Spring Cleaning the 2023 Spring Anime Season Part 1

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keep the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this editorial!)

2023’s spring season was fascinating to watch unfold. While not feeling as thrilling as 2021 or 2022’s spring season, I would argue it’s more diverse and experimental with its ideas of what adaptations got put into this released chunk of the year. While it definitely had its share of big titles to be hyped about, it also had a slew of surprises that came with some of the underdogs. Even the big hype machine titles had something going on with them more so than previous titles that everyone was looking forward to seeing in previous seasonal anime drops. It’s a more provocative lineup of anime titles that even the lesser ones were, at some points, trying to be different in some way shape or form. Now then, let’s get started! 

Action/Adventure

Summoned to Another World for a Second Time (Crunchyroll)

Just wouldn’t be an isekai or fantasy adventure without some isekais that don’t do enough to stand out. This is based on the light novels and manga by Kazuha Kishimoto. It’s directed by Motoki Nakanishi, written by Yukihito, and produced by Studio Elle. As usual we have an isekai that has a potentially interesting premise of our lead getting summoned into a fantasy world, but the twist being is that he has been here before. You think this would lead to fun or interesting commentary about the isekai genre, and crafting some great jokes, but instead, it plays it straight with no thrills or chills to call its own. Even some of the gags it has have been done better in much more lovable shows. These authors can’t seem to get past the elevator pitch with their ideas, and that sucks since this had so much more potential to be something special, but isn’t. The characters fall flat, the action isn’t stellar, the setting is boring, and it’s just a reminder of how most isekais need to start doing better.

The Marginal Service (Crunchyroll)

We have one of the few original anime this season and it’s sadly not one of the better ones. This show is directed by Masayuki Sakoi, written by Kenta Ihara, and produced by Studio 3HZ and Cygames. You think a mix of Men in Black and Power Rangers-themed construction suits/weaponry fighting cryptids and aliens would be fun, but the show, at least for its first three episodes, spends too much time explaining its world instead of showing it. The characters are one-note and annoying, the gags aren’t funny, and the animation isn’t as personality-driven as the show feels like or wants it to be. It’s a creative idea with a lot of potential possibilities to get better as time goes on, but it has left a really underwhelming taste on my anime-watching palette. It’s a shame since original anime should be supportive, but just as there are bad adaptations, there are also bad original anime.

The Legendary Hero is Dead (Crunchyroll)

Well, the premise for this one is interesting enough. This is based on the manga by Subaruichi. The anime is directed by Rion Kujo, written by Yu Sato, and produced by Liden Films. For a dark comedy fantasy anime, the hook of the setting is a fun one. Our lead is a dirtbag who accidentally gets the legendary hero killed and now has to take on not only the mantle of the hero but also his body via his spirit. This could’ve led to some very fun jabs at the genre and to some funny jokes. Well, too bad it’s not as creative as the elevator pitch for this show is. The leads are all very forgettable. Our main lead is a skeevy dirtbag, our female lead is there for the sake of fanservice, and the necromancer is the most well-rounded character, but she is inconsistently written, and that results in a party of characters you don’t really want to hang out with. They even introduce a villain who is way worse as a human being that is only there to give you a reason to root for our unlikeable lead. Having mean and nasty characters isn’t the constant deal breaker, it’s the fact that everything else around those leads doesn’t balance it all out. 

Dead Mount Death Play (Crunchyroll)

This anime is adapted from the manga by Ryugo Narita of Durarara!! and Baccano fame. It’s directed and written by Manabu Ono and produced by Geek Toys. Instead of being a normal isekai, we have a reverse isekai of a necromancer getting sent to the modern day. While it doesn’t have the same quality or charm as the author’s previous work, the show is, at the very least, more compelling than most isekai/action shows with our lead being more compelling and likable than most leads. Heck, a lot of the characters here are more likable than most isekai casts. It helps that the source material and the author have turned out good work in the past that relied heavily on good character chemistry. It’s just a shame that the animation is underwhelming and the show is only a bit more polished when it comes to the fanservicey aspects. I mean, that seems to be a consistent problem with a lot of shows this season having lackluster animation, but it’s frustrating because the rest of the show is good, and amazing animation isn’t always needed, but when the clunkiness is on screen, it’s hard to not have it detract from the show. Still, anytime an isekai can do better and be more creative than the rest, then I’m down to be more supportive of it as long as it keeps up the rest of the story, and the show is compelling. 

Magical Destroyers (Crunchyroll)

While I am not always down for chaotically trashy anime, this is one of the few exceptions to the rule. This original anime was created by Jun Inagawa. It’s directed by Hiroshi Ikehata and Masao Kawase, written by Daishiro Tanimura, and produced by Bibury Animation Studios. This feels like an anime that was made by Studio Trigger or later down the line Studio Gainax that has the passion and spirit of early to mid-2000s anime. It’s pretty much nerds with the help of their leader and a group of magical girls having to defeat the government which has quarantined and made otaku culture a bad thing to preserve Japan’s morals and honor. It might be another “we love otaku culture and this world is set in a world where otaku are targets of the government” anime, but unlike a lot of them, this one feels like it took a more unhinged and unapologetically nerdy approach to this action show and it is full of life because of it. It’s trashy, horny, thrilling, confusing, loving, and partly hateful of otaku culture, and feels mostly like it’s a team of people who want to see something a bit deranged, compared to a lot of the more “normal” anime out this season. It’s out to have a fun high-octane time, and whether that holds up over 12 or so episodes has yet to be seen, but at least it has one of the most exhilarating opening sequences of any anime this season. Seriously, even if you don’t watch this show or don’t like it, you can’t deny that the opening is just pure anime in the best way possible. Whether it sticks the landing or not is beside the point. Or at least, it’s beside the point with this show. 

Mashle: Magic and Muscle (Crunchyroll) 

We have yet again another alternative piece of art that has wizards and isn’t created by a horrible transphobic author. This anime is based on the manga by Hajime Komoto. It’s produced by A-1 Pictures, written by Yosuke Kuroda, and directed by Tomoya Tanaka. It’s basically what if Saitama from One Punch Man was thrown into a better version of Harry Potter? Well, this is what you would get. While our lead is intensely strong and can pretty much beat anyone into submission if need be, he is unfortunately in a world where everyone but him has magical powers. What makes this show fun is how they figure out creative ways for our lead character to get around the school’s curriculum by using his brute strength and quick if inconsistent smarts to pass classes like using “magic” to unlock a key or using a broom to fly. The ways they play with our protagonist’s strengths and his sometimes dense wits drives this into being one of the best comedies of the year so far. The sheer ways they come up with gags and solutions to problems never stop being amusing and it has a lot going on underneath the comedic shenanigans, but it so far from what I have seen balances it out perfectly. It results in a show that might not get everything about the manga right but is a consistently fun show to watch.

