There is an urban legend that children tell one another about a shinigami that can release people from
the pain they may be suffering. This "Angel of Death" has a name—Boogiepop. And the legends are true.
Boogiepop is real.
(Source: Seven Seas Entertainment)
~~~img660(https://goboiano.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Boogiepop-and-Others-1.jpg)~~~ _(Non-Spoiler Review)_ #Intro __Boogiepop and Others (2019)__, is [MADHOUSE](https://anilist.co/studio/11/MADHOUSE)'s second attempt at the adaptation of [Boogiepop light novel](https://anilist.co/manga/31315/Boogiepop/) series by [Kouhei Kadono](https://anilist.co/staff/97933/Kouhei-Kadono). While to some it might be awful or flawed, too others such as myself it was quite excellent. --- #Story & Pacing - 7.5/10 The story is told through the perspective of several characters, which helps provide context to the story arc/event happening around them, then out pop Boogiepop or as she says "I am automatic". As for the story possessing any mature, depressing or dark kind of atmosphere, I felt nothing of that what so ever but it had something that pulls you in. The screenplay and dialogues doesn't get bog down by unnecessary exposition and speech, it strikes the right balance between dialogue & action. This story does however suffer from poor pacing which is why it is so disliked. --- #Characters - 7/10 While [Boogiepop](https://anilist.co/character/2598/Boogiepop) and [Nagi Kirima](https://anilist.co/character/2608/Nagi-Kirima) are memorable, particularly their backstories, the other characters just fade away, they have nothing for you to really like about them or remember them by, which is why a lot of people get confused as to who these characters are. (Similar faces doesn't help either) ~~~img250(https://www.geekgirlauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/boogiepop_boogiepop.png) img250(https://otakuorbit.files.wordpress.com/2019/01/5c25df10cbfae.jpg?w=1100)~~~ --- #Audio and Soundtrack - 9.5/10 Every single one of the audio effects were quite good, I really like the O.S.T done by [Kensuke Ushio](https://anilist.co/staff/119254/Kensuke-Ushio), as It helped convey the scenes well, I will only dock half a point for it's repetitive nature. The opening by [MYTH & ROID](https://anilist.co/staff/119976/MYTH--ROID) is amazing as always they never seem to disappoint. ~~~img220(https://medium-media.vgm.io/albums/24/83342/83342-1552624996.png)~~~ --- #Art and Animation - 8/10 The updated visuals look great but the production team would often cut corners by having faceless people in the background and characters with similar faces & hairstyles which I found quite distracting. The animation was great especially in the fight scenes which were fluid and well choreographed. ~~~youtube(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_ZwCEKEEB0)~~~ --- #Conclusion While it was airing I continuously put off watching this series because I have the attention span of a fly and considering that this was a mystery & psychological anime, I knew I wouldn't return to it or would end up hating it because I thought it would dragging on and on with countless amounts of dialogue. What ended up being a great idea was to watch it 3 episodes at a time and I couldn't get enough and ended up watching the 4th episode and being completely confused because I didn't know that every 3 to 4 episodes was a story arc in it's own. #___So the key to enjoying this series is to binge watch it.___ --- __Overall Scores (other things I didn't cover)__ Overall Story: 9/10 Story Pacing: 6/10 Story Climax: 8/10 Characters: 7/10 Art & Animation: 8/10 Enjoyment: 9/10 Audio (SFX): 9/10 Audio (O.S.T): 9.5/10 Screenplay and Dialogues: 10/10 Voice Acting (Dub & Sub): 9.5/10 #Overall: 8.5/10
(Note: This review originally appeared on my blog, and has a link to my video review of the first 3 Boogiepop novels) Boogiepop and Others is, in a way, the first Boogiepop anime adaptation. It’s not the first adaptation in general. 2000 saw live-action adaptations of the first novel, and original anime series Boogiepop Phantom. That latter series was an anime original story, that assumed some prior knowledge of the novels. As the book series was tremendously successful in Japan, that wasn’t a problem there. In the US, on the other hand, this served as something of a barrier to the series success. Until 2019, there were no anime adaptations of the novels. Boogiepop and Others is an adaptation of the first five or so of the Boogiepop novels. As the second and third books are two halves of the same story, this makes for four stories. This covers the adaptation of the first novel and Vs. Imaginator, which I covered in my review last week. The other stories include Boogiepop at Dawn, which has the origins of Boogiepop. The finale is King of Distortion, which is probably the biggest challenge Boogiepop has faced over the series. # Boogiepop Doesn’t Smile img220(https://i2.wp.com/i.pinimg.com/736x/54/1a/ef/541aef7f331e62e361803cfacfddc336.jpg) It is kind of impressive how much Touka fades into the background. As with the novels, while Boogiepop is the title character of Boogiepop and Others, they are never the viewpoint character. We only see Boogiepop through the perspective of third parties. We don’t even see Boogiepop from the perspective of their other self – Touka Miyashita. That is both a blessing and a curse for the series. Touka is just bright, cheerful and generic enough that she slips under the radar most of the time. Her presence is more notable when Boogiepop shows up, and the impact of that varies from the books to the TV series. In the novels, it’s rather understated. The