Kaiba

Overview:

Hot take! Kaiba is overrated as fuck! In all seriousness, Kaiba is actually a pretty good anime. The animation is stunning and the character designs are wonderfully unique. However, I wasn't a huge fan of the series from a writing standpoint and I don't believe it's one Yuasa's best works. Honestly, I liked Lu Over the Wall more than I liked Kaiba. I liked Kick-Heart more than I liked Kaiba. Cat Soup? Yep, it's still better than Kaiba.

The story of Kaiba is told in an almost maddeningly confusing manner, but it's actually pretty simple. People are now able to store their memories in little ... flash drives and switch from body to body. People can also erase bad memories and download happy memories that belonged to other people. The wealthy use this technology to keep switching bodies and live forever, while the poor sell their bodies for money. The poor are told that they will be stored on a flash drive and their families will one day be able to get them a robot body, but typically their memories are just erased and they're killed off. The poor live on shitty planets and the wealthy live on super ritzy planets that are inaccessible to everyone else.

All of these are supposed to be mind blowing, incredible plot points, but everything in Kaiba is a well recycled Science Fiction trope. The story is basically just a shitty Metropolis, but doesn't say anything new about the evils of wealth inequality or social stratification. Hell, it says far less than Metropolis did 90 years ago! Evil rich guys switching bodies didn't start with Get Out. It was done in B-movies way back in the early 60s like "Frankenstein Must be Destroyed!" How about the part with downloading happy memories and deleting bad ones? That was done in Total Recall. Also known as Ah-nold und zee sree boobs! Back around 10 years ago there was a shitty action movie with Justin Timberlake called "In Time". In that movie, poor people have to sell years off their life to wealthy people, who accumulate time until they can live basically forever. It may have 30% on Rotten Tomatoes, but it was just as deep and profound as anything I personally found in fucking Kaiba.

Maybe the problem is with me. Other people watched Kaiba and got something meaningful out of it. That's awesome! More power to those people. I've heard frequently that it's all about the importance of memories and how we should cherish all our memories including the bad ones. I mean...yeah. My grandmother has dementia. Of course I cherish my memories and fear losing them. I don't personally consider that a profound lesson, but that's just me.

I've also read this series is a love letter to Osamu Tezuka. Seriously?! Of course I can't speak for Yuasa. Maybe he really said that in an interview. Personally , I have my doubts. Mr. Yuasa loves animation as a concept, but has never displayed a real love for "anime" as non-Japanese know it. I don't think there's an otaku bone in that man's body. There's a quote falsely attributed to Alan Moore that says "I don't make comics. Those are garbage for children. I make graphic novels". While Moore never said anything like this, I could absolutely picture Yuasa saying "anime is trash. I make artsy cartoons!" I'm supposed to believe that anime's greatest outlier, who spent his entire career being as un-anime as humanly possible decided to make a Tezuka tribute? I'm calling bullshit.

The character designs are pretty awesome...mostly. Then there's this flying booger named Hyo-Hyo that never ceases to be obnoxious. Navi from Zelda would make up excuses not to hang out with Hyo-Hyo. Then we have this weird black caricature with fat, blue lips and a bulging tumor on his forehead. Oh and his name is Vanilla. God damn it Yuasa. What the fuck were you thinking?

We all love Yuasa. However, I feel the man is much more comfortable as an artist than as a writer. His best works are Ping Pong, Tatami, and Night is Short, which were all adaptations. When Yuasa does the writing, we end up with stuff like Cat Soup. I was disappointed by Kaiba, but I'm glad other people love it. Now go and spread that love by fixing the fan wikia! As of the time of this review, the wikia is barren and has had zero effort put into it, as if nobody actually gives a shit about this series. The Wikipedia page is also a near stub and lacks basic episode summaries! There are 30,000 people just here on MAL who would say "I LOVE Kaiba! I don't just include it in my favorites to look smart!". One you guys please go fix this.

