I have been wanting to write about anime here for a long time but I was never really sure which community would appreciate or accept my thoughts on the subject. I am therefore posting my thoughts here hoping that I will find some kindred spirits that agree, disagree, or would like to bond over anime.
I'd like to start by saying that I love watching anime, thinking about anime, discussing good anime, recommending good anime, and fighting with my brother about how anime is NOT the same as cartoons.
When the Spring 2021 anime season came around, I started actively searching out good anime that could potentially interest me and that I could recommend to fellow enthusiasts. Check checked out the schedule and picked the shows that I was going to watch. I saw Tokyo Revengers in the schedule and wasn't too keen on watching it, although I did put it on my watchlist. I saw the show again on Gogoanime (where I usually watch anime) and thought, "Hmmm. Sounds interesting. Maybe I will watch this when I am free." Meanwhile, I came across a lot of content that recommended watching the show and I thought, "Yea, I know. It's totally on my watchlist." And just like that, two months went by and I hadn't touched the show.
A week ago, when I was finally a little free, I decided to catch up on all the anime that I had put on hold, and Tokyo Revengers was the first on my list.
HOT DAMN! THIS SHOW IS GOOD, BRUH!!
I was hooked from the second the main character Takemichi Hanagaki traveled to the past.
The concept of a 26-year-old loser traveling back in time and ending up in the body of his 13-year-old punk self caught me by surprise. This guy literally sees his friends for the first time in years and starts describing them in the most insulting ways possible.
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Funnier yet, he looks at himself in the mirror and is horrified at how cheesy and ridiculous he looks.
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He is genuinely embarrassed by himself. I mean just think about it; how would you react if you suddenly found yourself in the body of your younger self? You'd be embarrassed too, right?
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Anyway, the story goes like this: Takemichi is a 26-year-old former delinquent (a bottom-feeder-level gangster to be precise) who is a part-timer at a DVD store in the year 2017. He has gone nowhere in life and is not happy. One day, he learns from the news that a dispute involving the Tokyo Manji Gang has led to the death of his middle school girlfriend and her younger brother.
He is shocked but doesn't think about it too much as he barely even remembers her face. The next day, as he is waiting for the train at the platform thinking about her death and how lame his life is, we see him fall onto the tracks as a train approaches. This is when he realizes that he is about to die and thinks of his ex-girlfriend, Hinata Tachibana, one last time.
His vision suddenly clears up and he is on a train. He sees his friends and is hit with nostalgia. Takemichi now believes that his life is flashing before his eyes. He goes through the day slowly remembering what his life was like in middle school; how he used to get into fights because he was part of a gang consisting of him and his four middle-school friends, how they wanted to be the top gang in all of Japan, and how they picked a fight with the wrong group and ended becoming slaves to the Tokyo Manji Gang. Yeah, you read that right: SLAVES to THAT Tokyo Manji Gang. He yells and asks God if this is what he was supposed to see in his last moments: How messed up his life was.
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Later, he meets Hinata's younger brother, Naoto, and, still believing that what he is experiencing is a vivid dream before his death, tells the kid about the future and to save his sister because he wants to do at least one good thing in his life. Then boom, he comes back to the present and realizes that he didn't die.
The very next minute he meets the person who saved him from being run over by the train, which convinces him that he had actually traveled to the past. Now that he knows that he can time leap, he is determined to go back and save his ex-girlfriend because he decided that she didn't deserve to die.
Don't worry, none of these are spoilers as all of this happens in the first episode, although I did leave out some parts which can be considered a spoiler.
I was so intrigued by the first episode that I binged all the seven episodes (at that time) and wanted more. So, I did the logical next step and binged the manga.
What the anime and manga do so well is show us this world of the delinquents and give the characters some really good development. The series also does not shy away from brutality. I mean these are straight-up savage kids hitting and getting hit by bats, bricks, iron rods, rock-hard fists... like damn these kids need anger management sessions stat!
My boy Takemichi gets his ass kicked hard throughout the series. He also cries A LOT and it is not fun. Like all the dry lakes and rivers in the world can be filled with the tears that this man-child sheds. It's kinda painful to see, but you also get why he is like that.
This guy has had low self-esteem for most of his life, has no superpowers, is not very smart, is shit at throwing hands, and yet he - all by himself - has to read every situation, predict what is going to happen, and either stop major players from dying or certain events from happening so that Hinata can be saved in the future. While he is stuck in the past, he has no one to talk to, no one to guide him, and no one he can tell his secrets to.
If I were in his shoes, man I'd bawl too.
Need another reason to like Takemichi? He doesn't f***ing scream about friendship or go on a 10-minute monologue about his ideals every episode/chapter. He is not annoying or pretentious, unlike most shonen protagonists. He has genuine feelings and speaks from his heart. He is helpless and weak and he is painfully aware of that. But he is determined and will do anything he can to save people even if he has to give up his own life.
So, finally, is this show the next Attack on Titan?
No. I don't think any show can be the next AoT and you should stop comparing shows to AoT. Tokyo Revengers is a whole different genre and is quite interesting for this very reason.
The manga has been popular for a while now and with good reason. It delves into the world of the delinquents who love their bikes, friends, getting into a shit ton of fights, and causing mayhem, a.k.a the Bosozoku, something that hasn't been explored thoroughly in anime/manga. Plus there are the detective and time travel elements, which adds a whole different dimension to the series. There are also a crazy bunch of plot twists, the story is good, the characters are loveable and relatable (some of them are FIIIIINE. You should check out the number of thirst comments on the manga site. Makes me worry considering that most of the characters are aged 13-15), their designs are unique and some are downright fashion geniuses, and the fight scenes are brutal and epic (makes you question if the characters are really children).
I haven't mentioned the comedy aspect of the series because that is not the focus of the show. Yes, Tokyo Revengers is funny when it needs to be, but those moments are few and far between and exist to stop the series from being a straight-up cry-fest. There are also a lot of cute and innocent moments that remind you that the characters are kids who are struggling to overcome their personal tragedies and make something of themselves.
Right now, 208 chapters of the manga (English translated) are out and the series is in the final arc, so most of the story is already out. I read the whole thing in two days and I have no regrets. Not gonna lie, I cried. Some of the scenes are so emotional and wholesome that you cannot hold back your tears.
The story is relatively short compared to many shonen manga out there, which is great. I hate stuff that goes on forever, which is why I will NEVER watch or read Boruto or One Piece.
And guys... We have to talk about Chifuyu Matsuno and Ken "Draken" Ryūguji.
Chifuyu Matsuno Source
Ken "Draken" Ryūguji Source
These boys are gems and everybody loves them and they deserve all the love in the world and they are awesome and they are amazing and they are precious. Not only can they throw hands, but they are gems and light up every manga panel they are in.
Also... watch out for this kid: Manjiro "Mikey" Sano. He is a badass and means business.
My only gripe about the series is the plot holes and I am curious to see how the anime will deal with them.
If you aren't convinced yet, let me just say that there are way too many isekai anime getting made these days and Tokyo Revengers is a breath of fresh air.
I have recommended Tokyo Revengers to all my anime-loving friends and I hope you guys also give it a try. Let me know what you guys think.
Watch the trailer:
