When my anime viewing list ends up getting crowded (which is always, always the case), I tend to go through that list alphabetically when I do find the time to watch. Which is why I was more up to date with Akame ga Kill! than all the other titles. Let me clarify, though, that alphabetical prioritization isn't the only reason why I stuck with the series during its twenty four episode run.
When Tatsumi left his village with his childhood friends Ieyasu and Sayo, little did he know that their quest to find jobs in the capital to support their financially challenged village would lead to shaking his entire belief system and turning to a profession he never imagined for himself. The dangers, both in human and danger beast form, on the road to the capital pale in comparison to the what awaited at their destination. Arriving at the capital alone after getting separated from his friends, Tatsumi loses his hard earned money through theft and received a generous offer to stay with a rich family. His hosts warn him of the dangers of the capital and the criminal acts performed by the rebel assassin group Night Raid, which targets the rich and those in position of power. Tatsumi crosses paths with members of Night Raid when they arrive to kill his hosts in the middle of the night. When he tried to protect the last surviving member of the family, members of Night Raid show him the truth... that he was being treated as a guest only to later be tortured for sport by the family. He learns that his friends Ieyasu and Sayo had already suffered that fate, and he realizes that the lines between what appears to be good and evil in the capital has been blurred. He decides to join Night Raid, which includes members Akame, Mine, Sheele, Leone, Lubbock, Bulat and leader Najenda.
When I watched the first episode of Akame ga Kill!, I wasn't sure how my viewing experience would turn out. The first scenes and the character design for Tatsumi gave no indication on whether the series could be serious or dark, and I never had a chance to check out the original manga version beforehand. In fact, I though it was going to be an action series that leaned more on comedy than drama. By the end of the first episode, it's apparent that Akame ga Kill! is an entirely different storytelling creature than I initially thought.
Comedy is still used in good measure throughout the series, if only to balance out the rather bleak themes featured in the series. Black and white isn't a privilege for those who live in the world Tatsumi lives in. Mere social activism to voice out complaints or even plain warfare would not change the political and economic landscape of their nation, a result of the corrupt machinations of Prime Minister Honest and his manipulation of the nation's young Emperor. You know that things are bad when the forces of "good" resort to creating an assassin group to chip away at the layers of corruption until they reach the Prime Minister.
Tatsumi's initial time with the assassin group Night Raid is comical, with his training under the different members. What makes Night Raid exceptional is that they are all established fighters, powerful enough to wield the legendary Imperial Arms, with each one either a former member of the government's army or have reasons to hate the current empire. Considering their experiences, the group is surprisingly lively and their interactions with Tatsumi varies based on their rather extreme personalities. As the series progress, however, and as Tatsumi's bond with the other Night Raid members strengthen, there's less opportunities for comedy. Every encounter with an enemy strengthens the resolve to bring about change, and every death of a comrade chips away at Tatsumi.
Despite the narrative focus on Tatsumi and Akame's name featured in the title, Akame ga Kill! is an ensemble piece. And that ensemble isn't just exclusively made up of Night Raid members. Equally important to the progression of the story are those who fight on the side of the empire. If the rebel faction has the Night Raid group, the empire has the Jaegers, a group created specifically to counter the assassins. The group, led by the fearsome Esdeath, includes Akame's younger sister Kurome. While Esdeath is focused on just defeating any enemy that crosses her path, but not everyone in her group shares her bloodlust and are just trying to either repay the empire, honor his duty or find a way to change the empire from within.
Even with a generous twenty four episode run, Akame ga Kill! packs quite a lot in terms of events and characters to keep up with. As the series progressed and the characters grew in number, my fears of apathy for some of them were unfounded. You don't get to like them all, but finding out each one's fate is something you end up investing in and you root for either a good or bad ending for each one. The characters and their roles are defined, and they all contribute to the overall story. Only a few characters get shortchanged in the series's run, but that's a small quibble when the animators did a pretty good job of balancing a plethora of personalities and their individual dramas. Given the series's premise, casualty is to be expected, and every death (on both sides of the warring factions) lends weight to the cause of Night Raid and the rebel faction they support. And you know that a series is doing a good job when they introduce a character and have that person killed off in a few or the next episodes, but still manage to make the audience care.
And because Akame ga Kill! aims to tell a story about a corrupted empire and a group of heroes relegated to the grisly task of murdering, it's only proper that it features action in its telling. The series did well in executing fight scenes between the characters, especially for the characters Akame and Esdeath. While most of the action scenes serve the series well and provide excitement for the viewer, I do have to point out that there are inconsistencies on the level of violence portrayed in the series. There are times when they embrace that violence, while there are some scenes that seem to shy away from it or are awkwardly tempered. I think that they should have just gone all out, considering the nature of Akame ga Kill!'s storytelling, creating a better visual impact when partnered with their rather traditional approach to character design. I do have to say that this is a particularly small quibble in light of how the series's many elements are balanced well.
All in all, Akame ga Kill! was a fun series to watch, though it's not an anime fare you want to introduce your children to for a while. It might not be perfect, but it does serve its main purpose of providing an interesting story for you to watch unfold.
Happy viewing!!Labels: Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Akame ga Kill, Anime, Drama, Fantasy, Must-Watch, TV
