Let’s talk about anime—a subject as polarizing as politics in a Thanksgiving dinner. In some circles, anime is celebrated as a vibrant cultural export brimming with creativity. In others, it’s dismissed as cartoon silliness at best or, on the far end, a satanic endeavor aiming to convert the youth. Our friend Andrew Klavan recently took a whimsical dive into this colorful world reminiscent of a trip to Hogwarts, complete with its own set of peculiar enchantments and quirks.
Klavan’s whimsical tour of anime began with “K-pop Demon Hunters,” a peculiar blend of catchy pop and covert demon-battling action. Sounds like the plot of a Saturday morning cartoon that decided to go to night school and get a degree in absurdity. Now, if this seems like standard anime territory to you, well, it apparently had a little trouble fitting in the anime box for Klavan too. One might say he was flabbergasted by its musical penchant and the saccharine soda pop lyrics—as if Pepsi had ventured into the occult. Not exactly a sermon from the mount, but certainly a spectacle for Netflix’s growing catalog.
Next on his list was “Chainsaw Man,” which promises an adrenaline rush akin to riding a roller coaster in your pajamas. With devil-human hybrids and chainsaw limbs aplenty, it’s built for those whose Saturday night popcorn doesn’t taste complete without a sprinkle of chainsaw dust. Our cultural critic noted the divergence from traditional Western storytelling—no fairy tale endings secured with a neat Biblical bow here. It’s alien, he said, in a way that only something not trying to be French could be. Yet, despite its chaotic charm, he couldn’t deny the allure it held.
“Jujutsu Kaisen” added more to the mix, exploring the age-old tale of a boy, a cursed talisman, and enough demons to make a Hollywood exorcist blush. Here, exorcism isn’t a matter of rosary beads but more of a school elective. Klavan observed the oddity in the narrative—where “crazy things happen and everyone acts like it’s Tuesday.” One might say it’s this very straight-faced approach to the bizarre that makes the Japanese narrative style feel so off-kilter to Western sensibilities—or perhaps it’s just the jet lag between our storytelling customs.
Cowboy bebop offered Klavan a taste of the Wild West, Japanese style. With bounty hunters on interstellar adventures, it’s essentially John Wayne meets Star Wars, through the looking glass. Meanwhile, “Death Note,” brought moral philosophy with its deadly notebook and god-like aspirations. Our intellectual guide found its plot refreshingly reminiscent of the power-and-corruption tales that make epic fantasy novels page-turners. It’s like Tolkien, just swap out the ring for a trusty pen.
In Klavan’s whimsical tour de force through anime land, he debunked the claim that these creations are inherently demonic, finding instead a rich tapestry of storytelling—albeit at times perplexing to those of us accustomed to our plots with straightforward, western resolutions. But truth be told, if you’re not afraid to challenge your narrative tastes, anime might just have something more than soda pop songs and chainsaw arms to offer. Go ahead; dip your toe in—it’s not the devil you’ll find at the other end.
