No Guns Life

The technology to create powerful cyborg soldiers has been released for public use by the Berühren Corporation. Those outfitted with robotic parts are known as the Extended. Juuzou Inui, one such Extended, was created as a soldier and has no memories of his former life. But now, after the war, he runs a business that takes care of Extended-related incidents around the city.

Rumors of a renegade Extended that kidnapped a child reach his ears; lo and behold, as Juuzo returns to his office, a giant robotic man with a boy on his back crashes in, asking for help. While Juuzou could just turn the guy in and be done with it, something about this situation is too fishy to ignore. It seems that everyone wants hold of this kid and, whether he likes it or not, Juuzou must find out why this Extended is on the run, how it connects to the Berühren Corporation, and just how far the treachery runs in this city.

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Adaptation:	No Guns Life
Sequel:	No Guns Life 2nd Season
Other:	No Guns Life Mini

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Characters & Voice Actors

Inui, Juuzou

Main

Suwabe, Junichi
Japanese

Steinberg, Mary

Main

Numakura, Manami
Japanese

Arahabaki, Tetsurou

Main

Yamashita, Daiki
Japanese

Pepper

Supporting

Minase, Inori
Japanese

Vandeberme, Olivier

Supporting

Hikasa, Youko
Japanese

Gosling, Scarlet

Supporting

Kouno, Marika
Japanese

Tokisada, Mega-armed

Supporting

Horiuchi, Kenyuu
Japanese

von Wolf, Cronen

Supporting

Uchida, Yuuya
Japanese

Karen

Supporting

Ueda, Reina
Japanese

Saryshagan

Supporting

Souma, Kouichi
Japanese

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Staff

Cook, Justin

Producer

Oowada, Tomoyuki

Producer

Yamanaka, Takahiro

Producer

Hashimoto, Kentarou

Producer

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Opening Theme

"MOTOR CITY" by Kenichi Asai (浅井健一)

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Ending Theme

"Game Over" by DATS

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Reviews

Dec 27, 2019

Skarvalin

Mixed Feelings

No Guns Life shines brighter than most of its surrounding competition thanks to its central themes of corruption and dehumanization, strengthened by it’s gritty noir style. But the execution casts a strong shadow on the whole show, loaded with mediocrity.

It has a good foundation to improve from though. Most of the first season is dedicated to world-building and does so with modestly good results. But it often felt like it went all over the place and never really resolved many of the plot threads that it had built up. The characters especially took a bullet due to this. Most of them were blander than stale ... bread because of how severely lacking their development is as of now.

Our main protagonist Inui Juuzou is an Over-Extended and former gun slave unit that was used during a war. His backstory from that time is only mentioned briefly, teasing you to keep watching and find out more later. Other characters fall into this as well, which is quite frustrating since besides their backstories they have almost nothing going for them. They are at least not painfully generic like many of the villains turn out to be, who basically scream in your face about how evil they are. Though they only become a hurdle when the story needs them to be.

What ended up making me stay throughout its entire runtime was the same reason I picked this show up in the first place, it’s aesthetic. The bleak and gritty dystopian future the show throws you into is very refreshing. It’s heavily noir inspired which is something one rarely sees these days but I would gladly see more of. Aesthetics aside, the visuals are alright for the most part. There's a heavy use of CGI but it blends in with it's 2D counterpart enough to not become too distracting. Character movement was solid most of the time and they were very consistently on model throughout. The action scenes were the visual highlight and were pretty fast-paced and enjoyable. The CGI is also implemented well here and at times used to the show's advantage.

The noir style was amplified thanks to the smooth jazz soundtrack that really helped give the show it’s own identity. I can't say it did a lot for me emotionally, but was overall pretty decent for what it was. I feel pretty much the same way about the voice acting which was also decent and fitting to the characters personality. Not any outstanding performances but they did their job well and made the characters feel more real, aside from some of the villains that just sounded ridiculous.

But overall I can't say I'm satisfied at all when the characters and story haven't been properly fleshed out. I think the most harmful problem was the lack of story and character progression which makes it hard to recommend. If it’s style is not enough to make up for it then I can see many finding this quite dull. However, at the end of the day, I think it’s at least worth a shot.

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Dec 26, 2019

Stark700

Recommended

Walking down the dark metropolis is a man with a gun head. A man without conviction. A man filled with righteous. A man with unrivaled pride in his work. From the cyberpunk world where cyborgs exists, this man is a private detective and resolves to rid of it of corruption. He is Juzo Inui, a gun head who is here to help the helpless.

