Master Keaton

Master Keaton is exceptional in the few things it does. But due to its episodic nature, it can't reach the apex of what it could've been.

Story: 7
Animation: 8
Sound: 10
Characters: 8
Enjoyment: 8

Total: 8

There isn't much to say about Master Keaton. The episodic nature hinders many aspects, mainly a coherent story. What we instead get are various scenarios Keaton finds himself in, mostly voluntarily. This ranges from hostage rescues, stakeouts, family drama, refugees and much more. The variety of the topics is certainly the best way to utilize the episodic format. What stuck the most was how timely everything still is, even if it played in the ... early 1990s. While it is commended for that, it only shows how stubborn humans can be in that regard that all these problems will probably never go away.

But for all the positives, through the cracks of the facade, the negative shines through. Some episodes, for example, won't even need the main character, because the newly introduced A-plot characters for that episode can carry it alone. It feels that Keaton was just shoehorned in, because he must be the only main character. Other episodes, mainly in the OVA part, can't breath properly and end on an unfinished note. The only double episode has the opposite problem: it has too much time. The restrictions of the anime medium are the main culprit for these problems. Which is another reason why the episodic format isn't suited for this style of writing. More complex themes are left on the cutting board because of that.

It still is a good show, and the animation still holds to this day, even when it feels outdated. The sound, on the other hand, feels pitch perfect. Especially the violin suspense theme feels like I already heard it a million times.

In all Master Keaton is a very good episodic anime, which limits its own abilities in regards to character development and story telling. As a trade off, it is very condensed in its essence, which can be an advantage for people who don't want to binge a story. Just relax, feel the good vibes and let the suspense take over you.

Master Keaton in my humble opinion is the best Episodic anime I've seen so far. Though I can admit it's not for everyone since this series requires you to have an understanding of contemporary history. The series touches subjects on the Cold War and many Geopolitical conflicts from the era.
The story follows Taichi Keaton, who is a veteran of the Falkland's War and a former SAS officer in the British Army. His combat training and survival skills help him land a job as an insurance investigator from a prestigious agency known as Loyd's of London. This line of work takes him in some ... of the most peculiar places and situations. Keaton travels to different cities in Europe, the middles east and even the desserts of China trying to solve insurance claims on inheritance, businesses and expensive items belonging to some of the elite members of society. These investigations often put his life at risk, where Keaton deals with Russian Mobsters and former KGB agents, deals with thieves and professional hitmen.
Each episode brings a new story and new characters that are very interesting, I only wish some of those stories could have been a bit longer but other than that they are very enjoyable.
Love how Keaton is a badass and yet very average, divorced middle aged man with a teenage daughter. the way he looks just screams average at best, yet in reality he is a professional in his line of work.
The art in this anime is immaculate and can see the 90s era portrayed really well in this series. Keaton is a man full of class and the series shows appreciation to the finer things in life.
Don't skip this hidden gem, you'll definitely love it.

An absolutely great watch! Highly recommended for people who are searching for traveling series based in Europe with Slice of Life, Naoki Urasawa is a great writer. The exploration of the outside world in those 90s feels gives really good vibes.

Animation was not extraordinary, but everything was moving in sync; the background was the most detailed and beautifully done; it wasn't looking flat like how some of today's anime looks; it really breathed life to the anime; there were some sakuga moments as in character animation; and lastly, there were no CGI cars, and they were animated perfectly.

The thing I most loved was its sound ... design. It was good that you could hear more natural sounds compared to today's sounds, like glass being put down on a wooden countertop, which sounds more realistic.

I'll highly recommend it; it's a good watch, especially the dub, which sounds even better.