Kemono Jihen

I have definitely seen a good amount of modern Shounens feature more "edgy," "mature," and "deep" themes. Oh well, honestly, probably for the better. The whole "every good guy lives" and "MC protecting his friends" tropes are really getting old. Kemono Jihen is a good example of a modern shounen integrating "mature" themes while also trying to relay as little good storytelling as possible by using edgy shock value while not developing characters in any meaningful way. It tries to integrate brutality into a morally good cast of characters, and while this can work, the execution of these themes are terrible to say the least. I'm onlygoing to focus on Shiki, because it just highlights this absolutely horrendous edgy shock value story telling at its finest. Spoilers ahead, but trust me, nothing much of value has to be said about the story. At the point of the story where you reach Shiki's backstory, you already know that the main cast of characters have performed a few missions, few of which include killing anthropomorphic and intelligent beings, all of which were warranted. That being said, no humans have been harmed or killed by our main characters. You get where I'm going with this? Shiki's uncle performed many atrocities on his mother. Forcefully jailing her, inseminating her for many years to forcefully breed offspring, and Shiki, morally scarred and scared of reality, runs away at the prospect of her mother's plight. So far so good. Many years later, Shiki comes back to discover the truth. Guilty because he abandoned his mother and fueled with rage, he storms upon his Uncle and decides to kill him. Using shounen storytelling tropes, of course he is able to escape. Shiki has a mental breakdown after being confronted with all of his mother's offspring, and loses motivation to kill his uncle. After having Kabane kill all of his mother's offspring, Shiki decides to spare his Uncle. Using arguments such as "He'll have a fate worse than death if he lives," "Killing him won't bring back my mother," he decides to spare his Uncle. What's wrong with this picture? First of all, I'd really like to point out the timeline of these events. They're extremely close! Shiki goes through more mental development than an adult would do in their entire life in the span of a few days. He gets over his guilt and trauma, gets over his rage, and becomes and enlightened one over the span of a day or so. It's extremely surprising to me that he would not, in a fit of rage, just immediately kill his Uncle, but I guess we have the "shounen" genre to thank for that. Sure, could you "reasonably" say that Shiki could have matured so much? Yeah, as much as Ellie could have rationally spared Abby. Again, even Ellie in TLOU2 has around 60 hours of character development while our boy Shiki has 20 minutes, so Ellie's actions make a bit more sense than Shiki's. It's so frustrating seeing how Shiki spares his Uncle without much of a solid reason; his mentality changes way too quickly. He just commanded all of his siblings to die, and yet he's going to let the perpetrator of all of his pain get away? In fact, you could say that his siblings had no sin, and yet, they took the brunt of his rage, while his actual source of grief and rage is let of scot free. Oh yeah, he's a better person after killing many innocents because he let his main source of rage go. But wait, his siblings were half monster. Wait a second, he himself is half monster. All of his allies are also half monster. What gives? Well, if you don't look human, you're just a monster still! Fire at will. Perfect reasoning. Human looking monster = good, monster looking monster =kill. But wait! They're less intelligent than humans, so they're just animals. Yeah, how about we just kill all mentally disabled while we're at it? For people thinking that revenge is immature and that Shiki's reasoning was solid, I'd really like to see how they'd react if they had their loved ones tortured and raped for years before their eyes. There's not a shred of "well, his Uncle had some good in him," in which you could perhaps argue for someone like Abby in TLOU2. Again, this is a good example of how the show loves to frame people as "100% good, or 100% bad," and nothing in between. Or how about the argument that "him living is worse than death because I can deny any sort of future achievements he might have." Well, killing him would be the absolute fool-proof plan on eliminating any sort of achievements his uncle might have in the future. And you can see, right after the incident, his Uncle isn't disheartened and is ready to perform atrocities over again. I just hope that Shiki understands that he's letting his Uncle commit more acts of torture and allowing more victims to pile up for his own fragile ego. Let's go over how Shiki is unable to make his Uncle provide testimony about where his mother's location is. Instead of any confrontation, Inugami gets convenient plot device in the form of information on his mother. I like how the Uncle gets spared so thoroughly, and how Shiki and his friends are at a loss. Yeah, I can't imagine