weight of the shift varies from different viewpoint characters, and how well they notice the shift. In the anime, because there’s an audible vocal shift, it becomes much more pronounced. I’d compare it to the transition between Bruce Wayne doing his regular voice and Batman’s voice. On the page, it doesn’t come across unless the artist and inker do something to call attention to the difference. With Kevin Conroy on the other hand, well, listen for yourself: youtube(https://youtu.be/g4PwNyJOjfU) It’s most pronounced in the last 10 seconds of the video # …And Others As in the books, the antagonists in the anime alternate between superpowered murderers like Manticore and thematic enemies like Imaginator. They aren’t a rogue’s gallery by any means, instead of existing to be a threat to Boogiepop, they are more of a threat for the viewpoint characters. In this respect, Boogiepop and the viewpoint characters are comparable to Walter Gibson’s The Shadow novels. In those novels, Harry Vincent, one of The Shadow’s agents, is the primary viewpoint character. Occasionally the novels shift to other viewpoint characters, as they put together the pieces of the plot of that novel’s villain – and only occasionally shifting to The Shadow. Even then on those instances, The Shadow was not generally a viewpoint character. Further, The Shadow was rarely personally in any danger – more often, Vincent or another agent was the one in peril. The same is the case here. Boogiepop is never personally in peril. The viewpoint characters are. They’re (generally) not hapless hostages-in-waiting, but they also aren’t a force of nature like Boogiepop. It makes the supporting cast a lot more engaging, and keeps the plot moving without always having Boogiepop being present. # Room for ~~Improvement~~ Evolution That said, I really wish Touka was written more as a character instead of as set dressing that Boogiepop occasionally pops out of. It leads to this feeling that some of our point of view characters have figured out that Touka is Boogiepop (but doesn’t know it), and they’re hanging out with her as a weird crap sounding board. By which I mean, if they talk about something weird and Boogiepop chips in, they know they’re on to something. I’m very glad I watched the show, and I’m definitely continuing on to Boogiepop Phantom. However, I don’t know how confidently I can recommend the series. I came to this because the discussion of Boogiepop Phantom as a mind-fuck anime had been a large part of anime fandom in the early 2000s. If you came into this series without having ever heard of Boogiepop, I don’t know how much you’d get out of it.
_"A single event can awaken within us a stranger totally unknown to us"_ -- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry img700(https://i.imgur.com/ruSWmAT.png) # __Introduction__ Boogiepop is an automatic agent that "pops up" from the subconscious desires and possibilities of a person. They are said to appear when the person is near a "threat" to all humanity. In my view, _Boogiepop wa Warawanai_ is a beautiful reflection on what would happen if people's subconscious thoughts - not only as individuals but as a community - would act and be like if they were given a life of their own. I guess you could say that Boogiepop is an embodiment of humanity's will to fight and protect itself upon sensing danger. __Note__: The reason I wrote this review is because I feel the show was confusing to some episodic watchers, and wanted to offer a detailed review for those who are still trying to grasp what the show was all about! __Warning: From this point on the review contains heavy spoilers.__ ---- # __Story:__ The story telling methods may seem erratic and confusing from a first watcher's perspective. And that is because there really is no space or time continuum between the scenes. Events that happened before in time will be presented after and vice-versa. This is specially true for the first arc. The series is composed of four different arcs, and I will proceed by reviewing them separately since they are so distinct. I thus apologize for the length of the review! Please feel free to skip these detailed arc reviews, if you do not have a lot of time. __The Manticore Arc: 9/10__ This arc is without a doubt the one with the most erratic storytelling. You might need to re-watch to actually understand the real sequence of events. This arcs introduces most of the characters, including Boogiepop and the nature of his existence as explained above. "Manticore" is the name given to the clone made out of Echoes’ when he was captured and experimented on by the Towa Organization. This backstory is an interesting detail, since in the later arcs they refer to the Towa Organization having created artificial humans out of a blueprint of someone who had out-evolved the human race, and I wonder if Echoes is the one they used. Echoes' clone, however, escaped the Organization’s grasp by killing everyone in the facility and became a man-eating monster. It’s also interesting to see the duality between Echoes and Manticore since they are basically the same person but they couldn't be more different: Echoes is empathic and cares about humans while Manticore only cares for eating and using them as marionettes. Despite that, Manticore ends up sharing a deep bond with Saotome Masami, a high school boy who “was not evil on his own” but who, upon meeting the man-eater, “realized he had a deeply rooted hated for the living and then became a man-eater himself” as explained by Boogiepop later on, though he didn’t literally became a man-eater but instead allied himself to Manticore, to help them take over the world. The animation