Hell’s Paradise (Crunchyroll)

And here we have the big Studio MAPPA anime of the season that shows that while this studio needs to get its act together with how they treat their animators, and stop taking on so much work, they are the only studio in the anime industry that could tackle something like this project. This is based on the manga by Yuji Kaku, is directed by Kaori Makita, and written by Akira Kindaichi. What makes this thrilling action/horror anime so exciting to watch are the stakes of a bunch of criminals and their handlers being sent to an island to find an elixir of life that happens to be populated by horrific plants and grotesque monsters are how the stakes are raised by the third episode. A lot of characters that are introduced are not going to make it past this point, and while it’s frustrating to see such fun designs end up not making it past the first three episodes, it makes for a sign of how brutal this show can be. The danger is around every corner and that isn’t counting the inhabitants of the island itself, but all the other criminals and the handlers that are ready and willing to kill one another to get off the island. Heck, who says the monsters are the only human-based things to worry about? With MAPPA’s usual polished animation, exciting action set pieces, and a more human study-based story about life, death, and what makes these characters thrive results in an easy frontrunner for one of the best anime this season in a season full of really strong contenders. 

Slice of Life/Drama

My Clueless First Friend (Crunchyroll)

Sometimes, what ya need is a spoonful of sugar to make the medicine go down. This anime is based on the manga by Taku Kamamura. It’s directed by Shigenori Kageyama, written by Takafumi Hosikawa and Shogo Yasukawa, and produced by Studio Signpost. While this anime doesn’t do anything new with it being about a girl who is constantly bullied for looking “like a grim reaper” the one person to befriend her is a boy who doesn’t quite get the memo and thinks she is cool. It is an intensely sincere anime. The act of being kind to one another really is what drives this show into being a fun lightweight watch with some goofy antics, sweet-as-sugar moments, and some solid story beats and character growth from the cast. Sometimes, you just want to watch something to escape from the cynical and harsh world for a few episodes. Definitely an easy watch and one to recommend. 

Otaku Elf (HiDive)

Who knew the slice-of-life genre would be full of super charming shows? This one is based on the manga by Akihiko Higuchi. The anime is directed by Takebumi Anzai, written by Shogo Yasukawa, and produced by C2C. What starts off as a simple gag anime with an elf that was sent to Japan centuries ago and who now is seen as a goddess can almost feel one note. The only real gag is that now that the elf is aware of geek and pop culture fandoms and memorabilia, she has become reclusive like most nerd-like characters seen in anime and other forms of media. But then they start sprinkling in little payoffs to why she is so reclusive, and while a lot of it is played for laughs and to poke fun at merchandise stuff, it does show a more sincere reason as to why she shuts herself off from the world. How being alive for so long and seeing the world literally change around you, and experiencing the people that you love and know pass on while you still live can really affect how open you become to people in the world. And that is all just in the first episode where we see her learn to be more social and friendly towards other people. It also is nice that this show got some of the better-looking visuals and character animation, though that might be because they have an official Red Bull sponsorship. This is funny because they have some well-known brands and then parody brands, which makes you wonder how they pick and choose what brands they could use. Still, the rest of the cast including the elf’s handler, her sister, and her classmate, and I definitely want to see who the other characters are to find out how they fit into this very quirky world. 

Insomniacs After School (HiDive)

Even though I love the quirkiness of a lot of anime, at times, anime is at its best when it’s wholly unique and different from the rest of the shows that have come out during this season. This includes Insomniacs After School. This is based on the manga by Makoto Ojiro. Its adaptation is directed by Yuki Ikeda, written by Rintaro Ikeda, and produced by Liden Films. While not similar in any major way, this show reminds me of Call of The Night from last year’s summer season. It has a low-fi atmosphere to its slice-of-life antics about two teens who suffer from insomnia making their hang out in the school’s observatory which is rather quiet in its atmospheric tone. It’s a romantic experience as we see our leads bond over looking at the stars and fulfilling night-based activities together. They are two individuals who feel isolated and alone in the daytime period of the day but feel personally connected to one another as the night sky blankets over the earth, and the stars make themselves known throughout the far reaches of the universe as they hang over the leads observing them. Granted, what kind of money is a high school making to have its own functioning observatory, but I digress. What matters most is how this show really does have a great pair of protagonists, fantastic supporting cast members, and some lovely ethereal visuals to keep you hooked to the screen. 

Skip and Loafer (Crunchyroll)

Honestly, this and Insomniacs After School are tied as some of my favorite anime of the year. This is based on the manga by Misaki Takamatsu. It’s written and directed by Kotomi Deai, and produced by P.A. Works. This show reminds me a lot of Horimiya, where we dive more into the characters that have an outward persona that they show off but are way more complex individuals with reasons why they use the facade that they have, with the exception of our lead who is unapologetically themselves no matter who they are hanging with. It’s a show about acceptance and how we sometimes overthink situations and what we observe about people around us. It’s such a low-key show that really mellows you out and tells you to not over-complicate life and what you do with friends. It’s an absolutely wholesome show that is delightful from start to finish due to the incredible designs, animation, and probably the best opening song sequence of any anime this season. 

Other

Opus Colors (Crunchyroll)

This original anime is directed by Shunsuke Tada, written by Sayaka Harada, and produced by C-Station. You would think the story of the struggle of two creative individuals crafting AR/VR art would be both visually splendid and compelling. It’s neither of those things. This spring season has brought us some very ugly-looking anime and Opus Colors is very much one of the worst-looking shows of the season. Flat, lifeless characters, generic designs, queerbaiting through the roof, contrived drama to drive the plot, but not much else, and so much more. This should be a fascinating drama of what it’s like for two creatives, an artist and what is essentially their producer to struggle to be on the same page to make something powerful and evocative, but due to the underwhelming animation, it all falls flat. It’s a frustrating show to sit through due to how boring and drab it all is. Even though it’s not based on any preexisting manga or mobile game, it sure feels like it was made to advertise a mobile rhythm game with a bunch of good-looking guys, but the twist is that the game never came out and we are stuck with its ad campaign. A really tedious show to watch that is lacking any sort of cohesive artistic identity. 

My Home Hero (Crunchyroll)

This show, even with its faults, is so distinct that it feels like a miracle that it got made in the current anime landscape. This is based on the manga by Naoki Yamakawa. It’s directed by Takashi Kamei, written by Kohei Kiyasu, and produced by Tezuka Productions. When was the last time an anime had a lead character that was 47? Seriously, in a landscape that requires lead characters to be at most 16 years old, we rarely if ever get adult-focused main characters. This is one that is basically a drama thriller of the dad killing his daughter’s abusive yakuza boyfriend to protect her only to end up in the dark world of the yakuza. It is such a good premise, and it differentiates itself from most anime this season due to this. Watching the slow spiral of playing chess with the family dealing with the yakuza is a compelling watch. What sucks though is that the animation, once again, is lackluster. Again, the anime industry could improve the quality of everything if they just paid their animators better and stopped overburdening them among other things. Imagine if this show had the proper lighting and imagery a dramatic thriller like this needs. Sure, the story can be a bit melodramatic, but anime is melodramatic. A lot of media and dramas are melodramatic. As long as the show is making a convincing case for itself, then that’s all that matters. I could see this one probably spiraling out of control, but considering how many mediocre anime we get with teen characters, it’s okay to root for and support shows like this, because that’s how we get more shows like this and not the middling slop we tend to get that fill up every season. 

