Devilman: Crybaby

Devils cannot take form without a living host. However, if the will of an individual is strong enough, they can overcome the demon and make its power their own, becoming a Devilman.

Weak and unassuming, Akira Fudou has always had a bleeding heart. So when his childhood friend Ryou Asuka asks for his help in uncovering devils, Akira accepts without hesitation. However, to Akira's surprise, the place they go to is Sabbath: an immoral party of debauchery and degeneracy. Amidst bloodshed and death, demons possess the partiers, turning their bodies into grotesque monsters, and begin wreaking havoc. In a reckless attempt to save his best friend, Akira unwittingly merges with the devil Amon and becomes a Devilman, gaining the power to defeat the remaining demons.

Though it grants him great power, this new partnership awakens an insatiable and primeval part of Akira. Having the body of a devil but the same crybaby heart, Akira works alongside Ryou, destroying those that harm humanity and his loved ones.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Asuka, Ryou Main

Murase, Ayumu Japanese

Fudou, Akira Main

Uchiyama, Kouki Japanese

Devilman Main

Uchiyama, Kouki Japanese

Satan Supporting

Murase, Ayumu Japanese

Makimura, Miki Supporting

Han, Megumi Japanese

Kuroda, Miki Supporting

Koshimizu, Ami Japanese

Kukun Supporting

Young Dais Japanese

Wamu Supporting

KEN THE 390 Japanese

Silene Supporting

Tanaka, Atsuko Japanese

Amon Supporting

Choi, Eun-Young Producer

Shintaku, Youhei Producer

Yuasa, Masaaki Director, Episode Director, Storyboard, Key Animation

Kimura, Eriko Sound Director

Reviews

Aug 1, 2025

Automusica

Recommended

Devilman crybaby what a show indeed. this was science sarus first international success and they went all out with it. their are some horrifying anime out there like the original berserk or Elfen Lied, this one goes the extra mile. the story starts out like a typical demon fighting anime like Dandadan or Kaiju no 8 but then it gets dark fast, lots of death lots of true human nature and lots of heartbreak it was an enjoyable watch with a rich story and art and a good soundtrack. This is not a show for the faint of heart be warned your in for one ... hell of a ride if you start it, literally

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Dec 13, 2024

LotteGiants

Mixed Feelings

I can see how this would've been mindbending and a cult classic back in the 70s and even this version might've been something special if I had less perspective when I saw it but at this point in my life it just feels like a rather cheap bunch of nonsense. I respect that it was able to absolutely go 100% for a nihilistic message but as a well-adjusted adult I fundamentally find that messaging laughable on a core level. Horrible things do actually happen in history but when fictional media portrays it seriously without any balance I find it to be a waste of time. ... If you actually think this portrayal of humanity is really really true then there is no point in living and if there's no point in living then there's an easy remedy to that. Which is why its a waste of time to take that seriously and anyone that stays alive to argue that is a maladjusted poser.

As for the quality of the storytelling in this show...it isn't good. Aside from a few beats about who the characters are (in the literal sense, not their personalities) you could cut out like half the episodes and miss nothing. Nobody really changes during the course of the show and everything basically turns on why Ryo is such a piece of shit. I figured it out around episode 6 or 7 and then the show goes for a bunch of unearned emotional moments by overloading how shocking the deaths of these paper-thin nobodies are. The rappers are really the only characters that have any sort of arc, honestly. Like, the first three episodes where Miki has that stupid photographer trying to molest her are so insanely pointless in retrospect. Not that it felt like a well-told plotline at the time but by the end it feels like literal filler.

I also think this show is very ugly. Ping Pong is one of my favourite anime and its art is also quite ugly in stills. The difference is that Ping Pong uses that to show extreme deformation of characters while they play and it can integrate fantastical stuff quite easily and it creates its own unique look that is fantastic. Devilman Crybaby does a bit of psychedelic stuff early on and then it gives up on doing anything interesting with its art and hides its obligatory action behind darkness and bad editing. It wants to look like Shingeki no Kyojin but it doesn't have the chops and it just suffers for it. I have no idea what the budget was for this show but the end result makes it seem like it was done cheaply by a studio without enough experience to pull off the kind of action scenes needed.

I'm honestly not entirely sure how I feel about the sound design for this show. I do like the music and it feels like it nods to the 70s show while being modern but I'm not sure if it actually blends well with the show itself. A good OST is fine but it doesn't feel like it enhances the show just by being good. As for sound effects and the like, I don't think this show does anything special. I have this same complaint about Dandadan. Not every studio can make sounds as instantly iconic as David Production or do what Sunrise does with its Gundams but I can't think of any particularly amazing sounds from this show. Its all just fine.

Honestly, this show was good enough to get me to finish without forcing myself so I can't say its bad but even though I went in with no expectations I'm still somehow disappointed. I think Masaaki Yuasa just doesn't make things I think are genuinely good other than Ping Pong (which is a legacy cementing masterpiece). I don't like phrasing criticism this way but he truly does make stuff that people love to think is very smart but is actually just directionless crap. Not that Devilman doesn't try and say anything at all but I think its substance is very slight and people that haven't ever seen anything trying to say what it gestures toward will think it is very smart and deep despite it being some cheap gut punches and silly nihilism and nothing more.

I think I wrote a review here that sounds like a 3/10 but I feel comfortable with a 6/10 ("Fine" as MAL rates that). It was somewhat entertaining and it at least takes a shot at some big themes even if they are all muddled and trip over each other. This show will be a catalyst for some people to think more about anime and story-telling in general and maybe bigger things than those. I do hope that those people eventually rewatch this years later and see that it isn't the pinnacle of anything though.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Jul 20, 2025

abo3skr2019

Not Recommended

so in summary faux deep writing without any build or core similar to akame ga kill but worse as akame ga kill at least had some character writing

Extremly Self Indulgent & edgy in a bad way especially by the halfway mark it would have been a 6 but the last 2 episodes drop it to a 5, it seems to me that it is trying to invite deeper thought without actually doing any thinking it just comes of as preachy but without any substance , also it just becomes non sequitor followed by non sequitor as it goes on which makes me wonder wtf was ... happening in the writers room

i tried to see refrences and plot points which may invoke deeper thought but they all seem surface level; some scenes i thought touched on the iraq war like the twitter scene but it wasn't that , the millitary industrial complex and it also wasn't that it was just some faux deep bullshit about the lack of empathy in most people which i personally think is horseshit most people are empathetic and systems are sometimes not IMO

the religous imagery is way overblown and doesn't match what they are actually preaching / refrencing quoting random christain scripture which has no ties to the current scene happens almost every episode , which i see as a waste as they had many christain characters who said nothing to the advent of demons by the second half , they also completly focused on christain scripture while ignoring most of it , like bruh there are like millions of religons you choose 1 and don't explore the implications of your choice at all what is the point these demons might as well be teletubbies and it wouldn't change a thing

also just use an arabic font if you are gonna have arabic text it's literally 2 buttons and you'll have perfectly legible text not the mess you have here

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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