- Last OnlineOct 5, 11:42 PM
- GenderNon-Binary
- JoinedAug 3, 2022
RSS Feeds
|
![]()
Oct 2, 2022
It's a bit upsetting to see this work of incredible dedication and effort garner attention a hearty, healthy two decades after its initial release. Madhouse has, once more, shown its studio's insane talent in creating stunning frame-by-frame animation and capturing atmosphere in every shot. Not to mention the down-to-single-hairs detail of certain shots and rich sound design of this 74 episode long show...
Now where I've lost my shit over the production value: If you're a fan of non-black-and-white character portrayal & psychological horror, this show is probably the late 20th century European Cowboy Bebop-Death Note fusion you've been praying.
The goal of the show is really
...
as deep as the viewer is willing to let it be ー To some, it might be the agonizing cat-and-mouse of a well-meaning doctor, who chose the wrong patient to operate on that day. As he travels far and wide, looking to undo his 'mistake', learning about the Monster's life story while doing so.
To some, it might be a story about the core psychology of the different foundations that make up the society we live in, fuelled by corruption, fear, solitude, conflicted love, twisted or misinterpreted desire, existentialism, the list goes on. In doing so, it won't hit the viewer with solutions to every problem. What it will do, though, is end things in proper fashion. This includes allowing a character's life to end as soon as their existence comes full-circle.
It's a story about 'why's and 'how's ー "Who is the TRUE monster?"; "Who drove them to be that way?"; "How could this happen?". The answer is 74 times 24 minutes long, leading to yet another viewpoint one could take to this story.
Parents/Caretakers make people.
Every person in the story has an upbringing to refer to. If one looks for it, it might just start to become the most giving part of a character's personality. As soon as their family comes into play, something critical gets revealed that will change the viewer's view on them completely. Having an origin makes one undeniably human, and it's often shown (usually through the morally questionable characters) that, the less loving and the more messy the situation of a child (or person, in general) becomes, the worse they'll come out the other end.
The message is not "Everything can be solved with love", though. It's more along the lines of "Everything can be figured out through understanding."
Love can destroy people, as it tends to deteriorate over time and rot inside your being. Closure can hurt at first impact, but will settle after awhile and let you adapt to a reality amidst it.
The only reason I cannot give the Madhouse adaptation of Naoki Urasawa's Monster a 10/10 is the somewhat off-putting time skips and flashbacks, and ways the story is told to, if I'm not wrong, five overlapping character POVs at once at some point. It clears up a lot of character relations and questions this way, but might become odd to some, who do not remember every reference or unspecified, internal goal of every POV. (And there *is* a lot of nice callbacks that could be overlooked quite easily. Albeit, that might be intentional - Some writers like a bit of torture in their subconscious about these lovely little things.)
That being said, I greatly enjoyed it.
If you trust yourself to have an open and observative mind throughout the run of this mentally challenging show, go on and give it a watch.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
 0
Love it
 0
Funny
 0
Confusing
 0
Well-written
 0
Creative
 0Show all
![]()
Aug 11, 2022
As foretold by its iffy title, Interspecies Reviewers equipts its cast with a variety of characters, representing any feelings a viewer might have on the content they're exposed to throughout the adventure that is reviewing magical creature girls, ensuring a relatable and therefore enjoyable experience for any watcher.
It is not obscene as most other sex-related media one might come across.
CHARACTERS & WORLD BUILDING
Coming from someone not big into the genre of Harem or (unironic) Fanservice, this show hit a special spot.
The girls of the brothels are treated with respect (the utmost that thirsty men can bring forth, especially with characters like Stunk & Kanchal present,
...
but also by the brothel systems themselves. The restrictions don't feel like comedic cock-blocking, but necessary, wholesome measures to keep the girls safe) and are given a surprising amount of personality during the matter of minutes they bless our screens (which is mostly driven by quickly-attached Crim and them seeing the girls as more than just 'a new species'). Each and every one gives off a unique feeling and represents a different "type", perfectly accentuating a caricature of the kink/magical hentai fetish she represents.
This show treats intercourse as more than just 'baby making', which makes it flashy, yet tender and sneaks in its world building through comedic moments, such as abilities or cultural differences between species that halt the ecstatic spirits of the protagonists, when their semi open-minded journey has, once more, led them into situations they're less than comfortable with (usually learning to enjoy themselves nonetheless after trying it out, or to be opposed by an experienced, determined veteran, who makes up for the majority disappointment of his peers). Cast members rambling in encounter of their own species or cultural customs results in interesting bits of lore as well. Casually, through mere conversation. It is, in fact, the conflict the show starts off with and continues to be driven by, immediately establishing the similar-to-our-own, yet vastly different indicators of attractiveness in-universe.
Special honors belong to the representation of demisexual / asexual characters in this show, non-fetishized or grossly exploited themes of lesbianism, as well as the many ways that magical attributes blur gender roles (yes, the bad G-word, but it must be mentioned).
PRODUCTION VALUE
Inconsistencies in censoring methods are fairly common (examples include: cropping, pixelating, overlaying stickers(??) and more, thereby granting favorability the uncensored version), which can break the immersion in its more often-than-not neat visuals.
As it is clearly full of parodies and meant to house at least one segment of discomfort for every viewer, all 'sex scenes' are created in a way that will speak to someone who finds appeal in the situation in question and something to chuckle at for someone who doesn't.
Whichever people were hired to design these characters, they went absolutely ham. Considering the amount of characters that must have had fully fleshed out characters model sheets created for them, the show did an impressive job at inventing appropriate designs for each personality shown on screen. Along with the many different forms taken in this show, come the refreshing ways they carry themselves. Even though the few moments with too little animation are a downside, the detailed scenery and expressive, intriguing air oftentimes keeps one invested in whatever action is taking place.
The audio in this show is cartoonish when appropriate and covers the basic environmental sounds, with OST that well highlight the fairytale turned sensual vibe of the brothels and silly mansplaining moments littered throughout. The voice acting is expressive and the main cast has chemistry (as do their real life selves, I heard). The women sound happy, which is all that matters btw.
STORY
Following one singular goal throughout its whole runtime with rare plot presence, excluding Crim's little character arc, it is just a meat and potatoes adventure anime, except exchanged for fighting and whatever else adventure anime are about, we learn about feminine creatures of the pleasure domes. The review sequences work very well and give the episodes a nice structure between their travel-talk-intercourse cycle. Although, the few fight scenes that are in the show are accompanied by long-windedness and boring backstory that can be easily skipped. They have their own purpose but zero entertainment value.
ENJOYMENT
This show is perfect for anyone with a lot of patience for the 3/5 cishet cast, who will chat amongst themselves in manly manner, and an interest for world exploring. Lots of lovely women, comfortable atmosphere with lots of scenery any nightowl will enjoy: With dark, hushly lit rooms and the various establishments with their curious, magical signs, windows & themed accessories.
It's very much shits-and-giggles centered storytelling the writers try to explain their world through, but it's effective to anyone who's willing to watch.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
|
