I haven't had to think this hard to understand an anime for a while. Soul Taker is easily the second most difficult to understand anime I've ever seen (Lain is 1st place). However, after the 8th episode or so it starts to mellow out a little so you can understand the ending a little better, I guess. Soul Taker is by no means a complicated anime once you start to understand it, it actually has a pretty basic plot underneath its utterly convoluted presentation.

First of all, Soul Taker has an artistic style that is... just downright weird. Misplaced colors, gross overuse of shading, and ... it's just WEIRD. Quite often I was left confused and/or speechless after a scene that would have just been boring had a normal art style been used. The "vibrant" colors used in Soul Taker certainly bring life to it. Unfortunately, the amount of shading used really brings it down a little bit. I know they were trying to make a melancholic atmosphere but they went waaay overboard. Many scenes are almost entirely black, or a dark gray. On the other hand, many other scenes contain bright purple, red, blue, and every other color you can name.

Alright, so if you haven't been totally alienated by the presentation then you'll love the story. Although it is your usual "fight monsters to recover memory" plot used oh so many times, it really works on so many levels. I was often left on the edge of my seat as the episodes progressed and new details were revealed. Unfortunately, like Serial Experiments: Lain, I really wasn't in the mood to watch consecutive episodes of Soul Taker. It really is a lot to take in and a lot of people really hate Soul Taker because of how confusing it is.

Also, Soul Taker (the character) KICKS ASS. Best design EVER.