Meiji Gekken: 1874

This show is decent historical fiction in the vein of Golden Kamuy, with a really interesting setting and a sprawling plot. It is just threatening to buckle under the weight of its own ambition and weak production value. While it is not a show for everyone, I am shocked at how few people are even throwing a glance at it as it is airing (Winter 2024).

The early Meiji period setting is one of the most exciting times in Japanese history and the best thing this show has going for it (it is in the title, after all). A civil war has just ended. A ... new government has been established, but its authority is still in doubt. Modernization continues at a relentless pace, and many people feel left behind. Western colonial powers are fighting for control of Japan. Crime and corruption flourish. I find all of this fascinating, and it's easy to see why this is a popular setting for period action dramas (Rurouni Kenshin, Like A Dragon: Isshin!, The Last Samurai, etc.).

We get to see a good variety of characters with many different backgrounds and (hidden) motivations. Even the main character is a rickshaw puller making ends meet while hiding his past as a samurai of a fallen clan. The characters are (mostly) grounded and have realistic goals; no cute anime girls or a kid with a sword and a dream. The show still has fun with outlandish character designs, like the one-eyed swordsman with long silver hair and dual katanas. Some characters fare less well; several women share a simple "geisha in kimono" look and are difficult to tell apart (just take a look at their thumbnails in the "Characters" section here on MAL).

Unfortunately, these characters, while interesting in concept, are closer to cardboard cut-outs than actual people. They are almost always either in the thick of action or "talking business", and they don't get a lot of time to show off their personalities and emotions. We do learn about the main character a bit more, namely his personal quest, his can-do attitude, and his good old-fashioned sense of duty and justice. Some viewers may find him uninteresting, but I think he's fairly charming and a good lead for this type of story.

The actual story itself is, as of Episode 4, something of an ambitious mess. In addition to the large cast, there are simply too many factions, shifting allegiances and plot developments to keep track of. Every episode just feels packed to the brim (this show does not have an OP and still runs a full 28 minutes). I am not sure if the Japanese audience finds these story points familiar, but other viewers might have a hard time if they do not know much about the history. I have read only a little about this period before, and I think I am just barely keeping up.

It's tough to say whether the show will tell a coherent overarching story. At the moment the show seems content to throw characters into cool situations and introduce new ideas. We get to see stuff like one-man yakuza raids, an assassin that uses hallucinogenic gas, and a mixed martial arts tournament. The show does not cut loose into full insanity and comedy, however (like Golden Kamuy does), leaving the show feeling a little safe and dull. This is all decent fun, but I am hoping the slowly-building conspiracies and conflicts pay off in future episodes.

The production quality is not the best, but I get the impression that the studio is doing the best they can with very limited resources. The animation in character interactions and fights is not exactly smooth, but creative and expressive in places that counts. There are some shots that are visually striking, thanks to impactful camera angles and lighting. Overall, the production is doing a decent job of supporting the story and the atmosphere, even if it just does not have the level of polish that would turn heads.

It has been a solid start so far, but with an uncertain future. Like Golden Kamuy, it has a fascinating setting, cool characters, an action-packed story, and even inconsistent production quality. If you really enjoy historical fiction or are interested in the time period, you should definitely give this show a try. If you can enjoy a dizzying plot with interesting ideas, and can overlook some thin character work and roughness in quality, you may enjoy this show.

Meiji Gekken: 1874 - Thank effing God that we're done with Crunchyroll and their absconded Originals branding.

I love history...when it comes to anime, and Japanese history is FLOODED with stories like these that adds the animation element and makes the entire product interesting. Shows like mangaka Satoru Noda's Golden Kamuy and the modern original interpretation of Hideo Furukawa's The Tale of the Heike into Heike Monogatari, those shows are truly standouts when the topic of history or historical elements are the core function of the stories directed to the people. Japan itself has fought many valiant battles outside of its home country, as well as ... within, which showcases the legendary stories ranging periods to the scenarios themselves, one of which is the Meiji Restoration which dates 1868 and beyond.

And this is where Meiji Gekken: 1874 stands in its influence as a show where:
1) Like Golden Kamuy, it has a historical profile to stand and tell its own interpretation of the story, and;
2) Like Heike Monogatari, only have its MC and other significant characters be the original element to add to the twist while staying true to the historical events taking place.

The problem of this show is just one: it's "Everything, Everywhere, All at Once" but 100 times worse with so many flaws hindering at one straight-lined (but made rather complex for some reason) plot.

