Gegege no Kitarou (2018)

One of those animes that flies under the radar, although it's been around for decades under different iterations. It deserves far more attention than it gets. When I first gave it the 3 eps test, I almost dropped it as being too cartoony, but the characters made me decide to give it a few more shots. And while this is geared towards kids, as the series progresses, it explores lots of deeper subjects, and might even get too intense for the little bits.

The character designs are rather simple, and there isn't tons of development, although they are not completely static. The artwork kind of ... rambles around. Sometimes it is outstanding, and other times it's little better than Saturday Morning Kid Vid. It's the same with the animation. Some action scenes were darned impressive, but overall the animation is only a little above average to mid. The VAs were a mixed bag as well. Some I found did an excellent job, but others were either too flat or overacted horribly. But those characters might have been a directorial choice. I usually don't mention soundtracks, but the intro to these episodes is an immense earworm. Once ir gets into my head it is there all day.

If I was going to grade this, I'd give it a 87/100; a nice high end B. If you are looking for a series to watch with your preteen and older kids, I can't recommend this title enough. It's very imaginative, fantastical, and will likely hold their interest. Or even if you are an old goat like me, you can find some amusement, and a bit of thought provocation.

Gegege no Kitarou is one of those anomalies in anime where, despite massive success in Japan and airing a new season ceremoniously every decade, it is practically unheard of in the western community. However, when you think of it in terms of marketability for the West, it does make sense. The entire franchise is filled to the brim with Japanese social commentary, and the very foundation of the series is based on Japanese Youkai and folktales, which is why it’s so fascinating to see the most recent iteration, in 2018, simulcast on Crunchyroll. What’s more fascinating is how it happens that this season is so ... radically different from its predecessors in representing its era. It makes perfect sense that this season is the first to be brought overseas, as it not only signifies a new era for the franchise but also demonstrates just how much society has changed.

(This review contains minor spoilers)

Now, I understand that that last sentence reads rather pompous, but, trust me, it makes sense in the context of what this franchise is. As I mentioned before, Gegege no Kitarou airs a new 50–100 episode season every decade, and with it, commentary on the society each season encompasses. Today, technology permeates our modern-day society in a way that is nearly unavoidable. I’m talking smartphones, computers, the internet, and social media. The 2018 series (which I’ll refer to as GGG2018 from now on) does not hesitate to utilise this and places a heavy focus on modern technology.

Despite being aware of this before going into the show, it was still surreal to see GGG2018 open up its first episode to a man recording himself with a selfie stick causing disruptions at Shibuya crossing, only to be cursed and turned into a vampire tree. The people surrounding him all grab their phones and start recording and/or texting their friends about what just happened, only for everyone on the street to be turned into vampire trees themselves. We find out this was caused by a certain Youkai called Nobiagari, who plants seeds that suck blood and turn people into vampire trees. My favourite part about this opening scene is how GGG2018 immediately makes it very clear that we’ve entered a new era by putting a heavy emphasis on phone usage. As the episode progresses, we learn the man causing the disruption at the start is named "Charatomi," who owns a YouTube channel and posts himself causing all sorts of problems around Japan. One of these videos involves him walking inside a random cave and ripping off a seal of the Youkai Nobiagari (lol). Interestingly, 5 months before the airing of this episode, Logan Paul entered the country and made national news after causing a huge ruckus on the streets, being disrespectful to the culture, and, well, we all know what else happened. We may not fully realise the scale of it, but YouTube is a massive phenomenon, and issues like these are a real problem. Hell, you still hear stories of idiots running around Japan and other countries with cameras in their faces causing problems today. This first episode does a great job showcasing what exactly this series is about and prepares us for what we can expect going forward, and boy does it deliver.

