Dr. Stone: Science Future Part 3

I have a great word to describe this anime: GOAT, which stands for "Greatest Of All Time". So here goes my review if I may: Drama: GOAT. Music: GOAT. Story: GOAT. Comedy: GOAT. Realism: GOAT. Graphics: GOAT Science: GOAT. Characters: GOAT. Plot-twist: GOAT. World-development: GOAT. Frequency of publishing episodes: GOAT. Anime overall: GOAT. So literally the review of all seasons in the end of the day: GOAT. Unique story, science-related jokes and story-development, interesting characters and really sudden plot-twists which make you finish the series as soon as it is possible. It is lovely that the seasons were released sooner than I started to miss them, it is unbelievable. Not sure what else can I say, it was a beautiful adventure and I did not even bother with the final score. Hope there will be more anime like this in the future.

This season suffers from terrible pacing from the start. Leaving the viewer with conflicting thoughts on both wanting to see the end quickly while wanting a slower pace. Not only is the pacing poor, but the series main antagonist 'Why-man' is poorly written and their motivations are dull to the point where the viewer questions why the writer even bothered hyping up the climax at all. For a series about science and intelligence, having an antagonist that has the logic and reasoning of a child is insulting. Having everything magically work out in the end with no effort whatsoever, while simultaneously imposing a 'everything works out if you just believe' mindset is the poorest decision you can make for a storyline. The entire show feels like a waste of time when the last 2 episodes just undo all of the hard work and effort that went into the series. Toxic positivity has ruined yet another great show and for what? A quick resolution to a problem that was built up over 4 seasons and thousands of years in the show.

Dr stone worked a lot better when it was structured around working up the tech tree to a clearly defined goal, while showing the steps of collecting and processing resources along the way. As the series went on, this aspect all but disappeared and the main cast either already had whatever they needed or instantly collected materials offscreen. The Why man story and constant new character introductions that gradually took priority were never really that strong or particularly interesting to learn about. This season Sort of returns to the older formula as they focus on building a rocket, but it still glosses over a lot of details so they could get to the ending faster. It felt pretty unearned that they were able to build a computer, rocket, space suits and so on in a couple episodes. The ultimate revelation of what why man is, and its motivations fall completely flat and would have been better if they had not been explained at all. Instead of going all in on explaining why man and the petrification, it would have been nice to explore more conflicting ideologies over how exactly to restore society and who should be unfrozen.

7 years, we waited 7 years to finally get the resolution to the story, the answer to our questions, the climax, the final confrontation to the villain... was it worth it?.... Hell no. One of the most interesting aspect of this show from the start, was the process, not the goal. Seen our protagonist made the road map and build the project piece by piece, having difficulties on the road, trial and error, find different solutions to unexpected problems so in the end, when it was finally ready it felt completely worth it, earned, it felt like a real victory. The more the show progressed, the more this aspect is left behind to focus more in characters and the story itself than the science, I was ok with this approach for a simple reason, the story made sense and was interesting, and even tho the science and road map aspect were less important there where still very present and were a core part of the story. The final season the road map is only shown as a exposition, everything the protagonist do is almost instantaneous, they literally build millions of pieces in a single episode and without a single problem, all the conflicts of the show disappear so the story can be rush to the finish line, years fly by like is nothing and the protagonist remain unchanged... for a show where science and accuracy were so important, the fact that this aspect was "forgotten" or simply overlooked feels so... dumb. And the most important part of the entire story, the resolution, felt so... dumb, for a story so well thought, it felt like the ending was written by a completely different person, it feels so poorly thought and so underwhelming its painful, disappointing. Honestly the ending was not worth the wait, I didnt expect a masterful writing but damn man at least make it logic and interesting, which it wasnt. ====SPOILER WARNING, PERSONAL RANT ABOUT THE ENDING==== And then there is the final resolution to the biggest question since the beginning of the show, to be honest I found very clever and interesting the fact that the Medusas were Whyman all along, my problem is the reason behind the entire petrificarían, the answer to "why?" was so freaking stupid... "we petrified you to show you immortality so you were so grateful you would repair us and replicate us... but you werent as smart as we thought so... ups... and yeah were leaving now so peace, no harm feeling, see ya"... and that was it... Really? That's it? That is the resolution? The climax? The answer? REALLY? I mean bro that is so anticlimactic, so underwhelming, is such a dumb conclusion and it almost feels like a joke, again for a story so well thought, the fact that the entire humanity was petrified by an "upsie" of a supposedly highly advance "intelligence" machine is literally braindead... And then the whole "time machine" makes it even worse... Its such a lazy resolution, instead on focusing in the rebuild of the world and how the petrification changed humanity, nah bro lets make a time machine to change the past and not even explain how that will work and if its gonna have an impact of the present, it was just for show, to make it look more "cool" i guess and in the process the author destroyed the surviving interesting factor of the story... ====SPOILER WARNING, PERSONAL RANT ABOUT THE ENDING====

