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Under Ninja is an anime watcher's anime. If you have a lot of exposure to anime and have gotten tired of seeing the same tropes and narratives over and over, this is your anime. It's truly unlikely anything else, and it scratches that novelty-seeking itch.

Something you'll notice about users who give this a low score is that they are newer accounts, and probably joined MAL during COVID.

These newcomers have little exposure to anime, which is practically a prerequisite to be able to appreciate Under Ninja's subversion to anything and everything previously established within the world of anime and manga. Newcomers can't know what's being subverted ... if they don't know what's being subverted.

Under Ninja's boldness in its originality and well-executed absurdism is a monumental achievement that kept me simultaneously impressed and laughing. It's my personal favorite anime of Fall 2023.

Between Spy x Filler and Demon Slayer, it has become clear to me why such underwhelming anime have become so popular.

It's because they have nothing to say. In having nothing to say, they are also completely nonjudgmental. Anyone can say they like Spy x Filler or Demon Slayer, and it would say absolutely nothing about them. Normies can watch them without crossing the line into "anime fan" territory. No opinions are asked of them, because there are no sides to take. Without any opinions, no thinking is required. It's a safe space for centrists to continue not having opinions on anything while feeling good ... about themselves.

Animes like this don't bother to explore anything deeper than superficialities and are comfortable remaining there. That itself isn't criminal in a show, as there are plenty of feel-good shows that only set out to do that, but in such settings with supposedly serious undertones with supposedly real stakes on the line, it absolutely is.

This season is a meandering mess where nothing happens to drive the main plot forward. The only thing this anime manages to achieve is draw skilled animators away from other projects where their work would have gone toward something actually worthwhile.

I've was patient with this series. I really was. But after everything, the show still didn't have a clear plot or direction. It didn't even have an atmosphere, something that the equally poorly paced God Eater (also produced by ufotable) at least had.

What pisses me off the most is that the rules of this world seem to be written by a six year old: "So there's these ruins, and then there's this hero who can see spirits but only he can, and then there's this princess who really likes him. And then he goes off to kill dragons and stuff." There's not much behind ... the motivations of the characters. None of them even have much character outside of the trope slots that they occupy. The most interesting thing about them is their appearance, for which there is no rhyme or reason.

All throughout, I was waiting for the plot to truly open up. I was bored out of my mind to the point of anger, and in the end I got nothing for my troubles.

Pros:
The animation was good.

Cons:
This is yet another movie that attempts to mask its lack of direction with impenetrable philosophy, pretending to super deep when there is actually nothing there. The use of fictional historical characters is just an attempt to be super edgy and is little more than a cheap hook to fool viewers into thinking that it goes somewhere (hint: It doesn't). If you ever wanted to think to yourself, "WTF am I watching?", or "I could be doing something productive instead," then this is the perfect movie for you.

The only reason it keeps 3 stars is because the whole animated corpses in society ... concept is just engaging enough.

In the words of /u/kuddlesworth9419:
"The first half of the film is pretty good but it falls apart in the second half. Nothing is explained. Characters' motivations and intentions are just pulled out of nowhere. The final "fight" is a complete mess. I had no idea what The One was even trying to do. What were the crystals (some energy thing I think). Why is sound visible, why does sound effect the dead, why are the dead eating people (zombies? I assume), androids?, where did that come from. It's a real mess."