Patalliro!

PAPAN-GAPAN! In my opinion, Patalliro is a ‘grower’ not a ‘shower’. It’s an acquired taste but I think it’s one that’s worth acquiring because it really is a delightfully weird little gem that deserves more love.

Phew, it’s hard to even know where to begin with explaining Patalliro to those who haven't seen it. It was absolutely ground-breaking for its time for being the first ever shounen-ai on Japanese TV. I would say it's a psychedelic adventure involving a Japanese, gay James Bond and a wacky, time-travelling prankster dictator who solve diamond thefts and other mysteries. It has all the charm of those really classic shoujo ... shows where all the tropes were established.


STORY: This show is weird and wacky but in the best possible way. You never know what’s going to happen especially because there are lots of unexpected sci-fi and supernatural elements that crop up, like witches and time travel. One thing we learn from Patalliro is that if you aren’t using your time-travelling abilities to hook up with past self then you’re clearly doing it wrong. The show is largely episodic with recurring plots like the Plasma-X robot family saga, diamond thefts or attempts on Patalliro’s life. Some of the standout episodes are the ones that focus on side characters, especially the ones involving Zachary (who’s a fabulous fortune teller that Patalliro torments) and of course, Robbie (which is my favourite episode of the series - *my heart breaks*). It’s a wild ride: there are trips to revolutionary France, gigantic chickens and acid-spewing dinosaurs but the characters and running gags keep the whole tone consistently comedic and entertaining.

At its core, Patalliro is a spy story (I think…) with most of the episodes revolving around clever plots to assassinate Patalliro or to steal his diamonds. The mysteries are usually solved by Patalliro himself who’s quite the sleuth but it’s Bancoran a.k.a. bishounen-killer that does most of the actual grunt work. That said, there are shenanigans and antics galore so it’s a gentle reminder not to take this too seriously - it's a gag anime after all. What makes comedy successful is a highly subjective thing but I’ve laughed many times at this show despite the fact that a lot of it’s comedic chops come from puns and references that non-Japanese people will struggle to understand. It's a niche style of comedy but it's more nuanced than just simple slapstick - there's a lot of wit there and I personally find it very funny.


CHARACTERS: All the things I found mildly off-putting became the things I ended up loving about this show - most notably Patalliro the main character himself. A character that shouldn’t work but ultimately does for several reasons:

1. If you find him annoying I wouldn’t blame you in the slightest, I did at first - but he’s also meant to be. It’s part of his character, it’s the impetus for a number of story lines and plot points. It makes sense with his upbringing and position.

2. What’s great about this show is that it has moments showing a much more endearing side to Patalliro that makes you start to like him and by the end of the series, you love the little weirdo and his bizarre antics. When it comes to the crunch, he’s a nice guy really and despite his selfish whims, he really does care. There are some genuinely touching moments that flesh out this typical gag anime character into someone more well-rounded.

3. Another reason that Patalliro as a character works is that he’s balanced and countered by the other characters in the show. His constant bickering with Bancoran and Maraich and their almost violent but playful disdain for Patalliro keeps him in check.

Bancoran is my absolute favourite part about this show. He’s so dashing. I’m a sucker for chivalry and even more so when the chivalry is in favour of boys' love. Some of the best escapades involve Bancoran and his bishounen-killer ways, bewitching every young attractive male and even the unattractive ones (I’m looking at you Patalliro). Not that I’m blaming them, who wouldn’t fall for Bancoran? Maraich getting violently jealous is always a fun gag and their romance was one of highlights of the series.


ART & MUSIC: While the aesthetics of Patalliro may be off-putting to some, for me - it’s probably its biggest selling point. The whole thing is gorgeous to look at as long as you’re open to old cel animation styles. Some of you will roll your eyes at this but to me, there’s a richness that you get when it’s all hand-drawn that’s so delightful to watch. It’s very stylised in both its backgrounds and character designs and I just love it - so much so that I’ve even bought a couple of the animation cels. The whole thing looks so stylish, like a mix of an Aubrey Beardsley painting and an Erte fashion drawing. The colour palette is a vibrant technicolor and while it’s not for everyone, it’s utterly eye-candy to me.

The OST might be called cheesy or dated...and it is - but it’s undeniably suited to the style of the show. It reminds me of those old-school detective shows like Charlie’s Angels or classic Bond films. I think it’s fun, vintage and charming. The pseudo-seventies porn music that starts every time Bancoran begins to seduce a bishounen is a particular highlight.


OVERALL: Honestly, I don’t have many problems with this anime. Of course, there are some episodes that are stronger than others but that’s the same for any series. The biggest problem with this anime is that for many people there are SO many deal breakers acting as barriers to general enjoyment: its art style is bizarre, the animation is very old, it involves shounen-ai romance, it’s full of Japanese puns, it’s weird and often very surreal. If you can get past all that, you’ll come to love it but I imagine that for most people, it’s just too much an oddball.