Well, Dr. Stone is over, and not only do I have mixed feelings on the final season, I have them for the series as a whole. I think the big issue with this series will always be the constant deceleration of the tension in conjunction with the acceleration of the plot. Like many video games, Dr. Stone snowballs as the party acquires more characters and technology, sapping the fun out of it. Nothing ever captured the excitement of that first struggle against Tsukasa and those first interactions with Ishigami Village. The conflicts on Treasure Island and with Dr. Xeno made fine attempts, but they don’t give the same excitement of building from nothing. I still enjoyed myself for the most part, but this final cour is where my enjoyment kind of collapsed. There are no more mind games, chases, or races against the clock to keep the tension, it’s just a straight shot to the endgame. With so little left to do, the bloated cast mostly just annoyed me. Does anyone like Pumpkin Girl? I hate her. Why is she still around? Sorry to any Pumpkin Girl fans. I almost liked an arc one of these characters had at the end, but then I felt like it got walked back. It also feels like this cour was made to annoy me specifically by having so much focus on Ryusui. Ha-ha! Ha-ha! HA-HA! I do like the ending twist. Why-man’s identity makes them a very good complement to Senku. And overall, I’m glad I kept watching. Dr. Stone was always that silly, digestible show I could put on at the beginning of a watch night to settle in while I ate supper. Despite my opinion of this cour being that it’s mediocre, I don’t consider it a failure. It never became so bad that I felt like I wasted my time with this series. If you’re starting to feel your time’s been wasted, maybe this is the time you want to cut your losses, you won’t be missing much. If you’re this far in and still like it, ten billion percent, give it a watch.

i had heard tale of the ending to dr stone but i did not believe it. i was a fool while not the unmitigated disaster most paint it as, it is, more than anything, a big letdown, especially considering how long ive been with this show and these characters. this must be a symptom of the increasingly massive scale of both the inventions and the size of the crew. with the former issue we obviously end up on the moon when only a few years ago we were still trying to figure out how most efficiently to dig a hole, but with the latter issue we just seemingly forget about once very major characters (not even mentioning my quiet understated favorites like nikki, hyoga, or that hot ass pilot lady that showed up once, or that other hot ass pink haired spy lady that showed up twice. no not THAT hot ass pink haired spy lady, the OTHER one) and instead focus on relative newbies like xeno or ryusui and a handful of the og like gen or suika. even tsukasa, once a major antagonist (see: the best antagonist) turned essential ally, pretty much spends most of this season mugging and nodding knowingly. a season which, mind you, is pretty much without conflict, and is just centered around solving the mystery thats been plaguing our team since way in the early aughts: who is slade? sorry. who is why-man?? disregarding the total shark jump that is the answer to the aforementioned mystery, the steady decline of the series season after season absolutely must be studied. the waters of what happen and when are obviously a bit murky at this point, but revisiting my scores to the prior seasons i see a pretty consistent dip in enjoyment all the way up until now. id say ive been in denial, especially in regards to this being the last time we see these guys, but also because, once upon a time, dr stone was honestly really fucking good, and really fucking fresh. the animation is great, the designs from og mangaka boichi are obviously superb, and the genre blending nature of the story felt unique and seamless. i really do think the biggest fault in this was just flying so close to the sun that, by the time the very last invention gets revealed, weve gone from "movie about guys drag racing in the streets of los angeles" to "mega blockbuster action/spy franchise that occasionally involves guys driving cars", just with significantly less vin diesel ill always hold dr stone close to my heart but unfortunately this one will be yet another series in a long line of good shows with bad endings. "bad" does feel a tad hyperbolic, but when you circle back to see our humble beginnings, one does earn a few manly tears upon seeing how it all wrapped up: bad pacing, uninteresting conflict, unsatisfying reveal. id say i wont be picking up the manga any time soon, but my abject desperation to see nikki again may prove to be stronger than any of my other baser survival instincts so stay tuned for that, i guess.

