Steins;Gate
Type: Manga
Author: Nitroplus, Yomi Sarachi
Published: September 26, 2009 to July 27, 2013
There's a Steins;Gate manga. I had no idea until the other day, when my kids stumbled upon it at the mall. It consists of three volumes (of course I read it as an omnibus), the first of which was published right around the time of the game's release, with the rest of it coming years later for some reason.
I won't recap the plot here, as I already did that in my anime review (uh, scroll down) so allow me to instead state the obvious: if you think three volumes isn't enough to capture the entire Steins;Gate story you'd be right. This is heavily abridged, in ways that are obvious. To note a few obvious omissions and alterations: Mr. Braun isn't present when Suzuha is introduced (actually Mr. Braun is barely here at all), Okabe doesn't lug the IBN 5100 back to the lab, Nae is rarely present and her "subway" scene is missing, Suzaha's search for her father is shortened, the acquisition of the pins from the "hey mister" guy is completely gone, Kurisu’s time travel lecture is excised, etc. Point being: this shouldn't be read by anyone who hasn't already experienced the VN and/or anime. It's a tasty snack to indulge in after.
Condensation aside, this is a fun and funny read. The translation is excellent and there's actually some clarification regarding a couple of confusing moments in other Steins;Gate media. The art is good, and like the anime it makes no attempt to emulate the very unique style from the game. The characters look much more neotenous, at times downright babyish. Well, except for those scenes where they're drawn with muscles and gigachad chins for dramatic effect. Certain images in here had me roflmaoing in a way the game/anime never did. The full-color art (of the ladiez) that pops up from time to time is absolutely stunning. Poster worthy. While this ultimately comes across as more of a Steins;Gate montage than a full-fledged epic it still gets a recommendaton. Hands off my bananas!!
Rating: 3.5/5
Reviewed: 10/17/25
Steins;Gate
Type: Series
Studio: White Fox
Aired: April 6, 2011 to September 14, 2011
Yup, it's Steins;Gate. This is one of the most revered animes of all time. Was #1 on MyAnimeList for a while, before Frieren showed up and started mogging. And I have to side with the mob here, this is fantastic. Steins;Gate the anime is, of course, an adaptation of Steins;Gate the visual novel. The VN is also known for its excellence, and White Fox was smart to craft a fairly straightforward adaptation. Unlike other "VN animes" (take Air, for instance), the Steins;Gate anime completely dispenses with most of the optional routes/content and focuses solely on the true route/ending. Additionally, some of the more edgy and violent content is missing from the anime, particularly one stabby scene with a little girl (to use burger ratings, the game is M while the anime is TV-14).
The protagonist is one Rintaro Okabe, a university student living in the Akihabara district of Tokyo. He also goes by Kyouma Hououin, a self-imposed "mad scientist" alter ego. Okabe is seemingly paranoid and delusional, frequently ranting about being on the run from the "Organization" that tracks such brilliant researchers. He's also prone to engaging in phone conversations with absolutely no one, and bursting into fits of maniacal laughter. Okabe's mad scientist obsession has resulted in him renting a space above a CRT shop, where he tinkers on gadgets with his pals Daru, an otaku hacker, and Mayuri, the adorable and caring childhood friend (tuturu~). One day Okabe and his pals decide to attend a "time travel conference" -- which Okabe soon ditches after deriding the presenter as a fraud. He quickly runs into a girl named Kurisu Makise, who he recognizes as a brilliant young scientist who typically resides in America and has published some critically important work. On his way out of the building, Okabe stumbles onto Kurisu once again, murdered at the end of a desolate hallway. When attempting to inform Daru via text, Okabe notices a sudden shift in his surroundings, as hundreds of pedestrians simply vanish. Even stranger, Kurisu turns up again soon enough -- alive. The members of the "Future Gadget Laboratory" (now featuring Kurisu) pinpoint the cause: a modified microwave they've created, one that was designed to heat food remotely via cell phone, has the power to send text messages into the past. Said messages can influence the behavior of "past" individuals, thus causing immediate modifications to the current worldline. Naturally, the ragtag team begins to experiment liberally, with Kurisu making use of her technical acumen to modify the device further. Such actions result in some seriously unforeseen consequences, and bring the group into contact with some unsavory folks looking to monopolize time traveling technology.
The story and characters are incredibly endearing. To start: the protagonist. Okabe, despite (and because of) all quirks, is probably the best male hero of any visual novel (turned anime). He's kind, empathetic, and a dear friend to all close to him -- a far cry from the weirdo pervert oblivious retards that front so many similar stories. The supporting cast is also extraordinarily memorable. The laboratory membership grows as the game progresses, each time graced with another distinctive personality. There's the hyperactive maid café employee extraordinaire Faris; the shy ever-texting Moeka; the androgynous shrine "maiden" Luka; the cyclist and CRT shop part-timer Suzuha. Finally, there are those that aren't affiliated with the lab: the crotchety rent-hiking CRT shop owner "Mr. Braun" and his young timid daughter. There's great cohesion among the "lab mems" and the constant banter is a sight to behold. The lab itself just feels so cozy and inviting. This is a rather humorous series, replete with net/hacker slang and tons of nerdy otaku jokes.