A general idea explored throughout GGG2018 is how society is constantly changing over time and the effect that has on both humans and Youkai. Episode 6, for example, features a cat Youkai who is unable to properly feed off of human life energy in a rural town, as it lives off of the energy of humans simply by touching them, since over time more and more youth started moving to the city for school or work opportunities. This has caused the cat to slowly but unintentionally kill off the elderly population over time by stealing their life energy. The Youkai never meant any harm, but since the world is constantly changing and moving, incidents like this occur. Within this general idea of the world changing, one theme that particularly stood out to me was commentary on modern Japanese work ethic, which is the main focus of episode 9. This episode was about the Youkai 'Isogashi' who specifically possess lazy people and cause them to be restless to want to get things going or done. Yet despite this power, he struggles to find anyone to possess because people are already overworking themselves with their jobs.
The focus then shifts to the Kappa, who get lured into working an office job with the promise of many more cucumbers than they were collecting on their own (Kappa loves cucumbers). Before, the Kappa were living a lazy life playing sumo and swimming in rivers, yet they’re taken advantage of by the lure of something they love. However, after being overworked to oblivion, they find out that their salary of 3 cucumbers an hour is not nearly enough as the minimum wage when converted to yen and realise they’re being exploited. Enraged, the Kappa go on a rampage, making random people on the streets relaxed and lazy (that’s their ability, and yes, I know it sounds absurd, but Youkai have all sorts of weird powers lol), to the point where the Youkai Isogashi comes back and the usual Kitarou fighting shenanigans ensue. Afterwards, the Kappa realise that the life they were living before is much better for their wellbeing. Even if they weren't getting as many cucumbers, they appreciate and value the time they spend doing stuff they enjoy together, like swimming and sumo, while growing their own cucumbers to enjoy. This is one of my favourite episodes, as it encourages appreciating not only the little things in life but also the slow moments we have too. There are many more episodes that tackle the subject matter of work ethic, like episode 14, but those episodes are worth watching yourself as they’re some of the best this season has to offer.

While GGG2018 defines its era through its themes and storytelling, I’d say an even more important aspect is this season’s artstyle. A fascinating upside of airing a new season every decade is seeing how the art and techniques change overtime. The 60s series is in black-and-white, the 70s is the first with colour, the 90s is the last cel animated season, the 2000s season is the first fully digitally animated, and the 2018 season is the first that utilises modern digital effects and lighting (which to me is the most defining part of this season’s art). What’ll stand out to anyone starting this season is the strong use of lighting—an almost over-exaggerated use. Lighting is often used to strategically build atmosphere by creating a stark contrast between the light-hearted and horror scenes. And it works! The over-exaggeration of the lighting lends itself to an almost overwhelming, eerie, and uncomfortable feeling. My favourite example of this is episode 25. It begins with a cold open inside a dark room; all we can see is the illuminating light of a phone. Then, it cuts eerily to a shot of a person hanging from the ceiling, and while we don’t see the noose, it’s clear they’ve hung themselves. This scene gave me goosebumps because it’s genuinely TERRIFYING. We learn later in the episode that a phone app was the cause of this suicide, once again showcasing how this season uses technology as a main theme. This is an element I’ve come to realise was missing from the 2007 series. From what I’ve seen of it, it has scary moments, but they often weren’t accompanied by meaningful lighting that built up the atmosphere. There are a few exceptions, like 2007’s Youkai Train episode, but those exceptions happen to be 2007’s greatest episodes, which were few and far between (sorry to diss on the 2007 series but I have my gripes with it lmao). I really do believe that 2018’s decision to utilise lighting in this way has done wonders for the tone and atmosphere.

In terms of smartphone usage, one thing I want to mention is how Neko Musume has a phone she uses. It’s not treated as this gimmick where it’s like, “Hey guys look!! She’s using a phone!!!”. No, in reality, the phone is shown countless times throughout the series as a useful tool. She uses it to communicate with Mana, which then lets her relay information to Kitarou. She uses it to watch the news and stay caught up on anything related to Youkai. We even see Neko Musume discreetly take photos of Kitarou (because she is in love with him) and use them as her lock screen, which plays an important thematic role in episode 93. It’s not just phones, there are moments of technology use, like in episode 31 where Nezumi Otoko complains about how the crypto-currency he invested in lost all value in a single day (and this gag happens multiple times iirc lmfao). Social media addiction is often used as a theme, like in episodes 31 and 67, where they feature both humans and Youkai striving for more clicks and views while simultaneously pushing aside the important things in their lives. It’s amazing how they’ve managed to fully integrate technology, not as a gimmick but as a central theme of this entire season.

Gegege no Kitarou 2018 is by no means a perfect season. Like most seasons in the franchise, it’s tainted by numerous fight scenes and episodes that focus entirely on battle shenanigans. I often found these episodes to be the least interesting part of the series, which really bogged down the experience for me. Fortunately, there are plenty of great episodic stories to watch, and the social commentary on the problems we face in the modern era is fascinating to watch. Furthermore, I would especially recommend this series if you have an interest in Youkai! This review has been somewhat all over the place, as it’s more like a thought dump of the aspects I liked. Thank you for reading, and I hope I’ve convinced you to check out this awesome franchise!

For a child, I can see this show being one of the best on TV. As an adult, however, the episodes are usually enjoyable but can be a bit hit or miss. However, the show isn't afraid to delve into much darker themes which have produced some great episodes that I would see myself going back and re-watching.

I never grew up with Gegege no Kitarou so the entire idea of yokai was new to me. Though, that never decreased how much I liked the show or my understanding. On the other hand, the older watchers are more than likely watching it (at least in some ... part) out of nostalgia.