As in the title, the show is about invading someone’s Id, their unconsciousness. Mainly pertaining to serial killers who act upon their Id and unknowingly leaving consciousness particles at each crime scene. Particles that a bureau is able to use in order to examine and even track down the criminals. The method of examination is via a technology system that allows a qualified user to jump into someone’s Id well in order to figure out the mind of the murderer. It’s very soft science-fiction so thinking very hard on how the system works will just get you nowhere.The show does give some roundabout way to how it works, but it’s more to its detriment than anything else. It’s just used for having an interesting take on a killer's psychology without the cat and mouse chasing or long internal monologuing.
The structure for the first half of the show is a bit weird as it has a feeling of being episodic, but there’s just enough content that glues them all together so that you have to watch it in a successive manner. Aside from the first two episodes,and another few near the end, each episode explores a different Id well. As the Id is part of the unconscious, they don’t adhere to the same rules of reality as one would expect. From the way the environment looks such as being broken apart or isolated, to the way the “people” in the wells look and behave, and also how the scenario plays out. Each one is influenced by the serial killer’s mind and how they see the world, and it’s up to the detective to figure it out. Not only a means of understanding their mentality in order to get the jump on them, but also since the well is still connected to the criminals, new information can still slip in making the investigators more aware of their locations. Although the way they go about finding info about the serial killer is a bit convenient from time to time. Using sometimes the most banal of clues to find a good chunk of info about them with pinpoint accuracy.
In some way I do find the Id well and the scenarios that are brought up to be very video game-y. Viewing each new well as a sort of new level in a puzzle game. I guess it’s because it reminded me of something like psychonauts. Although the level of participation that you have in the shows mysteries vary. From being a bit too easy that it can be figured out almost near the beginning of entering the wells, and other times they come in with a late game curve ball that really felt out of nowhere. Nevertheless I would say the way they go about each new well is overall clever and usually enjoyable to watch.
The second half of the show does through the show into a loop, shamefully however is that the direction is downwards. It does start interestingly enough as another standard-ish operation that becomes something more than previously expected. Getting more info about our main protagonist as well as the system that brings them in the Id wells. However the show lingers onto this plot point for too long that it starts to get boring. It gets hard to care about any new story revelations, character motivations, or even who the elusive main antagonist is. It’s basically the show trying to quickly funnel the show down to its conclusion and have everything in-story answered and wrapped up.
Before getting into what little I can say of the other characters, I'd first like to talk about John Walker. An elusive antagonistic figure who happens to appear in many of the Id wells that the Protagonist enters, and also a suspect in the protagonists predicament. They are the main perpetrator who seems to be connected to many of the serial killer cases in the show, and most likely pulling the string behind everything. I personally was able to figure out who the character was about a few episodes into the show. Not by any means of clues or foreshadowing, but rather just a process of elimination and luck because any other way to figure them out can prove to be difficult.
It does make sense that it’s hard to figure out who the antagonist is mainly because not a lot of focus is given to many of the characters. The characters who have the most characterization are the ones who are allowed to enter the Id well. The main protagonist Sakaido, a young girl who can pass as a middle schooler Koharu, and also the first serial killer of the show, Fukuda. The other serial killers mostly have their personality showcased in their Id wells with a bit of backstory just in case. As for the people who work for the bureau, they are like the forensic investigators in crime scene dramas, but without the snark or personality, just very one dimensional.
Doesn’t really help the characters when the art style is also makes them look very dull. Most of them have an angular like design to them that is also minimalist or basic. One of the more odd choices is the design of some of the characters' eyes. Some of them are depicted to be more slanted rather than the more standard version you see in most anime. However they are still proportioned the same way as the standard depiction, that the result makes it look like they sometimes are squinting. Nevertheless despite how dull the show looks it still provides a serviceable experience towards the show.
Small Tangent: one of the interesting things to note about two of the characters that can enter the Id wells is that they both have holes in their head. It means very little until you look into the main writer of the show's history who once wrote a short story called “Drill Hole in the Brain”. Maybe it’s a bit of self-indulgence, but whatever. Just something I happened to notice.
The show is only able to stand above the average crowd due to it’s interesting ideas and moments, but that is just for the first half and a bit that gets carried over towards the second. The rest of the second half just leaves nothing but disappointment. It’s obvious what they were doing in order to wrap the show up, but there was never enough in the show that could make any pay off satisfying. What could have been a decent show, came out being average at best.
