We live in a world where dozens of different anime series release each year. As per any medium, there are many that are just bad or mediocre, while comparatively few are actually any good. It’s honestly safe to say that each year there are less than 10 series that are actually watching.
Despite that trend, there always exists that occasional series that is more than just good. It breaks free of the shackles of “good anime” and enters the realm of “good show” with series like Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood or Cowboy Bebop. For 2016, that series is Erased.
A time travel mystery
Erased follows Satoru Fujinuma, a 29-year-old manga artist working as a pizza delivery driver. He has an ability that he calls Revival, where he jumps back in time with the knowledge that something bad is going to happen. With this ability, he quickly acts to stop the event from happening. Normally, these events are smaller and only send him back a few minutes, but everything quickly changes when a group of young girls is missing and found dead in a case very similar to 18 years ago.
A series of events brings the murder cases back to life, as Satoru’s mother, Sachiko, discovers the identity of the killer from 18 years ago and is quickly murdered. Satoru is blamed for the murder and in a panic he goes through his Revival. Instead of a few minutes into the past, he jumps back 18 years.
The Revival power is a cool concept, but the rules of it don’t seem very clear. When it’s first introduced, Satoru describes the power as a feeling of sorts, a sensation that lets him know he’s jumped back in time. He has no knowledge of the future from which he jumped. He just knows that something bad happened.
However, when he jumps back in time 18 years, he is completely aware of everything that takes place in the future he comes from. Within the first ten minutes of the series, the power’s rules are introduced and then immediately changed. It’s frustrating, for sure, but the series sticks with the new rules of the power for the rest of the series so it’s easy to move past.
The majority of the narrative takes place in the past, as Satoru tries to save the life of Kayo, the girl who is the first in the string of murders. Any time the story jumps to the present, it is just reacting to the changes Satoru made in the past. By the end of the next episode, Satoru will very likely be in the past again, trying to make more changes.
As the series progresses, Satoru becomes more and more invested in Kayo’s life, learning that she comes from an abusive household. The two form a really close connection, one that doesn’t seem strange despite the fact that Satoru’s 29-year-old mind is inhabiting his 11-year-old body. I didn’t want them to become a couple, but I did want them to maintain that close friendship that stretched long into adulthood. Call it a friendship OTP.
Overall, the story is easy to follow and is a ride as you try to solve the mystery, but can get tiresome as the focus of the story changes and the consequences of time travel come into play. There is also a small lull in the story as there is a brief change in focus around episodes eight and nine. Fortunately, things pick up in episode 10 and only get better from there, leading to an extremely satisfying finale.
The best characters are dead at some point
The story of Erased is great, but the characters are where the series shines. Of the main cast, Satoru is honestly the least interesting, despite the fact that he’s an extremely sympathetic character. Honestly, the two best characters are Kayo and Sachiko - the two who end up dead at some point in the timeline.
I immediately latched on to Sachiko, especially as we see her interact with Satoru when he’s a child. She immediately knows of his desire to keep Kayo safe and is supportive from the start. When she is killed in the present, I was very upset and wanted nothing more than for the story to bring her back to life. My mom is always Mom of the Year, but Sachiko might give her a run for her money (Mom I love you don’t be sad I said that).
The story of Kayo is both heartbreaking and endearing. It’s rare to see such a powerful interpretation of child abuse. As Kayo joins Satoru’s group of friends, she starts smiling and becomes somewhat happy, becoming emotional as she experiences a life that she never thought she would have.
There are also a couple really excellent villains. The most obvious one is Kayo’s mom, as she beats Kayo with her awful boyfriend. There are a couple others I won’t name for the sake of spoilers, but the motivations and dialogue from them all is absolutely terrifying.
Even the supporting cast is easy to get behind. Characters like Satoru’s childhood friend Kenya or his coworker Airi exist primarily to encourage Satoru, but the moment they are placed in danger, you care for them. They’re made out as extremely important but then after a time jump, some are completely written out of Satoru’s life. It’s understandable that this happens because of time travel, but it’s sad to get attached to a character to have them fade into the distance.
TL;DR
Everything is right with Erased. The story is fantastic, the mystery is intriguing, and the characters are so hard to not love. The rules of Satoru’s revival power is confusing at the start, but it moves past that confusion pretty quickly. There is also a lull in the story around episode 8, when the focus of the story changes. However, the story picks right back up in the proceeding episodes.
As I said before, there are occasionally anime that release that are more than just a good anime series. Erased is one of those series. It doesn’t have a confusing anime plot and a bunch of weird tropes or fanservice. It’s beautifully animated and a perfect series to watch if you want to get invested in amazing characters and maybe have a good cry.
+ Excellent time travel plot
+ Kayo’s child abuse story
+ Sachiko in general
+ Beautiful animation
- Small lulls when the story shifts
- Rules aren’t followed right away
Featured image from Hulu
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