just tearing his Uncle limb by limb or doing any sort of torture would unable to extract his mother's location. I like how it doesn't even cross his mind even though he should have had the resolve, reason, and drive to do so. I have so many problems with this story, but I'll focus on the masking of any moral indictment that this show tries to do with it's framing of the story. Kemono Jihen is a story that features killing and murder. Our main characters experience it for good reason. They kill monsters that harm other humans and society as a whole. So what exactly is the morality of our main characters for killing monsters that killed humans, but sparing humans that kill other innocent people? Monster bad, human good? That's basically the story Kemono Jihen wants to present. God forbid these kids go killing humans even if they're monsters inside, but they can go kill monsters for sins that are doing crimes less severe than humans they spare. It also aggravates me in the process of making the story so black and white in determining what is good or bad, it eliminates any sort of mental gymnastics by the viewer. You're merely being fed "human good, this monster bad, revenge bad." Everything can be labelled as good or bad without any distinction. Killing and murder are featured in the story, but the brutality and nastiness of anything macabre is merely glossed over. It's the same idea where many people are dying, but you don't get a good sense of how brutal everything is merely because you barely see the killing happen. They just die, and you move on. Just the fact that the brutal act of imprisoning and having his mother being raped continuously to produce over 100 offspring is limited to a few seconds is a tactic that this show employs in order to undermine the "evil acts' that Shiki's uncle makes, and this sort of masking of violent undertones is always present in this story. Even Kabane's bullying and frensy backstory are flimsy. These trauma inducing events are extremely short and are barely a blip in the radar for what they are. You'd think that these events would be essential to the story, but they're glossed because it's a shounen, and everyone is happy and can move on, apparently. You're given a narrative that shoves the idea that our main characters are of quite a high moral standing without much thought put into it because again, it's a shounen. MC good. OK? Even other chilling acts of someone like Kon immediately decapitating Kanabe are just "kids being kids," "Kanabe didn't die, so Kon's all good." In the end, Kon just becomes good friends and gets invited over to eat. "Well, as long as there are no repercussions, I'll forgive you." Cringe. There's so much atrocities that happen in the show, but it's just not focused upon and people just get over it. Whether it be on the receiving side or the side giving it out, cruel acts are not questioned or emphasized in the least bit. Instead, it maintains a "lighthearted" tone. Thanks a lot. I'll give a shoutout to the other flaws. So in Shiki's backstory, her mother just complies with his Uncle? She is a monster, a strong one at that, and she just willingly, day by day, gets inseminated and raped by random monsters because Shiki's uncle tells her to? She doesn't get any warning signs when she's being locked in a room and unable to see her son? Oh, what about her barely intelligent offspring. Surely they would be loyal to her, and not the Uncle. Inugami, basically aware of this situation, allows Shiki's uncle to do whatever he wants for over a year. Inugami's kind of scummy in that regard. This plot is as secure as swiss cheese, and should not be taken seriously, as once you start combing through the details, you start to realize that this story is only there to serve as character development for Shiki. It not only does not characterize Shiki very well, but it also is just an extremely poorly built backstory and plot that clearly points fingers and the situation is allowed to stay the status quo until Shiki needs character development. As for other characters, we have our classic vanilla OP MC that doesn't have a shred of personality. He's the type character in which "he's unfeeling," but also has a "good sense of morality" built into him due to the teachings of his master. Akira is just a flamboyant trap character for comic relief. Shiki, he's ok, but again, the backstory makes him terrible as well. Let's not even talk about how power progression happens. Everything about how powerful people are is a whim that the author decides. Hey, character too weak? Slap a random power up arc so that they're powerful. In the case of our MC? What do you expect? He's OP as hell in the very beginning and gets even more OP. It's not even like Jujutsu Kaisen, where at least our MC has limitations. Overall, a story that tries to incorporate edgy themes without much thought put into it and tries to maintain the "shounen" more lighthearted tone, and as a result, you get a insincere narrative in which the bad guys and good guys are clearly defined in which their actions don't quite match their supposed morality.