I'm leaving the series with mixed feelings. Despite starting with scifi elements (the petrification beam) the first seasons felt mostly grounded in real sciences to me. It was explained how they could build certain things and what they did felt achievable in the given timeframes given that they had a super genius who knows everything about 21st century science. This feeling of groundedness got lost for me throughout the seasons. That is not to say I came to dislike the show. I think it has many great characters, many great story moments. All in all I still think the show is "exhilarating". Still, building a rocket to fly to the moon in a few years in the stone world? No way. And I don't understand why the author even felt the need to rush the timeline like that. Give the Stone World 20 or 30 years to rebuild itself and then let them build a rocket or something. But what actually peeved me were the last two episodes. To me, the motivation of the villain didn't make sense. And with that I can't say I liked the conclusion. And without a great conclusion the show will always leave a bittersweet aftertaste in my mouth. But this was immediately followed by building a time machine in the last episode? What is the author thinking?! This doesn't have anything to do with science anymore, it's pure fiction. I can't take this ending seriously.

It feels a little emotional saying goodbye to the Stone World. This anime was basically one of my intrusive thoughts brought to life, and seeing every little scientific invention explained and put to use was both informative and genuinely fun to watch. Plot & Characters This part managed to keep the curiosity alive, even though it had less content since this was a more peaceful part of their journey. The story doesn't have the same intensity as the earlier parts, but I actually enjoyed the slower approach here. The characters also stayed consistent with what we've seen throughout the series, and by this point, seeing everyone come together genuinely feels rewarding. Animation Pretty much the same as the previous seasons. Nothing exceptional, but that's not really what Dr. Stone is about. The animation does its job well enough, especially when it comes to showing the inventions and scientific concepts. Recommendation A satisfying and emotional way to say goodbye to the Stone World. It may not have the same excitement as the earlier parts, but it wraps up the journey at a nice pace without overstaying its welcome. Thank you, Dr. Stone. “It was an exhilarating journey.”

It's been a colorful 7-year run for this 10 billion percent amazing anime series! As Senku said his famous line and the very first opening song, "Good Morning World," started playing, I finally let out the tears I'd been holding back. Storyline, character development, animation, music -- everything is good. They gave a fresh take on how enjoyable science really is and how interesting it is as part of the whole plot. Truly one of the best new-generation shounen anime! The only negative part for me is that this part 3 was kinda fast-paced. I wasn't able to soak up the emotions longer, but still it ended in a crazy awesome way!

The last few seasons were probably the weakest for me, but it was still a great ending for the entire cast. The Why-Man reveal also felt a bit anti-climactic. The journey to space arc was fun, but it definitely felt rushed. I know it’s not meant to be completely realistic, but I wish they had put more effort into developing that part of the story. I honestly think they should’ve added a few more episodes for the space arc. Still, props to them for knowing when to end it instead of dragging the series out. The post-credits scene was the perfect cherry on top. What a way to end the series. It was a very good ride. Thank you for the last 7 years, Dr. Stone! 💚 10 billion percent, I’ll miss this series!

