Master Keaton is exceptional in the few things it does. But due to its episodic nature, it can't reach the apex of what it could've been. Story: 7 Animation: 8 Sound: 10 Characters: 8 Enjoyment: 8 Total: 8 There isn't much to say about Master Keaton. The episodic nature hinders many aspects, mainly a coherent story. What we instead get are various scenarios Keaton finds himself in, mostly voluntarily. This ranges from hostage rescues, stakeouts, family drama, refugees and much more. The variety of the topics is certainly the best way to utilize the episodic format. What stuck the most was how timely everything still is, even if it played in theearly 1990s. While it is commended for that, it only shows how stubborn humans can be in that regard that all these problems will probably never go away.

But for all the positives, through the cracks of the facade, the negative shines through. Some episodes, for example, won't even need the main character, because the newly introduced A-plot characters for that episode can carry it alone. It feels that Keaton was just shoehorned in, because he must be the only main character. Other episodes, mainly in the OVA part, can't breath properly and end on an unfinished note. The only double episode has the opposite problem: it has too much time. The restrictions of the anime medium are the main culprit for these problems. Which is another reason why the episodic format isn't suited for this style of writing. More complex themes are left on the cutting board because of that.

It still is a good show, and the animation still holds to this day, even when it feels outdated. The sound, on the other hand, feels pitch perfect. Especially the violin suspense theme feels like I already heard it a million times.

In all Master Keaton is a very good episodic anime, which limits its own abilities in regards to character development and story telling. As a trade off, it is very condensed in its essence, which can be an advantage for people who don't want to binge a story. Just relax, feel the good vibes and let the suspense take over you.