Undead Murder Farce

Undead Girl Murder Farce is an anime that plunges its viewers into a world of mystery, and supernatural suspense. This series, while not for the faint of heart, offers a captivating experience. The first episode, directed by Mamoru Hatakeyama, delivers a visually striking experience with its dark and mysterious art style. Hatakeyama's deliberate pacing and clever shot composition build tension effectively, seamlessly blending the mundane with supernatural elements. I really loved the cinematic way he approached some scenes and made unusual decisions in how to frame them, it reminded me of the Monogatari Series. The dialogue is concise yet engaging, revealing key plot points without sacrificingmystery. The sound design enhances the foreboding atmosphere, making the episode a promising start to an intriguing and chilling series. It is safe to say that the first episode is one of the best first episodes in all of Anime. Alas, you'd notice the difference in some episodes where the storyboard was not done by Mamaoru, EPs 3,4, 8,9 and 10. Nevertheless, these episodes were still very enjoyable. Undead Girl Murder Farce two leads have a very good chemistry, and that’s every part thanks to the dialogues and voice acting, Besides, The show introduces a captivating array of characters, featuring unexpected encounters with legendary figures such as Sherlock Holmes, Arsène Lupin, (voiced by Miyano which is a blast), and Moriarty. These iconic characters from literature inject a thrilling dimension into the series, seamlessly blending the supernatural with classic detective elements. The soundtrack deserves special mention, as it effectively enhances the suspense and tension throughout the series. The haunting melodies and atmospheric soundscapes contribute to the immersive nature of the anime, effectively pulling the audience deeper into the mysterious world it creates. Although I do not watch this type of shows for the action, and it is my first time watching a Lapin Track's work so I did not know what to expect, however, the animation sequences during intense action scenes are fluid and well-executed, enhancing the overall viewing experience. Overall, it is a must see, especially if you are in to this type of anime, because sadly, we rarely get these nowadays, let alone a good one.

Undead (Girl) Murder Farce: the most underrated Summer show of the season that we, the audience, DON'T deserve. for a series where every episode feels like 5 minutes, that it is the literate definition of a binge-worthy show from start to finish. Clearly the definitive Dark Horse of the Summer season, novelist Yuugo Aosaki's Undead Girl Murder Farce may be a dramatic historical fantasy work for the ages, that if you bring to the typical anime director who is just content with the bare minimum, this show would not have worked out the way that it has been these past 3 months. But it really seemsthat with one sole person (which I'll get to later in the review), all the cards were clicking towards the right path, and soon, the light shines in the darkness, ever so subtly to deliver a work that has become one of my low-key favourite shows of the season that the anime community have gravely missed out on. “The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes.” ― Arthur Conan Doyle; Corrections and Editor Edgar W. Smith; Illustrators, The Hound of the Baskervilles Historical shows exist for a reason, where the greatest minds of the past lies in fame and honour of their work and contributions for the masses. And if literacy has anything to do with it, fiction can bring about the best of friction and development for the future. It's with this exact same thinking that Yuugo Aosaki opted for the ever-so-cliché alternate timeline, where humans and supernatural beings (such as vampires and Oni) co-exist alongside each other. And one such figure is Tsugaru Shinuchi: an experimental half-human, half-demon young man who hails from Japan. True to his name, which means a light haven/port hitter, his demonic characteristics enable him to be highly skilled in combat, which is why people call him the "Oni Slayer" participating in caged circus acts fighting other demons. One day, he comes across an unassuming maid holding a bird cage, which holds the head of a girl who calls herself the immortal detective Aya Rindo with her loyal servant Shizuku Hasei. Coincidentally, Aya's story about herself, who has already been in this beheaded state from someone dismembering her body and leaving her head as is, and Tsugaru's story about being injected with oni blood which gives him his signature combat skills, both came from the same man who had done these services to them. So, together with the girl akin to a night/evening crow doing a ring/loop around a hall and her maid who clearly exhibits a quiet expression but is well-endowed to serve a well/pit's worth of a feast, and also carrying her signature Spenser 1865 Carbine-inspired bayoneted rifle she calls "Tachikage", the trio acts as a detective group to take on Europe's supernatural mysteries, with Tsugaru being given yet another persona moniker: The Cage User. “Every mystery novel I ever read, the great detective was such an arrogant fuck you could replace 70% of his dialogue with 'Are you stupid?' and the conversation would still make sense.” ― NisiOisiN, Zaregoto, Book 1: The Kubikiri Cycle The undead (or undying, rather) favour of the man who always gets ridiculed by the maid who treats him with disdain, his spiteful yet arrogant, cunning personality — that's what I love about Tsugaru's character. Despite calling Aya his master and always engaging in lighthearted conversation with the beheaded girl, what sets Tsugaru apart is his, get this, jibe for all things Rakugo. Basically, in every scenario that opens up to his offences, he's able to concoct a fictional