It’s actually a bit sad to write this review, but there’s no getting around it—it’s an emotional moment. *Dr. Stone* has been a big part of my life; I’ve followed it since the very first episode, and it captivated me so deeply that I’m truly saddened to see it end. Senku’s story about reviving civilization is incredible, and it even manages to teach a few things about science along the way—though that isn't the main focus. The Treasure Island arcs were among the best, but the finale was amazing; seeing this is something my 2019 self would have definitely loved to witness. That said, I do feel the animation quality dipped a bit—it became very "stiff" (almost like a slideshow)—and the story felt somewhat rushed at times. Achievements happened almost instantly, skipping some of the series' signature "grind," though I suppose that was necessary to advance the final plot. Honestly, I loved it. I adored following this anime from start to finish, eagerly awaiting every new episode, but now it’s over. I’m so glad I followed the journey! I recommend this anime to everyone.

My GOAT series finally ended, and it makes me sad, but all good things must come to an end eventually. This part, season, or whatever you like to call it, doesn't really have as much conflict as previous seasons. It's mostly about working toward building the rocket ship to get into space and restoring the world one continent, or let's really say, one area at a time. They're not only reviving people to save humanity, but also to gain more workers and resources to help build the rocket so they can ultimately face Why-Man. Just speaking about this season, it did feel a bit rushed at times, but I suppose they still cover the basics of how certain things are made, built, or even how they work. Like, literally, when I read the manga, that's how I learned that the world's internet is connected through massive cables that span across the depths of the ocean. That's just one example of something you'll learn this season, but there's a ton of other stuff too. Eventually, the series reaches its conclusion. Some people may feel satisfied with the ending they gave us, while others might be like, "Whaaa... that's it??" But I'd have to say I'm satisfied with the way they ended it. We might even get some bonus OVA episodes later on, which would be nice. Now, talking about the series as a whole, it was a fun adventure full of surprises, learning, action, and connections between the characters. This will definitely be an anime I'll remember for years to come. The overall series is a 10/10 for me, even with some of the flaws it may have. But back to the season. Music: It's good. I like that ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION sings the opening. It's not beating the Casanova opening that Dr.Stone had, but it's still good. The ending is alright as well. Overall: Good season, great series. This season is a solid 8/10, while the series as a whole is an easy 10/10 for me. Thank you to the creators of Dr. Stone for the awesome story! It's been one exciting adventure thats for sure!

Dr. Stone has always been a wild ride where punching a tree leads to making a Smartphone, and this part continues that insane energy with full force. When looking at the bright side, this chapter shines in what the anime does best. It was an incredible scientific journey. We learned so much real science in a way that was both brilliant and hilarious. The show never loses sight of its true vision. From day one, Senku had two giant goals: bring back all eight billion people and slap Why Man in the face. The story stayed completely faithful to those core promises without getting lost in pointless side quests. To top it all off, the ending wraps things up beautifully, leaving a great taste in your mouth. However, no experiment is perfect without a few failed trial runs. The biggest flaw comes from how the conflict with Xeno's crew was handled. Usually, watching Senku turn enemies into allies is pure storytelling magic because the writing makes it feel earned. With Xeno's group, things felt different. Xeno and his team crossed serious red lines that crossed way too many moral boundaries. Even though Senku needed Xeno's brainpower to build a moon rocket, forcing them into the friendly science squad felt weak. It almost looked like a desperate last card played by the writers to keep the plot moving somewhat logically. While it is easy to let it slide to enjoy the rest of the show, it still leaves a slightly annoying aftertaste. Overall, it is a fun and solid conclusion that balances heavy science with pure comedy, keeping the spirit of humanity's comeback alive until the end.