[INTRODUCTION]

Kaiba is a show that everyone should watch. Not because anything that it does story-wise is particularly spectacular, but because of how fundamentally different it is from everything else in terms of raw artistry with its music and visuals. It's not an outstandingly good show, but everything that it presents to the viewer is just so damn unique and interesting that I can't help but recommend it. The concept itself may not be original, but the execution certainly is, and it's the execution that makes this show worth watching.

STORY [5/10]

Kaiba takes place in a world where people can transfer their minds between each other's bodies. ... It explores the consequences of doing so by showing how various characters' lives are ruined by the cruelty of this society. The hero is an amnesiac who finds himself under attack in a mysterious room, holding a locket which contains the picture of a girl who is a wanted terrorist. Although interesting, the premise itself is nothing new. What makes it stand out in Kaiba is the overall atmosphere of the show.

While most cyberpunk shows would go for an action-packed, thrilling adventure story about a group of rebels overthrowing this system, Kaiba instead focuses on the more intimate and emotional aspects of the mind-swapping process, for better or for worse. The first half of the series is very episodic in nature, a collection of slightly connected fables each focusing on a different cast of characters and how they have been touched by the mind-swapping technology. These episodes are very, very sad, sometimes so much so that it can be difficult to suspend one's disbelief. Additionally, these episodes are very hit-or-miss. Some are great, and some aren't. Although some characters are easy to get emotionally invested in, others just kind of exist and force you to sit through their episode, hoping that the next one will be more interesting.

As the story progresses and more information about our hero's past is revealed, a plot begins to take shape, ditching the episodic structure around episode 9. At this point, lots of unexpected, bizarre, and exciting things happen. If you haven't been paying close attention, it may be difficult to understand or enjoy what is going on. It's worth noting that some viewers have complained that the ending of Kaiba feels "rushed," but I didn't have this problem. Some of the twists near the end do, however, have a habit of feeling forced or random, which can be a problem if you already had trouble suspending your disbelief through the episodic portion.

By the way, this show is not for children. It's confusing, violent, depressing, and sexual. The character designs might look cute, but, as many anime fans know, this means nothing in regard to how the actual story will play out. If you're looking for a family-friendly show, find something else.

CHARACTERS [5/10]

The characters in Kaiba are defined by their experiences, not their personalities. Much like the episodes themselves, not every character is immediately interesting. Many of the characters carry their own episodes - if you like a character, you'll probably like their episode. If not, well... tough luck. Because their personalities aren't as developed as their backstories, no characters are especially memorable or unusual, and a few of them are difficult to sympathize with, which is a grave flaw in a tragedy-based show.

The most interesting thing about the characters is that they don't have static designs. Because of the mind-swapping sci-fi shenanigans which are always present, you'll see different characters using a single body at different times, single characters hopping between many different bodies, and personalities shifting seemingly at random. This is difficult to get used to at the beginning, especially because many of the characters' personalities aren't immediately apparent, and you will probably need a sheet to keep track of whose mind is in whose body at any given time.

In terms of character relationships, the main focus is on the romance between Warp and Neiro, which is interesting because of how they love each other even through different bodies. Much like a Makoto Shinkai film, Kaiba dwells on the bittersweet separation between two lovers - something that I've never cared for, but that I can't deny is an intriguing aspect of the story.

ART [9/10]

Studio Madhouse is known for the quality of their artwork, but they really outdid themselves here. Rather than using traditional anime character designs, they opted for a much more avant-garde style, one reminiscent of mid-20th century American cartoons. The drawings in Kaiba are heavily stylized, soft, and round, looking almost like they were shaped out of play-doh or drawn by a child. Rather than feeling lazily put-together, this only makes the characters all the more endearing. There is a certain human frailty which is conveyed through the use of these designs, one that enforces the story's themes much better than most anime artwork could.

The simplicity of the character designs also allows for the animators to do much more with their movement. Even by Madhouse standards, the action is especially fluid and captivating, and a surprising amount of emotion can be conveyed through simple facial expressions and body language. This is, of course, all thanks to the talent of Misaaki Yuasa, the avant-garde directorial genius behind The Tatami Galaxy and Ping Pong: the Animation.

