Review of Devilman: Crybaby

Wow. There have been very few animes or shows in general that have made me feel the way Devilman: Crybaby makes me feel. The animation was amazing and different from anything I'd ever seen before. It was fluid, and the animators almost made the character's movements melodic in relation to the scene. Obviously a lot of time and effort was put into this. Some people might not like the style but I do. It was a breath of fresh air. This anime made me feel like I was watching something I wasn't supposed to watch but in a good way. Like I was watching a secretdiary come to life. The characters are endearing (which was hard to do with such a short anime!) but unfortunately have no development besides Akira and Ryo. The degeneracy all makes sense when you find out what is really happening towards the end of the show. It was nice to see it depicted anyways, as a lot of animes don't like to show the gritty counterculture of many places in Japan. It was enjoyable to see Japan's youth through a different lens, and a more relatable one at that. I was never bored watching this. There were SOME unexplained phenomenons in the show, like Miko letting out donkey cries. But I am okay with that, as it left some mystery and interpretation on the table (my best explanation of that is Miko descending into a more animalistic part of herself as her character arc turns for the worse). This anime also accurately predicts how humans would react to something like a demon epidemic, especially in the modern internet-driven age. It is, however, just a prediction.

The things I did not like about this anime are few. Mainly the pacing. It felt really rushed and could have easily been made into a 12-ep piece. Perhaps that is what the producers were going for though. If you can keep up and are able to stomach the more unsavoury parts of society, then this anime is for you! Lots of gore too so beware.