Anime Club: Bungou Stray Dogs (Pt. 1)
BUNGOU STRAY DOGS (PT. 1)
CREATED BY: Takuya Igarashi
NO. OF EPISODES: 12 + 1 OVA
GENRE: Action
YEAR: 2016
COUNTRY: Japan
The story centers on individuals who are gifted with super natural powers and use them for different purposes including holding a business, solving mysteries, and carrying out missions assigned by the mafia. The story mainly follows the members of the “Armed Detective Agency” and their everyday lives.
Most characters in the series are named after famous literary authors and/or characters in their works, including Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, Yukito Ayatsuji, Dan Brown, Agatha Christie, Osamu Dazai, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Rampo Edogawa, Edgar Allan Poe, Mark Twain, Natsuhiko Kyogoku, Kenji Miyazawa, Doppo Kunikida, and Akiko Yosano.
Do you need yet another action anime to satisfy your needs this next anime season? I present to you…Bungou Stray Dogs. Now I know what you are thinking, and it actually has nothing to do with cute adorable dogs. The characters are incredibly well-written, especially our main protagonist’s senpai Dazai. Dazai is obsessed with suicide, even constantly trying to end his life in rather hilarious and convenient ways. Dazai, why are you so damn hilarious? These characters are absolutely amazing and over the top…just like true anime.
Despite this, Bungou Stray Dogs suffers from a rather weak story and un-deserving character motivations. For example, the main antagonist Akutagawa’s hatred for the Agency isn’t completely explained, as well as our protagonist’s increasing skill-set. Also, while their abilities are rather unique in different ways, they aren’t anything we haven’t seen before. Just simply go over and check out A Certain Magical Index and you can see the same skills.
PROS:
- Solid action anime.
- Great cast of characters.
- Semi-addicting opening.
CONS:
- Weak story.
- Lack of character motivations.
- Over-used tropes.
SCORE: 7 / 10
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkOCNpvai1E
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