Well the name and the image of The Millenium Earl (the antagonist) put me off at first as I thought this manga would be too childish but I watch a few episodes of the anime out of sheer boredom and was hooked. Initially I loved it, the plot was intriguing and the characters interesting. Lately though I'm beginning to habour a deep desire to shoot Lenalee. She started off a kick-ass fighter and has degraded into a pathetic, useless crybaby. I hate it when a female character ends up being present solely to show of the chivalry of the guys and give the group a weak link to protect so they can do the whole 'I'll never forgive you. I won't give up' speech. Also the plot is lagging. They focus more on pumping lots of fight scenes into in that actually developing the storyline and it only drags the plot on. The previously fantastic art style has morphed into something unappealing to the point of being off-putting and the same themes seem to be repeated. There is still potential here as the plot thickens but this series no longer has me eagerly await new releases. It still surpasses the likes of Naruto and Bleach though.

Plot = 7/10 (fight scenes get a bit tiresome after a while)
Art = 9/10
Characters = 8.5/10
Overall = 8/10

... Last updated on October 29th, 2008, 6:09pm

^_^ I love this manga! Allen and Rinali and Lord Camelot and Rabi! They're all so cute! Great Characters, a nice story, really pretty art. It's really great. ^^

I loved the English anime, with the voice acting of Kanda and Allen and Kroary and Lavi and all the others! I bought both seasons in English and can't wait for the next season!!! I finished reading the series quickly because i also wanted to know what was going to happen next. I love it, especially Allen's reaction to Cross! I love all the random hilarious moments!!

... Last updated on July 5th, 2013, 12:15am

theres quite a few fillers, but overall a pretty nice anime. Yu Kanda is definitely Eye candy

I heard about DGM awhile ago, but I never managed to start the series until recently. I read the first vol to the latest chapters within a few days, and I have to admit there is potential.

Plot: Young orphan joins secret organization to defeat "akuma" and he meets a variety of different characters and learns about his past.

Starting out it feels episodic, with Allen going out for each mission and for many of the action fights it's confusing with the sudden changes in POV or when he "levels up". Halfway from into the series, we finally get to the main idea about antagonists and some background history about the Black Order. There are short chapters devoted to some of the supporting characters and their individual histories.

Characters: Large cast of main and supporting characters. I admit I started to become slightly confused since people appear and disappear from parts of the chapters frequently. I feel that it's somewhat too busy, and some of the characters don't really have much time devoted to their individual stories. Still I find Allen relatively likable as a MC and no one was extremely annoying in any of chapters.

Art: Yes, I did notice a big change from the beginning chapters to the latest chapter released. I'm in favor of the new art changes, the line work is cleaner and I find it easier to follow the panels. There is a strong "gothic" look to DGM with strong use of contrasting colors. Unfortunately, some of the fight scenes are confusing and tend to take over multiple chapters.

Recommended: Yes. It starts out kind of loosely plotted, but later on it shows potential for a interesting story.

Edit: It restarted approx back in '15 but so far I'm still totally lost. Since it's a quarterly release I hope they plan to resolve some of the major mysteries SOON. I'm debating if I want to re-read the series since so much time has passed b/t chapters. I wish they had a summary before each new volume.

e: it's been 7 yrs and I have no idea how and what the plot line ended up. I feel like the story will continue in my 30s in a confusing way.

... Last updated on April 23rd, 2019, 4:38pm

i stopped reading this series when the kanda arc was almost over cause it was such a mess but i decided to give it another chance ch 202-205 looks very promising my advice if you stopped reading this manga cause of the mess try reading ch 202 and above

I LOVE D.Gray-Man because it has potential to be up there with Bleach and Naruto and One Piece.

Sure enoguh, the fight scenes are hard to understand but if the mangaka gets noting but critisism, she might end the series and turn her attention to something else.

I love all the charachters and the BEST part is, the setting is all over the world.

It kind of annoys me how most manga's are only set in Japan, like Japan is the center of everything and in this, all the Charachters have English/Chinese/Japanese names!

Its a really great manga/anime which gets better as the story progresses,

Storyline: it's quite original, as it mostly revolves around a power source called "Innocence" & also involves goth-looking Akuma. the plot is quite compelling & somewhat complex, but it drags on after a while & you'll soon realise that most of the chapters are spent on fighting & more fighting. the setting of the entire story is what makes this series different, it's a cross between Medieval & Modern England; I commend the mangaka for that.

Characters: Just like all Shounen manga, there's an array of characters in this series. The male protagonist, Allen Walker, is quite admirable because you can see how he develops in personality and strength. I can actually witness how he's also looking a whole lot more mature & well-built as the chapters progress. However, he can be a little naive & stupid, but then most mangaka like to create their heroes that way (I don't know why either). The rest of the cast are all right (the "Chosen" ones that the story centers on are Allen, Kanda, Lavi, Linali, Crow & Miranda), but nobody really stands out, except maybe Crow & Lavi. & to be honest, I find Miranda way cooler than Linali, not to mention more tolerable too. The woman just transformed into a vision of beauty; I think the mangaka should give her more credit, rather than just focusing on Linali.

Artwork: Very gothic and dark, which is awesome to see. The art & graphics also improve as you continue reading each volume. It's a fabulous sight for me so far.

Negatives: Linali/Linalee (whatever). She's reduced to a pathetic crybaby who's sheltered and fawned over by practically every male character she meets now. Seriously, can someone return the poor girl's dignity? I try to ignore her existence unless I really have no other choice.

Conclusion: A great series worth the read, but could also be improved on here & there.

D.Gray-Man has drawn me in like no shounen story ever has, and has made me do something that no other series in its genre has ever made me do before. It has made me absolutely love not only the main character, but every other character, major or minor, in the series.

In all other shounen I've read, my most favorite character has been one of the minor characters, since I found the main character to be a little dull and cutout. Ichigo and Naruto are two shounen heroes I've never been able to like very much. Allen is different. From the very first chapter, I found myself loving the characters and slipping into the story with ease. Despite the fact that I usually read more drama than comedy, I found most of the funny parts to be genuinely funny, and enjoyed them.

It's not to say that it doesn't fall into some of the shounen pittfalls (battles-that-go-on-forever-and-ever, anyone?) but for the most part, scenes are resolved quickly, and lengthy battles are well-paced. You'll laugh and cry with the characters.

Besides that, the artwork is beautiful. I love the character designs, and the art style has evolved for the better since the beginning.

D.Gray-Man is a wonderful series - a great read that sucks you right in and doesn't let go until it's over. I'm eagerly awaiting future chapters. This one has really intrigued me. I'd recommend it to anyone.

in terms of artwork and character design, it has a sort of gothic tone and style to it, so i'll give that a plus.as for the storyline, it has a number of mysteries that you'd really want some answers, but unfortunately, there's nothing epic at an overall point of view. i can't help but feel that most of the time is mainly spent on fights. nevertheless, its word a read.