Kemonozume Ep. 2 Flash Review

I'm still undecided on Kemonozume. It's incredibly stylish and I love the unique design/animation . . . just it hasn't especially grabbed me in any other way. The characters don't really push the boat out - older son straying from father's expectations, younger son being over-zealous in meeting father's expectations, doting female character in love with protagonist without reciprocation - it all feels weirdly standardised when matching it up with the innovative art style.

The relationship between Toshihiko and Yuka has a lot of potential to be interesting. Yet, so far, I'm apathetic to it. The scene where Yuka admits to being a flesh-eater by writing it on Toshihiko's back, pre/post-coital, should've had a faint air of tragedy about it, but it didn't move me at all.

Perhaps this will be a show that doesn't get too caught up in the overly serious aspects of its storyline. So far it's certainly felt quite lighthearted and playful in tone, but with each passing episode it becomes harder and harder shake the nagging cliché of style over substance. It'll be interesting to see, as the show progresses, which it concentrates on more: producing a completely different anime aesthetically, or offering legitimate drama and originality in its plot and characters. Obviously I'd love both to occur but it's unfair to build something up just because it's so different visually. Expectations can be a bitch, as NHK proves.

Still, this episode introduced a couple of interesting twists. I might have misunderstood her, but Yuka seemed to imply that she was pregnant with Toshihiko's baby ('You're inside me now'). Include the mysterious circumstances around Toshihiko's father's death and Yuka's other boyfriend, another flesh-eater, and we've got a few potentially exciting plot threads developing. I'm also curious to know how Yuka's mother factors into all of this, and if it's the same woman (his 'new mother') that Toshihiko sees right before he has a spot of bowel trouble.

Quite frankly I could keep watching Kemonozume for the art style and the crazy actions sequences alone, but I definitely want something more to develop. It's enjoyable and cool-as-fook enough to get a lengthy grace period, either way!

Comments

[kuromitsu]

"Yuka seemed to imply that she was pregnant with Toshihiko's baby ('You're inside me now')." - nah, that was just a mistranslation. Toshihiko said "Let's live together", and she answered "You're already living within me" meaning they're already living together in her heart.

[Hige]

kuromitsu: Ah, bummer. Something tells me it might be a plot point for the future, though!