Promised Neverland (Yakasuko no Neverland) Anime Review

Quick details:

Warning major spoilers ahead so if you haven’t watched the anime yet, please don’t read this.

Review:

I am not really a fan of thriller genre because in my perspective only few Anime can pull it off. Although I can say that Promised Neverland didn’t just simply pulled it off but actually became one of the best thriller anime I’ve watched so far ( I still love Attack on Titans more though).

Small wrap up, the anime started in an orphanage where everything, needs and welfare, is perfect. They even had a loving Mom, Isabella. Then there are three prodigies here (Emman, Norman and Ray) who later uncovered that they are not in an “orphanage” at all but rather a plantation of kiddy meat for demons. Gross! They are basically livestock raised in a farm. Corned beef had never been tasted “yucky” before. Super gross! Plus, their Mom, Isabella, isn’t a sweet Mom but a psycho trafficker afterall.

Psychological Warfare

One thing that I love in this anime is the battle of the brains between the Mom (Isabella) and these children (Emma, Norman and Ray) . One side is always making sure that they are one step ahead of the other. Surprisingly, our 12 year old heroes are always stepping up their game. Seems like their plan to escape the plant, Gracefield plantation, can’t be broken by anyone else. The audacity!

When it seems like someone’s always watching…

I don’t know if you noticed these scenes where it seems like someone is looking at them. It’s making me feel eerie and anxious more than the characters. The production did well on the graphics and sound effects although I think those mini heart attack in the middle of the night is not very healthy for me. Kidding aside, the turn out of events, the production and the revelation of character traits mixture are the things that made this a top-notch anime.

Ray – the Master Manipulator and the Suicidal Maniac

Yes, he is my bias. I think he is the best character here. He portrayed a double-faced character in the first few episodes. He led Norman and Emma to the truth behind Gracefield plantation. He was a double agent of Isabella and Norman. He always thinks ahead and very cautious. Moreover, he made the device that will remove disable their trackers. Genius isn’t he. The downside is that he always wants to throw himself on the fire for his beloved family. A cool martyr indeed. He’s so like it that he even wanted to literally set himself on fire as part of his escape plan. If it wasn’t because of Emma, he might actually killed himself which is quite the irony of their goal. Oh, his relationship with Isabella came to me as a shock as well!

Although, the Master Planner is Norman…

The real game changer, is the turn out of events after Norman died. Did he really die? I don’t think so. Anyway, I was amazed how Norman came up with the idea of actually executing the plan of Ray and at the same time making sure that Ray will not die in the process. It turned out that Emma have been doing the footwork of this plan during the remaining two months (before the shipment of Ray happens). She even collaborated ahead of time with the 5 to 12 years old children. Viola! They really did! They successfully escaped and it was just so satisfying.

’til we meet again Baby Phil

I can say that this Anime had a satisfying end although they left us something to look forward in the next season.

Emma doesn’t want anyone behind, but the situation forced them to leave the children 4 years old and below. I agree this is rational given the situation and besides, they will not be shipped until they are 6 years old. So Emma and his colleagues have at least two years to get strong and come back for them!

Live Action to be released on December 2020!

The Promised Neverland Live Action will be released on December 18, 2020 according Techlapse.com.

I think they can pull this off hopefully since there are less CGI effect that is needed in this anime. I mean the main characters doesn’t have superpowers unlike Dragonballs Live Action.

There will be a change in their ages as well, I read that they will be 16 years old rather than 12.

What do you think about this film?

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Share your reviews and thoughts about Promise Neverland in the comment section!

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Photo credits to the original owners.