Mangaka Tasku Karasuma is not fairly well known to most audiences although some of his work incorporates the usage of futuristic worlds and science fiction. No Guns Life is no exception as we are introduced to a cyberpunk setting. Humans are now ... cyborgs and are called “Extended”. Crime is rampant and on the loose in the city. With such technology, you can just imagine how chaotic society has become. Juzo is an Extended problem solver who relies on his mental and physical skills to deal with other Extended. From the very beginning, the audience should pay full attention to Juzo’s character behavior. Despite being an Extended, he has the personality of a private detective and always seeks to complete his tasks for the right price. With the motto of “wipe your own ass”, Juzo prefers to work alone and isn’t afraid to take big risks. From a personal perspective, Juzo is not just the poster boy of No Guns Life but also a symbol. He is a symbol for people to take their own responsibility for their actions.

Now I won’t deny No Guns Life is somewhat of a niche anime. Even as a paranormal detective show, the anime leans more into sci-fi and action. The story flows with each episode introducing ongoing problems in a city and corruption. We also meet characters who Juzo associates with including Mary Steinberg and Tetsuro Arahbaki. These two collaborates together with Juzo although they also have their own personal goals. (for instance, Mary hopes to reunite with her brother) Nonetheless, Juzo acts as more of an anti-hero throughout the series. Even though he performs heroic deeds, he’s also a mercenary who takes cases for money. For the right price, Juzo does his job regardless how difficult it may be. But on some occasions, he also helps the Extended in need with his own conviction. In essence, he helps the helpless and comes across as a fairly reasonable man. Some associates occasionally assists him in his tasks although the main course of his job is undertaken by the gunhead himself. Speaking of which, how likeable are the other characters? The bottom line is that Juzo overshadows them but they do possesses unique roles in the show. Mary works as a mechanic and is important to his well-being. Tetsuro has an ability to control other Extended’s bodies making an invaluable asset. Even Olivier Vandeberme, a law enforcer, provides freedom for Juzo so he can work without disturbance. The fact is, these characters are important to the core of the show and without them, Juzo would have a harder time to achieve his goals.

But an important question remains. What is your goal for watching No Guns Life? What are you hoping to get out of this science fiction story taking place in this deluded cyberpunk world? It’s ambiguous question because No Guns Life is an unconventional show with its own identity. Sometimes, you have to wonder what the author wanted you to experience. Juzo, the gun head reminds us how the potentials of Extended and their limitations. I mean, isn’t it funny how he can’t actually fire the augmented gun on his head without assistance? In fact, many Extended in the series carries some sort of burden in the aftermath of the great war. A major social issue relating to poverty also exists as some Extended resorts of violence to survive. On the other hand, we have mega corporations such as Behruen, standing as a symbol of power and bureaucracy. It reminds of the old classic 1987 Robocop where futuristic technological inventions are treated differently than others. Crime remains a major issue in the story as Juzo deals with corruption. He finds out the hard way after facing off against rogue cyborg Gondry, the very first Extended. Standing out as a powerful individual but also victimized by the result of the war, Gondry is a poster boy of experimentation. An arc dealing with him is one of the climatic clashes exploring the ethnics of technology. And to be honest, I think it’s one of the highlights in this season. Meanwhile, No Guns Life also gains support for eliciting emotional appeal to the audience. Characters such as Olivier has their own motivations and in one of the later episodes, we find out her purpose in the story. If you made it this far, then I can say it’s safe that you’ll be staying the rest of the way.

Serving as a celebration of Madhouse’s creative works, No Guns Life has distinctive elements in its artwork. The dark and noir-style backgrounds inspire a cyberpunk look for the main setting. Most noticeably, the backgrounds are animated with the Unreal Engine to make them as polished as they can be. By rendering the visuals and fuse them with the character models, it makes both parts stand out sharply. It’s not too often we get to see a game engine being used for an animated series so perhaps this opens doors more to future projects of similar nature. The Extended are also decorative with unique augmentations and modifications to the body, so much that you’ll see them more than regular humans. Characters that stand out the most includes Juzo, Gondry, and perhaps Olivier. Their character expressions sell a variety of human behavior ranging from comical, emotional, and diabolical. And if you’re in for some light comedy, there’s that too. Character interactions sometimes goofs around with their cartoony expressions. Then, there are also light jokes thrown around that pokes fun at technological themes with dry humor. We can’t also ignore how often Juzo needs help to fire his own gun, can we?

No Guns Life is a unique piece of work with its own identity. As someone who has read the manga, it’s easy to get used to even if you’re not familiar with its ideas. The more I watched No Guns Life, the easier it became to understand what the author wanted to show us. Trust me, go watch No Guns Life and experience a hallmark of unorthodox beauty.

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Dec 26, 2019

KANLen09

Recommended

I don't really get it why uninnovative cyberdunk dystopian stories always get the flak of it being unimaginative and impromptu of its massive storytelling coupled with world-building, but I'd can say that while No Guns Life is one of the more uninspired stories out there in a sea of mech stories both old and new, it's slow-burn and the entire plot universe around it is what keeps me glued to this show of infinite proportions of its many directions it could head towards, and it's sad that not as many people are as intrigued to the settings and such, and heck, this show still has ... a 2nd cour (or more appropriately the 2nd half) to go!

