It’s been a while since I’ve seen good anime.
Is Sk∞ good or bad? I don’t think I can answer that with a simple yes or no.
The show has an interesting premise; it’s about fun. What does that mean? How can a show be about fun? I think that’s a great question. And I hope that by writing this review I get a little closer to understanding that question.
What’s the plot? Well, uh… There’s this downhill, S-shaped, offroadish skate track, and people race on it. There’s a little more to it, but that is mostly it.
Can skateboarding down the same exact course over and over again be fun? Surprisingly yes. In fact, other than when Reki and Langa are just aimlessly skating around town, it’s the only time the show is fun.
Not only is the plot not memorable, generally none of the characters are either. Except Adam. When Adam is on screen the show is fun.
Whether he’s making a surprise, acrobatic, pyrotechnic grand entrance welcoming “bitches, and bros, and non-binary hoes,” or doing some hypnotizing tapdance / ballet hybrid while slaloming at the speed of light… I couldn’t look away. I was totally captivated by Adam. And while he has a seemingly endless number of completely absurd antics up his sleeve, he doesn’t need to continuously go bigger to be compelling. Adam is compelling just standing there. He can stand in front of a TV screen, or tenderly smoke a cigarette while
The show has flashes of brilliance: I can’t think of many more shows where I’ve had more, intense bursts of fun. But for whatever reason, the show just can’t put it all together; for every impressive feat, there’s a baffling writing/ directorial choice.
Why is there a C-plot about Adam having a Bruce Wayne type alter ego who is embroiled in a corruption scandal? Our heroes tango (literally) with the villain, the most absurdly entertaining thing I’ve ever seen (episode 5 at 15:30 – 17:00), it’s cut short by a plot device, am I supposed to pretend that this isn’t just filler until they meet again?
The show is about fun. That is, if you’re skateboarding and you’re not having fun, you’re doing it wrong. And because this is a shounen anime, the protagonists have this epiphany.
But the thing is Adam also has fun while skating. The show tries to convince us that Adam isn’t having fun, and that’s just silly. So, whatever message they were sending on fun is completely lost on me.
Nonetheless, I had fun, and that was much more than I expected from this show.