Heavenly Delusion (Disney+/Hulu)

Consider this one of the biggest surprises of the season. This anime is directed by Hirotaka Mori, written by Makoto Fukami, and produced by Production I.G. It’s based on the manga by Masakazu Ishiguro. What we have here is a fairly complex and mysterious dystopian sci-fi journey as we follow two different plots happening at around the same time. They are full of themes and commentary about life, sexuality, sex, relationships, gender, and gender norms/gender roles in society that are placed on certain people. It finds a way to balance it all out really well with some of this season’s best visuals and animation. Luckily, it doesn’t get too stuck in the mud or in the depths of its own hubris as it keeps you guessing what exactly is going on and how the two concurring plots connect to one another. It’s a sci-fi anime that isn’t afraid to step back from heavy-handed philosophical quandaries and dialogue being the focus, and instead lets you live in the world this show sets up and invests into the characters and their individualistic drives of what they are looking for in a scary unnerving world. 

Least Favorite Animated Films of 2022

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keep the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this review!)

Sorry to keep getting these types of articles up late, but sometimes you need time to just let everything simmer about how amazing and chaotic a year like 2022 was in animation. Lots of great stuff, but also stuff that missed the mark. The talented crews and artists made some of the best animated films for Netflix, while the streaming service also had some of the most panned animated films of 2022. Only in this chaotic world of the animation industry can this happen. As usual, these will be the nine animated films I liked the least during this year, and it’s always a shame that I can’t like everything. No one wants to criticize the people who work in a chaotic industry that needs all the love and support they can get right now. Despite this list and ranking, and however I feel about these films, I’m always going to be rooting for everyone to succeed.  Now then, let’s get started. 

9. Night at the Museum: Kahmunra’s Revenge

Maybe it would have been better if I had more attachment to the franchise, but this film felt like it was made to be a pilot for an animated TV series. The script does have a few moments where the comedy hits and the 2D animation is better than what I was expecting. Still, the story and themes feel undercooked and needlessly complicated with the introduction of an art museum and how the portraits can be portals to the past. It doesn’t help either that a good chunk of the cast is there for nostalgia and fans, and then they don’t do anything. Still, if it’s here, then that means I still enjoyed it, but their non-Pixar-released-to-Disney Plus films have not been great. 

8. Ryoma: The Prince of Tennis 

The biggest sin that a sports film can commit is to not be about the sport itself. Instead of being based on the main series, this film is based on the stageplays. This means a much heavier focus on big grand musical moments and very little focus on story cohesion and characters. You think the plot of our lead getting sent back in time to see his dad would be interesting, but it’s not. You keep watching to see how absurd this film gets with rap battles and duets while playing one of the few scant games of tennis that you do see in the film. The CGI is also really ugly. It looks like a higher-end PlayStation 2 cinematic cutscene at points, and it’s a definite downgrade compared to the other CGI films from Japan that show how far they have come with films like The First Slam Dunk. The characters are forgettable, and once you are over the absurd things that ignite the musical sequences, the film is boring. Even when our lead meets and faces off with his dad, it’s too little too late. For a franchise that already doesn’t have a huge foothold in the US market, the fact we got this is wild. It was probably brought over when they were dubbing the second Prince of Tennis series, but it’s going to be a bad time if you make this your first piece of media to intake from the franchise. 

7. Hotel Transylvania: Transformania 

While Genndy Tartakovsky was still attached to the writing of this film, it feels like it also had the same energy as a DTV Disney film from back in the day. It had a creative hook of Andy Samberg’s character turning into a monster, and Drac and his friends turning human, but it doesn’t do much with the premise that feels like they weren’t given enough time to flesh out the story. It was part regressive of the character growth, lacked the same silly humor that was mastered in the third film, and once again, they bring a lot of your favorite characters back only for them to do very little. Even if the very little they do was decent, it just feels like a film that was running on fumes, and hopefully, the talented group of animators at Sony Pictures Animation hit it out of the park in the future, which seeing their lineup, probably will. 

6. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Roderick Rules 

Yeah, the promise of Diary of a Wimpy Kid animation adaptations has been a real disappointment so far. This one looks slightly better and has a better overall story, but a lot of these characters are not fun to be around. I still wish they had more time or a budget to make this film more visually interesting than it is, and I’m glad that they tried to put more of an emphasis on the family feeling more connected with one another. Still, Disney needs to give these people more time to craft an excellent animated adaptation of the books with the visual flair that they deserve. 

5. Riverdance: The Animated Adventure 

For a film based on the dance sensation, you would think there would be a bit more to it than dancing elk. To be fair, it does try to with trying to tie the story around a young boy dealing with the grief of losing his relative, but the animation and creativity on display don’t match the whimsy, and the more fantastical aspects of it don’t feel all that whimsical The dance sequences are also way more robotic due to either time or budgeting making the iconic dancing look more stiff and lifeless than it should be. Just a real forgettable experience and that’s a shame. In a world where we have films like The LEGO Movie and silly films like Seal Team, a Riverdance film is not that out there, but it just feels like they didn’t go far enough with their premise and production. 

4. The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild 

No matter how good this film could have been, it was always going to have the stink of Disney’s corporate greed of letting this film get made by a third-party studio, and banked on the love for the franchise and the return of Simon Pegg as Buck Wild. Sadly, this is essentially a direct-to-video plot with no other returning cast members and a huge downgrade to the CG animation from the theatrical films. It became less of a high-flying adventure of Buck saving the day, and more of a sad state of things as Disney shut down Blue Sky Studios and then made a film from one of their IPs that resulted in a cheap experience.

3. Pinocchio: Based on a True Story

Honestly, these next three films could tie for the worst. People elevated this film thinking it was going to be some gonzo disaster that was fueled by the meme of Pauly Shore’s take on Pinocchio, but when you take out the clips of Shore’s performance, the film is absurdly boring, badly animated, and will leave your mind once the film ends its sluggish finale. It banks on the meme factor and ends up with a frustratingly mediocre experience. Oh, and how is this fantastical story a “true story”? Seriously, there is a reason why this came and went as it did after it got its 15 seconds of fame. 

2. The Soccer Football Movie 

I’m still baffled by how this film came to be. There were no news announcements, no real trailers, the audiences only getting clips of this film a few days before it was released, and no production history that you could find beforehand. It just arrived on Netflix with no real mention of it from the company itself. Was this half-baked fever dream supposed to have originally come out during the World Cup? For whom was this made? Who was the target demographic? Why did this film need to get made? Even the creator of Angry Beavers who was the director of this, Tom Kenny, and Weird Al couldn’t save this heap from just feeling like a movie put together by an ai. Hopefully, the two soccer players who star in the film got to have a good time, but this is yet again, another film that just came and went with no real fanfare or reason to exist. 

