"A weird furry anime with weird furry fans."
"Oh my god you're so hot marry me rn please"
Oh the things we must endure as hot Beastars fans.
I would like to preface this review by stating that I am in fact a HUGE fan of Beastars and that the only reason I did not rate it a 10000/10 is that I recognize that objectively it is not the best thing to grace the world. Combined with the manga and season 2, I would rate the whole series a 9/10 (I rated S1 that you are looking at right now an 8/10). I did not expect to love
...
Beastars. In fact, I clowned on my friend who's low-key an actual furry for liking Beastars for YEARS before giving it a chance. Look at me now. Writing a review for this god-forsaken gem of an anime.
As a rule of thumb, I would say if you are the kind of person to be open enough to possibly watching it (that you are reading this review right now), to give it a chance! That is, if you are curious about the premise, I will say that Beastars is probably the best execution of such a concept. It is an acquired taste and not for everyone, but an interesting concept and story with lovable characters nonetheless.
***Random suggestion- but I would suggest the sub over the dub because the dramatic dialogue is hard to take seriously in the dub (to me) <3 (and the Japanese voice actors are stage actors! The 3D animation is based on their movements and expressions which is cool! I'd say it feels more authentic)
WRITING (PREMISE, STORY, & CHARACTERS):
Although it is not the first narrative of its kind to feature a cast of animals in an animal society, I find Beastars to be of the most "human" iterations of this concept in contrast to its seemingly very "animal" struggles such as hunger and instinct. The way it delves into these struggles I find to be very unique and mature as opposed to other counterparts and animal-stories that are usually aimed at children. At its heart, Beastars is a story of co-existance amongst beings that struggle with their own clashing desires, fears, and instincts. As you delve deeper into the world of Beastars, you question how this society is able to sustain itself and find hints of some very real-world problems from discrimination to segregation, trafficking, and addiction. Recently, I have even seen Beastars compared to rape culture and it makes sense. This truly sets Beastars apart from similar media, I believe, in that there is not one black-and-white problem/there is not one direct connection between the problems of carnivores and herbivores to the human world, but many conclusions to be drawn and ways to translate the story to your own life should you wish to look at this story as more than pertaining to this animal world. As you watch the story unfold, I think you might find it is surprisingly possible to connect some details to your own observations or experiences.
In my opinion, the main strengths of Beastars' writing lies in its world-building, characters, and concept more so than its actual storytelling, at least in the anime. The premise alone is unique, and the implications of working out and discovering the details of such a society make it interesting to think about and go off on tangents. For example, as I read the manga I remember thinking to myself, "I bet they do not allow carnivores to become doctors out of fear that they would consume patients upon operations. I wonder if they allow carnivores into hospitals if they are not sick (or if they are sick). In work-spaces such as this, carnivores must be discriminated against. Perhaps not in Beastars, but wouldn't it be interesting to have a society where herbivores are kept at higher-class jobs and carnivores at lower-class ones for more manual labor in this way? Although herbivores lives are in danger, carnivores suffer in different ways such as this. That would be interesting."
The characters and their clashing ideals, particularly Louis and Legoshi, are enjoyable and "human". Although I might not personally be the biggest fan of the romance storyline or the murder-(not so)mystery storyline, which by the way is the main part of the story, I still find the characters and world to be fun enough to observe to be a favorite of mine. Legoshi is a great character and a young mess of emotions from anxiety to hunger to lust. As he confronts the world he has been presented with and his own inner emotions, he learns and grows as a person... or uh wolf. It is quite lovely to watch how he internalizes these concerns and faces challenges in his life, especially in the manga. I would also like to note that Louis's development and his relationship with Legoshi is probably of the most well-written and interesting parts of the actual story.
As for the genre, Beastars is technically a shonen. However, I feel as though the story leans more into non-typical shonen aspects. There were times I was internally begging the author to make it a slice of life story where no one dies (upon crying on my manga). This is how much I personally preferred the development and characters to the action and fights of the series. I think people who are more into romance, slice of life, and coming of age stories can find the plot entertaining as WELL as fans of stories about moral dilemmas, action, and fights. I think there is something to love for many people in Beastars, should they give it a chance.
ANIMATION/ART & SOUND:
As one of your first observations, you might have noticed Beastars is a 3D animation, and probably one of the best 3D adaptations or most well-received of its kind. Whilst watching, I felt as though this was a great decision for the adaptation of the manga. The 3-dimensionality enhances the size-difference between characters and enhances the drama of the world. Sometimes, the screen does a split screen to show the reactions of two characters simultaneously, which I found to be unique and added to the tension. There are moments, too, when the animation goes from 3D to 2D for a moment for comedic affect. These are all micro-decisions made whilst directing that I think add a lot of character to the show and made it more pleasing to watch.
UPDATE: I watched this video on the animation and creation of Beastars and it has greatly increased my appreciation for it just so much more.. just wow:
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHBVC_bZUsY
As for sound, I am not the most musically-smart person; however, I recognize that this is a decent score. There is one song used many times throughout the series that I found perhaps a little repetitive, but maybe that is because I have watched this show too many times. It should also be noted that the openings are great, particularly the first one "Wild Side" is a classic and an absolute banger. Combined with the beautiful stop-motion that switches from night to day as the song changes and the dynamic of Legoshi and Haru shifts from hunter-prey to lovers is just great and sets the tone for the main qualms the characters deal with in the show.
That's all I have to say about Beastars. Either you like it and you're super hot or you're not sorry.
Jun 21, 2021
"A weird furry anime with weird furry fans."
"Oh my god you're so hot marry me rn please" Oh the things we must endure as hot Beastars fans. I would like to preface this review by stating that I am in fact a HUGE fan of Beastars and that the only reason I did not rate it a 10000/10 is that I recognize that objectively it is not the best thing to grace the world. Combined with the manga and season 2, I would rate the whole series a 9/10 (I rated S1 that you are looking at right now an 8/10). I did not expect to love ... 
Jun 20, 2021
Kaijuu no Kodomo
(Anime)
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NO SPOILERS <3
As someone who works at a movie theater and has seen the ad for this movie only about a million times, I was excited to finally sit down and watch this movie that has been on "my list" on Netflix for a long time, but I have to say I was a little disappointed. To preface, I have not read the source material and I watched the English dub, which I thought was decent. Or at least the dubbing matches the monotone dialogue of the film. STRENGTHS: The art style is incredibly unique and beautiful. A solid 10/10, besides the fact the eyes were ... |