One last dance never hurts. The scientific realm embarks on its final adventure. Reaching the moon is the goal. This final installment is a faithful adaptation of the manga because it faces the same challenges. Inventions are developed much more quickly compared to the early days. One could argue that this was due to leaving the Stone Age behind and entering the Industrial Revolution. Even so, those would be mere attempts to justify something that doesn’t sit right with the viewer. The story feels rushed and doesn’t quite wrap up properly. A couple of script tweaks to speed up the story—as I said, a faithful adaptation. Of all the anime’s seasons, we could even go so far as to say this is the worst of them all. It’s a season where sentimentality can be a double-edged sword if you let yourself get carried away by it. It’s normal to be fond of a work; that’s valid. Even so, I don’t think we should ignore the obvious flaws. While the identity of the Whyman is the most logical and coherent answer, it doesn’t quite convince us entirely. Any other fantasy—like a time traveler or Rei (manga fans will know)—would only open up more holes in the script. The aliens were the most logical explanation in this story. Even so, it feels unsatisfying. It was the story’s biggest mystery, and they didn’t give it enough time to make the motivations of these mechanical parasites clear. It seems like they were just sitting on the moon doing nothing. Despite being aware of all its flaws, that doesn't stop it from being a fun anime. You already know all the characters, so all you have to do is let yourself be carried away by this final journey, regardless of the inconsistencies. I don't think this is anyone's favorite season. It's a season that, with time, will lose the melancholic effect it has from having watched it as it aired. Even so, Dr. Stone will remain in the memories of many for what it made us experience and feel. The joy of reinventing Christmas, the pride of seeing villagers become scientists, the adrenaline of the chase across North America, the sadness of seeing a little girl alone in the Amazon. All those emotions are strong enough, not to forgive the ending, but to learn to live with it. Dr. Stone was with us for a long time, so it's a source of pride to say that I was here when the scientific kingdom was founded. Just as I was here when it ended.

this has been my biggest problem with the show across all its seasons. whenever it's focused on the science, it's genuinely excitin, that's the show's biggest strength and the main reason people tune in. but outside of that, there's just not much there. ive never found the characters in dr.stone all that interesting. most of them only exist to move the plot forward or explain the science. the comedy rarely( and by that i mean never) lands for me and a lot of the characters feel too similar. like u have the physically strong ones and then the smart ones but very few of them feel like fully developed people. on top of that, nobody ever seems to die even when they probably should, so the stakes never feel real. the final reveal was fine in the moment but it wasn't memorable and it doesn't really change the characters or the themes in any meaningful way. whole thing just feels very mid.