1. Marmaduke 

Like I said above, The Soccer Football Movie, Pinocchio: Based on a True Story, and Marmaduke are tied for my least favorite animated films of the year. Something about Marmaduke filled me with dread, due to how it had a trailer that failed to impress, and when I was finally able to watch the film, I had a rough time sitting through it. You can tell this was trying to do more than what it possibly could on a small budget, but what it does try to do falls flat on its face with annoying characters, ugly designs, gags that fall flat, a weak story that doesn’t grab you at all, and some of the worst animation of 2022. Who knows what the animation production was for this film since it was supposed to come out before the pandemic happened, but it feels like they just made a first run-through of what the film will look like, and then couldn’t do a pass with adding better textures or anything like that. Better animation wouldn’t have helped a garbage story, but it would have at least made it a little bit more tolerable. A lot can happen in the production of animated features and this may have had a bad production, but it was probably a bad idea in the first place to make a film based on an IP that no one outside of rights holders care about. It was one of the few films I watched in 2022 that made me feel like I wasted my time, and the fact Netflix could put this out in the same year as The Sea Beast and Pinocchio is shocking.

Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur Impressions: A Marvelous Good Time!

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keep the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this editorial!)

With Disney heading on another journey into the unknown of what they will be doing with their animation line-up for TV, their newest venture is them adventuring into the Marvel library. On a personal level, I haven’t really watched their animated offerings due to them not being my cup of tea. I have checked out their adult animated offerings, but they have been more mixed than positive. However, when the footage was finally being shown off for Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur by Laurence Fishburne and Helen Sugland, people got excited. With its vibrant comic book art style, expressive character animation, and a fun premise about a young girl who teams up with a giant dinosaur from another dimension to save the Lower East Side from crime and supervillains, this was going to be a standout show of 2023. Luckily, due to getting some screeners for the show, I am here to tell you all the scoop on my impressions of the show. 

First off, the animation is on point. It’s produced by Flying Bark Productions, and if you have been a fan of animation for the past few years, then you will know their names as they were behind the incredible action on Rise of the TMNT, LEGO Monkie Kid, Marvel’s What If…?, and Glitchtechs, to name a few of their amazing work. They bring their vibrant and energized animation to this show, and if this is what pure joy and excitement look like in animated form, then I am all for it. The characters move in a snappy and expressive way, the action hits hard and is just full of thrilling and intense moments. Devil Dinosaur, while having no lines, is voiced by the incredible Fred Tatascore. He has so much personality oozing out of his scaly skin, and when the big action set pieces happen, the show’s visuals go to a whole other level of every definition and variation of amazing you can think of. It shouldn’t be shocking the art team and the animation team at Flying Bark Productions were going to put out what are essentially 31 flavors of cool and creative with its comic book art style, but the fact they were able to go this far and this hard on the look of the show is delightful. One of my favorite details is Moon Girl’s eyes when she’s wearing her costume. The little note to make her eyes the most expressive part of the costume was genius, and the multitude of emotes that come through those sweet goggles bring so much life into the designs. 

Now, the animation is outstanding and probably one of the best-looking animated shows of the 2020s, but it wouldn’t be all killer and no filler if they didn’t have a wonderful cast to back all of that up. To no surprise, the cast is incredible. Diamond White is superb as the titular Lunelle Lafayette aka Moon Girl, and her friendship with Casey, voiced by Libe Barer, is splendid. The rest of the cast is also solid with Alfre Woodard, Sasheer Zamata, Jermaine Fowler, Gary Anthony Williams rounding out the main cast. 

Of course, there will be others like super sweet guests and recurring actors. The amazing Craig Robinson, Allison Brie, Jennifer Hudson, Josh Keaton, Luis Guzman, Wesley Snipes, Daveed Diggs, Omid Abtahi, Utkarsh Ambubdkar, Michael Cimino, and Indya Moore are just a few of the stacked cast members they got for the show. By the way, wait until you all see Laurence Fishburne’s character. He’s probably playing what might be one of my favorite characters on the show and one of his best performances ever. The writing and storytelling don’t feel like they are relying on the colorful animation to carry it either, as some of the episodes tackle stuff like self-love, hair love, and gentrification to give y’all a nice tease of what will come from this show. Some episodes will have their sillier moments and gags, but it will take a moment to slow down and be serious with the stakes. The music was also part of the winning equation that is this show, with the composer being Raphael Saadiq. Its mix of hip-hop, techno, and rap, fused together into a wonderful soup for the soul. 

Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur has it all. Some fantabulous visuals, an endearing cast of loveable characters, sweet tunes, and it results in an overall package that will delight everyone of all ages. You can tell the team behind this show put in so much love and joy. It’s a physical manifestation of joy, happiness, and positive representation that is needed for animation and art to thrive. It’s a show that stands out among not only its Marvel animated contemporaries, but Disney shows and media in general. It’s a truly whimsical and fantastical time, and everyone should watch this show when it airs on Disney on February 10th or stream it on Disney+ on February 15th. You will be blasting, skating, and rip/roaring through an entertaining experience unlike any other. Seriously, go check out this show when it airs, because it has made one of the best first impressions I have seen for a TV show.

The Other Side of Animation 256: Turning Red Review

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keeps the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this review!)

The fact of the matter is that there needs to be more diverse stories being told in film and animation, and there needs to be a bigger push for more diverse storytellers behind these projects as well. It’s absurd how stubborn some animation studios can be or have been in the past to rely on the same three or so directors for all of their films, and that’s detrimental to actually telling more ambitious and creative stories. Do you think we would be where we are now with films like Into the Spider-Verse, The Mitchells vs. The Machines, Encanto, and today’s review of Turning Red if we had the same people in charge of greenlighting every single project? We need this change in the US animation scene, because having the same five or so directors with the same familiar but distinct to their own respective studios’ art styles gets tiring quickly. This is why much of the time, the best animated films that come out every year are from overseas, because they are willing to talk about stuff and do different animation and visual styles that most US studios aren’t willing to tackle. It’s frustrating, because now with studios like Pixar and Sony breaking down the walls that were limiting studios back then, they are now able to let artists and studios go in new directions. I mean, did you see that new Puss in Boots trailer? It looks amazing. Anyway, we are going to talk about Pixar’s newest animated venture with Domee Shi’s Turning Red. 

Directed by Domee Shi and written by Domee Shi and Julia Cho, we follow the story of Meilin Lee, voiced by Rosalie Chiang. She’s an ambitious, proactive, and extremely realistic teenager living in Toronto with her family and circle of friends. After an absolutely embarrassing moment caused by her mother, Ming Lee, voiced by Sandrah Oh. When she reacts to some drawings in Meilin’s notebook, something changes within Mei overnight. The next morning, she finds out that she has turned into one of the world’s cutest animals, a red panda. After understandably freaking out, she then goes on a journey to find out how she can deal with this new and apparently familial “curse”, and still go on with being a newly appointed teenager and life around her. 