While the characters look small, fragile, and easily moved by their environment, the backgrounds are a stark contrast in their imposing nature, characterized by towering cliffs and tiny windows carved into the walls of threatening castles and spaceships. The oppressive feeling given by the backgrounds really adds to the story's overall emotional impact, and Kaiba would feel incomplete without the art presented in the way that it is.

SOUND [8/10]

My favorite part of this show was its soundtrack. Kiyoshi Yoshida and Seira Kagami did a wonderful job with the OP, which remains among my favorites for its soothing, simplistic, and somehow still emotionally rich melody and instrumentation. The soundtrack makes very good use of synthesizers and non-acoustic noises to heighten the mysterious, sci-fi vibe that the show gives off, and it thankfully stays hauntingly beautiful because it never goes overboard with loudness or complexity. My only complaint is that there were only a few different songs used in the show - as great as many of them are, they can get old after a few listens.

Not the OP, though. That will never get old.

ENJOYMENT [5/10] -- FINAL SCORE [6.4/10]

While I can certainly appreciate how unique Kaiba's artwork is, it occasionally left me feeling a bit more alienated than I believe was intended. On the personal side of things, I've never been much for romances or gratuitously emotional dramas, so there were parts of the show that I just couldn't enjoy as much as I feel most viewers would. Nonetheless, Kaiba is an anime that I'm not likely to forget anytime soon, and is one that everyone needs to watch.

Also recommended: Flip Flappers, Serial Experiments Lain, The Tatami Galaxy

I wish i could put a higher score on this one but there are some things that made me to decide on this score.

Kaiba is about a young boy that has lost it's memories and travels through different bodies in different plannets. While the same time Kaiba hold the entire universe, revolution has began in his own base trying to depose him.

I find the graphics really unique and the story very interesting but i have some objection in terms of the flow of the story and how it can be followed up by the viewer.

Although ive shortly described the story of the series ... (above) i will not enter to more details cause that would be considered as spoiling. However i have to say that i found it very hard for someone to follow the story due to scenes that are somehow really random and that makes the whole plot really complex.
As a viewer i felt like i was bombarded with meaningless scenes and random, useless characters that would take insignificant part in the plot of this anime.

Another negative characteristic of the series (if we can call it negative) concerns the hero of the series it self. Actually i never figured out who is the main character of this anime. This happens because every episode is filled up with unrelated scenes and the basic of the main character appears only in the first episode and in the last 3.

Kaiba left me very conflicted. On one hand, it's a beautifully animated show, with legitimately interesting characters and an absorbing world concept. On the other, it's a serious mess, with a rushed and barely coherent plot that devalues a significant amount of its strengths. in short, it's a show that will unfortunately never realize its potential.

Let's start with the bad: Kaiba's story is virtually unfollowable, with the first half of the show representing a slow-burning, walkthrough of the world's concepts as our main character tries to survive a dystopia, and the second half is a payoff lightly hinted at beforehand. Its jarring, hard to follow, ... and relies on a suspension of disbelief, especially as Warp's powers are made clear towards the end. Characters that were forgotten from the first episode are suddenly relevant, and recurring characters are not. This plot is a hot mess, barely understandable.

From here you'd probably think I hated this anime, but honestly, the plot is its only real issue. To be fair its a major one, but the art is unique and interesting, the animation is fluid, the characters are believable and worthy of interest, and the show strikes a mature harmony between sound and silence to express its scenes. I watched this immediately following The Tatami Galaxy, hoping for more of the brilliance I found there and was underwhelmed by the story. However, everything else is still there.

In the end, this show feels like it needed at least another 12 episodes. It's a universe with the moral complexity and depth of fullmetal alchemist shoved into 12 episodes, and boy does it show. This doesn't get a 6 because it's a bad show, it just feels woefully incomplete, rushed, and condensed. It has all the pieces to be something potentially great, it just seems it was denied its chance to do so, and will likely never be given another.

This anime was worth watching, even if it left me deeply unsatisfied in terms of plot. Its art, animation, characters, and world are worth a recommendation alone. Just don't expect much from the story itself.