RAINBOW -二舎六房の七人-

RAINBOW: NISHA ROKUBOU NO SHICHININ

ANIME

STATUS
COMPLETE
EPISODES
26
RELEASE
September 29, 2010
LENGTH
23 min

DESCRIPTION

Seven teenagers in 1955 have to learn to live together in the same hold in the reformatory of Shounan. Confined in a hall where suffering and humiliation are daily, they are waiting for a ray of hope in a dark, incarcerating world. The story follows their life together and how they move on afterwards.

CAST

Rokurouta Sakuragi
Rikiya Koyama
Mario Minakami
Shun Oguri
Jou Yokosuka
Tatsuya Hasome
Noboru Maeda
Romi Park
Tadayoshi Tooyama
Takaya Kuroda
Ryuuji Nomoto
Keiji Fujiwara
Mansaku Matsuura
Tomohiro Waki
Narrator
Megumi Hayashibara
Setsuko Koike
Shihori Kanjiya
Megumi Yokosuka
Megumi Toyoguchi
Lilly
Kaori Yamagata
Ishihara
Kouji Ishii
Kumagai
Tsuyoshi Aoki
Aritou
Masaki Terasoma
Junko Yoshida
Houko Kuwashima
Gisuke Sasaki
Takaya Hashi

EPISODES

Dubbed

| | |

Not available on crunchyroll

RELATED TO RAINBOW: NISHA ROKUBOU NO SHICHININ

Cover Art for RAINBOW: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin

MANGA DramaRAINBOW: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin

REVIEWS

Grizy
75/100
A colorful and enjoyable story about true friendship and bonds that sometimes doesn't reach its full potential.
Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin or Rainbow for short is a story set in 1950s Japan about seven delinquents who get sent to a reformatory school which at first glance seems nothing short of some of the worst juvenile detention centers. Right in the first 5 minutes of the first episode viewers are led to believe they are not in for a happy ride. This review will contain minor spoilers but nothing that will ruin your enjoyment of the show so be at ease.
THE STORY AND CHARCTERS
Our story starts off with six of our seven main characters being sent to the reformatory school where they meet our seventh main character "An-chan" in cell 2-6. Now if you have watched any piece of entertainment before it won't be hard to notice the "good guys" and "bad guys". It doesn't get more black and white than that and the anime sticks to the rule that good guys are entirely good and bad guys bad. The head physician of the institute is...well let's say manipulative and the guard in charge of cell 2-6 is a regular "bad guy, detests the cellmates for some reason" type of person.

Slowly we get to know about the circumstances of every character and how they ended up where they are right now and this is where we can start to notice some plot holes and inconsistencies. I will go over them at the end. After hearing their backstory it becomes even more clear that the writer is really trying to push that all of the main characters don't have an ounce of evil in them and we're supposed to like them. Fair enough, I like simple characters from time to time.

Throughout the course of their stay our protagonists bond more and more with each other and share their dreams which they hope to reach when they get released from the center. Because of such bonds they are even able to handle the brutal treatment given to them by "Ishihara", the guard in charge of their cell and sometimes willingly sacrifice themselves to help each other. Finding that small ray of hope despite the grim situation of the characters is what made me look forward the most to new episodes.

The second half of the show is our “disciplinary school graduates” trying their hardest to reach their dreams and they all help each other at every step of that. Each character (except Soldier (┬┬﹏┬┬) ) gets a small arc dedicated to them but these arcs get very repetitive and predictable. They all start with our main characters in some problem or facing unfair treatment but triumph over every problem with the power of friendship. Not to mention the reliance on “Mario” is a bit too much and Soldier and Joe barely get any screen time (at least Joe had an arc. Soldier got done dirty). The characters don’t go through any growth either and they’re the same as they were in episode one.
THE ART AND MUSIC
There’s not much to say about the art of the show since it’s nothing unique. The only thing that comes to mind is the obviously “evil” character designs for the bad guys and normal designs for the good guys. The music is very good and amplifies the emotion portrayed in every scene by a lot. There’s also a lot of narration present which may be a hit or miss for people but I liked the addition.
THE NOT SO GOOD PART ABOUT THE SHOW
This part will have a bit more spoilers than the rest of the review.

As I mentioned above there are a lot of plot holes and inconsistencies in the show. Firstly why didn’t An-chan just stay quiet when he received the note and waited for his release and then showed it to the police. He clearly isn’t dumb enough to not do that. The second time also he could’ve just stayed in the hospital for one month and then get released but instead decided to come back and receive way worse treatment than he would’ve at the hospital. He also made the situation worse for the rest of the characters even if we ignore the grand escape.

The physician Dr. Sasaki also has way too much power and we never see anyone else exercise any sort of control over the institute. The good guard Kumagai was very easily killed and neither did the main characters show any hint of sadness nor did the police conduct any investigation. The show just forgot about him. Poor guy. Speaking of police, they serve a purpose only when it’s convenient for some character. When Joe admitted to the orphan manager raping him the police guards standing there didn’t take any action. Dr. Sasaki admits that police will conduct an investigation 48 hours after someone from the center escapes but that didn’t happen with our cast. No investigation occurred for the huge fire either.

