Anime watching hasn’t really been one of my recent pastimes, but I’ve always been a fan of underdog protagonists. I just came off rewatching Megalo Box, and the chance to check out an episode of Gachiakuta, a show that reminds me a little bit of the premise, was just something I couldn’t pass up.
There are a lot of anime out there, each with its own quirks, but Gachiakuta takes the route of being edgy almost to a fault. You have a protagonist who’s the son of a serial killer, so naturally, he’s then accused of a crime he didn’t commit before vowing to get revenge on those who’ve looked down on him.
The first two episodes I’ve watched were pretty interesting. How it hooks you is particularly noteworthy as it doesn’t waste time with filler and gets you the bare minimum to get started, which I love. You have your misunderstood protagonist, your murder mystery, and a lot of unanswered questions. I like it when a show doesn’t waste your time with too many details from the get-go and takes some time to let you digest what’s happening.
One of the things Gachiakuta does really well is set the tone. There’s a clear dystopian vibe that permeates the world of this anime. The divide between the rich and the poor is blatantly unashamed to show itself without really anything in between except a big giant wall. On one side, you have citizens living in paradise; on the other, you have the poor almost literally living alongside garbage.
I thought this setting was fairly interesting, though it does portray itself to be a bit of a cliche and one-dimensional. All of the citizens living in the nice side are elitists jerks who look down on the citizens living in the slums who are also jerks themselves. It’s bleak, and it doesn’t end there.
I mean, if you need any further proof of how evil the upper class in this show is, they try to gun down our young protagonist for simply scavenging through their trash for salvage. You can’t get any more evil than that. However, the slum people aren’t exactly saints either, so there aren’t many people to root for except for an extreme few. Still, it’s the first two episodes, so maybe there’s a bit of a gray area between the two social classes.
To be honest, I didn’t really know what to expect from Gachiakuta. I’ve gone into this anime completely blind without any of the supplementary materials. So I don’t know what’s going to happen, nor do I know too many details. I can’t really give you a comparison of how different they did things in the manga compared to the show.
However, I can say that this show is interesting and has me hooked. I can’t say for sure that it’ll be any good, but it’s at least worth your attention. Especially if you’re a fan of shounen anime with a heavy emphasis on action and supernatural powers.
I do have to warn you that the setting is trash. Literally, trash. Gachiakuta is translated into English as “serious garbage,” which is a pretty brave title in my opinion. However, it does play into its central themes, however edgy, with a protagonist whose main power seemingly revolves around utilizing garbage and giant monsters entirely made out of trash. This is a world gone mad with excessive garbage to the point that said garbage seemingly became sentient.
A lot of protagonists in anime that I’m familiar with are people I don’t really like. They’re usually timid nice guys with a hidden power who can destroy any opponent or they’re edgy unlikable stoics with a hidden power who can destroy any opponent. Rudo, our main man, manages to hit that sweet spot of someone who’s a bit mean but has enough humanizing attributes that you wind up thinking he’s okay.
Sure, Rudo has a hidden power much like other shounen protagonists, but I like the way it’s handled here. It’s not immediate, and he doesn’t steamroll over every opponent who so much as looks at him wrong. His power is interesting and actually complements the setting really well. I don’t know much about it yet, but it did make me want to know more, which is always a good sign.
When I was watching the action of the show, I couldn’t help but think it looked very familiar. Then I looked up and saw that Gachiakuta was being animated by Studio Bones. The very same people from My Hero Academia and Mob Psycho, so shounen should be right up their alley, and I’ve got no complaints about animation quality.
I do take some issue with the music. While the preview episodes didn’t have opening and ending songs, I wasn’t really feeling the background music. Sure, the rap soundtrack was appropriate for the setting, but it didn’t really get me as pumped as I would’ve liked. Mostly because the track felt a bit generic.
The character designs also don’t seem as interesting. Rudo doesn’t really stand out as unique or iconic in looks, despite his white hair and red eyes. With the exception of his gloves, he doesn’t really feel distinctive from all the other anime protagonists I’ve seen. While his personality doesn’t really draw me in, his motivations do interest me. This is a young man who’s been betrayed by his society, and I couldn’t help but feel that this was one of those shows with a villain protagonist in the making, or someone whose primary motivations gradually soften as the plot progresses.
I’ve only watched two episodes of Gachiakuta, but I can already recommend it when it releases this July. It’s a bit too bad that I have to wait longer for episode 3, but I wouldn’t mind giving the first two episodes a rewatch in the English dub.
Gachiakuta (Episode 1 & 2)
Gachiakuta opens up strong, if a bit edgier than your regular shounen. The main characters promise to be interesting with a setting that's distinctively unique for its image. The first two episodes leaves you hooked and there feeling of curiosity on everything this world of garbage has to offer is always present.
