Review of Lazarus

I don't regret watching this but depending on you, it may or may not be worth your time. If you want a decent story that could've been incredible then I'd recommend Lazarus. It has an interesting premise and your typical ragtag team but unfortunately, the ragtag team doesn't get the development they deserve and the story is rushed. If you like Watanabe's work then you'll be disappointed with this but you might enjoy the presence of much of his charm. Something that makes Watanabe's work stand out are his characters and their dynamics with each other. With all the subplots in Lazarus, it should've been atleast 26 episodes. The 13 we are given didn't have enough time to balance such a grand story with good character development so I don't really feel attached to any of the characters in the show except for Skinner. The main cast had most of their development left to a single episode and after said episode, they're just left to their usual role in the team. That's probably why I felt more attached to Skinner since his development was spread throughout the series and we see his character unfold throughout the whole story. For comparison, Cowboy Bebop had 26 episodes and the main story was driven by the characters, their decisions and their personal lives which meant story progression and character development were intertwined. Lazarus on the other hand has 13 episodes with a story that drives the characters, their decisions and is almost entirely separate to their personal lives. Furthermore, the main cast in Lazarus have little to no autonomy in the story and felt more like tools for story progression due to their lack of influence in the narratives direction. Sure, some areas of the story overlapped with something from a characters past but again, this would be 1 episode of insight into a character and then they're mostly monotonous. Most times the insight wasn't even that substantial and that area of their development is mostly wrapped up in that episode. Again, I should reiterate that this is probably why I'm so much more attached to Skinner since the plot is started by him and revolves around him much more than the main cast, despite his lack of screentime. He's not a unique or special character but he's the only one with consistent character development in the series. The story just had so many subplots going on that it didn't allow for the characters to develop in the small 13 episode window. The show would've functioned much better if the main cast was half the size.

I understand some may argue that Lazarus and Cowboy Bebop are 2 separate shows and shouldn't be compared but there are way too many parallels to make that argument. I'm all for a show with the same cast and dynamic as Cowboy Bebop but as long as it's executed properly. If it isn't then it just looks like a cheap attempt at a remake which, at times, this show can feel like. I suspect Watanabe kinda got bullied out of his own creative input since I don't think he'd make a lot of the choices made in this show, especially the ones that were direct parallels since what's the point in making art if it's just to imitate one of your pieces. Pretty much every parallel in this show is just a worse version of what it was originally or, a slightly more interesting but ultimately rushed version.

All of this being said, I still enjoyed the show. It has its flaws but it also has a lot of Watanabe's magic. The cinematography is amazing and I give the story credit for doing an okay job at a cool concept. The art direction is fantastic and genuinely makes you feel like you've been teleported to the future. The world building is closely tied to the art direction in the sense that the world portrayed by the artists is what immerses you more so than any lore drops. The music is fantastic, Bonobo did a phenomenal job. I have no complaints about the voice acting, it's just the plot and characters are a pretty big let down compared to other works by Watanabe. This had the potential to be great but ultimately fell victim to rushed storytelling and probably interference with the creative process.