Pachi's Anime Review - Mushibugyo!

Good day, everyone! New reviews are coming today, but the format of reviews from now on will be a little bit different. In my infinite wisdom, I did not realize a standard Blogger account has a limit of Static Pages. Welp, I've hit that limit! So from now on, reviews will have to be embedded into posts, denoted by "Read More" expandable sections so the blog isn't overrun constantly by long review posts. Total derp on me, but without further ado, here is the next review of my 2013 Anime Retrospective, Mushibugyo! Enjoy! ^_^

Also! I didn't make a main page post about it, but I put up my Retrospective review for Valvrave the Liberator some time ago. Check that one out, too~!

In Feudal Japan, giant insects known as "Mushi" have appeared mysteriously throughout the land, devouring humans and spreading chaos. In order to fight this menace, the Insect Magistrate's (Mushibugyo) Office was established to gather warriors of high caliber to defend the cities and people. Coming in stead of his father's summons due to a crippling injury, young bright-eyed Jinbei Tsukushima has traveled to Edo to join the local Mushibugyo's City Guard and prove his worth as a samurai. His motto: Always be ready for a fight!

There are various criterion which I adhere to when choosing which anime to test the waters with each new season. Sometimes I choose a show because it's in one of my favorite genres. Sometimes I choose a show because it has a notable director. Sometimes I choose a show because it bares strikingly similarities to another show I love. Sometimes I choose a show to fill a personal quota, regardless of how I feel the quality will pan out. Sometimes I choose a show because I've heard a strong reaction from the hype crowd. Sometimes I choose a show because it looks like it could be fun. And sometimes I choose a show because the character designs are goddamned ridiculous. Today's topic, Mushibugyo, is the last of the latter.

Mushibugyo's art style suffers from a bad case of the early 90s - it's the hair, the hair is unreal. And I don't just mean it's really long, I mean it is really long and actively defies gravity. Just look at the following image. Look at it. How is that even possible?

Hair aside, the whole affair emanates a distinctly 90s vibe - its most obvious influence being Rurouni Kenshin, a 90s series - and for the fact that pre-restoration Japan is, in my opinion, a dying genre. Sure, you get your alternate universe Shinsengumi story every now and then; you've got your ludicrous high-action Sengoku Basara; but can you really name one in recent memory that is considered a staple of anime culture? (Basara, maybe) The last samurai anime I watched in full was Brave 10 in 2012, which coincidentally I was also drawn to because I loved the character designs. The series itself was sadly less creative and as dynamically intriguing as cottage cheese. Last summer there was Gifu Dodo, a frame narrative piece exploring the eccentric lives of two ronin warriors; and while I appreciated its JoJo-esque manly charm and charisma, the presentation was not eccentric enough to garner further attention. The fact that the only major stirring of the pre-restoration genre as of late is the Kenshin live action movies is proof that this well has run dry and is merely lingering on self-preservation.

So what about this new series, Mushibugyo? Did it save the pre-restoration genre, has the well sprung a new source of life? Well, no, no it didn't. I like it, but it did NOT save anything. Partially because I suspect I was the only one among my circle of anime-viewing colleagues watching Mushibugyo, and there's a very good reason for that which I'll get to in a bit.

Mushibugyo follows the exploits of the daring, happy-go-lucky, and somewhat lecherous young samurai Jinbei Tsukushima. Travelling to Edo in the stead of his father, Jinbei seeks to further his path of the sword by offering his services to the local Mushibugyo, or, Bug Magistrate. The Bug Magistrate is the acting commissioner of a group of warriors for hire whose job it is to protect the city from vicious giant......bugs. Yes, giant bugs. Did I forget to mention? Mushibugyo takes place in an alternate Japan where there are Titan-sized giant bugs razing the landscape. How and why are there giant bugs, you ask? Shut up, Mushibugyo replies, because we never get an answer for that! Samurai, ninjas, Japan, giant bugs, GO - that's the depth of premise you're getting from this one. Jinbei and crew make the rounds squaring off against centipedes as long as a city block and dung beetles as high as the clouds in the sky, each member of the City Guard upholding their own reasons to fight, whether personal or for a greater cause; they fight to protect the city and those they hold dear.