-As a final part of the anime, it does its job well and preserves the essence of Dr Stone, that blend of science, adventure, humor, strategy and faith in human progress that always made the work special, i liked that this installment took the story to a much larger scale, it is no longer just about surviving in a petrified world or inventing specific devices, it becomes about confronting directly the central mystery of the petrification, about Whyman and about the future of all humanity, it also feels like a reward for those who have followed the journey from the beginning, because many advances, characters and pieces of accumulated knowledge end up making sense in the finale, i consider it very good, but i would not rank it higher as an individual entry because it has irregularities. at times it feels somewhat rushed, as if it wants to close many important threads in a short time, and that can reduce the emotional weight of certain discoveries or resolutions, there are parts where the scientific logic remains fun and creative, but the rhythm of problem, solution and progress can feel more functional than impactful, it does not fail badly, but it leaves the impression that some ideas could have been given more room to breathe, especially considering this is a section that apparently closes such a large work, that said, i separate my evaluation of this part from my evaluation of Dr Stone as a whole, this installment, for me, is an 8, good and worthy though not perfect, the entire Dr Stone series together easily sits at a high 9 and could even contend for a 10 because its concept is extremely strong, the real power is not just fighting but thinking, inventing, cooperating and rebuilding the world with knowledge, it has flaws, some convenient solutions, uneven pacing in certain arcs and moments where some characters are less developed, but its identity, its message and its ability to make science exciting are so unique that they compensate a great deal, that is why my score for this installment is an 8 while Dr Stone as a complete anime is a high 9, a very special and inspiring work with enough personality to nearly reach a 10 if you value everything it brings to the genre, if that "To Be Continued" ends up opening a follow up like 4D Science or another project, i am not sure whether i would include it in my overall rating for the anime or treat it as a separate continuation. (ESP) Como parte final del anime cumple bien, mantiene la esencia de Dr Stone, esa mezcla de ciencia, aventura, humor, estrategia y fe en el progreso humano que siempre hizo especial a la obra, me gustó que esta parte llevara la historia a una escala mucho más grande, ya no solo de sobrevivir en el mundo de piedra o crear inventos específicos, sino de enfrentar directamente el misterio central de la petrificación, Whyman y el futuro de toda la humanidad, también se siente como una recompensa para quienes siguieron el viaje desde el inicio, porque muchos avances, personajes y conocimientos acumulados terminan teniendo sentido dentro del cierre, la considero muy buena, pero no la pondría más alta como entrega individual porque también tiene irregularidades, en algunos momentos se siente algo rápida, como si quisiera cerrar muchas piezas importantes en poco tiempo, y eso puede quitarle peso emocional a ciertos descubrimientos o resoluciones, también hay partes donde la lógica científica sigue siendo divertida y creativa, pero el ritmo de problema, solución y avance puede sentirse más funcional que impactante, no es que falle gravemente, pero si deja la sensación de que algunas ideas podían respirar mas, especialmente tratándose de una parte que aparentemente cierra una obra tan grande, dicho eso, separaría bastante mi valoración de esta parte y la valoración de Dr Stone como obra completa, esta entrega, para mi queda en 8, pero toda la obra de Dr Stone en conjunto está fácilmente en un alto 9, incluso podría competir por llegar al rango de 10, porque su concepto es demasiado fuerte, donde el verdadero poder no es solo pelear, sino pensar, inventar, cooperar y reconstruir el mundo con conocimiento, tiene sus defectos, algunas soluciones convenientes, ritmo irregular en ciertos arcos y momentos donde algunos personajes quedan menos desarrollados, pero su identidad, su mensaje y su capacidad para hacer emocionante la ciencia son tan únicos que compensan muchísimo, por eso mi valoración como entrega individual es un 8, buena y digna, aunque no perfecta, pero Dr Stone como anime completo es un 9 alto, una obra muy especial, inspiradora y con suficiente personalidad como para rozar el 10 si uno valora todo lo que aporta al género, y si ese "To Be Continued" termina abriendo una continuación como 4D Science u otro proyecto, no se si incluirla para mi valoración total de esta obra o si sería otra obra de continuación separada como proyecto de esta.

An incredible anime from Season 1 all the way to the end. Absolutely amazing and a solid 10/10. The story was executed so well, and I genuinely loved how everything came together throughout the series. Every single character deserves respect because everyone had their own contribution towards bringing civilization back. I just love these guys, especially Sai, Ryusui, Stanley, Senku, Xeno, and the entire team. Every character had something important to offer, and watching them work together to rebuild the world was truly amazing. The animation was superb from beginning to end, and the story kept me interested throughout. Although, I do feel like the last season ended a little too quickly. I really wish we had more episodes. I wanted to see more of Xeno, Senku, and the team working together. This is the kind of anime I really love. It shows the importance of knowledge, teamwork, determination, and having the motivation to keep going even when something seems impossible. Well, it is true. Nothing is impossible in this world. 👍🏻