and use of soundtrack in this arc is particularly spot on. __The Imaginator Arc: 6/10__ This arc follows the story of Minahoshi Suiko’s mission as the Imaginator. Suiko is an MPLS who can see people’s deaths. As she becomes the Imaginator she embodies “a possibility which can manipulate death”. She does indeed delay her own death, and all of this arc happens during the time lapse between her jumping out of a window and actually hitting the ground - don't ask me how, though!. After the jump, she meets Asukai Jin, another MPLS who can vizualize people's hearts as flowers and see what’s missing them, and convinces him to join forces with her. Their goal was to modify the human heart and fill up the missing gaps, by implanting in them the seed of a “standardized” heart with no flaws. This intention is later on addressed by Boogiepop as trying to “draw out the death from people and gather it so she could create something great”, though my guess is that “death” refers to a set of characteristics which might eventually lead to the person’s demise (such as grief, anxiety, aggressiveness, etc). As Asukai Jin seems to be on a spiraling descent to madness (becoming uncannily similar to Yagami Light from Death Note), delving in the power of manipulating people’s heart, on the other hand Minahoshi Suiko’s purpose seems to have stemmed from a pure desire to help all of humanity “break through” their suffering and get to the next level - the next stage of evolution. This arc also follows the love story between Orihata, an artificial human enslaved to Spooky E, and Masaki, Nagi’s step-brother. Personally I found this arc the least interesting which might be due to the story’s pace slowing down a lot, and also I didn’t find their love story that interesting. It is however, very rewarding to see Hana Kanazawa interpreting a villain as mentioned before, and also the last episode is spectacular and is honestly where my enjoyment of the show really started. This arc is also riddled with very curious reflections on the nature of being human, love and society. __The Fear Ghoul Arc: 10/10__ This arc starts out with a tale about how Boogiepop came to existence and earned his name. Boogiepop first appeared as the result of the dying will of Scarecrow, an artificial Human working for Towa Organization as a detective. Scarecrow was tasked with a long-term job of finding MPLS (individuals with extraordinary powers) and occasionally the job of uncovering information about other agents’ betrayals to the Organization. He was a good detective, however he lived frustrated by the fact his job only brought about the downfall of others. In his quest to find intel about Teratsuki Kyouchirou he met Kirima Nagi as a young girl, hospitalized because of recurring pains caused by her evolution. Amidst their conversations about superheroes and justice, and touched by the suffering experienced by Nagi, Scarecrow ends up turning a blind eye on the fact that she is an MPLS and additionally steals from Towa Organization a drug which will help complete and stabilize the progress of her evolution. His rebellion causes his demise, as Mo Murder was sent to dispose of him, and with his dying breath he starts to regret the decisions he made (and feels much like a coward because of it). This is when Boogiepop appears for the first time and he confesses to him, admitting his will to be “judged and punished”. The name “Boogiepop” is derived from Scarecrow calling him “a creepy bubble that might disappear at any moment” (i.e. "pop"). However, Scarecrow misjudged the nature of his apparition as Boogiepop insteads leads him to his redemption by asking him if he could come back to the moment when he felt his heart was the most pure. Later, when Mo Murder assesses his dead body he is surprised with the facial expression with which he died (which is not revealed to us). However, I believe this scene mirrors the scene following the death of the drug dealer in the Imaginator Arc whereas another detective is surprised that the girl died with such a “peaceful expression, like all the thorns in her heart had been plucked out”. Although the ending of the episode is open to interpretation, I believe we can thus assume Boogiepop guided him to re-experience that moment in time and as a result died peacefully. A psychiatrist called Kisugi ends up discovering the vial of the evolution drug, and used it on herself as an experiment. Kisugi, who had lived all her life hunted by fear, becomes instead the hunter as she starts a wave of grisly murders, feeding on the fear of her victims, thus acquiring the name of “Fear Ghoul”. This is the cue for a journey of self discovery for Mo Murder, whose character grows as he searches for the killer along with child Nagi. This arc also introduces, quirky little details about other character’s past, namely how Minahoshi Suiko meets Kirima Seiichi as a child and the conversation they have not only explains where she got the phrase “sometimes it snows in April” but it is also an interesting meditation about the ending of the previous arc and how her future work as the Imaginator was not necessarily a failure. In my opinion, but the plot and animation in this arc was just a ball out of the park! __The King of Distortion Arc: 7/10__ The last arc picks up on Teratsuki’s work, the artificial human who Scarescrow had been sent to investigate. Teratsuki had left behind a strangely distorted building called the “Moon Temple” (actually the literal translation of “Teratsuki”) whose purpose was unknown. Immediately after the building being opened to the public, we discover that Teratsuki set up an ingenious trap on the event of such