I'd like to think this show works out better in manga form. Golgo 13, or Duke Togo, the main character, is incredibly bland. Did you know hes badass? You do know he's badass, don't you? Just for the record, he's badass. The show will constantly force this message down your throat in every single episode. He will never fail at anything ever (except for that one time with the cat), he fucks all women to sex heaven, and he can snipe an alien on Mars from a rocking boat as the alien jumps up and down.
Nobody should give a shit about Golgo himself, he's a nothing character with no personality. The one-episode characters in each episode is what keeps the thing afloat. The supporting cast are, if not complex, interesting. They are the ones who carry the show. Who is hiring Golgo? Why does he want the target murdered? What sort of person is the target? Thats the good stuff.
13 is episodic, and the quality range from great to decent to fuck off. You really have to turn your brain off with this show. Theres a person that wants another person dead. Here's why they want them dead, this is the challenge Golgo has to face with this mission, here's what the target is doing. The show is incredibly unrealistic, so you really have to just go with it. Some of the stories are really charming. Others fall float. If you're nitpicky, forget about it, but if you can just sit back and watch something stupid you might end up enjoying this.
The sound and art is forgettable, but not bad. There's one part that stands out though. The openings. OP1 is really fucking good, and OP2 is a goddamn masterpiece. If someone asked me to present them with the perfect example of an opening too good for its show I now have the perfect answer. The second opening makes you think you're gonna watch an all time classic amazing action show that'll take you for a wild ride. It's so fricking cool! OP1 does the same to a less degree. What an AMAZING couple openings to a mediocre show.
Go watch Golgo 13 if you want to shut all brain activity off and watch James Bond on steroids with bad plot. It's flawed as fuck, but it's certainly better than the generic moeshit the anime industry pumps out these days. You might even end up having fun, I did, somehow.
