Review of Devilman: Crybaby

Overall the anime is not bad, but it could have been a lot better. This show's story and characters were decent enough to keep me watching but I often felt like skipping forward because the story made less and less sense as it went on. I mostly stayed for the interesting art style. There is very little character development to speak of. Even when it does happen, it is very drastic and feels unnatural. The show is focused on shocking the audience with tragic outcomes, but it is very predictable and it is hard to feel invested into the characters because of how shallow they are. Ryo,one of the lead characters, seems to have access to a lot of wealth, influence and even the ability to broadcast whatever he wants anywhere he wants all across Japan, yet the only explanation we have for how he can get away with doing a lot of the stuff in the show is that he is some super smart "professor". Even when asked by his friend directly, he replies with "I can explain but you probably wouldn't understand", which is lazy writing and just an excuse to have an "enigma" type of character.

What was most disappointing to me was the lack of consequences when characters did something that would have, given the show's largely realistic setting (apart from the demon aspect), resulted in a reaction from the government or police. It is not a post-apocalyptic world, yet it seems like the police are totally unaware of anything going on until the last few episodes. Maybe I'm expecting too much from an anime with fantasy elements, but then why did the writers choose this realistic setting for the story? It's as if the writers couldn't decide whether the audience was meant to take this show seriously or not

There is always a way to help the audience suspend its disbelief, even in fantasy settings, but this anime does not achieve that at all. It's as if the events of the story exist in some separate bubble from the rest of the setting for most of the show. This is a problem in many anime series, by the way.

There is also a lack of psychological consequences, as if everyone's mental state is reset every episode (apart from the main character who seems to be the only one who is concerned about what is happening). Honestly, the devils in this show displayed more realistic reactions than most regular humans even though they are the ones who are supposedly lacking an emotional "heart".

Also, this show is full of sex and violence to a degree that is uncommon even for anime, but it gets old fast. Mild nudity is an understatement...

Lazy writing, cliche characters, and an underwhelming ending left me feeling like I had somewhat wasted my time watching this show. Good thing it was only 10 episodes. Oh and let's not forget the awkward mix of Japanese and Engrish (funnily enough the few lines of Russian dialogue were done right).

I would recommend it just to appreciate its unorthodox art style, but if you are looking for an engaging show with great characters and story, I would look elsewhere (try Hellsing: Ultimate or Berserk for show about demons).