Let’s start with the themes and overall story, because, for some reason, quite a few people, mostly uneducated, had some notoriously bad takes before and after this film’s release. Now then, to the people who said “I can’t relate to the main character.”, let me ask you a question, were you ever a teenager? Unless you are under 13, then you have been a teenager. Do you remember how many corny things you have said and done? How you have tried to be overly perfect in everything you do? What about some embarrassing drawings that you know don’t look good now, but you were super passionate about? Don’t you remember seeing a concert for a particular artist that you thought would be the biggest and most important thing in your life at that point? What about how you thought it would be the end of the world if you didn’t see that one concert, movie, show, or play that one new video game? What about that moment in time when you found your sexual discovery of finding other boys or girls cute and or hot? To the artists who are reading this, do you not remember drawing fanart or writing fanfiction of characters you loved and you “Frankenstein” them together into a story because you could? Turning Red does a fantastic job of capturing the messy era of time that is puberty and becoming a teenager more so than shows like Big Mouth. It’s an extremely awkward time, and one when you are finding things out about yourself that you never quite got until that point in time. The fact some people find this film unrelatable either means they have completely blocked out that part of them growing up, just found the execution of being said teenager not perfect, or are absolutely lying, because just because the character may not be 100% specifically you, that doesn’t mean that you can’t find characters relatable. I have reviewed films and shows that are 100% not relating to me, but I find ways to be invested with the entire story or experience. Don’t tell me you can relate to something like a walking toy, a bug, a car voiced by Owen Wilson, and then not a more relatable character like a pre-teen going through puberty and her period. The film’s story also tackles themes of pressure from the toxic familial drama that trickles down through generations, as Mei’s mother Ming also had to deal with that from her mother. Yes, we now have two animated films in a row from Disney that deal with toxic family ideals about perfection and the unhealthy pressure that is put upon the rest of the family. When Mei’s father, Jin talks with her in the third act, you can tell that while he had a more backseat approach to the overarching narrative, his talk with Mei is one of the most crucial story beats about loving yourself, and that means loving the side that’s great and all of the corny dorky awkward sides to it as well. Domee Shee and her team were able to weave such a tapestry of a story that, while it gets bonkers in the third act, was still executing it all with such precise accuracy and everything from the rest of the family members and friends has such nuance to them that it results in one of the most intimate stories ever made at the studio. 

Before we move on though, isn’t it refreshing that an animated film actually acknowledges that periods are a thing? No real sugar coating of it either. This film makes it known that yes, this stuff happens in real life, and there are no attempts to walk around it since everyone is going to deal with it. It’s like how refreshing it is to hear a show or film about zombies actually call them zombies and not some generic marketable word like walkers, or when food competition shows can’t use branded food items and the show has to come up with the bargain bin generic title of those items, but then are actually able to say them. This whole element of the overarching plot due to the metaphorical puberty and period themes is a good sign of how far we have come to talk about this subject in shows and films without it being a weird and frankly gross/punching down punchline. For example, did you know that Disney originally didn’t release Isao Takahata’s masterpiece, Only Yesterday, into the states because one part of the story in a coming-of-age drama talks about the main characters getting periods? It’s a natural element of growing up or something! It only makes that fact so much more aggravating, because Disney was sure as heck glad to get those films over here, but apparently not all of them for some reason. 

Now that we talked about the story, let’s gush about the animation. While it might be similar to last year’s film Luca, Turning Red takes Luca’s art style and amplifies it up to over 100%. This is hands-down some of Pixar’s most expressive animation. It’s ridiculous how much blood, sweat, and possible satanic goat rituals the talented animators have to go through at Pixar to really push the envelope with how expressive their characters can be. It has a really fast-paced snap to how Mei reacts to everything alongside the other side characters. There is definitely some of that Sony Pictures Animation snap to the movements, and the ease with which it puts you into the mindset of Mei when her mother either embarrasseds her in front of everyone at the convenience store or when her mom brings pads to school, even simply seeing the food on the family dinner table. They even add so many small 2D elements to the CGI models, like the sparkly anime eyes trope. When they get to the spiritual bamboo forest sequences, they look less like CGI forests and more like beautifully lush painted environments. It brings such an alluring and out-of-this-world atmosphere. All of Toronto really reminds me of the pastel colors you would see in a Kirby game and how full of character and life it is. It’s so cool to see that we are now in a space where CGI can have these new techniques and tools to bring the next step in CGI animation up to the plate. Sure, The Peanuts Movie and Into the Spider-Verse got the ball rolling, but to see how everyone has taken notice and want to do the same thing is such a nice change of pace, when back in the day and even as early as the last decade, everyone wanted to try and be that one studio when they should have been doing their own thing. Now, studios are doing their own thing and being the best they can be at what they do, but everyone gets to have more fun with taking the animation game to the next level! Who cares at the end of the day who started it first, let’s just enjoy the fact the US animation scene is growing. 

Anyway, the voice cast is fantastic! The people in charge of casting at Pixar tend to always pick who would best fit the character, instead of who would get the most buzz for marketing and social media. Not to say they get no big-named actors, because a lot of the actors in this film are recognizable, but the fact they aren’t slammed in your face via the marketing is always going to feel refreshing. The actors they did get though, do a fantastic job with their characters. You get Rosalie Chiang as Mei who brings this delightful energy and driving force to the plot. Sandra Oh is always amazing in whatever she is cast, Orion Lee brings a nurturing and quirky nature to the dad, it’s always a good time when you bring James Hong into the equation, Wai Ching Hu is complex and captivating as Mei’s grandmother, and Ava Morse, Hyien Park, and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan do such a pitch-perfect job as Mei’s friends. The music that is composed by Ludwig Goransson was able to perfectly capture the films’ tone and the world of early 2000s Toronto. The boy-band tunes that are played throughout the film were composed by Billie Eilish and her brother, and they are shockingly good. They really capture the era of boy-bands the world was enjoying at that point in time. 

There are a few story beats that could have been resolved better in the third act, but they are minor nitpicks, since this reviewer personally found that it hits the landing to make up for some of the small story beats and some clunky writing moments. Turning Red is a new step in the evolution of Pixar storytelling. Hopefully, they hire more new talent among their already immensely talented teams of animators to keep pushing the envelope of animated storytelling because as we have seen, when studios do that, others tend to follow with their own takes. It’s an early frontrunner for the best animated film of 2022 so far, and this year is stacked, so we will have to see where things go from here. Now then, let’s talk about an anime franchise film! The next one up will be the brand new and hugely successful Jujutsu Kaisen 0. 

Thanks for reading the review! I hope you all enjoyed reading it! If you would like to support my work, make sure to share it out, and if you want to become a Patreon supporter, then you can go to patreon.com/camseyeview. I will see you all next time!

Rating: Essentials

Worst to Best Animated Films of 2020 Finale

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keeps the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this editorial!)

