KAZE NO STIGMA

3 out of 5 stars.

Earth, water, fire and air are typically seen as the four basic elements planet Earth is comprised of. Many stories have revolved around mankind's ability to harness these powers through mystical means, with The Last Airbender franchise being the most recent and successful example to date. Kaze no Stigma follows this tradition of elemental control in the context of modern Japan, as Kazuma Yagami fights off yoma (demons) with the help of the Kannagi family of fire magic users.

Kazuma Yagami.

Kaze no Stigma is thankfully a well-rounded show that doesn't remain too dismal or too silly for very long. It starts off by introducing us to Kazuma Kannagi, born into the famous Kannagi bloodline and so, as per his family's long-established agreement with the Blaze Spirit King, should have been able to manipulate flame. To the dismay of Kazuma's father, his son could not control fire and he was banished out of shame. Kazuma lives out his in exile in another country and changes his last name to Yagami. When Kazuma returns to Japan, we find he is able to control wind magic and is far more powerful than anyone in the Kannagi family of fire users. Coincidentally, a wind magic user has been killing off the Kannagi branch family members, and the first person they assume is guilty is Kazuma. When Kazuma realizes he's been framed, he and the Kannagi family are forced to work together in order to figure out who the killer really is.

Categorically speaking Kaze no Stigma is a strange mix of action/comedy/romance/supernatural elements glued together. The series is only twenty-four episodes long but there are quite a few arcs and fillers and they take full advantage of the aforementioned elements. The result is a show that manages to entertain while rarely being stale or dull. Unfortunately, the arcs aren't able to smoothly coalesce into an overarching plot the series can focus on. What occurs during the first episodes are not related to what happens mid-season or the last few episodes. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but with such a short series it's odd to focus on making brief stand-alone arcs that cannot be developed into their own exceptional narratives. The last arc especially felt like there was a lot of information that should have been conveyed to viewers but never was, and never will be because Kaze no Stigma is only one season long.


The main characters of Kaze no Stigma were Kazuma Yagami and Ayano Kannagi, the latter being the future leader of the Kannagi clan. Their interactions provide for the show's romantic and comedic moments. Kazuma is a confident playboy who flirts with women as if it were an innate skill. His personality is mostly subdued and overall he's perfectly rational and cool. Ayano is the complete opposite, with a spirit as fiery as her red hair. She isn't very good at battle and Kazuma is usually the one to bail her out of trouble. During their early encounters Ayano doesn't trust Kazuma at all, and he doesn't care if she does. She soon grows attatched to him, but never admits it and so reduces any potential romance to adolescent flirtations and innuendo. The relationship unfolds as if the writers were obligated to follow an unwritten code for how standard anime romance is supposed to work: 1) Flirtation, 2) Make no romantic progress, 3) Repeat steps 1 and 2. Even so, the expectation of certain events did not make their narrative unfolding any less intriguing.

There are other notable characters in the show, including Ayano's classmates Yukari and Nanase; Catherine McDonald, an American fire user who rivals Ayano for Kazuma's love; Kazuma's father Genma, and most importantly Ren Kannagi, Kazuma's brother. Ren is initially presented as being terribly wimpy and whiny, his sole purpose to bridge the years-old schism between Kazuma and the Kannagi family. As the series progresses Ren adopts the confidence and boldness his brother possesses, and by the end of the second arc Ren is a character viewers can look forward to seeing.

Ren saves the day with his fire magic.

Gonzo was the animation studio for Kaze no Stigma. The animation was mostly decent, if nothing else, which can be said for much of Gonzo's material. With the exception of the highly stylized Afro Samurai series, Gonzo shows have similar aesthetics, including a cheerful and vibrant color palette that is sometimes more distracting and conspicuous than it should be. Gonzo did a good job on Kaze no Stigma. No complaints here.

I personally liked the show a lot. It certainly wasn't fantastic, but Kaze no Stigma isn't a trainwreck either. This happens to be one of the rare instances I think a show would benefit from having another season. The characters were funny and began to mature just as the show was concluding, which makes the rushed and conspicuously incomplete final arc all the more dissatifying. As always, I encourage others to watch anything The Anime Guardians review for themselves before making judgments. In the case of this show, I'll say that Kaze no Stigma provides viewers an opportunity to watch a decent and entertaining show that falls shy of achieving greatness because of its narrative pacing.

* Kaze no Stigma was produced by Gonzo.
- Elijah Lee