Always been wondering about the editorial remarks on No Guns Life's cover? It says here: “SF hard boiled the gun smoke drifts muzzle talks” (just like that, without commas). To quote someone who knows the source well, it’s surprisingly accurate: Protagonist "Resolver" Inui Juzou, is a rogue private detective part of the "Gun Slave Unit" assigned to eradicate Extendeds, who's always smoking cigarettes, is smoking hot, smokes with gun smoke, because he is an (Over-Extended) cyborg made of revolvers, his head for a gun (revolver), and being the the spirit of the noire revolver embodied: bitter, badass, with a dark history, seeking to break away from the hands that try to subdue him, actually a weapon. And due in part of Juzou being half-human and half-weapon/tool, he always tries not to force a bad hand in situations that call for it in the best possible way he could, and his motto is to "wipe your own ass" i.e. clear your own shit the way you know how.

And in this post-apocalyptic world, the seemingly formed relationships are barely legal depending on which side of the case it leans on: the "righteous" side of Juzou and his workhorse people, or the retro-futuristic cyberpunk setting, which in turn is also a proper one – with an evil cybernetic corporation, a brutal police force tasked with keeping the modified Extendeds in check, with questions of transhumanism and alienation, along with the punk part – bodies being spliced and spruced up in backdoor-alleyway undercity clinics, body horror and brain hacking. So the world in No Guns Life literally has not both start and end lines, but rather, everything is a process in and of its end onto itself. To sweeten the deal, the anime's background of a war does best to interlink both sides, where due to the war happened before the world ever came into a consensus, humans and mech Extendeds are like owners and tools before all rules and regulation broke down.

In essence, it's the interesting characters that both make or break the series in accordance with the many issues at hand, and here's where Juzou's life gets more exacerbated from Tetsuro Arahabaki, the son of the CEO of the evil Berühren Corporation, who is heavily wanted for experimentation for a device that is heavily implanted within him that could control and take over Extendeds in range to amass their reach beyond areas of influence. Add in Tetsuro's annoying and bratty behaviour, along with company associate-cum-mechanic Mary Steinburg and the EMS agency which regulates Extended and Over-Extended beings like Juzou and keeping them under check that they don't flout the law, all this becomes one massive problem that Juzou just couldn't afford to shrug under the rug.

To commend this show on the storytelling and the over-arching plot, it is pretty much a perfect 100% 1-to-1 adaptation of the manga into the anime, which says a lot about fans not wanting to lose out on anything even remotely minor, and No Guns Life definitely benefitted from series composer Yukie Sugawara taking no liberties and adapting the manga's entirety to good use. And sure, the story will not win any awards with some of its cheeziness, but for pretty much creating hidden crannies and hooks that'll intrigue us to dive even deeper, I'd say that it has done its job well. Not great mind you, but not bad for a valiant effort.

And who to bring that classic 90's stylized feels and visuals other than Madhouse, I truly love it when such works like this call back the old aesthetics that give seasoned studios to stretch on their legs for visuals that have been long gone in time past. The modern world, made old with the entire cyberpunk. scrapyard setting really gives it a feel for some of the older classics that we've come to know and love (i.e. Trigun, made by the same studio). Coupled with the great animation, I'd say that Madhouse has done a good job in replicating the entire world to its core. Factor in the great music with the background music and especially the OST, which was a complete surprise that the entire ED is done in Unreal Engine 4 by Cyclone Graphics to aid that gamer-futuristic look. That's superb and unheard of by any standards, with the cool jazzy OP and ED that made up the experience overall.

This show's truly boring you say, and I'd agree to an extent, but take a deep dive under the rabbit hole and you'll see that No Guns Life truly is a fascinating show with as many of its layers waiting to be delved into a story that is initially hard to pick up but even harder to drop. Can't wait for the 2nd half to drop in Spring 2020, and if you need a binge, do pick this up before the 2nd half commences if your interest hasn't waned yet.

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Why is this rated so low? Sonnyman45 - Sep 7, 2021	4 replies	by Neostorm-X »» May 3, 12:29 AM
Poll: No Guns Life Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Oct 10, 2019	145 replies	by Apratim »» Jan 11, 12:17 PM
Poll: No Guns Life Episode 11 Discussion Stark700 - Dec 19, 2019	34 replies	by CopperTyrant »» Jan 5, 1:02 PM
Poll: No Guns Life Episode 2 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Stark700 - Oct 17, 2019	91 replies	by arOmma »» Sep 17, 2022 4:22 PM
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