When An-chan emptied the gun near the military camp surely someone must’ve heard him right? In the second half of the show the person who attacked the bar manager and Mario was clearly at fault and could’ve very easily been detained as there was enough evidence. Baremoto also trusted a prostitute too easily and decided to ignore the advice of his friend when the show puts so much emphasis on the importance of friendship and the bonds our delinquents developed. None of the characters did anything when he straight up disappeared for a month either. Some friendship.

Overall this show is very enjoyable and I love how the characters slowly bond over the course of the show but it does have a lot of plot inconsistencies and very simple characters. So as long as you don't mind them or can't notice them you will have a great time.
Continue on AniList
alized
89/100
in a life detriment by the horrors of the miserable,unknown and unfaithful. their bond is their treasure
review contains no spoilers

“I wonder…what they are doing right now. There were seven men who survived rather grand days at the bottom of the cauldron of hell, inside a cell, fifty years ago.

Dark, gritty, and powerful is how i would describe this show. the dark tone of this anime leaves almost no time for any comedy. this show is a good portrayal of post WWII Japan and of general Japanese-American sentiment. its a story of 7 friends facing lifes struggles by sticking with each other till the end even in the most cruelest moments of tragedy. Trust is something that is earned. This anime teaches you that even though people and this world may be cruel, there is a friend in this world that you are destined to meet. This friend will always have your back and stick with you through the very end. Even if you do not have that friend right now, this anime becomes that comfort for you.

it is not one of those animes you watch for its escapism or happy entertainment value, its one of those Animes with serious themes and really makes you contemplate and ponder about the brutal realities in life. Rainbow is categorised in the Seinen genre as it does unquestionably appeal to a mature male demographic because of the grim, dark and rebellious undertone throughout the series, so be warned about its explicit imagery considering there are many explicit scenes highlighting r*pe, torture, psychological abuse and more.

every character is fleshed out in the 2nd part of the show. while alot of people may have had a problem with a 2nd half becomes of something that happened. i had no problem with it and thought it still maintained the good vibes from this anime. I loved all the seven characters and the character development is really awesome I lived with each one of every moment and I enjoyed every part of it. the villians are literally pure evil and the designs makes them look like fucking devils.

now lets tak about sakuragi or "an chan/bro" the best character

the man, the bro, the gigachad an chan is the oldest of the seven inmates. a troubled man who has learnt to live looking forward, a character with a huge heart and street wisedom that fights every single day to find a bit of happiness in this dark world. He's pretty well developed and is easy to feel him as a natural leader while he guides the boys through that dark path. strong benevolent young man who is treasured by his friends and considered a role model to them and to myself. he quickly gains their respect in a short period of time. he gets beat up by the guards for the sake of his friends and somehow gets used to it. i liked his arc more than the others.Sakuragi knowing of a dark secret that unfolded years ago in the Reform Jail. Is haunted endlessly by a corrupt guard & perverted Doctor, who's goal is nothing more than keep that dark secret from reaching the light of day. Forcing Sakuragi in an empty life behind bars. Following this exhilarating story of the bonds of friendship, dreams, & the struggle for survival.

Art and sound:

MADHOUSE is madhouse after all. the art fits perfectly with the tone of the series. the animation isnt that bad as well with gorgeous music and a banger opening. the visual style has atmosphere and the painterly stills during key moments are gorgeous, full of emotion. opening is awesome and makes you hyped up to watch the anime and the ending is a good cool down song that makes you just want to process everything that's happened. The OSTs are also very memorable and fitting.

if i break down some of the negatives it would probably be that there are some corny scenes that got me cringe the entire time but really the realistic characters are truly what makes this anime special.

this anime uses the same concept as Shawshank Redemption, Prison Break, Green Mile, all these fantastic dramas have one thing in common: prison. Prison is naturally going to pull viewers in, but why, I don't know. Perhaps its the despair people feel when they are stripped of everything, even their dignity, and how they struggle to survive in their hostile environment. Or maybe its the strong bonds created through prisoners holding on to hope by sharing it with prisoners who understand the pain and sorrow. Whatever the case may be, Rainbow is nothing short of a great prison drama.

Final thoughts:

i enjoyed this alot more than i thought i would, while i wouldnt consider it as a masterpiece, it was a very beautiful mature story. and definitely one of the better animes out their that deserves more recognition. Rainbow gives us the light at the end of the tunnel at just the right times and the strength of the friendship and bond between the seven boys powers the viewer through all the despair. It connects us to the characters even more and you truly end up sympathizing and rooting for these guys throughout the show. It truly is awe-inspiring how the guys kept a positive outlook even in the worst of circumstances. Some elements I particularly liked about this Anime such as the calm demeanour of the narration within the Anime, I felt, added to an effectively compelling atmosphere they were trying to depict and the range of colours and props used throughout the Anime also contributed to an already fixed tonal nature and represents its time period commendably.

TL;DR: good shit plus bros before hoes
Continue on AniList