situation, imprisoning the visitors inside and gassing them to sleep. The self-entitled King of Distortion then appears and takes advantage of the moment to conduct a massive experiment on the sleeping visitants. For each of them he gives voice and body to something lingering inside their heart, giving them an opportunity to overcome it and “turn their sorrow into gold”. It seems the King of Distortion is not entirely in control of the experiment though, and Boogiepop is forced to intervene when things take a turn for the worse as a boy’s imaginary father figure (a huge monster called Zooragi) gets out of control and tries to destroy the whole building. The boy’s pent-up feelings are of such magnitude that they break through to reality, interfering even with the spectators of the accident. The series refers to this ability as the power “to point out the distortion in people’s hearts and draw it out”, and hence the name King of Distortion. This entity, much like Boogiepop itself, was born as an alternate personality from Tanaka Shirou’s feeling of guilt towards Kamikishiro Naoko’s death, and the fact that he had not been able to fully retribute her feelings while she was alive. Unlike the Imaginator though, the King of Distortion is not Boogiepop’s enemy, the reason being that he is quite “flexible” and willing to consider several paths for the future, not opposing humanity, but rather insidiously trying to guide it further. Thus, Tanaka Shirou is let of the hook. Meanwhile it is revealed that Teratsuki’s purpose was to get back at the Towa Organization by exposing their existence to the few people who’d have managed to awaken and reach the top of the tower - which would mean they have out-evolved normal humans — and give them a word of advice regarding the threat they represent to Towa Organization’s plans. In my opinion, the use of sound was the real highlight of this arc. ---- # __Sound and Music: 8/10__ The use of sound is quite unique. To add tension and enphasis to certain key moments, the ambience music suddenly shifts or even stops. It is perfectly fitted to the plot. I personally find the ending and opening song very appealing and exquisite as well. I would have liked to see more variety to the OST though! ----- # __Art and Animation: 8/10__ The art and animation are not unique but they were certainly executed with great care, and it shows. I found that the few action sequences and character movements were very much above average, which is surprising considering it's more of a psychological anime. img700(https://i.imgur.com/hTW6s1c.png) ---- #__Characters: 8/10__ It is difficult to get attached to the character or to get to know them intimately since the arcs are always changing and the "main" players in each one are different, the only main character throughout being Boogiepop itself. The world is rather small however, and it is very interesting to see how a seemingly irrelevant side character in one arc might be a protagonist in the next, or to see reoccurring characters have completely different roles throughout the whole story. However, I found myself wanting to know a lot more about each individual character, since they were all quite special. Every single one of them was a lot more than met the eye, a long ways past common character stereotypes. ----- # __Voice Acting: 9/10__ I absolutely loved the voice acting. Each one of the VAs seemed to have been carefully picked for each character and superbly executed. Aoi Yuuki's voice (Boogiepop) was intense and soothing and Kana Hanazawa's fit the Imaginator character like a glove! These were the ones which striked me the most, and also it was very interesting seeing these voice actor's voicing characters so different from their usual repertoire. ----- __Conclusion__ Overall, a great anime of its genre! So often you see anime tagged "Psychological" or "Philosophical" which fail to make any insight about the nature of people or any point about anything whatsoever. This is not the case with _Boogiepop_. This is an anime that does not fail to deliver those insights, and does so very straight to the point. The characters, animation and soundtrack all very well-executed as well. It is true that the plot can be a little bit confusing, and it certainly isn't for everyone's tastes. However if you want a meaningful psychological approach to common science fiction themes, this is definitely an anime to revisit. Thank you for reading!
__Spoiler alert!__ I have not read the light novel, so I will be discussing the anime by itself, and not compare it to its predecessor. There are very shows I genuinely find to be truly interesting and immersive. Most shows might have some ideas that could be interesting. But they are generally underdeveloped or not developed at all. Or sometimes it might not even be the idea itself that is bad, but that everything around it make it forgettable. Like if the theme is conveyed through terrible dialogue or the music and visuals are distracting. But when I first started watching Boogiepop, I found it to be so extremely compelling that it is hard to explain. Whether it was the unusually good editing, direction or dialogue, something made it so memorable. Boogiepop, made by madhouse and directed by Natsume Shingo, mainly follows Boogiepop, a reaper who appears in the world when it is in danger. We see them (Their gender is not known) fight numerous villains, but they are rarely ever the traditional sense of a villian. And while you would think that there would be a very action focused show, it really isn’t. Although it has fight scenes (Which are kind of amazing, we really see Natsume’s talent), the show focuses more on