So what exactly am I talking about? How does this anime fail to engender "feelings?" Well, the simple answer is that a 13 episode season attempts to cut down on 80 chapters by leaving out relevant details and rushing the experiences that allow characters to grow and develop in this ruthless, unforgiving place known as the Tower. Bam's intense feelings for Rachel are so skewed in the anime that it drives you to think of Bam as a useless MC who is obsessed with holding Rachel back from achieving her dreams. The deep conversations and paneling in the Webtoon simply do not translate because Crunchyroll somehow decided that the two main characters did not need greater development. Right from the start, we can't feel anything for Bam because we can't resonate with his own feelings about his role in the Tower. Additionally, the anime chose to cut details about other Irregulars in the tower, which are literally INCLUDED IN THE FIRST FEW CHAPTERS OF THE WEBTOON. Without these details, anime viewers can't even begin to comprehend what Bam's arrival means for the state of the tower. How can any viewer begin to critically analyze and think about the present/future state of the show without having some context?
However, the worst thing about this anime is its terrible pacing. The episodes are so fast that you can barely comprehend what's going on (forget about asking yourselves questions while watching). So, what does the bad pacing mean for the rest of the show? Fundamentally, it makes a mockery of the Webtoon by making the entire group of Regulars a set of bland, good-for-nothings that simply follow Bam/Khun's actions. In the anime, characters like Endorsi (Androssi), Anaak, and Hatsu fail to have their own unique personalities and goals that drive their actions and moral deduction. I distinctly remember loving the Webtoon because each of these characters had a unique relationship with each other, and especially with Bam. This simply does not exist in the anime. Furthermore, climaxes become meaningless in the anime because the pacing doesn't allow viewers to invest themselves in the characters. Let's use Ho as our classic example. In the Webtoon, the elaborate backstory and emotions during the second exam give us a reason to understand Ho's ideology and where he's coming from, despite the fact that the tower has robbed him of his humanity and morality. When I saw Ho's situation in the anime (no spoilers), I couldn't even feel anything for him, which was completely jarring. How are viewers supposed to feel anything for this story if you cut out necessary scenes that contain raw emotion?
All in all, you shouldn't waste your time with this anime if you are not a Webtoon reader. The whole reason why this anime got so much hype was because Webtoon readers wanted to support SIU, an incredibly dedicated writer (he works nonstop to generate a meaningful and complex story about our own humanity and the moral issues that we consistently face every day). I am deeply saddened by the way that this has all played out, as many viewers have began calling ToG trash/mid, when it's really a beautiful story behind the scenes. I hope that reading this review will peak your interest and drive you to give the Webtoon a chance. With no regrets, I say that the Webtoon is 1000x better than this trash anime, which robbed me of excitement for 3 months.
