Review of Black Lagoon

Black Lagoon is a unique but dated show that tells the story of Rock, a Japanese office worker turned modern day pirate after coming into contact with a crew consisting of Dutch, Revy, and Benny. The show has a meandering sort of narrative, which follows the various jobs and contracts that the Lagoon fills. It definitely has Cowboy Bebop vibes, so if you're a fan of that show like me, you'll definitely find enjoyment here as well. As of writing this review however, I have only watched S1, not S2 or any of the OVAs, so I can't speak on the ending. Story: 7/10 For showslike this, it is difficult to separate story from character. There's not much of an overarching plot in season 1, apart from seeing Rock become more of a member of the crew. However, various themes repeatedly show themselves throughout the mini stories told; namely, the effects of holding onto the past. Every character has some tragedy in their past, which is left vague for the vast majority of the cast (within S1 at least), but not in a way where it feels annoying that you don't know more. It feels like you get a better understanding of the characters as you continue to watch the show from small tidbits of information on their past, in the same way that you might incidentally find things out about a friend that doesn't really enjoy talking about it. Some viewers might find it frustrating, because it definitely makes the story much more slower paced.

I will say that the events sometimes are not well explained, at least not enough for me. It seems that there is a well-thought out explanation as to why the things are happening, but I just don't know it.

Art: 3/10

Honestly, the art is nothing to write home about for the old anime style, which I'm a slut for. The show gets the job done, and if you walk into the show expecting it to be a mediocre 90s-00s level of quality, you won't be disappointed. Nevertheless, the characters are expressive, the scenic shots are serviceable, and the action shots are passable, so it's not truly awful.

Sound: 8/10

I haven't watched the Japanese version of this show, and I don't think that you should either. I feel like the English VAs brought so much life to this show, and ultimately is the reason why I've continued to watch it. Most of the characters are complete caricatures of themselves, and the VAs do a great job of capturing it. I don't remember any of the music from the show, other than the opening and ending, which are both not good in my opinion.

Characters: 6/10

The characters shown in S1 are good, but not quite great yet. There's very little in the way of payoff, but as I mentioned it is a slow-paced show, so I wouldn't expect there to be great conclusions for these characters yet. The groundwork for some great characters is certainly there, but it depends both on their pasts and the ending of those characters, neither of which I have full knowledge of.

Regardless, in terms of likability the characters do a good job of making you sympathize and laugh with them. Revy in particular is a super memorable and fun character, although she repeatedly says things that are not 2022-friendly, like light racism and ableist stuff. It's not used flippantly and without reason, as Revy is shown to be a real b**** throughout the show, and the show itself acknowledges that it isn't right to be so rude. If you are very bothered by this stuff, then I guess don't watch the show, but I don't think that it will bother most viewers given the attitude of the character and the show in general.

Overall: strong 6/10, light 7/10

It's a fun watch, although a little slow at certain points. Episodes 9-10 are the best in my opinion.