mystery and philosophy at points. Really, the best way to see if you would enjoy a show like this would be to watch the first episodes. It features the non-linear story that is prominent in the show, the mysterious and psychological music and the confusing narrative, something everyone might not enjoy. but I sure did. The most interesting aspect of Boogiepop is it’s direction by Natsume Shingo. It shares similarities with Natsume’s earlier work, like One Punch Man and Space Dandy, especially with it’s animation. It wasn’t what I would usually call great animation. Most anime have pretty dull movement, but might have a few amazing sakuga moments here and there. But very rarely do I find animation that has interesting moments in it’s least interesting concepts. If you look at someone in an anime falling down, walking or jumping, does it look interesting or realistic. For me at least, I find those movements to feel very choppy and forgettable. But when you look at a show directed by Natsume, there is a sense of life in the animation. The movements, the expressions, it all felt very alive. At points (Especially in episode 16) it felt like the animation was made by disney or any other high-budget company. When you have made me remember a series of frames where a policeman falls down, you know you have achieved something (this must sound very weird if you haven’t seen the show. Or even if you have seen it…) We also see another big name in this. Kensuke Ushio, Known for his composition for A Silent Voice, Devilman Crybaby and Liz and the Blue Bird, made a fantastic job with this one. I have always loved the style of music that he has made with this and A Silent Voice. The very edited and choppy feel conveys their respective tones extremely well. And even though the majority of the songs aren’t something you would put on your spotify list, it works amazingly for not distracting you from what’s going on visually. And a detail I loved was how the music was edited, like cutting the soundtrack to get a certain feeling. Kind of like how they did it in Your Name (You know what scene if you have scene that movie) But while, like I said, I found the direction to be the best part, I have to mention the writing as well. The story has causes a lot of confusion in the community, i actually wasn’t that distracted by the aforementioned non-linear story. You can tell when a scene or arc is supposed to take place through visual-cues and other factors. And when it didn’t, it never took away from my enjoyment. And although there wasn’t a real purpose of having the story presented in that way, I prefer intriguing storytelling without purpose over then bland storytelling. But, I do want to say that waiting for the show to finish was a good idea. I watched it both while it was airing and then I rewatched it (I watched it, and then i rewatched it so that I would watch the last arc when the last episode came out). And while, like I said, I didn’t find the non-linear story to be confusing when watching it as it was airing, I found it to be overall a better experience when rewatching it. I was particularly impressed by the dialogue. While it had moments of particularly awful exposition that felt very unnatural, the dialogue was one of the things that got me into the show. How the discussions they had felt very natural and interesting. It really fit with the tone that they presented everything. I also really liked the antagonists. Like I said before, a lot of the “enemies of the world” weren’t the typical antagonists we usually see in these kinds of shows. While it definitely had some bland antagonists, some of them were extremely fascinating, and I think the first arc is a great example of this. In the first episode of Boogiepop, we follow Keiji Takeda who is the first person we see interact with boogiepop. The two of them meet on the top of the high school he goes to, and they have discussions about what boogiepops is, and what it’s goals are. This is where we first hear about the synthetic humans that are a big part of the story. And as we continue the arc, we are led to believe that the man-eater, or otherwise known as the Manticore, is the aforementioned “enemy of the world”. But in the end, we see how that isn’t the case. But through Boogiepops subtle dialogue, we see how this isn’t the case. That a completely different character, who we only see as the good guy was the enemy all along. And this is what I love about the series. While it never had an as interesting concept after this, I still found the quality of writing in the antagonists to be fairly consistent. All of them had striking motivations and goals. I can go on and on about why I love the show so much, but in the end it is really the first episode that encapsulates what I love about the show. A mix of great visuals, fantastic music and subtle dialogue. __Strong 8/10__
Particularmente eu admiro histórias que possuam alguma riqueza narrativa e/ou produndidade literária. No entanto, eu detesto o culto exacerbado, e, muitas vezes, incoerente, à qualquer coisa tomada por complexa. Pensando nisso, decidi escrever acerca de Boogiepop Series, com enfoque maior em sua adaptação de 2019, mas fazendo algum comparativo ao seu primeiro anime adaptado. Em linhas gerais, a história remete acerca de diversos acontecimentos estranhos, ora dada sua natureza misteriosa, ora sua natureza sobrenatural, que ocorrem em uma certa cidade. O surgimento de um estranho e chamativo feixe de luz no céu daquela cidade, o desaparecimento repentino de estudantes, uma nova droga, um assassino em série, além de uma suposta aparição sobrenatural, segundo os boatos populares, de um shinigami: um ceifador, um mensageiro da morte, envolvido em cada suposto assassinato. Somado a isso, uma jovem moça atuando como vigilante da justiça, tentando lutar contra os mistérios encobertos daquele lugar. Em primeira vista, Boogiepop Series destila complexidade, que, por conseguinte, é confirmado em seus primeiros episódios, fora de ordem cronológica, e sua constante escrita não-linear. Mas, ao contrário de outras obras deste seguimento, como Serial Experiments e Paranoia Agent, Boogiepop Series não atingiu tamanha popularidade quanto estes pilares do gênero. Ao meu ver, muito pelo culto errôneo ao complexo por partes de pessoas que, provavelmente, sequer entenderam a respeito de seus enredos. Sem muitos spoilers que comprometam a experiência de quem ainda não assistiu, Boogiepop, seja em sua adaptação inicial (Phantom), seja em sua adaptação mais recente (Wa Warawanai), possui algo de muito apaixonante: o quanto ele instiga o ouvinte nos mínimos detalhes. A história, em tantos momentos seguindo uma ordem não-linear, nos conta os acontecimentos a partir do ponto de vista de diferentes personagens. O fato de não se prender a um único protagonista nos da uma visão geral, longe de quaisquer viés filosófico-ideológico, sobre o funcionamento do mundo e da sociedade. Boogiepop, que está mais para um observador que um shinigami, um assassino de pessoas que atingem o auge da sua beleza (como é descrito em sua lenda urbana). É uma aparição sobrenatural que se manifesta no corpo de Miyashita Touka para proteger o mundo dos Inimigos da Humanidade. img(https://imgur.com/CIsd8a8.png) Uma dupla personalidade? Um desejo forte vindo de Touka em fazer algo por alguém? Um senso forte de impunidade? Não sabemos ao certo o que fez este ser sobrenatural escolher a jovem estudante. Diferentemente do que se imagina, estes tais inimigos da humanidade não são somente outras aparições malignas, com sede de dominação mundial, ou movidos por um forte desejo de vingança, tal qual são em muitas obras clichês que abordam o sobrenatural. Os tais inimigos são todo e qualquer ser que, movidos por seus sentimentos ruins, tomam atitudes que causam malefícios a outrem, incluindo os seres humanos. O elemento humano é quem realmente influência no aspecto sobrenatural. Assim como em Boogiepop Phantom, os sentimentos ganham forma física através de estranhos insetos, em Warawanai, no arco do Ghoul do medo, embora sendo a doutora sendo humana, vem a tornar-se um dos inimigos da humanidade dada suas atitudes cometidas. O oposto disso também é válido, quando não-humanos podem ser considerados defensores e não inimigos da humanidade. Primeiro o Espantalho que, embora tenha corroborado ativamente para a propagação da droga que levava os humanos a sua evolução, teve seu momento de redenção, através de Boogiepop. Nos mostrando que, ainda que submersos em tamanho remorso, mesmo em meio ao pensamento negativo quanto à mudança pessoal, se houver um desejo sincero, haverá esperança. img(https://imgur.com/XwwcVdS.png) img(https://imgur.com/XwwcVdS.png) img(https://imgur.com/Uf8FHjY.png) Bem como Echos, ainda que fosse uma aparição com potencial para ser um dos inimigos da humanidade, este vem a escolher defender os outros com o bem que recebeu. img(https://imgur.com/izZpZpZ.png) img(https://imgur.com/UzGdY0g.png) "Por favor, lembre-se disso, Suema. Há uma diferença entre a saudade dos velhos tempos e ficar preso no passado. Da mesma forma que a cidade tem de mudar ao longo do tempo, é importante que as pessoas se movam para a frente com suas vidas. Eu sei que você entende.'' São nas palavras de Boogiepop que percebemos o caráter evidente da escolha pessoal. Tanto no arco Panuru, como no Rei da Distorção, temos a figura central sendo os sentimentos pessoais. Um coração carregado de sentimentos reversos é capaz de causar distorção no exterior da pessoa. Por isso existem aqueles que, com sinceridade, tentam serem melhores para aqueles que estão em seu redor, muito embora, eles cometam decisões contrarias as que desejam. Essa a é a distorção causada por esses sentimentos. __"Se seus sentimentos ainda não são ouro, tenho certeza que nada mais neste mundo conseguirá brilhar". __ De igual forma temos a influência dos sentimentos sendo abordados no arco de Panuru. Misuzu, embora sempre sendo positiva sobre a vida, carregava um fardo de mágoas e pesares em seu coração, sempre maquiando estes sentimentos em busca de uma falsa positividade, onde tudo no mundo venha aparentar ser belo. Esta forma de ver a vida não poderia estar mais errada. Fechar os olhos e aceitar tudo como forma de superação é abominável. Deste modo, a pessoa esconde a dor e não se permite sentir o que é preciso. Quando não se coloca para fora os sofrimentos em algum momento esse sentimento irá explodir e o fará enlouquecer. Ou seja, este mundo maravilhoso de Panuru é uma ilusão. Uma distorção. img(https://imgur.com/TJKi8sQ.png) img(https://imgur.com/ZGV5Sn5.png) img(https://imgur.com/bjjyQtj.png) img(https://imgur.com/oBl3qM9.png) Isto é Boogiepop Series. Difícil, complexo. Mas não apenas isto... É uma viagem enigmática ao que é e ao que poderia ser a natureza humana. Uma história com enredo sério, abordando temas como pesares, invejas, ódio, suicídio. O homem não é o lobo do próprio homem. O homem não é corrompido pela sociedade. Se isto vir a acontecer, e este homem vir a se perder, foi por sua escolha. Ele mesmo o corrompe. E você? É aliado ou inimigo da sociedade? Aliado ou inimigo de si mesmo? __"Um mundo que não se pode sonhar ou pensar no futuro... Um mundo desses está errado. Mas, infelizmente, não sou eu quem vai lutar contra isso. Essa responsabilidade é de vocês".__ Boogiepop.