So yes, Mushibugyo is pretty silly on multiple levels right from the get-go, what with the crazy hair and antiquated animation style and the concept. It sounds an awful lot like a hokey Saturday morning cartoon show 4Kids would've licensed back in the day, and that's because it undoubtedly is (albeit, it would be censored to hell). All of the stakes you normally see in an action adventure piece are here - character drama, bombastic battles with monsters, mustache-twirling baddies - but everything is toned down to a juvenile degree. It even goes the Samurai Jack route of avoiding censorship of violence by making the majority of hack n' slashing perpetrated against non-human entities (i.e., bugs). It runs a fine line here and there, as some of the bug slayings can be a bit graphic and there is bug juice and goo a plenty that occasionally looks suggestive when splattered all over our heroes, but primarily Mushibugyo is not a show to attribute gravity to. It is very light-hearted. However, and this is why I believe most people didn't watch it, it caters to a somewhat narrow field.

Mushibugyo operates as what I believe to be a respectable power fantasy for young boys. A male samurai finds himself surrounded by beautiful women and strong companions as he defends the weak and helpless from the forces of evil......not only that, but despite his oblivious naivety, he believes in his strength and is always looking for ways to improve himself and aid those around him. Jinbei is something of an ideal for the young Japanese male: impetuous, immodest, forthright, honest, and humble. A role model for young boys with the mindset of a young boy, basically. And that is roughly the extent as to what Mushibugyo can provide on a level beyond base entertainment.

If you're an adult who desires more from their entertainment, Mushibugyo doesn't have much to offer you, neither materialistically nor existentially. There are only three female leads of note, one of which is a ninja and another the titular Mushibugyo herself. While they aren't poorly written characters and they are strong women in their own right, ultimately their role in the story is to be a romantic love interest. However it's NOT a harem - the romance is not the central plot thread and there isn't a massive chick::dude ratio. It does have fanservice, via Oharu's bouncing bazingas and Hibachi's precarious thigh shots during action scenes, but it's very juvenile, harmless stuff. It's more like what a 10-year-old boy finds edgy and sexy than something an adult male would secretly get off to. And as an adult, there really is no deeper message you can glean from Mushibugyo other than "Always be ready for life's challenges! Keep getting stronger and improving yourself!", which is a great message for a little kid  who hasn't experienced those challenges yet, but for an adult, it's not exactly breaking new ground. Even Yu-Gi-Oh! has themes an adult can treasure; Mushibugyo doesn't really have any kind of narrative theme deeper than what's on the surface. It exists solely as escapism and power fantasy for a young growing mind. And I ask you......does that make the show bad?

No. Does it make it largely unfulfilling to a sizeable demographic? Yes. Pretty Cure may be an exceptionally well-animated and produced series of magical girl shows, and they may have great morals for growing young girls, but I'm not going to watch it just because it's well-produced; it's not FOR me. Likewise, many people realized Mushibugyo was not FOR them rather quickly. Most of my acquaintances described it as being fun "if you're 10 years old". And it certainly feels like a serving for a young tween only just discovering how television could be 'hardcore'. Far be it from me to tell you what you can and can't watch; everyone's got to have guilty pleasures, and as it turns out, Mushibugyo is one of mine.

 

It's not for my age group, and I don't get any kind of meaningful fulfillment out of it. It's animation style is outdated and its production values are decent at best. But for me, what forgives everything is that this is one of those shows trying its hardest to be fun and exciting without care for anything else. Does it always succeed? Of course not. There is drama and occasional high stakes and moments of despair versus moment of hope, factors that can either enrich the experience or bring it down, but it all operates at such a simple juvenile level that it's impossible to get positive or negative whiplash from changing moods. Mushibugyo's curve of competency and personal enjoyment is a straight line from start to finish: it doesn't start very high, it never goes up, but it also never goes down. What gets me personally is obvious influences from beloved Rurouni Kenshin, and a desire deep within me that has been waiting for a decent pre-restoration era anime for a long time. And lo and behold, along comes Mushibugyo with straightforward shounen entertainment. It's not pushing envelopes, but it's my guilty pleasure genre in a setting I love, so I really can't help myself!

In the critical world of reviews, being "average" is one of the worst brandings a subject can receive: not bad enough to get upset over, and not good enough to praise, just boringly in-between. But I can proudly say that Mushibugyo is perhaps one of the most well-executed "average" anime in recent memory. It's fun and uplifting, has decently choreographed battles, and even manages to build up some sweetness and heartfelt encounters for several characters. But all of these things operate on a grade school scale of entertainment, and unless you're like me and find guilty pleasure in Mushibugyo's aesthetics, setting, and carefree approach to the shounen action genre, you likely won't get anything out of it. It'll be just another meaningless action show. And yeah, it kinda is. But I still like it. If nothing else, it's a safe, entertaining distraction. And the kids will love it!

You can currently find all subbed episodes of Mushibugyo streaming online courtesy of Crunchyroll. The series has not been licensed at this time.