before i write, this series was originally a light novel (read it if you want to)
NOTE: the summary, IT's "yellow scarves" not "yellow turbans" the yellow guys don't even wear a turbans.

This series includes just too many things for me to list.
Basically it's a slice of life with supernatural/dark aspects = a very unique storyline.
Also with the different perspectives in the story (i think there are 6-8 different perspectives going on at once).

The plot for me was a big surprise. I just thought it was slice of life until Celty showed up. Also there is a big twist in Celty's quest midway through the series (if you have a very imaginative mind and can imagine wat the twist is ..errr I Apologise for the spoiler). Without spoiling anything, it feels unfinished as the "happy endings" don't happen instead wat i would call "half-happy endings" happen. As in the characters don't achieve wat they set out to do but they have achieved something else (obviously something happy/ good) (show less)

This was an anime that had all the things I was looking for: good music, plot twists, action, fantastic animation and of course amazing voice actors in both English and Japanese.
Durarara had an unexpected dark plot to it (should have guessed from the dark animation) but that did not detract any of the entertainment from it. The only downside was probably the story felt a little unfinished... only a little (seeing as Celty never did accomplish her initial goal). However the character introductions, layout of the episodes and speed meshed together well to create an anime that left me begging for more.
The dialogue held quite a number of my favourite voice actors from English dub's Johnny Bosch and Crispen Freemen to Japanese dub's Hiroshi Kamiya and Jun Fukuyama. They were all well suited to each individual character regardless of the language and brought the characters more to life. The character themselves were well done. The unexpected character traits that are revealed over the course of the story kept me second guessing everything and also added to the comedy.
Lastly the music, its been awhile since I found an anime where I loved the opening and ending songs so it gathered a full thumb up from me. The soundtrack within the anime was well chosen/written and was used at the appropriate times. The soundtrack also didn't draw away any attention from what was going in the scene but added to the mood of the moment which was good.

Now I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who likes action, school life tinged with a small dose of romance, good old slap stick comedy and of course a large amount of dark conspiracies. It moves at a good speed so there's never really a dull moment in the anime and the comedy flows through the anime the whole way through. (show less)

pros
+ unique presentation with interesting characters, a well-structured plotline and at times quite deep dialogue
+ connection to reality, shows how myths and legends still exist in modern cities and how we live in a small world
+ combination of action, comedy, slice-of-life, secrets, gangs, and a deep story
cons
- there's a lot (a very lot) of dialogue so be prepared if you mind that
- takes a few episodes to really start off
- kind of changes main characters in the middle (i was like: wtf?!)

conclusion: well worth the time if you don't mind a lot of dialogue/a plotline that may seem slow at times. shows the connections between people, the importance of having something precious in life and the responsibility that comes with that. lovable and memorable characters, even the villain. very well worth giving a try imo but i'd rather recommend it for a mature audience. oh yeah, and if you like durarara, be sure to check out baccano/the other way around. ^^

peace. (show less)