(Series Review - This series is consistent enough to where I felt giving every season the same score was appropriate) Dr. Stone is exactly what it says on the tin. You go in expecting a Shonen-ified journey to rebuild civilization from scratch, and that's what you get. "The premise is so interesting! Why haven't I heard more about this series? The writing must not be that good." That's what I, and I'm sure many others, first thought when they stumbled across Dr. Stone, and those expectations were exactly met. The series had the potential to be something great, but with such an arduous task as speedrunning the entirety of human civilization in 237 chapters (or about 100 episodes) placed in front of the mangaka, that was never very likely. Dr. Stone executes its premise well. You do get to see civilization develop, and the progress is as slow as you'd expect while at the same time being surprisingly fast at times, achieving a decent pace that never gets too boring. The science is all real, but the series isn't technical enough to turn off viewers who lack any science background. At the same time, it never feels like the relevant science is being [i]completely[/i] ignored (though it may to viewers who do have some level of understanding). And there is conflict, our cast isn't just aimlessly citybuilding. But herein lies the core problem of the series. One of Dr. Stone's greatest strengths is probably the believability of its characters. It's rare to find someone acting out of character or with a completely nonsensical motivation (unless played as a gag). However, this setting does not breed conflict when characters act rationally. With the inciting incident reseting the world, there are essentially no preexisting ties: no allegences to maintain, no long-harbored grudges, no debts to be repaid, and no organizations with plans to execute. The result is as follows: The antagonist has a motivation that is mostly reasonable; our rational hero Senku disagrees with them; he makes some kind of diplomatic settlement to resolve the conflict; and afterwards, they have no reason to fight him anymore. Repeat. Why would a reasonable character try to stop the guy who essentially has no ambitions other than advancing society and returning the world to its original state? And so, any internal conflict within the characters or our main group as a whole is extremely scarce. Without conflict, you have no drama. And without drama, you have no depth. There is an exception to this rule, of course, but that antagonist is simply a pure evil villain who wants power for power's sake, has no depth whatsoever, and never appears after the arc he's introduced in. Dr. Stone is not a bad series, but this lack of depth makes it difficult to recommend. It is very much a "fun watch" - following the plot is entertaining enough, but don't expect to have to think too hard about complications, character arcs, or themes. Come for the science, and stay for the science, that's about all there is to it. (Score breakdown w/brief explanation below, but the above ends the main review) Characters: 6/10 The main cast is quite fun, characterization is relatively strong for a series that lacks major character arcs. Everyone is believable and in character most of the time, but over 100 episodes, that does get a little boring. Scared character is scared, cunning character is cunning, greedy character is greedy, etc. Themes: 6/10 (this is a stretch) This series does have something to say about society, and about the transcendental nature of scientific progress above individual human strife. The thing is, it's just kind of... obvious. Anyone who has ever heard or thought about this topic before will probably have gotten to the same level of understanding that the series leaves you with in the end. "Science is elegant", there you go. Not bad, but the lack of conflict prevents the series from adding anything meaningful to the conversation. Plot: 7/10 As I've already explained, the series does what it sets out to do well. The conflicts are nothing gripping, but they're passable. The societal development is fun to watch. It's genuinely interesting to see Senku and gang dart around different human inventions in their struggle to both restore society and defend themselves against their attackers, sometimes going wildly out of order from what the audience (and most of the cast) expect. Execution: Writing Quality - 7/10 Art Style - Approve Animation Quality - Passable Audio - Unnoticable Overall - 7/10 The dialouge is nothing exceptional, but it's rare to find a bad or nonsensical line. The humor doesn't usually land, but it can get a smile out of you and never gets [i]that[/i] annoying, even at the worst of times. I don't have much to say about the art - this isn't a series you would be expecting stunning visuals or animation from anyway. Enjoyment Value: 7/10 Despite my many gripes with the series, it is something different. It almost scratches the itch of a Shonen Hero's Journey, but with scientific developments instead of training arcs and powerups. If that wasn't what I wanted, I would never have started watching it; it did deliver for me. Final Score: 6.67/10