Good gravy, let’s finally get this one out of the way! Here were my top 10 favorite animated films from 2020! If you haven’t seen part 1, part 2, or part 3, I will make sure to hyperlink them. I apologize that life got in the way of making this one happen so late. 

10. The Wonderland 

While Keiichi Hara’s follow-up to one of my favorite films of 2016 Miss Hokusai doesn’t quite reach that level of quality, his new film, The Wonderland is still a whimsical adventure via a coming-of-age tale. It has some truly beautiful landscapes and a creative fantastical world that may be Hara’s own take on Alice in Wonderland. The villain isn’t the most interesting, and there are some jokes and moments that irked me, but I was so happy to catch this film before everything came crashing down with the pandemic. 

9. The Willoughbys 

This dark family comedy may suffer from a majority of the children in this family being underdeveloped in favor of the oldest son getting the majority of the development, but considering how little came out during the pandemic, I’ll take an overall vibrant and funny experience. What it may lack in some story strength makes up for some of 2020’s most vibrant CGI stop-motion-style animation, some very clever jokes, a fantastic cast, and it was just another step in showing what kind of experiences Netflix, flaws and all, are going to be offering in the feature animation scene. 

8. The Croods: A New Age

While I wouldn’t call 2020 or 2021’s DreamWorks’ best year for animation, out of their four recent films that they have released, The Croods: A New Age is their best one since 2019’s How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. Who would have thought that a sequel that was in start/stop production hell would actually result in one of the better DreamWorks sequels? They expand on the world, the new characters are likable and bring in some substance to the overall story, the jokes are more creative, and the sequel leaning into the more absurd world that the story takes place in leads to a better overall product. I don’t know what they could do with a follow-up film, but if it’s as much fun to watch as this one, I wouldn’t mind seeing a third film. 

7. On Gaku: Our Sound 

While Lupin III: The First and Wolfwalkers were going to always be the more approachable GKIDS-distributed films of 2020, I still wish On Gaku: Our Sound had received more love. It’s a truly, by the definition, indie animated feature among the bountiful animation scene in Japan. Its offbeat atmosphere, quirky humor, and laid-back approachable story stick out from the flashier big-budget fare. That many of the people working on this were first-time animators is an impressive feat and while the use of rotoscope is obvious, the fact there is no other film quite like it out in 2020 is impressive and rather fun. It’s a film that introduces a real deal shot in the arm that the animation scene always needs. 

6. Lupin III: The First 

I remember how worried I was to see the franchise’s first step into CGI, and boy howdy, they didn’t miss a beat. Not only is it a fantastic foray into CGI animation, but it’s also a Lupin story that’s actually compelling and entertaining! For those that are fans of the franchise, getting both good animation and a good story isn’t always a given or is balanced with each film and special. With the return of the iconic dub cast, thrilling action, stellar writing, and some of the best CGI from Japan, Lupin III: The First shows a promising future for the franchise and the future of theatrical CGI animation from Japan. 

5. Onward

Remember when everyone was dunking on this film, and then everyone ended up liking it? I sure do. While it might not be one of the higher-end Pixar films, this touching story about two brothers and their journey to strengthen their bond and to try to get some closure with their dead father does elevate it as one of the more intimate and personal Pixar stories. The fantasy element even has a fun way of approaching the metaphorical and literal theme of losing and finding magic in life. It’s a film that has gotten better on rewatch, and I feel badly that it became one of the first victims of the pandemic. 

4. Over the Moon 

Netflix had a tough challenge of following up their acclaimed year of animation from 2019 where they had both I Lost My Body and Klaus, so Over the Moon was such a surprise with how much I fell in love with it. It is a touching story about grief, personal change, and dealing with loss, with some fantastic music, vibrant animation, and a fantastic lead. It was directed by Glen Keane, and this was his first time directing a feature film! Over the Moon also has a very witty script from Keane and the late great Audrey Wells. It also gets bonus points for having moments of gorgeous 2D animation. With Pearl Studios now on their own, making films with a promising lineup of future projects in the works, Over the Moon was an out-of-this-world first impression of what they could do after their relationship with DreamWorks ended. 

3. Ride Your Wave 

Masaaki Yuasa is a master director. I mean, I could leave it at that, but that wouldn’t be super satisfying as this is, until we finally see Inu-Oh this year, his best and most approachable movie. It’s a romance that of course has its own Yuasa twist that makes it his take on the “Shape of Water” romance perspective about a college girl finding her way in life. It even has the tamest visuals of Yuasa and Science Saru’s work. You can tell they toned it down from the immense visual overload that was 2004’s Mindgame and his more recent work with Lu Over the Wall and The Night is Short, Walk on Girl. Whether you like his more out-there premises or his more grounded ones, Ride Your Wave should be in your animation collection. 

2. Soul 

Even with a year like 2020, having a Cartoon Saloon, a Peter Doctor/Kemp Powers Pixar film, and a Yuasa film in the top three spots should be a sign of how good the good stuff was. There are definitely some understandable arguments about some of this film’s execution of plot points, and I understand where they are coming from with some of them, and maybe it’s because 2020 was just an entire mood year, Soul hit many people in a way that most animated films, Pixar or otherwise, do. Until Disney and Pixar can break the chains and do more adult-tinted animated features, this is the most adult film Pixar has ever put out, with an extremely philosophical story about life and what drives a person. With earworm tunes, an incredible performance from Jamie Foxx, and a rather ethereal tone, Soul ranks up as one of Pixar’s best. 

1. Wolfwalkers 

I mean, was there any shock here that it would be number 1? While it is technically tied with Soul, there is just something extremely special anytime we get a Cartoon Saloon film. It has some of the studio’s best animation yet, with its mix of gorgeous 2D visuals and rough pencil style reminiscent of the 70s and 80s Disney/Don Bluth that looks like it was filmed on wood grain. It is a touching story about two young girls, the themes of discrimination, anti-colonialism, sexism, freedom, family, and environmentalism, Wolfwalkers stands out from the pack in a year that had very little competition for the major titles everyone was looking forward to. Now, I do wish they would simply sell Wolfwalkers as an individual release instead of holding it hostage with Song of the Sea and The Secret of Kells, though seriously, pay for an AppleTV+ subscription and watch this incredible flick.

The Other Side of Animation 212: Raya and the Last Dragon Review

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keeps the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this review!)

It’s easy to forget, but Disney was not always this giant monster of a company that it is today. I mean, it was, but it wasn’t this big of a behemoth. Back when Walt Disney died, they hit a real dark spot, and while they clawed their way out of that dark spot during the late 80s and throughout the 90s, they then fell into another real dark spot in the 2000s. They hit a bad streak and probably one that was much more damaging during the early 2000s than the original Disney Dark Age, because of bad business practices. Almost every single animated film they put out during that period underperformed or downright bombed. When they felt like they needed to chase the trend of other studios coming to power like DreamWorks and Pixar, they fell apart. They lost who they were as filmmakers, and they let down the multiple talented artists that worked for them. While they still have problems with owning a bit too much of everything, it would be a lie to say they are artistically worse than they were back then. Sure, their live-action remakes are not all great, but their animation game has stepped up, and while you can argue about the quality of some of them like Frozen II and Ralph Breaks the Internet (they aren’t my favorites of the last decade, but if you think these were the worst, then you haven’t seen enough animated movies from outside the big film sphere), they have had more hits than misses, and that’s healthy for a company as problematically big as Disney. I won’t be supportive of some of their business elements, or the fact they shut down studios, and bury their non-inhouse-made films, but when they make a film I like, I am going to be supportive of it. For example, let’s talk about their recent film, Raya and the Last Dragon. 

