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Short thread about how I felt about the #Yasuke anime on Netflix. Let's start with what I really enjoyed about the series...
Pros:
-MAPPA blesses us with the visuals once again. They just don't miss. Fantastic animation and seamless 3D cg assets mixed in with the 2D scenery as usual.
-Flying Lotus took the soundtrack to another level. As expected of a god tier producer. Thundercat on the OP =
-MAPPA blesses us with the visuals once again. They just don't miss. Fantastic animation and seamless 3D cg assets mixed in with the 2D scenery as usual.
-Flying Lotus took the soundtrack to another level. As expected of a god tier producer. Thundercat on the OP =
Pros cont':
-Nice diverse cast of characters with unique abilities.
-Voice acting on 10. I watched in Japanese but I plan to rewatch in English.
-Great portrayal of Yasuke being seen as an outsider despite his acceptance by Oda Nobunaga. Enjoyed that dialogue.
Now for the cons.
-Nice diverse cast of characters with unique abilities.
-Voice acting on 10. I watched in Japanese but I plan to rewatch in English.
-Great portrayal of Yasuke being seen as an outsider despite his acceptance by Oda Nobunaga. Enjoyed that dialogue.
Now for the cons.
Cons:
-The story had potential. It's the classic "I must protect the chosen child from evil forces" script. But that's about all it amounts to. It doesn't do anything outside the box with that concept especially in the latter half of the season.
-The story had potential. It's the classic "I must protect the chosen child from evil forces" script. But that's about all it amounts to. It doesn't do anything outside the box with that concept especially in the latter half of the season.
Cons cont':
-Unnecessary plot elements. I don't mind fantasy being mixed with history. It can be really dope. Here though the mechs just felt ridiculous. There's minor exposition on the Mongols being the first group to use them against Japan but nothing else. Where did they come-
-Unnecessary plot elements. I don't mind fantasy being mixed with history. It can be really dope. Here though the mechs just felt ridiculous. There's minor exposition on the Mongols being the first group to use them against Japan but nothing else. Where did they come-
from? How is that technology available in this time period? Why the hell is anybody fighting regular armies if you can build giant mechs? Why is anybody using bow and arrows or swords when clearly the technology exists for laser cannons and shit? It felt like somebody said-
"Ayo let's add mechs" and when asked why the answer was "Just because they're cool idk."
-Lack of character development for anybody outside Yasuke. Despite a cool cast we learn jack shit about the mercenaries, the priest, who Saki's parents were, who Ichika was, how the Daimyo-
-Lack of character development for anybody outside Yasuke. Despite a cool cast we learn jack shit about the mercenaries, the priest, who Saki's parents were, who Ichika was, how the Daimyo-
Became this immortal evil being, etc. It felt like a lot of important details were missing which brings me to my next point.
-Pacing. 6 episodes at 30 min each isn't much time to explain a lot. The series moves FAST. And it speeds up a lot near the end. I had to make sure I-
-Pacing. 6 episodes at 30 min each isn't much time to explain a lot. The series moves FAST. And it speeds up a lot near the end. I had to make sure I-
Hadn't skipped an episode between 4-5 because there was such an abrupt time jump that I thought I missed a scene. Nope they just said "It's time for niggas to fight" and had the army pull up IMMEDIATELY. I feel like the story sacrifices character development for the sake of-
Pushing the story along at a decent pace but in the end both aspects suffer for it. Too many questions still left unanswered.
-Lastly the length itself was a bit of an issue. I think the series could've benefitted from 1-2 more episodes to prevent the ending from turning into-
-Lastly the length itself was a bit of an issue. I think the series could've benefitted from 1-2 more episodes to prevent the ending from turning into-
A cookie cutter "I defeated the bad guy, everything instantly goes back to normal, and the hero MC takes off on his own to continue his personal journey" conclusion. Like I said, too many questions left unanswered and I'm not even sure if there's going to be a second season.
Verdict- 7/10. I think the animation was great, the OST was great, VA's did great, Yasuke himself and his backstory was great. Everything else kinda felt like it was missing something. Still enjoyable just off the pros, just was hoping for a stronger project.
