(25ish episodes)
What’s it about ?
Shounen heroic-fantasy show, set in a vaguely Edo-ish Japan.
Characters
Jinbee, our protagonist. His father, a renowned samurai, was summoned to work for the Insect Magistrate’s office ; but since he got disgraced and maimed in an infamous incident, the son has come in his place. He’s eager to prove himself, although he’s not exactly too competent.
A pair of boobs, who may be attached to an inn waitress called Oharu who helps Jinbee out before becoming a damsel in distress.
The Insect Magistrate’s office is made of a stern-looking guy who’s in charge, and a variety of elite fighters with various specialties (the bomb expert, the berserker…). Their job : fight the giant monstrous bugs that are randomly attacking and eating people all over the place. The implication is that a good chunk of the population died before the authorities set this squad up. (Apparently at the people’s suggestion, because there was no obvious need for it… /facepalm)
Production Values
Bright and shiny, which stands in sharp contrast to the grittiness of the scenes involving the bugs. I’m not really sure the juxtaposition works, though. It just looks like a bit of a mess.
Overall Impression
A textbook example of how you can make elite samurai warriors fighting bugs utterly boring. The complete lack of depth of the characters makes this a very shallow watch indeed, and it’s really hard to care when they get caught up in danger. It’s a parade of annoying clichés, and it just doesn’t work.
Don’t bother with this one.