Directed by Carlos Lopez Estrada and Don Hall, produced by Osnat Shurer and Peter Del Vecho, and written by Qui Nguyen and Adele Lim, this is the newest animated feature from the giant studio that was supposed to have come out last year, but the pandemic screwed over that release, and was recently released on March 5th via a theatrical/Disney+ premier access release strategy. This is Disney’s 59th animated feature. So, what do I think about it? I think you will need to read the review to find out! 

Our story revolves around Raya, voiced by Kelly Marie Tran. She lives in the land of Kumandra, a land that was once prosperous but is now a barren wasteland due to a corporeal force known as the Druun. The Druun were taken care of due to the sacrifice made by the dragons. Kumandra was then separated into a set of kingdoms with their own ways of living and ideals. When Raya was young, her father attempted to bring the different kingdoms together, but that plan failed when the gem that was keeping the Druun sealed away broke, and essentially all of human civilization was screwed over. Years later, as an adult, Raya sets out to find the dragon that saved the humans back in the day. The good news is that she does find the dragon named Sisu, voiced by Awkwafhina. The bad news is that Sisu wasn’t technically the dragon that saved humanity. It is up to Raya and Sisu to reclaim the broken gemstones and reform the orb to destroy the Druun and bring everyone together. 

So, this is Disney’s first original animated feature (not counting Pixar) since 2016’s Zootopia and Moana. It is kind of insane that it’s been that long. Luckily, their original animated features are still pretty strong. The main themes that are approached in this film are dealing with grief, loss, and trust. Throughout the entire runtime, you see many of the characters approach these themes in varying ways. Raya is not trusting of anyone, while her father was overly hopeful when she was younger. Even when Raya is searching for the last dragon, she was about to pull her sword out when she thought she saw some bandits that turned out to be people who turned to stone due to the Druun. It’s an interesting dynamic to see Raya bounce off of Sisu, Raya bounce off of Namaari, Raya bounce off of Noi and Buon, and you get the idea. You even see the darker sides of trust not only through Raya but characters like the Tail Chief. Seeing them deal with grief and loss is also eye-opening with how each of the main characters handles who they lost due to the Druun. A lot of the payoff with these themes and arcs feel very satisfying and that’s due to strong characters. Raya is a fantastic lead and Kelly Marie Tran pulls off her first major lead performance in a film. Awkwafhina as Sisu is divisive, but I don’t find her as annoying as previous comedic main characters, and if you know Disney’s other 58 feature films, there are much worse ones than Sisu. I love how Sisu is built up to be the key to solving the problems of the Druun, but she isn’t. She’s a piece of the puzzle, but not the end all be all. It’s up to the human characters to take what Sisu is requesting and do it on their own. Sisu also encapsulates these themes with her guilt and dealing with the loss of her dragon kind. While characters like Buon, voiced by Izaac Wang, and Noi, voiced by Thalia Tran are great twists on the kid characters, I think my favorite side character is Tong, voiced by Benedict Wong. He has some of my favorite story beats and is a delightful twist on the giant buff guy warrior. A lot of his moments show off great character animation and there is more storytelling within the film if you watch the animation unfold. 

Speaking of animation, I think Disney has hit the next level in their animation game. While I think they have always had good CGI animation (outside of Chicken Little and Meet the Robinsons, but they were starting late at that point), they hit a point where some of the weak elements were revealing themselves. Now they have upped their texture work, their human designs look the best since Tangled, and their body types have improved as well. Everyone has distinct movements, the action is stellar, and it shows why Disney has some of the most top-tier animation talents in the world. Seriously, when was the last time you saw some great action in a Disney film? The hand-to-hand combat has weight and is choreographed with excellent precision. The music by James Newton Howard, the same composer behind Pretty Woman, The Fugitive, Waterworld, The Sixth Sense, Dinosaur, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, and Treasure Planet, is grand. I adore the epic scale and the intimate tunes found within the film. I dig that they also collaborated with Filipina singer KZ Tandingan, and she sounds fantastic. The voice cast is also pretty stellar. What I usually like about Disney animation casting is that they chose actors that fit the role. They don’t just go by who’s the biggest names they can get, which is something that has plagued animated features since everyone took the wrong lesson from Robin Williams in Aladdin, resulting in films hirings big names simply for the sake of big names. The cast including Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Gemma Chan, Izaac Wang, Daniel Dae Kim, Benedict Wong, Sandrah Oh, Thalia Tran, Lucille Soong, and Alan Tudyk all are pretty good in their roles. I dug their overall performances with the script, and while I didn’t laugh at every joke that they threw at me, I still had a few chuckles that made me laugh.  

I don’t have any major complaints. Like, sure, some of the dialogue is a touch modern, but I’ve seen films that are in classical fantastical settings do worse. Namaari could have had a bit more time for her to be fleshed out, but I still love her dynamic with Raya and the small beats with her mother. I think in the end, whatever I could criticize, there is something to counterbalance it. I could go into what they did right or wrong with the Southeast Asian culture and their combining of multiple elements, but that’s not my place or my knowledge, and I don’t want to armchair diagnose any of the cultural elements. 

All I can do is judge this film as a film, and, well, I loved it. It’s so refreshing to see an original film from Disney Animation that isn’t a sequel, and while I am bummed it’s underperforming, I don’t blame any film underperforming since we are still in a pandemic. If you feel like it’s safe to go to a theater, then go check it out that way, otherwise, you should either wait for it to be free on Disney+ or bite the bullet and spend the Premier Access price for it. At least it’s one time and it’s tied to your account. Either way, Raya is one of my favorite films of the year so far, and I can’t wait to see where it ebbs and flows on my Best to Worst list of 2021. Now then, let’s dive into some foreign animation goodness with The Bear’s Famous Invasion of Sicily! 

Thanks for reading the review! I hope you all enjoyed reading it! If you would like to support my work, make sure to share it out, and if you want to become a Patreon supporter, then you can go to patreon.com/camseyeview. I will see you all next time!

Rating: Essential Viewing

The Other Side of Animation 200: Soul Review

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keeps the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this review!)

HEADS UP: I was able to watch this film thanks to Disney via a screener. Enjoy the review!