story thanks to what Aya has already set up for him, and being the unapologetic prick that Tsugaru is, he gets his job done efficiently and effectively. Other than the fact that he always has to French kiss with Aya to swallow her "immortal" saliva to stop his demonic growth, the Oni Slayer himself is both interesting and entertaining to watch from a spectator's POV. And despite all of the classic European stories featured like the detective mysteries of Sherlock Holmes and his greatest rival of James "M" Moriarty, to the supernatural werewolves, the girl in the bird cage, Aya, easily holds a candle over the rest as the unknown player in a dogfight showdown of good and evil, as well as Shizuku with her trusty Tachikage bayonet rifle that displays both skill and finesse for someone who always shows facial expressionlessness. There is simply no character cast here (save for the usual evildoers and "Justice League" wannabes) that feels wasted, and as William Shakespeare's poem goes: "All the world’s a stage; the men and women merely players; they have their exits and their entrances." “There are, fortunately, very few people who can say that they have actually attended a murder.” ― Margery Allingham, Death of a Ghost The only saving grace that Undead Girl Murder Farce very much needed was a director who is skilled at his/her craft, someone who can manage the staff team well and create a well-rounded and cohesive work that leaves you wanting for more. And I have to say that they really got the man for the job: director Shinichi Omata or going by his famous penname of Mamoru Hatakeyama. The director who brought us works like Winter 2012's Sankarea (which serves as his directorial debut under studio Shaft), Winter 2016's Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju, Winter 2018's Grancrest Senki a.k.a. Record of Grancrest War, and the more recent Kaguya-sama: Love is War series, so you know that he has quality riding on his back and demands nothing but the best. And you know what? Calling Undead Girl Murder Farce one of the best shows of the season that's sadly underrated, no 20/20 hindsight is needed to call this a near masterpiece work that Mamoru Hatakeyama has ever done. The way that he adapts and directs anime series is simply unparalleled, and you need to just look at either Rakugo Shinju or Kaguya-sama to know that he's got the talent backing his incredible reputation, along with his staff team serving so fervently under the small studio that is Lapin Track. That said, this is the studio's first full-fledged, independent, full/complete TV series production in almost a decade, if you don't count the god-awful 2-minute short of Winter 2022's Atasha Kawashiri Kodama da yo a.k.a I'm Kodama Kawashiri. Apart from producing shows that were co-animated alongside more prominent studios (e.g. Spring 2019's Sarazanmai and the Tama and Friends series' spin-off of Winter 2022's Uchi Tama?! Uchi no Tama Shirimasen ka? a.k.a Uchitama?! Have you seen my Tama?, both shows with MAPPA), Lapin Track most likely raked in experience from the production collaborations, then used that experience to showcase one of the best Sakuga-worthy productions of this season with dark art styles, and sleek animation to boot. I can't help but be floored by the visuals, which flow with seamless audacity at the chock full of crisp animation that's a delight to watch and never took my eyes off the action, not even once. “There's only one truth” ― Gosho Aoyama, Detective Conan And that one truth, lies in the music, which all for intents and purposes, suit the anime to a T, it's perfection across the board. With that said, I'd now like to coin the term: "K-Pop strikes again on J-Pop!" If you do not know or have been living under a rock, K-Pop boy/girl groups have been slowly integrating themselves into the world of AniManga, and not just adaptations of Webtoons in general for years now (I still remember the first time hearing a K-Pop "Japanese-ified" Anisong through Black Clover with Tomorrow X Together back in 2020). The OP sung by girl group CLASS:y (suggested through a Korean reality show, and inspired by its members' "classy" charms that references "class" and "highest grade"), I've gotta say that I have never vibed THIS much with a K-Pop Anisong to indefinitely confirm that "Crack-Crack-Crackle" is a catchy, upbeat, banger song of (literally) class and the highest of grades, that I can listen to over and over again. In my opinion, it's undoubtedly my OP song of the season. Anna's "reversal" for the ED is also a cool song with some great storyboarding with its muted, dark tones and scaling that works seamlessly and linear to its themes. Overall, I really can't find any faults on the music aspect. “Only once in a generation does anything as fresh as a vomiting detective come along.” ― Dean Koontz, Odd Thomas And the quote is true: only once (in a blue moon) that there're works that does anything as fresh as a beheaded girl conducting detective stuff with a monster of a human who is flawless with his stints, only in Yuugo Aosaki's Undead Girl Murder Farce will you have an experience that can only be felt as if you're watching either Rakugo Shinju or Kaguya-sama all over again. To the undead girl using murder as a farce, you're NOT a farce. You're a force to be reckoned with, because you're worth more than the attention we give to you, and more people SHOULD watch your show because you're absolutely worth the time. Major, massive props to director Shinichi Omata and his staff team for achieving the near impossible with Undead Murder Farce, it's an addictive cynical, yet entertaining show where the murder mysteries of questions and answers keep you glued to the small screen for what's to come, even when you least expected it. Bravo, excellente. Wow, wow, WOW. My unexpected Dark Horse of the season turned AOTS.

