Warau Salesman

Warau Salesman is an episodic show with no real plot, where each episode is its own little story. Every episode has a different protagonist, Moguro's client, whose life almost always is ruined in one way or another by the end.

One good aspect is how condensed the stories are, never being rushed. This anime does a very good job of presenting a different story in a short time every episode, usually the first 2 or 3 minutes, after which comes Moguro offering the miraculous, too good to be true, solution for his client's problems. The problems are realistic and mundane, with a big portion of the ... clients being salarymen. A big part of the enjoyment comes from the expectation, each time you begin watching another episode, of seeing in what fucked up way will Moguro ruin someone's life. I don't recommend this anime to people who get upset at "mean-spirited" characters of shows. This one's not about justice or retribution. Moguro doesn't care if his clients are bad or good people, weak or strong. Many times someone will suffer without having deserved it.

Moguro Fukuzou's voice acting is great at being both funny and creepy. The character, in appearance, is bizarre-looking compared to the rest, always having the same grinning expression, and his speech is equally distinct. He will always sound like an extremely polite salesman trying to sell something, even when he is angry at someone that broke his promise.

Overall, it's an anime about 10 minute episodes with independent stories about drama and/or dark humor with bizarre or gruesome endings.
Do not watch if you get upset at fictional characters suffering for no reason.

Warau Salesman is not only one of those "one of a kind anime" but is also heavily underrated and missunderstood.
First of all, Warau Salesman is a Horror-Comedy with pretty heavy social commentary. I don't know why people always deem it as something else. But lets start at the beginning.

The show is about a mysterious salesman, Moguro Fukuzou, who deals in human souls (the literal japanese translation is "kokorou" which means heart, but its symbolic for souls). He offers people a splendid deal that fits their deepest desires perfectly and that they won't possibly refuse. All free of charge of course. However, Moguro has always one ... condition that he makes clear to his clients. If the client breaks that condition, the whole deal is void and Moguro can collect his soul (visualized by basically fucking up his former clients life). Now here is where the whole horror and also social commentary comes in. Moguro himself is of course not a normal salesman yet alone a normal human being. His true origins are never made really clear throughout the whole series, but its safe to say that he is some sort of a devils advocat if not the devil himself. He always hangs in a bar called "Demon Nest" so that basically covers that. And just like some demons Moguro, in some way, has to be invited by the people. If the client is on the hook and agrees to Mogurus terms, from that point on Moguru is in his life for good watching him at all times without being noticed (except if he wants to be noticed). Now why would anybody break a good deal that last forever as long as one tiny condition won't get violated? Because human beings are selfish, ignorant and greedy scum who always want more! You give them the little pinky and they take the whole hand! And that is the premise of this show and Moguros transactions. He knows of that selfish nature and feasts upon it. He knows eventually every last one of his human clients will turn into a greedy and dishonest pig, so he can collect his souls in peace.

While the first episodes are very tame in regards of violence, some of the later episodes turn out to be quite gorey. But despite all the gore and deep commentary, Warau Salesman is still a funny comedy show with some great humor in it. Not least due to Moguros crazy monologues and self awareness. The events in each episode make up for great situation comedy as well.

If you want sophisticated and social critical, yet dark, crazy and unpredictable comedy this is the show for you. I definitely recommand it!

Want to see good and bad people alike get swindled by a fat man with a suitcase and a giant index-finger?
Give this a shot!

With the new revamp “sequel” this past year titled “Warau Salesman New”, I was surprised to see not a single review for the original series. Essentially, if you have a pessimistic side to you and enjoy dark comedy, you’ll probably get a decent amount of entertainment out of this one. I’ve only been able to find the first season, so this will only be reviewing the first 25 episodes.

In Warau Salesman, Every 10-minute episode features a brand new character. The ... desires of said character are given to you at the beginning of the episode. Once Moguro appears, he offers a too-good-to-be-true deal for the character. Some characters fall for it right away, others he has to be more persistent with. Rest assured, he closes the deal and you get to see the aftermath of the character’s now-met desires. Depending on how scummy the character it is, the more satisfying Moguro’s wrath becomes. Or in stark contrast, the character doesn’t deserve the treatment at all and you end up feeling pretty sympathetic toward them.

It started airing in 1989, so don’t expect too much from the quality of the animation, artwork and sound. I actually like the old school style, so this was a big plus for me. The thing I liked the most in the artwork were the scenes focusing on the city itself, as it often gives a polluted and sleazy feel to the show. You would also expect the new character’s personalities to bleed into each other and all be the same, but I was impressed that they were able to give new characters a personality of their own for each episode.

Whenever I was having a bad day, I turned an episode of this on and it instantly made me appreciate my life again which is what I liked most about it. Though it has comedic elements, there are some pretty sad and relatable characters within the show. You are bound to relate to at least one of them if you watch long enough. It's an episodic show, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad thing. Warau Salesman does what it does very well, so you are bound to enjoy the rest of it if you enjoy the first episode.

Overall this is a great show if you are having one of those irritable days where you are annoyed by everything and everyone. I got a good amount of enjoyment of it in that respect. Next time you get into one of those cynical and depressing moods, maybe think about giving Warau Salesman a try.