It all started back in September 2015. I wrote my first review of Ernest & Celestine, one of my favorite films of all time, and one of my all-time favorite animated films period. I made it a goal to cover everything out there that wasn’t Disney and Pixar. I chose to exclude those two because I wouldn’t have that much else to add to the discourse. I usually love their animated features, but I tend to dislike the ones that are the obvious bad eggs of the bunch. My goal was to talk about animated films that were under the radar or talk about the other big animated films. Well, it’s been five years, and why not break some rules? From now on, I’ll drop a review of an animated film from Disney and/or Pixar from time to time on my site. Why? Because as much as I love showing off animated films from around the world, from other companies, and introducing you all to these amazing wonders that are made by hand or by computer, sometimes, I want to indulge in what everyone else is seeing. So, how about we make this 200th review the newest Pixar film, Soul! 

Directed by Pete Doctor and Kemp Powers, and written by Doctor, Powers, and Mike Jones, this is Pixar’s newest animated feature and the first feature film from the company to have a black co-director and a predominantly black cast. It was originally scheduled to be released back in June 2020, but due to the pandemic, it was delayed and then controversially given a Disney+ release. Luckily, unlike Mulan 2020, it didn’t cost extra. So, was there any real worry about this film hitting the streaming service? Nope! Let’s dive in! 

Soul follows our main character Joe Gardner, voiced by Jamie Foxx. Joe is a music teacher who dreams of being a famous jazz pianist and playing with one of the big players in the music world. One day, he auditions with one of the biggest jazz musicians around, Dorothea Williams, voiced by Angela Bassett. After he succeeds in the audition, he exudes his happiness across the city until he falls into an open manhole. Through some obvious denial of dying or being close to death, Joe ends up in a realm where souls are made and get their personalities. He encounters a soul named 22, voiced by Tina Fey, who has been there for who knows how long, and doesn’t want to leave and go to earth. Joe then makes a deal with 22 that if he can find her spark, she will give Joe her patch to let him come back to life. Can Joe fulfill this fairly heady and philosophical task? Will he be able to fulfill his love for jazz? Or will Joe and 22 find something new that gives their life that spark? 

So, from every review you may have read about this film, this is Pixar’s most mature film. It’s not mature in the sense that people swear and there is a lot of violence. That would honestly be interesting to see what Pixar could do with an actual PG-13 or R-rated film. Anyway, this is mature in the sense that the film is exceptionally heady. I mean, when you are a film about life, love, death, finding your spark, and very ethereal concepts about, well, the human experience and soul, it’s going to be not the most child-friendly tone. However, while it might not outwardly be the most approachable film for super young kids, I think everyone needs to see Soul. It’s a story that juggles a lot of these concepts, and finds incredible ways to execute the ideas given to the audience. What does “before-life” look like? Are you born with that spark? What happens when you find that spark? Is it the same goal or passion you started with? What makes you, well, you? What happens when you become too stressed out or too worn out by finding your passion? What does your soul look like when this happens? It’s a film that wants to tackle some heavy topics, and I admire the heck out of that. So many animation “fans” ask and “demand” animated films to be “taken seriously”. Well, this is the film you want then. I mean, in my opinion, animated films made in the US can be any genre, but that’s beside the point. 

This would all be for naught if the characters didn’t work, and boy howdy do I love the cast. I think while this film can be approachable by all, it’s focused on a somewhat older audience. I think it’s amusing that we have a main character who is middle-aged. I know some people think animated films that want to be seen by kids and families should have child-like protagonists, but I disagree. You can tell stories with characters of all ages. I like that we have a middle-aged hero. It feels different. The characters have great chemistry, and I loved seeing Joe and 22 together as 22 slowly finds that spark. The film is full of multiple memorable characters, from the spirit counselors to the side characters. Even characters you see in only one scene leave an impression. One of my favorite scenes in the entire film is when Joe and 22 go to the barbershop and we meet Dez, who is voiced by Donnell Rawlings. Not only does it do a good job of adding to the overall black experience and culture, but it’s also one of the most thematically important scenes in the film. The spirit counselors are also a lot of fun to watch, and have some of the best lines in the movie. I admire that there is no real bad guy. I adore animated films that do the “there is no real bad guy, but everyone is flawed” thing. 

*small spoiler talk here*

With all that said, I know one scene may rub some people the wrong way, where 22 ends up in Joe’s body while Joe ends up in the body of a cat. I think if this was handled by any other studio, it would have looked really bad for understandable reasons. What does save this scene, and I think Kemp and Pete handle this well with making souls non-binary with no real gender, race, or sex identification. I think this is the first Pixar film to have non-binary characters. Plus, this point of the film is for Joe to see life and passion from a different perspective. However, if you agree or disagree with me on this point, that’s perfectly fine, and I get if some people may or may not get rubbed the wrong way from it.

*Small spoiler talk ends here* 

Speaking of the cast, the voice cast is pretty great. An element that I love about Pixar and Disney animated film casting is that they don’t rely on the hype of the big names they get. They do rely on big names, but it’s never the selling point, unlike some films that make it priority number one like Rango having Johnny Depp. The cast including Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Questlove, Phylicia Rashad, Daveed Diggs, Angela Bassett, Graham Norton, Rachel House, Richard Ayoade, Alice Braga, Wes Studi, Fortune Femster, Enobia Shroff, Donnell Rawlings, June Squibb, Ester Chae, and other big names like Cody Chestnutt making small cameos, brings so much life to the story, and I admire how predominantly black this cast is. The dialogue is complex, funny, heartfelt, and real. No one is relying on hip modern lingo, or is trying too hard to stand out. 

I’m a little shocked it’s taken this long in the review to talk about the stellar animation. It’s incredible. From the textures, the lighting, and the hair physics, the characters look incredible. I like that the design work for humans is at a point where we can make consistently good-looking humans with CGI animation. All it takes is a little elbow grease and the right art style. I love the designs for the spirit counselors, and I’m curious as to how challenging they were to tackle, due to them being essentially flat abstract lines. The worlds that they create are fully realized, and show some of the best animation and sequences out of any Pixar film. The music that is composed by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is full of whimsical delights, and ethereal tracks that make you feel otherworldly. Even Cody Chestnutt has a song in the film that melts my heart with love each time I listen to it. The more jazz and soul music used in the film was by Jon Batiste, and man, I adored the music from top to bottom. It’s easily one of my favorite Disney soundtracks. 

I don’t know what else I could say. Soul is one of Disney and Pixar’s best films. I would argue it’s one of the most ambitious animated films of all time. Will I be shocked or hate anyone who doesn’t love the film? Of course not! However, if you want to join the discussion about it, I recommend watching this film and coming up with your own opinions and observations. Who knows, maybe you will find something that I didn’t notice for the first time. If this doesn’t convince you to support this film and watch it, then I don’t know what will. Well, I’m glad I decided to make this my first Pixar and Disney film to review. Now then, it’s time to go back to what I specialize in and also love talking about, foreign animation. Next time, we will be talking about Lupin III: The First! 

Thanks for reading the review! I hope you all enjoyed reading it! If you would like to support my work, make sure to share it out, and if you want to become a Patreon supporter, then you can go to patreon.com/camseyeview. I will see you all next time! 

Rating: Criterion/Essentials!