"Undead Girl ANIME Farce" POSITIVES: - Character-filled - Art Quality - Voice acting - Bop OP, good ED - MCs chemistry NEGATIVES:- Clickbaits - Unnecessarily stretching out cases for too many episodes. - Rushed climax/finale - Threading two rivers at the same time while clearly favoring the other. I'm not even gonna talk about its story-- it's interesting to me, personally. Instead, I'd rather judge how it performed as a show, and how it ruined the story-telling of this Anime. And just like the finale of the show, I'm gonna rush through my rant as well. The first episode had a Dark Fantasy-Action vibe which had the then yet to be acquianted MCs battling each other in a somewhat testing of strength, which concluded in a partnership to achieve opposite goals relating to a common enemy. It then immediately took a sudden 45-degree turn and became a full-on dialogue-heavy Detective/Mystery the very next episode. It would have been just fine as it acted as the introduction to the protags' now-established investigative team... except it took 3 episodes to conclude and felt like an unnecessarily stretched-out filler arc. It was then followed up by an arc filled with new characters (I'd refrain from describing them to avoid spoilers) who were the ones that took the center stage in dealing with the case at hand as the MCs get relegated to the sidelines, showing up once in a while on-screen, with smug reactions on their faces implying they are picking the case apart one by one while they were off-screen. What came next was the climactic first interaction with the villains of the story. This set the tone for what's to come as the show nears the finale... except it didn't come. What followed is another helluva stretched-out dialogue-heavy case where they teased the presence of the villains just being around, and the presumed chaos that might ensue at any moment... ... which was paid off by a less than 5-minute still image battle slide show, followed by a barrage of words to close the final case and end the series, which took about 15 minutes... but felt like forever. ART? Good. Sound? Good. VAs? Good. Characters? Fun... ... "Crack-Crack-Crackle" OP by CLASS:y?..... GOOOOOOOOD xD OVERALL: I feel so betrayed by this Anime. Even after watching its clickbait-y 1st episode, and reading the complaints of people towards it, I still stuck by it as I found the execution of the Detective/Mystery path it took quite entertaining and fun anyway-- and I did enjoy it. But it's a shame that it had to lie once again, for the finale no less. Not to mention, having to rush that said finale after over-extending most of its chapters. All I could've asked for from this Anime was for it to just be a clear Detective/Mystery Anime instead of trying to be a pretentious Dark Fantasy/Action. It did have a quite interesting arc which had an abundant amount of characters involved. But that was the middle part and barely involved the MCs. What should've been prioritized were the most important parts of a story-- the beginning and the conclusion. And for that, I can't recommend this to anyone who's looking for an Anime with a good story. Not to say it didn't have one-- it does. It just failed to tell that "good story" properly. Watch it for aesthetics? Yeah. Sure. Do you. Want me to give at least one good reason to watch this Anime? I can give you one. Here it is... JIRI-JIRI TOOOOOOO!!! MOTO-MERU GIMME MOOOOOOORE!!! xD xD xD

Undead Girl Murder Farce was probably the talk of the season in many circles. From Reddit to various YouTubers, this anime showed a lot of promise to a lot of people, but unfortunately, it never delivered on its promise. At the end of the day, I feel like it was still kind of entertaining. The fights were somewhat cool, the character cast was interesting, and the mystery parts in the show were also pretty interesting. But unfortunately all of it fell apart when there was no proper "glue" to stick them together into a coherent, interesting storyline and there are a few key problems in theanime. Firstly, the main plot and the premise of the show almost never actually progresses. The place we started in episode 2 is almost the same as we were at the end of episode 13. The anime consists of 3 arcs, but at the end of the day none of them contributed much, if at all, to the grand plot. Which leads me to my second point. Another main problem is that the anime arcs were too different from each other and did not really know what they wanted to do. The anime tried to mix a detective mystery with an action show, which led to a tonal whiplash and in the end it just was not very good. The first arc for example was almost exclusively a mystery-detective style with no action, but then the second one did not have much of a mystery and was full of fights, and the third arc mixes both. The character cast was colorful and we had a lot of interesting different characters which was nice, but at the same time most of them were not really that memorable as they did not have enough screen time or story rather than just being tagged from the "villain group" or any other group. Many were also chained to their respective arc and did not play a bigger role in the anime as a whole. Finally, I do want to commend some parts of the OST and the cool OP song, and commend a few cool fighting scenes we had. In short, it was an entertaining watch for its mystery aspect and some fights separately, but when combined together it all fell apart and led to a very mediocre product. 6/10