Review of Black Lagoon

This anime has been on my list for quite some time now, ever since last viewing it at a friends house on Toonami. I can say with great certainty that I regret sleeping on it for so long. There's a lot to love about Black Lagoon and very little to hate. Regardless of my stance, this is certainly a anime worth watching. Also fair warning i'm going over both season 1 & 2 in this review as there isn't any substantial difference between the two. Firstly, the characters though spread out and very vague upon their origins, are incredibly well written. With a anime filledto the brim with every kind of criminal imaginable it's very easy to not really care but these characters feel natural and rooted in reality. Rock is your typical white collar guy who gets thrown into this life of crime after being deemed expendable. Revy at first glance is a bloodthirsty pyschopath but later you'll see they have depth too. Dutch and Benny though not given as much screen time, still add layers to a otherwise solid cast.

The same cannot be said however to the side characters who sometimes feel like flavor of the week. As in they're less identifiable as individuals but moreso the gang as a whole. Because of this the plot can be all over the place. This isn't to say it's unenjoyable but if you're looking for a focused plot this may not be for you. But when facing everything from Nazis to the Mafia to Serial Killers to insert literally any orgainized criminal group you can think of, who has time to complain?

Black Lagoon is great whether you're new to anime or a connoisseur. Whether you just want to zone out or examine the many intricacies and philosophy Black Lagoon, this anime is great for almost everyone. So sit back, relax, and maybe bust out the booze. Cause this has all the grit of a Tarantino film in a bombastic 2 season package. Mercenaries never looked so fun and killing never looked so good.

Thank you for reading this review and have a good rest of your day/evening.