I’ve tried hard not to fanboy too much in this review but I think it’s very apparent that I’m obsessed. Hopefully, that will convince some of you to give this a try because it saddens me to see how under-watched and under-appreciated this anime is. As I’ve said, it’s hard to recommend: it’s weird, it’s old, it’s gay but for those of you willing to jump those hurdles, it’s enchanting and in my opinion, a really special show that's worth your time.

The biggest question Patalliro leaves us with is: Who really DID kill Cock Robin?!

Mineo Maya's PATALLIRO, about the adventures of a young but hyperactive monarch, is one of the longest-running manga comics in history, having started in 1978. The series, released in 1982, adapts only a few of the adventures of the comic, but captures fully their psychedelic and vibrant tone.

The show has a surreal blend of drama and humour, to the point where debate is on about whether it's a comedy or espionage series. I would call it the former, since the show belongs to Patalliro. There is danger, drama, intrigue... and then Patalliro, this chubby goblin- like infant, drops in like a spanner in the ... works, shocking and exasperating all around him. It could appear jarring and jerky, but Maya possesses wonderful comic timing: whenever Patalliro appears he makes sparks fly and laughs flow. However, Maya also gives him dramatic stories where he reveals his great heart and wisdom. Indeed, Patalliro is the heart and soul of the story; without him it would most probably feel very generic.

The show also boasts a wonderfully baroque aesthetic, featuring wonderfully ornate and elegant designs, as well as a rich instrumental score. This aesthetic includes bishonen (boys with feminine looks); in fact, the show is one of the first ever to introduce bishonen. Thus there is a wide cast of men with female characteristics, a gallery of scenes filled with roses and love, and some implied coitus scenes... It's tastefully done though and for the most part it only serves to accentuate the uniqueness and surrealism of the show.

It's definitely a unique piece of work. Beautiful, bizarre and berserker-level funny. It's a must for an anime fan.

I wrote my first Review of Patalliro in 2017. At that time I greatly enjoyed the show and would recommend it to anyone under the sun. A little over four years later I still enjoy it, but I've certainly become a bit more critical towards it.

If I had to describe Patalliro in just one word, it would be queer. It is queer not only in the sense that it featured relationships between homosexual men, but because it strays as far away from the norm as it can, with absurd story and over the top situations one moment and uncharacteristic yet not entirely out of place ... seriousness, all packed in aesthetic, shoujo-like visuals.

The story is pretty simple: Patalliro is the eight year old king of a small nation, Malynera. Said nation is very rich in diamonds, making Patalliro the target of the Diamond Syndicate, an evil organization that tries to control the entire diamond supply of the world. Major Jack Bancoran, a prolific MI5 agent and an openly gay man, is tasked with keeping Patalliro safe during his stay in London. A few assassination attempts later, Bancoran more or less becomes the king's bodyguard for hire.

Seems pretty straight forward, right? It isn't. Patalliro often stray away from the main narrative and from Bancoran in favor of dwelling with magical beings, time travelling, making robots, uncovering family secrets, trying to get even richer, going to space and so on and so forth.

But what about the gay, you ask? Well, Patalliro is queer in that way too. Most of the cast is represented by feminine gay men, and there is next to no shying around the subject; the homosexual characters of Patalliro are unapologetically so. There is hardly any moment in which gay love is treated as completely out of the ordinary and perverse. It's just there. When a character that takes interest in Jack or Maraich appears, the only reactions he gets from the rest of the ensemble is a fleeting 'So you're like that too.' If anything, heterosexuality seems to be out of the ordinary, as straight love, while not entirely absent from the narrative, is often overlooked or played for laughs (tropes such as the nagging wife are prevalent.)

Does that make Patalliro an extremely progressive, LGBT0friendly anime that stood the test of time and is still enjoyable to queer audiences? Well, yes and no. Whether Maya Mineo genuinely wanted to tell a queer story that featured queer people as characters or simply added the queer text in order to advance the absurdity of the show is unclear to me. Because Patalliro is a very absurd and satiric show. It doesn't shy away from making fun of culture, entertainment and religion, and sometimes it even makes fun of itself too. The thing is that the homosexuality of the characters is never used as a comedic device in itself. Nobody laughs at Jack because he wears makeup and likes men, but because of infidelity and just how aloof he is most of the time. The characters have flaws. but the flaws are never their sexual orientation

In this regard, Patalliro does a good job at queer representation. In others, however, it falls short and suffers from the problems most Boys Love media does. It perpetuates harmful stereotypes about gay men, presenting them as inherently abusive and corrupting young boys. It is mostly the villains that are presented as such, but not only. Jack is a homosexual because he was raped when he was young and Maraich is hinted as being one for the same exact reason. Rape and abuse are, like in too many BL stories, a prelude to love. Jack assaults Maraich when he wants to get information from him and as a result of that assault Maraich falls in love with him and decides to change sides. Later in the story, when Maraich needs to persuade another boy to do something for him, he uses the same techniques as his boyfriend and essentially assaults Thomas.

