There are a few things you must know about Kuchuu Buranko. It’s being directed by the director of Mononoke and Bake Neko, which were deep horror-mindscrews with deep stories and characters. Kuchuu Buranko, while you might think otherwise at first, is completely different.
It’s a series about psychology: a weird doctor and discusses 11 of his patients throughout its run. Instead of trying to surpass Mononoke in terms of depth, the creators decided to focus on something completely different: entertainment. The patients in this series really aren’t that complex: most suffer from some sort of Obsessive Compulsive disorder, and each conclusion often just requires them to realize one small thing. However, seeing this show explore their issues and struggles is where this series’ strength lies.
The characters in this serise don’t shine through their depth, but their simplicity. While they’re all exaggerated, they’re also down to earth. Just random people from all sorts of walks of life, and their problems are very easy to relate to. Especially in the second half of the series, where the creators take more and more chances, this results into a number of hilarious and charming situations.
While the depth in this series doesn’t come from the individual stories, it’s more layered when you look at the big picture. This series loves to put in easter eggs or references to past (and in some cases even future episodes), but the general message that it in the end wants to convey is genuine and yet simple.
| Storytelling: | 9/10 – Very entertaining and interesting. |
| Characters: | 8/10 – Not deep, but fun and easy to relate to. |
| Production-Values: | 8/10 – Unique art with great direction, though the actual animation is minimal |
| Setting: | 8/10 – Lots of references to other episodes, nice moral. |
Didn’t like it. The stories did not have the depth that warranted the pretentious presentation. In other words, it just faked artistry by trying to be “unique” without any substance, and I don’t like those kind of stories.
Personally, I don’t think the visuals are pretentious — they just show how screwed up the world seems to a bunch of screwed up people. It reflects how they view themselves and how they fit into the world. I don’t believe it’s super deep, or anything, but it’s not as if it is pointless either.
Anyway, I enjoyed the series for much the same reasons as psgels. I like the way it reinforces the basic humanity of its characters and their need for acceptance. There’s a surprising amount of heart in this show.