A mysterious, god-granted substance known as Innocence is the only weapon in humanity's arsenal with the power to take down the Millennium Earl and his hordes of monstrous akuma. A select few individuals are Accommodators, with the power to utilize Innocence as anti-akuma weapons and therefore the qualifications to become Exorcists of the Black Order. Unfortunately, pieces of Innocence has been scattered all over the planet by Noah's Great Flood, and in addition to battling akuma wherever they surface to prey on the innocent, the Exorcists have been charged with locating the missing Innocence—before the Earl does.

Okay, so the above is Weekly Shounen Jump dares broach the subject so early.

In fact, as an adaptation of its source material, the first thirteen episodes which constitute the first boxset for Season One are remarkable primarily for the weakness of their narrative construction. You barely have time to get to know the seemingly meek-hearted yet super-powered Allen Walker before the Black Order's back story gets dumped on you. Then the next two episodes place misguided focus on a subplot of negligible importance that involves a trip to a ruined city and a living doll. And so forth. The script writers waste time in places they should not have belabored, while skimming quickly over the parts that need both time and innovative ideas to impart well. All that truly remains intact are the action scenes, which have a listless, workmanlike feel.

At least the characters are appealing. Fan favorites Kamui and Kanda in particular are sketched out strongly, with their dominant traits facing forward, and Allen is a nice change of pace from your usual, shrill shounen protagonist. Also, TMS Entertainment has remained faithful to Hoshino's beautifully rendered fantasy world; even if the quality of the animation and soundtrack are, at the very best, forgettable, there is still plenty of richly hued eye candy to distract one from the series' many flaws.

As for the English FUNimation producers not to have taken the text into better consideration!

With 103 episodes total, the D.Gray-man anime represents a considerable commitment of time. But if you are in it for the occasional action scene with Tim Burton-esque, gothic fantasy flair, you could do much worse. Check your critical faculties at the door, and you might not come away wholly disappointed.