So should you watch Patalliro? If you feel like you can overlook the harmful stereotypes aforementioned, sure, give it a go. At the end of the day, it is a light hearted comedy made to poke fun at anything and everything, and while the humour is specifically related to Japanese culture, you might find it amusing. However, if you are looking for genuine and respectful queer representation, chances are you will not find it in Patalliro. Heck, you might not find it in anime at all!

Writing: I really enjoyed the shounen-ai and espionage aspects. However, any part of the comedy mostly fell flat for me. I think this show might be too old and Japanese for me to fully appreciate. There are some parts that legitimately made me lol out of sheer WTF. The shounen-ai aspects are bizarre and fascinating when considering the context of the show.

Characters: The part of this show I disliked the most is the titular character. Which is extremely problematic, as he takes up most of the show's screen time and focus. Maybe this is a result of my expectations, but I would have much preferred ... that Bancoran and Maraich be the main focus of the show.

Art/Animation: This is where this show gets the most points from me. I really enjoyed the bright color palette and some of the psychedelic imagery. I can definitely see how this show might have influenced other Shoujo like Sailor Moon in this regard. I also really loved the character designs. It's obviously influenced by ukiyo-e or kabuki-style aesthetics. The visuals were striking enough to keep me watching as long as I did, but not enough to save this show from forgettable mediocrity.

Music/Sound: Nothing really worth mentioning in this department. Nothing stood out at all, either in a bad or good light. Has an OST that is extremely dated, but also charming in an incredibly old-fashioned anime kind of way.

Overall this show is frustrating because I want it to be better than it actually is. It's interesting enough for it's unique art style and it's history as being the first shounen-ai anime on television. But beyond that it doesn't have much else to offer. The main character is irritating and really detracts from what would otherwise be a 7/10 shounen-ai spy show. I give this show a 6/10, closer to a 5 than a 7.

Tl;Dr Not worth anyone's time unless you're interested in this show for it's art and/or history. I can't understand this show in the context of the fucking annoying kid being the main character. Honestly kind of a guilty pleasure for me and it's surprising I watched as many episodes as I did.

Let me preface this review with one thing that resounded in my mind the entirety of the period I was watching this whole show: this series is clearly not pro-LGBT in the slightest, this is 10000% rooted in the hetero-leaning, pro-male gender ideas typical of other japanese medias, being those animes or mangas (Yaoi is, de facto, mostly made for HETERO women, not with LGBT people in mind). So, don't let some of the quasi-sexual scenes that don't end in nothing explicit anyway fool you in that sense, there is no intentional pro-LGBT messagge of any kind here. That said, as an HETERO MAN myself, ... I can safely say this series is really fun, it could be described as a anime/yaoi equivalent of the movie Naked Lunch by David Cronenberg just with the madness factor doubled, lots and lots of cultural/pop references from both Japan and the Western emisphere as well as several references to other Shoujo works such as Versailles No Bara and Kaze To Ki No Uta, a really fun ride everybody from all spectrum of sexual inclination can enjoy with no problems whatsoever. I would also take a moment to say that I don't understand all the hate directed towards the main character, Patalliro, because I honestly don't find him that different from other characters (Maraich I'm looking at you) or that much annoying in comparison to, let's say, the version of the few first episodes of Saint Seiya of the titular character (voiced by the same awesome Toru Furuya you will find here behind the onion heads and several other secondary characters, impeccable as always) or the absolute emperor of braindead morons Hikaru Ichijo from Macross, probably the worst male protagonist to ever "grace" the anime kingdom. He's intended to be a capable protagonist with a comedic element and he accomplishes that showing sometimes an human, compassionate side that it's not lost to my eyes. With good OST and good Seiyuu performance, this series is very fun and enjoyable even if the miniplots of each episode sometimes are difficult to follow or not well written, but Naked Lunch had the same problem so I can close an eye on that. To those who are looking to get into this series or Mineo Maya's work in general I also suggest the recent live-action movie based on another one of his works named Tonde Saitama, it's pretty much in line with this series in all respects. I give this series the same exact score I gave to Naked Lunch and Tonde Saitama, a full 8. Thank you for reading and PAPAN GAPAN to you all!