine with the subpar animation quality as long as it’s not as horrendous as the one in Full Metal Panic: Invisible Victory anime.

But for someone like me who doesn’t put much emphasis on the animation quality, even I also find the visual aspect in the Monogatari anime splendid.

It’s fascinating to see how they put a creative spin on the typical setting and narrative flow.

Don’t believe me? Here are some of the visual aspects you can only find in the Monogatari anime.

For the record, we’ll use the recent Monogatari anime, Monogatari Series – Off & Monster Season, to illustrate my point.

Cool-looking design for the living space

If you’re familiar with the interior design style in Japan, you may find that their design style tends to fall into the minimalist aesthetic.

With such a minimalist aesthetic, I can bet that you don’t even bat an eye whenever you see a scene that takes place in the living room or perhaps in the bedroom.

Bet you don’t expect to see this kind of aesthetic in the typical Japanese house, do you?

Thanks to Joeschmo’s Gears and Grounds blog for this screencap.

Not only Tsukihi’s bedroom has a spiral staircase that leads to her bed. But her room has a walk-in closet too.

And what’s more fascinating is how spacious her room is considering that the typical room in a Japanese house tends to be smaller in size.

Well, the Araragi household must likely be living in a wealthy neighborhood.

So, it’s not that unusual to see the house be this spacious when the houses in the neighborhood tend to have a much bigger space than usual.

And if you think Tsukihi’s room is the only stylish one, you’ll be hard-pressed to find out that’s never the case at all.

Pretty much every living space in the Monogatari anime seems to defy the conventional interior in the Japanese house.

Even Nadeko’s room is just as stylish as Tsukihi’s room.

The conversation between two people doesn’t need to be in such a bland environment

Let’s be honest here – there’s nothing spectacular about the scenes that revolve around characters exchanging information with one another.

If anything, this kind of conversation tends to take place in such a mundane setting.

But the Monogatari anime proves us otherwise – the scene doesn’t need to be boring only because it takes place in a blah space.

You can make the scene as beautiful as you’d like even if you’re talking about something serious.

This scene in the anime shows us all.

For those who didn’t watch the anime, it’s the scene where Ononoki is discussing with Nadeko how they plan to go up against the God Nadeko.

As you can expect, you’ll see this sort of scene in pretty much all Monogatari anime, not just the recent one.

The monologue scene doesn’t need to be boring

If there’s one thing noticeable about the Monogatari anime is this – it has a lot of monologues.

Sure, some people may find stories with a lot of monologues bore the life out of them.

But the good news is monologues don’t have to be boring when the scenes that revolve around the monologue can be this artistic.

Okay, I admit there’s nothing artistic about a character standing on a crosswalk, save for using the railroad crossing gate as a creative cover-up.

But many monologue scenes in the Monogatari anime tend to have this creative visual aspect.

Let’s say Nadeko is talking about trying to find the direction in her life, the scene will display many kinds of signboards in creative arrangement to reflect her monologue.

Of course, not all monologues will have creative visuals to it.

There are times when you see monologue scenes with just a character and a simple background.

Even with that, they still manage to make the monologue scenes eye-catching to watch.

It’s worth watching

If you’ve been reading my blog long enough, I’m sure you already know by now how much I favor the source material more than the anime adaptation.

But I’m making the exception for the Monogatari series thanks to its eye-catching visual aspects that you can never find elsewhere.

Should you give this anime a try then?

Well, I don’t see anything wrong with it if you’re into supernatural stories that revolve around Japanese folklore.

Sure, it can feel overwhelming to get started with watching the series when the story itself has so many different arcs.

And let’s not forget about the subtitles being all over the screen too if you watch the Japanese dub.

But it sure is worth watching when the story itself is splendid and tops it off with top-notch animation quality.

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Trigger Locked Book 1: The Mind Control Assassins