High school student Kei Kurono meets up with childhood friend Kato Masaru one day by chance encounter. As the two are in the subway chatting, Kato notices a homeless man on the subway train tracks. Kato goes down on to the tracks to move the man off the tracks and persuades Kei to help. But soon after helping the man, they are hit by a subway train and killed... or maybe not. Immediately after being hit by the train, the two are suddenly in an apartment from which they can't leave, along with some other people who were also in some near death experience. In this apartment there is also a black sphere called Gantz. Kei and the others have to obey Gantz's rules if they want to live. They have to participate in missions in which the objective is to eliminate aliens. But who or what are these aliens? are Kei, Kato and the others alive or dead? Written by Neuman
It has come to my attention that the last reviewer for this Anime series must have been someone between the ages of 12 and 14, still stuck on the "DragonballZ fight, fight fight!" mentality and simply ignored the bigger picture. While this show has it's fair share of action, the show focuses on the inner livings of diverse human types being put through varying dangerous situations. The show presents humanity for what it (in the mind of the creator, that is), a huge group of cowards, glory seekers, murderers and all together selfish people. Among them are thrown a few gems, innocent bystanders (children and the elderly) and people that follow a humane moral code; of course, their only role is to provide hope to the viewer, to show that humanity does have it's good sides, however insignificant.
I am left with the impression that Gantz is in itself, purgatory. Passing judgment on the humans he "saves" from absolute death by forcing them to go through a series of trials. Those worthy, the ones that "survive" the trials, regardless of past crimes, will be rewarded, and those that fail will continue their lifeline by resuming their deaths.