Science, as it's presented within Dr. Stone, might be one of the most interesting and thoroughly developed characters presented in an anime. That said, Science is not a person, but it shapes everything within Dr. Stone with mostly fantastic results. The problems usually come from things that happen to not be science, such as characters, motivations, shark-jumping plot-twists, and more. Despite many shortcomings, the power and intrigue of Science is so strong that the show somehow manages to work for most of it's runtime, except for when it doesn't, of course. As a whole, I actually really enjoyed my time watching Dr. Stone. I would probably give the series in it's entirety a 7 or an 8. I didn't care for how the series was ended, but given the way the author had basically written themselves into a corner I don't think it would have been possible to come up with anything better at that point. The ending of this show was sealed the moment Why Man showed up on the radio for the first time. I'm not even opposed to the addition of supernatural technology like the Medusas, but I do wish they felt more like proper inclusions in this stone world. I thought long and hard about both what would happen with the Why Man, as well as what I thought would be the most satisfying thing to happen. And at a certain point it occurred to me that nothing they could do with or to the Why Man could possibly meet my expectations. So because of that, I lowered my expectations and they were largely met with something I consider to be acceptable but not particularly good. At a certain point I stopped enjoying Dr. Stone as a thoughtful and provocative anime, and more as a popcorn fun casual anime, which I think is a shame because it had a lot of potential to be more meaningful and deep, while still keeping the comedic and fun parts that people have come to expect from Dr. Stone. Dr. Stone is a show that is almost entirely about science, but sometimes it isn't, and that's when the cracks start to show. Subjects like philosophy are brought up now and then but they're largely brushed aside in pursuit of scientific progress and plot progression. I don't want to go over Tsukasa's arc in-depth because that was so long ago, but I do want to mention it because it's the first time I noticed this pattern. Whether you agree or not with Tsukasa's argument is one thing, but once his "bad" philosophy is dealt with, he's essentially pushed into a corner and it's never brought up again. It's funny in that somehow, I'm able to accept the fact that Senku could somehow count every second of his life for 1000 years, of that there's a magical alien device than can somehow petrify people with voice commands, but when character personalities and motivations are unrealistic, that's where my immersion seems to break. Xeno is very much like Tsukasa in this way. Once he was "defeated" by Senku, he basically shut up for the rest of the series and let Senku and science take the wheel, occasionally chiming in for cheeky one-liners. Stanley is essentially a psychopath murderer with probable PTSD and he just sort of randomly stops being bloodthirsty at a certain point for...some reason. He might just be happy now because Xeno is safe, we don't get much explanation on this aside from a few actions and lines of dialogue. In the worst examples antagonists like Ibara are basically retconned because of how basic and two-dimensional they were. There are so many interesting antagonists that could have been introduced into this world where science and progress is starting to appear once again, and I think it's a shame that many of these ideas were left unexplored. One of the problems with Dr. Stone in the later seasons is that there are so many characters, and so many different science things to do, that it's just impossible for characters to get proper development. It's very rare for characters to not be one-note gags, and when they aren't they often don't get the time they needed to develop properly. This is also a problem One Piece has, an anime that has far less main characters than this one does. The final season feels a lot like filler, outside of the last couple episodes that explain what Why Man is, and what happens after that point. A new member is recruited, someone who's good with numbers, but his introduction and inclusion feels very rushed. Moving up the tech tree into spaceships is interesting, but it's also such complex science that it becomes hard for people watching to parse and remember. Earlier seasons featuring simpler science felt engaging because learning how to make something like soap is practical and it feels useful, but rocket science might be a bit much for some. The Why Man is not framed as a particularly threatening antagonist even though he very well could be. The result is a season which feels much more relaxed and casual than previous ones, which may be enjoyable to some, but I personally found it a bit redundant. The final reveal, Senku's final invention, is honestly a perfect cliffhanger to end on. Silly enough to match the tone of what's already happened, but practical enough to make sense as the next step up on the science ladder. By this point the story has already become impossible to believe in as real in any way so I'm at least glad they decided to embrace the absurdity on some level. In short, the last season of Dr. Stone was pretty good, and although it doesn't meet the highs of previous seasons, I think it mostly sticks the landing, even if I have lots of problems with different shortcomings of the anime, mainly that of character progression, motivations and belivability. But it's easy enough to look past parts you don't like because no other anime acts as a love letter to science in the same way or with the same level of passion that Dr. Stone does.

Like previous seasons, this season adhered to the major plot points and provided an enjoyable revisit to the manga's story. I didn't remember everything so it was nice to watch things unfold again and remember the things I forgot along the way. It was also nice to watch everything come to a satisfying conclusion for tone, theme, and the characters themselves as well., but I already knew I would like the ending because I liked it in the manga too. If you enjoyed the previous seasons, you'll likely enjoy this one too. If you didn't enjoy previous seasons I would recommend not wasting your time.