Mental Assassinations Gone Wild
- Episodes : 13
- Genre : Mystery, Psychological, Supernatural Seinen
- Airing Date : January 6, 2020 – March 30, 2020
- Producers : Geno Studio
Contains Spoilers
Pet Introduction
Based on the manga by Ranjou Miyake, Pet tells the story of how “The Company,” a mysterious Chinese organized crime syndicate, uses “Pets,” people who have the ability to enter the minds of others, and manipulate their memories for their personal gain or kill them. The three main leads who have such abilities are Hiroki, Tsukasa, and Satoru. Tsukasa and Satoru were recruited and trained by Hayashi, while Hiroki was trained by Tsukasa. No longer willing to do the bidding of the company, Hayashi is trying to help the three young men escape, but Tsukasa has plans of his own. Through this tale of escape and intrigue, things start to get complicated as each character has their own agenda they wish to fulfill.
1. It Shows the Negative Effects of Dependency
We understand it’s important that people have friends or somebody in their lives, but there comes a point when being dependent can be counterproductive and Pet does a great job of demonstrating that quality. This is largely demonstrated between Hiroki and Tsukasa, Tsukasa and Hayashi, and Satoru and Hayashi. Pet not only does a great job of just showing the effects of dependency but also why these characters end up that way in both a realistic and metaphysical sense. Ultimately, Hiroki’s case is the most severe. Whenever he doesn’t have Tsukasa around him, he loses control of himself and thinks of the worst.
2. It Shows the Positive Effects of Having Family
Unhealthy dependency is one thing, but Pet also does a great job of showing the positive effects of having a family in your life. Hiroki and Tsukasa more or less had nobody in their lives. As far as we know, they’re practically orphans. In Tsukasa’s case, he had Hayashi to show him the way for a little while. Thanks to Hayashi’s example, it inspired Tsukasa in wanting to take care of someone, and that someone was Hiroki. Through Hiroki and Tsukasa’s story, the audience can see not just the negative aspects of their relationship, but the positive ones as well. You see that they have dreams of living a normal life together and making an honest living.
3. Excellent Animation
Thanks to its unique concept, Pet offers rather excellent animation with how it balances the mundanity of city life, luxurious suite rooms where The Company members operate, and the odyssey of the mind. The high resolution of Pet knows how to keep it consistently vibrant. Whenever Hiroki, Tsukasa, and/or Satoru enter a person’s mind to manipulate their memories, it’s pretty much a psychedelic experience. While JoJo’s psychedelic-inspired sequences feel more like a rave where your mind wanders off in the excitement, what Pet offers is something more akin to how Steve Jobs was enlightened with his experimental experiences with LSD.
1. Ends With Too Many Loose Ends
While we admit that Pet ends rather conclusively as it pertains to its core cast, it has too many loose ends in the context of its world as a whole. You do learn about The Company and how they operate, but at the end of the day, it’s not like they’re taken down or at all significantly affected by the actions of Tsukasa, Hiroki, and Satoru in the long term. Certain characters are able to achieve their goals but, then what? Will we see The Company find more people to exploit? Is there any use in stopping them? These very questions will probably make you itch for more.
2. Some Aspects Needed More Expansion
While Pet does a good job of providing its world through Hayashi, there were some aspects that we felt needed more expansion. While Pet establishes that people have always had these powers, the series does little to show how and why they develop such abilities. Why can Tsukasa, Hiroki, and Satoru, three Japanese youths, do what they do? Is it something genetic? Is it affected by climate change? Are such powers only exclusive to the Far East? Can people of other backgrounds develop the same powers? Through Jin, Pet shows that one of her parents had the same abilities as her, but doesn’t exactly conclude if they’re hereditary.
Final Thoughts
In case you didn’t know, Pet is one of those titles based on a manga that was long overdue. As a matter of fact, the original manga was published almost 20 years ago! Regardless, we’re glad an anime adaptation is finally out to reach new audiences. A lot of things are modified to suit modern audiences such as the inclusion of smartphones, flat-screen HD TVs and, a PS4, but is still in tune with what the original source material was all about.
Pet is certainly for those that love mystery and intrigue. In a visual sense, if you’re looking for an eye-opening acid trip, then you’ve come to the right anime with Pet. So for those of you who have read the original manga, how do you feel the anime stacks up after all these years? Are you glad we got one now? Or would it have been the same if it was adapted in let’s say 2004 instead? If you got any thoughts on it, please leave a comment!
Author: Justin "ParaParaJMo" Moriarty
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