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To be an Otaku is every young man’s dream. To live in a constant state of bliss by playing video games, collecting figures, and enjoying manga while washing it down with copious amounts of soda is a beautiful fantasy. To hide away from all the world's woes in a Container box, no less, is the dream of all young men, at least those that avoid human contact. Right? Humans can be cruel, so why not avoid them at all costs? After all, I have my fantasy girl by my side, so what else could I need?

“Chaos;Head” is a twelve-episode anime released in 2008. It is based on the visual novel video game created and produced by 5pb and Nitroplus. The video game was released before the anime and contained about twenty-two hours of gameplay. Chaos;Head is the first in a series that includes its sequel Chaos;Child, and an OVA released called Chaos;Child Silent Sky. The latter are episodes 13 and 14 of the Chaos;Child series. Also included in the Chaos;Head universe are Steins;Gate, Steins;Gate 0, Occultic;Nine and Robotics;Notes. At the time of writing, the alternate timeline anime are available for streaming via Crunchyroll or the soon-to-be-defunct Funimation.

Directorial duties for Chaos;Head were handled by Takaaki Ishiyama, who has been involved with numerous anime, including 86, Dominion Tank Police, and Peach Boy Riverside, to name a few. His work mainly comprises episode direction or storyboards, which suggests he should know his way around an anime. The script was handled by Toshiki Inoue, whose name probably doesn’t ring a bell but the anime he has worked on will. He handled scripting duties for 22 episodes of Death Note and has worked on Fullmetal Alchemist, Dragon Ball, and Dr. Slump.

Chaos;Head reads like a lot of sci-fi, psychological media. It’s a mixture of philosophy, spirituality, and psychology wrapped around a candy coating of science fiction. Its main protagonists have varying abilities, such as clairvoyance, mind-reading, and a knack for making delusions a reality, Gigalomaniacs as they are called. Mix in a Kurabara’s “jigen tou,” and it’s a recipe for an anime that’s common in the sum of its parts.

A young recluse named Takumi Nishijō spends most of his time glued to his computer, flanked by empty bottles of unlabeled Coke products. He is a slacker who lives alone and rarely attends school. He’s easily classified as a NEET who is deathly cautious of human interaction, almost to the point of terror, save his sister, who occasionally pops by to check up on him.

Doing what he does best, Takumi stumbles across a video while online. The footage he views is of a murder that he presumes has already been committed. While out and about, he stumbles across an alley like the one in the picture with the same murder as the one he saw online. Terrified, his mind breaks, and he falls into a constant state of anxiety and paranoia, which remain for most of the series. He becomes an annoying protagonist with his constant yelling and screaming. The girl he sees resembles a classmate, and though he is fearful, events push him further out of his shell to uncover a sinister mystery.

As Takumi's world shifts around him, the viewer is allowed to swim in the chaos festering in his brain. We see his fetish for digital girls displayed in the fictional character Seira. Seira is the main protagonist of a video game called Blood Tune. When she appears, it is often as his resident girlfriend. She is his voice of reason, often advising him to stay away from the 3-D world. Unfortunately, Takami begins to break down as he realizes he is being watched online and offline, and he is terrified of the General (Shogun), who he believes wants him dead.

It is ironic that a sociopathic protagonist would find himself flanked by numerous beautiful women, but it is what it is. So yes, it's a harem. Takumi is joined by his sister Nanami who often scolds Takami for being a jerk of a brother. When they are together, they often fight, as Takami is annoyed by her and shows little affection.

As Takami calls her, Rimi, or the “Demon girl,” is a student at his high school and the girl he believes he saw in the video. Takami is initially terrified of Rimi as he considers her part of the New-Gen murders. The New-Gen Madness is a series of mysterious homicides that occur throughout Shibuya, Japan. The cause of the murders was unknown at first. Still, numerous theories abounded, with the populace believing it might be the work or a cult and somehow associated with a series of mysterious earthquakes.

Rounding out Takumi’s harem are Sena Aoi, Kozue Onihara, Yuu Kusunoki, and Ayase Kishimoto. Don’t expect much character development for these ladies, as they are par for the course. This is not to say that they are dull; they come complete with backstories; however, there isn't much in the way of compelling stories that would compel the viewer to root for them. If I were to feel anything for Takumi’s companions, I would have to side with Sena and Ayase.

There’s nothing wrong with a story that’s been done before, provided it adds to the intrigue or has excellent animation. Unfortunately, I have no idea what went wrong, but Madhouse dropped the ball. The animation was inconsistent, wavering from redeemable to benign. Perhaps Madhouse was still basking in the glow of Claymore, or maybe they used up most of their colors animating Redline. I don’t know, but big money wasn’t backing this anime. It’s made even more apparent by the opening and ending themes which seemed out of place for an anime of this type. All is not lost, though; the supporting music throughout the anime was stellar.

Despite its flawed story, questionable pacing, underdeveloped characters, and a list of complaints, I found this anime enjoyable. It kept me interested until episode five and before my attention span could unravel. I was compelled to see this anime until its conclusion. Like many anime, I found the antagonist dull and plagued by the usual villain tropes seen in anime and television. One redeemable quality is the music. "Haritsuke no Misa" and "Harukanaru Idiyona" by Phantasm performed in episode three are excellent songs.

Can I recommend this anime? No. It’s a decent anime with a decent premise that could not be expanded upon in its limited episode count. That negative is apparent, considering the visual novel is over twenty-plus hours of content. I can’t say much regarding the dub, but it’s recommended if you're viewing the anime on Funimation. Unfortunately, Crunchyroll has not moved Chaos;Head into its catalog. The Funimation version shows double subtitling making for a laborious watch. Perhaps they will work out the kinks. Maybe it's just a delusion. I’d skip the anime and go with the visual novel game instead.