Shigofumi

Shigofumi presents a unique fusion of genres that ensnares its audience with a captivating narrative. Centered around a young woman tasked with delivering letters from the departed to the living, the series delves into dark and unsettling realms while also providing moments of emotional catharsis. Despite its episodic nature, Shigofumi maintains a cohesive storyline that unfolds gradually with each installment.

At its core, the show prioritizes character development, particularly focusing on the growth of its protagonist, Mika. The animation is skillfully executed, capturing the nuances of each character's personality through well-crafted designs. The soundtrack enhances the viewing experience, seamlessly blending into the background while also punctuating ... pivotal moments with memorable musical accompaniments.

Shigofumi strikes a delicate balance between character-driven storytelling and situational drama. Its meticulously crafted script explores weighty themes with finesse, avoiding excessive bleakness while delving into the complexities of mental struggles. Ultimately, Shigofumi leaves a profound impact on its audience, offering an intelligent exploration of human emotions within a compelling narrative framework.

Shigofumi starts by grabbing your interest with its fresh and unique premise, the story of a postal worker that delivers the parting thoughts and feelings of the recently deceased. Each new episode focuses on a new character and their personal struggles, slowly working toward an ending where the main character Fumika eventually becomes the focus. A lot of the characters cross paths with each other, making the series feel more connected despite its episodic nature.

After watching a few episodes however, it became clear that Shigofumi was heavily inspired by other shows. Halfway through I felt that I was watching the cute little sister of such ... shows as Hell Girl and Boogiepop Phantom, both of which I would recommend to anyone who enjoyed this. All three revolve around a mysterious girl that ties together an episodic story, all delving into the same themes of bullying, suicide, family-drama, and similar horror-drama scenarios.

The presentation is the main point I’d like to bring up. The reason Shigofumi only ends up being the cute little sister of these other shows is because of its tone. The soundtrack is more mellow and peaceful, with a number of great tracks hidden inside. The art-design works well for scenes with grounded drama, yet it lacks the genuinely scary imagery that would fit the psychological horror in it. It simply doesn’t convey the same amount of emotion through its style, ultimately becoming more neutral in comparison.

Neutral is the perfect way to describe how the show left me feeling, which also was part of its intent. To paraphrase the main character when she delivers her letters, it’s not about presenting things as good or bad, but simply about being honest. However, there are moments where these honest feelings do come across as clearly good and bad, which brings me to the portrayal of the characters. When looking at the core plot and the people in it, they tended to be very hit-and-miss. Some were enjoyable to follow from start to finish, others bored me to tears, and then there were the occasional WTF-moments where all subtlety was thrown out the window. Once again, the dispassionate tone made the enjoyable characters have less of an impact, the boring characters became more boring, and the crazy characters became less natural. It is a mixed bag where personal taste will decide how much of the show you will enjoy.

Shigofumi is a series that did alright with what it was aiming for. Alas the direction could have done so much more with what was there. It is an alright drama, just less so when compared to others like it. I would recommend anyone interested in the series to try the first two to three episodes, as they perfectly portray what to expect.

We are dealing with another episodic show with a main character glueing them together. But just because you push the characters who change every episode through one drama cliché at a time doesn't mean that that's a good way to waste someone's time who has watched more than at least 30 anime's with exavtly the same plot twists and moralities. Now have cliché personalities play their part and the boredom is complete. Of course one shall not forget the dull animation and the forgettable, at times obnoxiously boring music.

Maybe this was an acceptable standard in 2008 but after Violet Evergarden I feel like we've ended ... up too spoiled for such mediocracy.