Before the review, I should mention that the MC is a dumb dude. He is like an empty vessel without any emotions, feelings, etc (until he is thought). Kemono Jihen mainly stresses on the topic which revolves around kids who have some special abilities which is different from normal humans, which makes those kids Kemono (meaning monster). The MC starts off living in a small village where he thinks that he is the only one like a monster until he meets a dude. Then the dude takes MC to his place in Tokyo and with other kids, the MC starts going on missions related to Kemonostuffs. Things I liked -> 1) The MC is cold which makes him to thinks less and and fight more. 2) The teamwork of the MC and other kids. 3) A slight romance in this action anime. 4) Every episode has a humorous laughing effect. Finally, this anime is best suited for binging.

This show can best be summed up and described this way (with the help of a former friend of whom this description fits to a T): The world not as simple as it seems. Together with humans, there exists another type of being: they are called Kemono: supernatural monsters, spirits, and demons, whom used to co-exist peacefully. However, one day, a war broke out. Some thought that humans were behind it, since they instinctively discriminate against races different than themselves, and others think that Kemono were at fault. Sometime after, the story brings us to a remote village. For some time now, dead animals have beenfound there. Kohachi Inugami, the owner of a detective agency that specializes in the occult, meets a neglected boy named Kusaka "Dorotabou" Kabane in a remote village, who is avoided by all villagers and works instead of going to school. And it turns out that Kabane is a half-ghoul, whose true nature is suppressed by a lifestone. Kabane is always discriminated and labelled as the mud Yokai, will he help the detective uncover the truth behind the animal killings? Kemono Jihen is one of those works that you rarely see about very often, much less the obscurity of the manga since it was released in Jump Square (instead of the more popular Weekly Shonen Jump), despite having all the common bells and whistles you would think of in the typical Shounen genre. At first glance, it'll definitely remind you of the similarities due to the dark fantasy and supernatural genres that are closely reminiscent of Bungou Stray Dogs, from the setting of the "detective" theme to the main character whose personality is like Dororo, unbeknownst to his main power and only being accompanied by the small numbers whom have encountered for the mystery and supernatural realisms. In fact, from the moment when the story plot starts moving from the get-go, there is this alluring sense that all is not what it seems, and the next thing you know, you've sunk your teeth deep into this rabbit hole that keeps the constant grip on your toes as to where circumstances would go. Think of it like Kyokou Suiri (a.k.a In/Spectre): a great 1-to-1 adaptation, but without the heavy exposition and easy storytelling and progression that will keeps you glued to the episodes for a few hours on end. Although the presentation demographic is different from Bungou Stray Dogs, don't let that fool you into thinking that teenagers don't have it just as hard as adults, nope. In fact, it's quite mature with its dark themes and intrepid to the ghoulish, macabre and grisly nature. Mostly a character-driven story, where I can give praise to Kemono Jihen, lies with the characters that can sometimes be quite morbid in their ways, but I feel that they should be given more recognition: - Our MC is Kabane "Dorotabo" Kusaka, a 13-year-old human-ghoul hybrid. An abandoned kid with little to no education of the world, what he is able in is limited of the little common sense that he has. The lifestone (or Life Calculus) in his possession is a gateway to understanding both his control of the thirst for ghoulish thirst, as well as finding out the connections of his parents, and the rest is history. Being someone who looks innocent and straightforward, he has a self-sacrifical spirit of always being ready to put his life on the line for others when danger strikes, since he is an immortal, provided his head stays intact. He's the experiential definition of "Act first, think later". - The detective in question is Kohachi Inugami. As you've guessed, he's also a Kemono, and a strong tanuki at that, often referred to as "the Kemonoist". Running his own occult consultancy office to take care of specialized Kemono-centric issues is a cinch when the outside world practically does not know that Kemono co-exist, and he's the meditator between both humans and Kemono beastkin alike, other than managing the care and concern of fellow teenage Kemono under him, and seeks to long for a world where both humans and Kemono can co-exist. - The first of three Kemono under Inugami's belt: Shiki Tademaru, a 14-year-old Arachne-human hybrid who had been passed into Inugami's custody by his uncle Akio. Acting like a tsundere for the most part, Shiki can be often as brash