To give the reader a brief and concise rundown of this show and what to expect from it: it involves a series of 'cases' that span several episodes each, where a new 'threat' to humanity makes itself known—in the form of a new 'power' or 'ability' evolving in a person and being used—that threatens to disrupt the status quo of society. From there we see how these powers and the world, as well as the leading character Boogiepop—a product of these new divergent "powers" itself—interact with one another, with the abilities often being complex and powerful, and the people—and at times reality—often changing with them. Due to this natyre, more often than not these powers need to be 'overcome' by humanity, and with each case—other than Boogiepop and a select handful of recurring characters—introducing a new set of characters affected by the power, whose task is to overcome it. The presentation of each case is often non-linear, requiring at least some attention to make sense of, but with a fairly typical story structure despite that—with always a clear beginning, middle, and end, and very well defined story beats. What makes Boogiepop as a story so special and great, is that in this world full of such mystical and grand characters, powers, and organizations, it always just comes down to the common people rising above to overcome the threats faced. Despite what it might look like initially, 'Boogiepop' the character, however powerful they may seem, is quite literally a phantom within the plot itself—without ever really having much of a defining impact on the world or result themselves. They are only ever there so much as an emphasis and guide for the ordinary, everyday human characters of the story to shine and do their part, and to highlight their greatness and potential. It always invariably ends up relying on them, and their actions and qualities. Even with all its dark themes and world—and most of its themes are dark—at its heart ' Boogiepop *[and Others](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avxGrknDJcc)* ' as a story is ultimately very optimistic. It's a celebration of humanity and our 'possibility'. On the surface, the author does depict humanity "evolving" with these fantastical new powers and abilities, but it is ultimately always in the mundane yet concerted, ordinary and human-achievable actions through which they are overcome, and through which we truly 'evolve' and move forward as a species. Those powers, much like Boogiepop, only serve to bring these out and shine a light on what is otherwise very grounded human feats. I'd recommend ignoring the ratings and giving this show a try if this sounds interesting to you, or if you especially love amazing soundtracks (courtesy of Kensuke Ushio of Devilman Crybaby, A Silent Voice, and Ping Pong the Animation fame), heavy atmosphere, and thoughtful, moving thematic exploration. This show isn't designed to be loud, flashy, or mass-appealing—the beloved cult-classic Boogiepop novels aren't that kind of story—the heights and climaxes of the story are built slowly, often in a non-linear fashion, and are only really going to be rewarding if you're following the themes and can empathize with the characters and ideas they present. For me, it was and is a highly rewarding, unique, and emotive show, beautiful in the passion of its writing and execution—and extremely rewatchable with all its amazingly developed thematic peaks and moments. It's that type of show you find yourself replaying tracks and moments of, weeks, months—even years after. Certain moments and stories from this I can't see myself ever forgetting to be honest. It's been over four years now since I first watched it, and I'm still passionate enough to write this review on another revisit. _________________________________________________________ **-- slight spoiler talk follows from here, where I rant in torrential form, but minor detail, about one of my favourite arcs, leading to a conclusion --** ________________________________________________________ Perhaps my favourite episodes and story in this, and that which I feel reflects the series' best, is that of episodes 10 to 13. The arc involves two 'synthetic humans'—'tools' of an organization used to carry out their dirty work, and search for and subsequently eliminate threats—reaching self-realization as they come to critical points in their lives, where the growing 'bugs' of guilt, doubt and questioning inside them overwhelm and threaten to blossom. It shows us the critical events in their history leading up to this, and the humans that changed them; the humans they killed, and were sent to kill, as well as, in the end—their defining moments—and the humans they save. It is a story that contrasts some of the best of us coming to be the worst, with the worst of us coming to be the best, in each of the characters' defining moments. It focuses on the messiness of us as beings—and the potential beauty that such things as guilt, regret, and otherwise minor interactions and interrelated events can come to lead to. The unpredictable causal chain of our lives that can lead us from the best to the worst, and from the worst to the best, giving the ever-present chance for us to aspire and grow, and to change directions as people—rising above circumstance history—and achieving a new definition in the story of our lives. How such a simple thing as Nagi Kirima's brief but sincere words of enthusiasm and support to Scarecrow, and his aspiration of becoming a crime-tackling hero, can further sprout an invisible but infinitely entangled and complex series of events that end up affecting every character's path in the story. img(https://i.imgur.com/mLrTHGp.png) It's an incredibly heartfelt and emotive story, and what Scarecrow, and later Mo Murder both come to do in this arc, and the place they get to, represents the most beautiful thing in the world and of us humans to me. In but two such short, brief moments, all their development, history, and lives as synthetic humans come to a head, and they each achieve the most human of acts—they opt for danger and self-sacrifice for the sake and rescue of another. To do such an otherwise illogical and risky, but *good* thing for another; all in a situation where the other party will likely never even learn about or appreciate it—or they likely won't live through to see it blossom in any way. And to get to that result—and not regret it or the loss of everything in your final moments... It reflects us rising above our urges, instincts and base desires. We as animals. To act in such a way against our very selves and self-preserving nature. No other being in the world can manage this, certainly for what's little more than a stranger—it is our gift alone. And we with all our intelligence and sentience so rarely manage to achieve anything close. But rarely, every so often, we *do* manage it. It must be when we listen to that little 'bug' inside, no matter how small and crushed down it may have gotten over the years, that just wants to do and be something *good* for another like us. The chance doesn’t come around often, if at all for most of our lives, but when it does—and we manage it—it can only be when our hearts are at their most beautiful point. When we 'break through' and become something more than just the sum of our animal parts and our history—where our sentience, will and humanity are realized in but a moment. When we do something just for the intangible concept that is [the principle](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih5Aj6QRzpA). *“Would you be able to cast your regret aside and return again? Return to the moment when your heart was at its most beautiful?”