Mayoiga is a show that aired on the Spring 2016 and belongs to the horror,mystery,psychological and drama genres and It manages to fuck up every one of them,later on I'll further in that claim when I start talking about the story,and it's sad,since I love those genres and those combained could create masterpieces,but since you've guessed it,that's not the case of Mayoiga.
Mayoiga's story is pathetic.
Anime original story are really rare on modern anime,it's really weird to watch shows that are not based on a manga,light novel or porn novel,but they're really ambitious.They try to present new and original stories with can be executed out brilliantly ot can became a flop and Mayoiga falls on the later category.
We have a really unique premise of a group of people travelling to a village,which according to legends doesn't exist,to start a new life.It's really interesting and very uncommon in anime,since there are not teenagers in a highschool.Moreover,you expect some metaphysical thing like it's the afterlife.The premise is really good,but unfortunatly,the rest is really crappy.
The pacing is atrocious,we start very slow,like a good mystery does and then it sinks,in favour of showing you crazy people being crazy doing crazy things and the story gets forgotten,then it starts going on circles on the same point "That character is a witch!1!!!","We must kill her" getting focused in showing you over the top things,eventually,it becomes a clustterfuck of asspulls and revelations with no point at all.
But these elements aren't the worst thing that the story has to show you,the worst aspect is the story itself.
I've commented about the originalty of the premise,and the story doesn't have secudary highschools with mobiles phones and rainbow haired characters,unfortunatly,these are its only good aspects.Trying to describe all the atrocites it does to storytelling but let's try it.
The story starts with our cast going on to a lost village by bus,on the first episode they introduce all the cast and because they're like 25,you won't remember any name,they sing creepy songs and there is a creepy atmosphere going on.On the next episode,the cast reach to the village and there is a mystery about its abandonment because there are some furniture and recient things on the houses,they go to investigate it and someone disappears because he split apart from the group with a gril that he liked,so she gest blamed.From this point the show starts to go downhill so fast and so hard that it hurted.We have a witchhunt,supernatural things that are supposed to be the mental scars,and the idea of fighting your own fears but this concept is made badly since the you can create super mega mosters just because.These beings,also,don't let them go away,but some have,some don't have anmd it's crazy how the work.In addition,the story is full of shock factor and victimazing,showing you the past of some characters "how the parents hit you while laughing","the world doesn't understand me",etc.
At the end of the day,we have a story,that is a dynamic show with the same thriller and pyschological weight like Mirai Nikki,because it tries to be a serious and mature show but it never becomes that it wants to introduce the biggest number of supernatural and over the top elements as it can.
Finally,I want to talk about the ending since it was the final nail on a dead show.They asspull a final boss that turns out to be the researcher of the guy that wanted to stop all the nonsense and rescue everyone,since according to him,you start to lose feelings after staying on the village for to long,and she wanted to create a big moster to help him to regain his feeling,then the monster of the girl that everyone hated appears to help her to make her,the people that you though they were dead,appeared out of nowhere,and some of them united to the final boss that is a cute girl,yes,in the end,some people stayed because they were afraid of coming back to real world and some went to the real world,eventhough,some of them wanted to go away,but don't ask cuestion.
At the end of the day,we have a show that promised you to be a survival mystery or an unintentional comedy in the likes of Another but ended being a clustterfuck of nonsense and a insult to logic or storytelling
The art & animation is mediocre
The animation was handled by Diomedea known for Campione,Noucome,KanColle or Mondaiji-tachi ga Isekai kara Kuru Sou Desu yo?
The art is as bland as you ever hope to be,there is no life in it,they seem to be made on an assembly line without any passion or vision.It's nice to the eye,since it isn't ugly and is indeed kind of moe and cute but there isn't any personality or anything,so,the art is generic and bland but nice to the eye,but to be fair,the monsters are really original and something to stick out of the art,they combine live-action and animation making it really experimental and unique.
The animation is nothing spectacular,the movements are fluid and the cgi is bad.
The character designs are bland are really generic,they have nothing special that defins them,the same goes to the backgrounds.
To sum it up,the art & animation is bland
The sound is nice and is the best aspect of the show
The OST is really good,on a horror show the OST is not for showing how amazing it's or making epic moments,is there to help to the atmosphere,making it creepy and this soundtrack does it wonderfully,but there's a silly track that ruins the atmosphere with dramatic sounds.
The OP is really amazing,the visuals are really good,they help to reflect all the psychological conflicts and backdrops of the characters with good metaphores like butterflies.Moreover,the song is really good,so we have here one of the best opening of the spring and you only wish that show would be the same.
The ED is forgettable,it shows you the characters and it's accompanied by a guitar song which is really relaxing but there is nothing special about it.
The voice acting is correct.
The charcters are the worst aspect by far,they are so generic that it's really hard to talk abou them,they fairly one-note and they can be describe in one sentece.
Mitsumune is the main character,he has a pure heart and loves Masaki
Masaki is a shy girl that likes Mitsumune,she's messed up.
Hayato is a yandere.he loves his best friend,Mitsumune.
Koharun is the "final boss",she likes Valkana and she plans to save her dad,most of the show,she's a mystery
Dahara is the guide and likes Koharun
Valkana is an angry guy,but to be fair,he's the most likeable one and his backdrop has some sense.He's the best character in the show.
Lion is your Rei Ayanami clone with some supernatural powers.
Love-pon is crazy as shit,she's really hateable,and you want to punch her on the face.
Nanko is a detective,she's really interesting,since he has got some character but she doesn't get fleshed out in any way,so she ends being a likebale supporting character that would be better if she wasn't on this show,like Valkana
Maimai is a tsundere and she like the MC
Jack is psycho.
Hyouketsu no Judgness is pathetic,he tries to be funny or something but it's annoying
Mikage is frustated business man.
Nyanta is cat girl that loves guns and the same goes to Jigoku no Gouka (but he is not a cat boy)
Manabe and Pii-tan are the "cute" couple that is really cheesy.
Dozaemon likes to eat and is a NEET
Nettaiya is hot blonde girl,so as you expected is dumb as well,because of clichés.
The rest don't have any a cliché to define them.
Moreover,the character don't have any development or got flesh out in any way.The maximum amount of care they have is a flashback showing how sad is their life.
In the end,we have a boring and generic cast with no charm or carisma or anything.
In conclusion,Mayoiga is a boring show with a stupid story,bland art,nice soundtrack and a boring and generic cast.It's not even the case of Big Orderi,where is so bad that is funny,is really bad,being funny in stupidness but unfortunatly is not the case,so we have a boring and bad show that's not good even in dumb entertainment.
Overall,I give Mayoiga a 2 out of 10