and rude, and at worst, seem off-putting than most, but it is for this reason alone that as time progresses, he grows to be rational and level-headed in making sure to taking good care of them at the same time, an influence from his family of a single mom and 8-year-old daughter Aya (who thinks maturely but acts immaturely) who are also Arachne Kemono. - The second of three Kemono under Inugami's belt: Akira Iwakiyama-yuki-sa-to-Shirona-no-go-Juuroku-shi (that's a mouthful), or best translated as "The 56th child of Shirona of the Snow Village in Mount Iwaki", because he is a descendant of a Yuki-onna. Despite Akira's lifestyle of embracing feminity by acting like a girl and doing all the stuff that girls like or tend to do, Akira is a he, not a she. So in retrospect, not a tomboy, but a tomgirl. He mostly takes care of affairs within the Inugami occult office, due to his hate for disgusting things and if encountered, cowers and faints at fear's door. Having a twin Yuki-okono brother (Yui) whose fate was to become the chief of a Yuki-onna village for nothing more than a tool of sexual reproduction for pride and ego reasons, that's as dark and gutsy as it can get. - The last of three Kemono under Inugami's belt: Mihai, an immortal vampire, but a shut-in NEET whose mentorship under Inugami has seen a fair share of him being a "Jack of all trades, Master of all" from utilizing technology for hacking purposes and communication from an online perspective. He's quite the over-bearing character with a narcisstic mindset, yet he doesn't go without the reluctance of help every once in a while. - And what's a good team of "protagonists" without a good team of antagonists? And Inari Yoko is just that: the beautiful and alluring kitsune Kemono, serving for both humans and Kemono as the superintendent of a police force, while under the farce that this is all but solidifying her position in the human society to one day bethrone the inevitable conflict between humans and Kemono due to her ruthless ways of self-satisfaction and vile manipulation. Under her belt are two kitsune Kemonos: 19-year-old Nobimaru and loyal follower Kon. Despite Nobimaru's shape-shifting abilities to attune to the same age as the Kemono under Inugami, his intelligence is backed by his personality of being a witty crafter of lies, and much like Inari, can manipulative circumstances to his advantage. Kon on the other hand, she follows wherever Inari may go, despite the fact that like Kabane, she's used as a tool to advance the former's tactics, and all that's required of Kon towards Inari is recognition that she is a "good girl". May Kabane rescue Kon from Inari's hands one day, and let the sail ship between them. I find it quite fascinating for such a decades-old studio like Ajia-Do, I'm presuming that the studio is trying to find what works for them, despite the low, yet consistent output of at least 1 show per year (just to maintain business as usual). Just look at the shows made by the studio in recent years: Isekai Maou was a decent job done, while both Isekai Bookworm and Kakushigoto firmly solidified the studio as being capable to perform in Slice-of-Life works, though this is the first time that the studio has returned to doing an action-heavy show since 2016's Shuumatsu no Izetta (that is averagely tacked-on mediocrity). Personally, I'd like the studio to focus more on their bread-and-butter genre expertise, though I can't fault that the presentation in Kemono Jihen is finger lickin' good and consistent throughout. Truly "Are you (un)afraid of the Dark?" levels of surrealism. Likewise with the music, it pretty much fits the whole dark theme to a T here as well. Once again, the massively popular Seiyuu Daisuke Ono hits the nail with the OP and Sayaka Sasaki with the ED, you couldn't have asked for a better OST than this. But honestly, though the production team isn't what you can call them strong, all I've ever needed from a show like this is just one word: consistency, for the art of balancing skill and expertise, and that's all it matters. A hidden gem amongst the ever increasing popularity of contemporary Shounen series, yet easily overshadowed by the same circumstances as well. Everyone should check this out, and if you decide to pick this up, watch this on a binge, it'll do you good to keep you hooked from start to finish.

It has been a long time since I have seen an anime that I could binge watch like I did with Kemono Jihen. The first episode has an excellent hook and each episode thereafter continues to string the viewer along for a thrilling ride. It was clear that there was a lot of effort put into this anime and I congratulate the staff on a job well done. Daisuke Ono may not have played a major role in the show but he shown through by delivering a killer opening. The artists were not short of skill either. Between the action and the array of differentcolors, the art was clean and purposeful. One can only hope for a season two to continue the story. Overall this anime is brilliant, a diamond in the rough, and I would recommend it to anyone.