The MC of Meiji Gekken, the former Aizu Domain samurai Shizuma Origasa, he stands alone as the plot device, within a civil war of unrest (the Boshin War) that has now passed into peacetime in Edo, to find his lost fiancée named Sumie Kanomata. And just like any upstanding citizen, he works his way up from being a rickshaw puller, and then into the police force to get a better lead on Sumie. On the other hand, there is another story going on, but bigger than Shizuma's: Kyoushirou Shuragami, whose Shounai Domain origins as a samurai, this is his alias in the Edo times to scout out an enemy that he has been tracking for quite sometime, which this enemy wants to shake the foundation of Meiji-era Japan to be ruled by foreigners, at a time when opium was readily the most valuable business trade. Both former samurai of their respective origins going on about their quests, soon comes to a head when their circumstances collide, involving the police force (which is governed by the Meiji government through the Metropolitan Police for censorship) and rival clans which Kyoushirou infilrated to get information on his enemy. But wait, there's one more small, but significant route to the end game: the British government and their illusive spies, of which Senri Kuroki a.k.a Mary Blackwood is one to investigate on the surrounding Edo happenings. And like both Shizuma and Kyoushirou, her investigations collide together with both samurai when there's treasure found that links back to Kyoushirou's enemy: Buhei Hiramatsu, overseeing the Moriya and Fujishima clans of which he uses them as part of his criminal enterprise, that the former clan is where he temporarily stays until he gets a lead to progress further.

Just look how unnecessarily complex the above plotline is, though the complete picture is still drawn out like a simple puzzle piece.

For one, let me just do the homework for you if you still have that confused look on your face:
Shizuma:
- Fiancée Sumie Kanomata, alias Hinazuru for her assassin duties for revenge on the Meiji government from the atrocities of the Boshin War, who interacts with Koume as an innocent party
- Chief Superintendent Toshiyoshi Kawaji, who recruits Shizuma to the police force
- Kyoushirou Shuragami, formerly known as Ikegami Souichirou when he was betrayed by Buhei on the process of signifying Japan and Britain together in terms of trade business

Kyoushirou:
- Buhei Hiramatsu, main enemy who dons a foreign-like look as a cover
- Ryuzo Moriya, head of the Moriya Clan who took him in whilst his business with Buhei, going back and forth on business trade
- Retainers of mage Gensho, archer Dario and giant-build Guen who followed him on his conquest to kill Buhei

Senri:
- Goro Fujita, undercover Metropolitan police for the Meiji government

Unfortunately, this "larger than life" story plot has too many things going against it:
- The flow of the anime, which (due to the show airing on the rather obfuscated broadcast TV station BS Shochiku Tokyu) has inconsistent run times based on the episode's content, ranging from your usual 24 minutes to a full half-hour timeslot, which causes an inverse reaction that was considered part of the taboo of anime pre-mid 2010s.
- Unless you're on the analytical side, every episode just gets insane with what is just supposed to be a simple plot device, made difficult to understand what is actually going on, right until the final moments where the story actually clicks. Almost like a forced ending...
- The characters are all one-note characters, acting out of their livid dreams (Shizuma) to pursuing revenge (Kyoushirou), and the kinda "necessary but necessary" side plot to rare treasure findings (Senri). The story...works, but you'll be lucky to do a character and story timeline to pace what the hell is the anime conducting its own pacing.

Being a remnant of the Crunchyroll Originals branding, this show was the last of its initial batch of shows announced back in February 2020 with its mix of Japanese and Western animation medium, and if you know your history well, you already know how the entire branding went in a blaze of fire with its "overpromise and underdeliver" philosophy. And with the production of this show simultaneously changing hands until its "Last Man Standing" studio of Tsumugi Akita Animation Lab to finish things up, the entire show had seemingly been curse-inducingly D.O.A-ed before it ever got to the finish line. For reference, this studio with its small staff headcount only digital handled in-between and key animation at best, and Meiji Gekken may have been the project that threw their current projects out of whack, but only minor.

Even the staff team is also disappointing. Director Jin Tamamura may have always been in the anime directorialship chair in the mid-2010s until the fall from grace with Fall 2018's Akanesasu Shoujo (heck, Fall 2017's Imouto sae Ireba Ii. was a great show that he directed as well), it's clear that no one in the industry wanted him as he laid dormant until now with his team from Tsumugi Akita Animation Lab, including Naoki Tozuka as series composer. I'm genuinely worried for next season's Tensei shitara Dainana Ouji Datta node, Kimama ni Majutsu wo Kiwamemasu a.k.a I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince so I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability, if Meiji Gekken: 1874 showcases part of what the studio is worth with both director and series composer, and not in a good way.

Also, there is music, but only the OST. No OP/ED themes for a rather unconventional show, I can take that every once in a blue moon. But seriously, it's lackluster.

If anything, Meiji Gekken: 1874 is just as fascinating as a note piece in Crunchyroll's now beleaguered and infamous marketing, which continues to this very day. The entire show is quite a mess, though if you're up to the challenge, be my guest.