k-gordo17

Man vs. The system thriller in the same vein as Rambo First Blood.

The writer director clearly thought it would be a great film concept to write a story based around a lot of the modern unfair practices in the criminal justice system covered by John Oliver episodes.

Civil Forfeiture, Elected Judges, Police Accountability, Bail, etc.

I'm totally fine with that. It makes the story more grounded and believable. However they do make it exposition heavy, where characters sit down and explain all these inequalities in the system that it can feel less like a movie and more of a lecture.

It also harms the character development. Despite it being over 2 hours, you don't learn a lot about many of the characters personally, mostly their circumstances. The film lacked the emotional element that First Blood was better at.

Overall the director did a solid job with the resources he was given. I'd like to see him take on a bigger budget and story with more fleshed out characters.

This anime fits alongside other shows like Wolf's Rain, Here and Now Then and There, and Grave of the Fireflies in terms of its pacing and its tone. A truly dark and emotionally uncompromising show that explores some of life's darkest aspects through a dystopian Sci-fi lens.

You can watch this show at face value, but I got more from this show by interpreting some of the shows themes not in a literal sense. Especially some of the episodic episodes in the first half of the season, which really take a life of their own presenting unique characters exploring wildly different themes. You could fit many of those episodes into the Twilight Zone.

It won't be for all audiences. It's pure tragedy and unflinching in depicting the pain and loss the characters experience.

For me, the only negative is that the show loses some momentum in the second half as the show starts to wrap up the story and the characters. Certain character beats are repeated as well. The story regarding Luna and her motives gets jumbled and can be hard to follow.

I still feel mature audiences should watch this as it shows the potential of anime to reach the emotional heights of live action.

This show would be my vote for most underrated anime show. Based on both votes and popularity, it is at the bottom on my "Best Of" list. In some ways its understandable and in other ways its not.

I'll start with it's obvious issues that I also second. A lot of its sci fi concepts don't get fully fleshed out, are half baked, and don't make a major impact to the plot. There are typical dumb anime moments seen in most shows that are cringe worthy. Some plot threads go nowhere and should've been developed more.

Now here is where I think despite all that, It has plenty good to offer and made my watching experience overall positive.

It has above average hand drawn animation that I miss in current anime. The action moments have some style and enhance the scenes. Great orchestral score that I still listen to. Characters you are interested in. Fast pace with constantly changing settings and plots.

The thing that won me over was the finale. Throughout the show it threw out unexplained sci fi concepts and plots that at first are head scratching. Then in the last two episodes, without spoiling, created twists and revelations that were both riveting and unpredictable. Its one of the few times my jaw dropped at a scene solely based on what was happening story wise. It catapulted this show from a slightly above average show to one of my favorites. Even to this day few animes I've watched have reached that emotional height.

I still look back on this show with fond memories of it even several years later. I don't look back on this show as some masterpiece or visual triumph. However, I remember it as one of the first sci-fis that got me both interested in the genre but also anime in general. For A lot of animes I first watched that I at the time enjoyed, I have changed my opinion on them significantly and in some cases outright dislike them now. Not for this show.

With all that said, I still understand the frustrations people had and I can see how the negatives will be too much to ignore. So please take my opinion with a grain of salt.