* img(https://i.imgur.com/6pbMzwQ.png) Sure, there are plenty of stories with characters and much greater 'heroes' in them that put others before themselves, as well as sacrifice themselves. Such a thing isn't very unique to this story. But here, it is made especially profound and emotive as with both characters' stories, you see every beat that leads them to their resolutions, where they start from—very low; flawed and morally troubled, chained to the orders of an organization—and where they end up. That 'bug' inside them growing and steering more and more their actions. Nothing especially "big", different, or dramatic ever happens to the characters to change or set them on this course either. Just a long series of small events, thoughts, interactions, words... It isn't clean—their heroism—and certainly not very 'cool' to watch, it's quick and messy, and there's not really a happy ending to be found in the story either. There's even a struggle with regret and doubt after said heroic acts. And neither manages to 'absolve' themselves in the story or any of the things they did wrong and the crimes they committed... But it is in this messiness and harsh reality, and in seeing their journeys and inner turmoil play out that something extremely believable and compelling is found. Something that sticks out and stays. It is often said that without fear there is no bravery, or—the more fear that exists, the chance for greater amounts of bravery—and I think that logic holds for acts of greatness and heroism as well. Great characters achieving and doing heroic things is... great, but to write terribly flawed and damaged characters achieving heroic things, and showing that journey believably, I think, is much more special a thing, and Boogiepop does it perfectly here. *“Humans do not possess a single, focused will. They just have countless [bugs](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hi3D_PnaxT0) buzzing around in all directions inside their hearts. It's fine when all these bugs are headed toward the same meal as one, but when they split apart... People take actions that can only be described as incoherent.”* img(https://i.imgur.com/7wVmgTH.png) There are countless cases one could learn about, throughout all the great conflicts, depressions, and tragedies of history, where everyday people, assuredly flawed people, manage to break through our nature and achieve this, and undoubtedly countless more forever untold; locked away in the everyday noise, or the long and unseen history of the world. Ordinary people sheltering the persecuted and knowingly facing death and torture for it, people running into fires, and firefighters running up burning skyscrapers... Teachers shielding their students with their own bodies, and soldiers jumping over grenades just to save their comrades and friends... Starving brothers giving the last morsel to their starving sisters, and personnel going down with ship or reactor, just to save and protect as many as they can in the role that only they could fill... If there is a God—or an audience of our experience out there—I am sure this is when they are their most proud, shocked, or affected. Like you or me, who watched the brief stories of 'Scarecrow' and 'Mo Murder'. It is where our souls and characters are truly seen and shining. A soul developed bit by bit over a lifetime, achieving definition in one tiny, beautiful moment, with the decision to do away with self-preservation, the fundamental law for all life, and to hurt or lose ourselves for another like us. These events are not fiction, flukes, or one-off anomalies, and such transcendent beauty is an irrefutable possibility within each of us. Even in the worst and most hopeless among us—as were the characters of Scarecrow and Mo Murder. img(https://i.imgur.com/NBbhBu2.png) If we could control time, and observe with our own eyes our history - the lives of these people, and these events - it is where I would go. How many journeys would it take, I wonder—being confronted with and seeing first-hand those undeniable acts of purity—to hold unshakeable belief and love for life and humanity. I think, just one... The 'Boogiepop and Others' story, as mentioned previously, is about the greatness of humanity. And nowhere does it achieve this focus and message as perfectly as in this arc for me. If nothing else, I am sure the story of these characters and the themes of Boogiepop will stick with me for a long while still. Though I feel I could just as well rant about the other stories and themes of Boogiepop and Others. They are all explored in such a satisfying and rewarding way correlating to the amount of attention you give it, with the right amounts of subtlety and scope to never come across as heavy-handed or convoluted. The ideas presented and the messages contained always feel perfectly complete by the end of their respective arcs, with compelling presentation and, in my opinion, very profound and memorable conclusions. It is a great feat of the writing to be so compellingly positive in such an otherwise dark and murky story and world, with so few if any 'happy' endings or especially 'good' characters. img(https://i.imgur.com/EZs5VtD.png) **In a world now so chock-full of stories and shows of superpowers, heroes, and heroic feats, I think 'Boogiepop and Others' remains truly special. It contains the same exciting displays of power, intriguing mystery, and excitingly powerful and dangerous 'villains' and bad guys, but not very far into its heart does it do away with all of that, using them instead rather explicitly as storytelling vessels for what it really wants to develop and explore, telling of much more grounded stories and characters.** **Thanks to this laser focus it takes much less time than other stories to achieve what it wants to, and it is much more special as a result—packing far more breadth and depth, with a lasting sense of mystery and intrigue to the world, and with a far more powerful, memorable, and motivating sense of positivity and [hope](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbmL6gvlaUo) than just about any other 'super' story out there.**