Don’t Step On My Eyeball!
- Episodes : 12
- Genre : Action, Comedy, Horror, Magic, Fantasy, Seinen
- Airing Date : January 2020 – March 2020
- Producers : MAPPA
Contains Spoilers
--- SPOILERS AHEAD ---
In this society, Sorcerers live their lives at the very top of the social hierarchy. However, residents of Hole live in relative suffering as their home is a place devoid of law, ethics or even compassion. The Sorcerers use Hole as a practice ground for their abilities, forcing the residents of Hole to get used to having a hospital where victims of Sorcerers find themselves in excess. Despite the Sorcerers’ terror reigning on the residents of Hole, some of them find themselves capable of challenging them. Some residents, like the bizarre-looking lizard-headed Caiman, seek the Sorcerers in order to find answers. Caiman is immune to magic yet clearly suffers from a magic-caused affliction: his lizard head. Suffering from amnesia and nightmares, Caiman seeks to find the Sorcerer who did this to him. With his friend, Nikaidou, chef and owner of the Hungry Bug Restaurant, Caiman navigates the topsy-turvy landscape of Hole in search of answers.
Dorohedoro is fun yet dark, bringing together elements of comedy, gore, and horror to create an anime that definitely grabs attention from the jump. From the very beginning, the show throws us into the hellish landscape of Hole, showing us how different this particular society is from what we know. The clear factions in this story are the Sorcerers and the residents of Hole; however, given the fact that Nikaidou is a Sorcerer herself, who’s on which side gets very interesting. Dorohedoro has various elements that seem very weird, even whimsical, at times despite the dark and gritty nature of the content of the show. We’ll say it a second time—Dorohedoro is really, really weird; but don’t we all like things that are a little eccentric?
1. The Feel
Dorohedoro is weird (have we said this before?) in the sense that it puts together elements that are dark, some even funny, and throws them together in a way that doesn’t feel like the point is irony. Despite its “light” feel in some respects, Dorohedoro is violent and maybe even a little bit messy; that said, everything about the feel of the show seems tied together by the animation, which is done with CGI.
2. Interesting Plot
In the world of Dorohedoro, society is stratified on the basis of people’s magical ability. This magical ability that Sorcerers possess is directly tied to the smoke that is produced when they perform these abilities; however, the element of the story that garners the most attention is the widespread horror elements that are the energy of the whole show.
3. Comedy
Dorohedoro is steeped in gritty, bloody horror elements and yet, at the same time, it finds a way to make these things come together in comical ways. In the context of the story, residents of Hole seem to be somewhat understanding of their way of life, realizing that there’s imminent danger at the hands of Sorcerers. Somehow, Dorohedoro uses its eccentric characters and setting in a way that speaks directly to elements of horror. Gore, violence and even zombies exist in this world and somehow the residents of Hole have gotten used to it and prepare for such elements affecting their day-to-day lives.
1. It’s a Little Weird
We enjoy a little eccentricity in our anime and think that it gives Dorohedoro an interesting look and feel. It definitely is a unique watching experience and the aforementioned horror elements mixed with comedy highlight this element even more. Some people dislike this aspect in the media that they watch and prefer shows a little more… sober. If you’re not prepared to be very confused or even stunned at first, Dorohedoro might not be your cup of tea.
2. Pacing
Dorohedoro launches the viewer straight into the Hole, very briefly introducing the forces at play in the series. Despite this small bit of knowledge that we’re given at first, the series tends to get a little confusing as characters are introduced unceremoniously and their relationships perhaps lacking in a little bit of background.
Final Thoughts
It’s weird, it’s fun, it’s bloody and violent and it’s really good! Dorohedoro is an anime that definitely put 2020 into the right gear, and also stands out heavily as a title we will remember from this exciting anime year. With a fun yet ridiculously dark feel, Dorohedoro doesn’t feel out of place when mashing seemingly clashing ideas together; and yet, it still has a look and feel that incite curiosity in the viewer and the twelve episodes are a short, enjoyable binge. Does it leave you wanting more? Absolutely.
Author: Hoshi-kun
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