This is the best anime I have ever seen. I have been frantically looking for the manga of the same title, but none have been published to date in English.<br /><br />This story entwines the deepest of human (and not so human) emotions in a cruel yet truthful way. The ideas of amnesia, revenge, abuse, love, hate, trauma, racism and so on are cleverly mixed to produce a masterpiece. <br /><br />This anime has the fault of having a rather... shocking first scene, and this would discourage sensitive people from watching it. On the other hand, it made me want to continue watching it more eagerly.<br /><br />Another aspect I loved of this was the sceneries. You know those 'blank' cuts which are shown before any of the story occur, and serve to set the setting? Those are gorgeous in Elfen Lied. The tranquillity is astounding. I would hang one up on my wall if I could.<br /><br />I also really like the music. The theme song "Lilium", sung in Latin still sends chills down my spine, even after hearing it so many times.<br /><br />All in all, Elfen lied is the best anime to date in all aspects of it. 10/10. As a final note, I must confess that this is the one and only video I actually cried to at the end. Literally.