One unexpected and delightful aspect of the Steins;Gate storyline is its willingness to blend fiction with not only science and technology, but also real-life mysteries and conspiracies. For instance: Okabe is ticked off at the game's opening lecturer, as he believes the man is plagiarizing the works of John Titor. As in, the "real" John Titor, the man who made a splash on various message boards decades ago, claiming to be a time traveler from 2036. John Titor (both the "real" one and the in-game one) was searching for an IBM 5100 (renamed "IBN 5100" here), as it was said to contain crucial code necessary to avoid a technological calamity. And the villains of Steins;Gate? CERN ("SERN") -- yes, the CERN, the French research institute and particle physics laboratory, is explicitly labelled as corrupt and evil. They're in the midst of mastering their own time traveling methods to order to rule the past, present, and future. There are also some more obscure references for the gaming/web nerds thrown into the mix as well. For instance, for his "super hacking" Daru utilizes the power of the Sharp X68000, the 1987 twin-towered 16-bit gaming titan. As for the "Future Gadget Laboratory" -- it has a website here in the real world.
As far as aesthetics go, well, some may be upset to see that the dark and hazy look of the game isn't replicated on television. This looks like normal anime. I mean, it's fine, often beautiful, but normal. The gorgeous instrumental tracks of the game (like my favorite, "Noisy Times") are rarely played here, though the full-band songs with vocals pop up frequently, and are excellent. The voice actors from the game returned for the anime, all being absolutely stellar. Especially Okabe. But, BUT, I have a small confession to make. I've watched this start-to-finish a couple of times and the most recent time was with the DUB (my kids wanted to watch the show with me and didn't want to deal with muh words on the screen). The dub grew on me though, even though it can get goofy and features some dated American slang and references (one of the characters mentions "Leeroy Jenkins" -- oof). Also, the series contains a couple of (in)famous jokes centered around the fact that the protagonist speaks poor English. This sort of thing obviously can't be replicated in a dub, and attempts to do so are futile but funny. (In one key scene, Okabe meets a black dude who's a street vendor. In the original script Okabe assumes the man is Western and then speaks to him in slang-laden broken English. In the dub, Okabe speaks "jive" -- amazing how the dub ends up "more racist" despite Westoid sensibilities).
I'm kind of ambivalent about episode 25. Episode 24 ends beautifully, the same way the VN does. An absolutely gorgeous tearjerker moment that wraps up the whole story... and then 25 begins and it's a corny bonus scenario. Still amusing though; watching this one subbed is mandatory if only to hear the Japanese voice actors say "Hawaiian style" and "LA." As terrific as this anime is, and it may be my all-time favorite, be aware that it's no substitute for the VN, which has more content and a "vibe" that can't quite be replicated here. Best to play the VN, watch this, and then play Steins;Gate Elite, the VN based on the anime! And don't forget that Steins;Gate is also technically a (loose) sequel, so there's the Chaos;Head game, its remake, its anime and -- and *explodes*...
Rating: 5/5
Reviewed: 08/30/25
Steins;Gate: The Movie - Load Region of Déjà Vu
Type: Movie
Studio: White Fox
Aired: April 20, 2013
Yup it's the Steins;Gate movie. This isn't good. Maybe I should end the review right there. Seriously though, what a let down. The existence of this feels obligatory, like it's here just to ride the coattails of the vastly superior VN / show. I don't think this is canon, or it is but the writers used the "time travel" plot to explain away how incoherent this is. All the time travel in this movie contradicts and undermines what was painfully laid out in meticulous detail in the media that precedes it. Nothing makes sense, every scene just kind of emerges from the ether and attaches itself to the previous one. Entire concepts critical to the games (like "Reading Steiner") are ditched and the new "déjà vu" concept is a poor replacement.
This could all be (somewhat) forgivable if the film were holistically fun or silly or action-packed. And yeah, there are some decent moments. The opening and closing segments are pretty amusing. The "first kiss" scene is adorable. There's fan service and cute anime girls, okay. The issue is that Okabe, the hugely charismatic hero from every other piece of Steins;Gate media, is missing. As in, that's the plot. He's gone and everyone else is looking for him, first and foremost Kurisu. The rest of the cast can't carry the plot forward. And they're "sad" the entire time. The dialogue is so weepy and then there are these extended internal monologue moments where Kurisu talks about how bummed she is -- it's too much. Feels overly long at 90 minutes. My kids couldn't get into this either -- their favorite part was the Escaflowne trailer we watched at the end.
Rating: 2/5
Reviewed: 10/12/25