Made in Abyss

[Munsu]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcuCPFddeF8

An enormous pit and cave system called the "Abyss" is the only unexplored place in the world. Strange and wonderful creatures reside in its depths, and it is full of precious relics that current humans are unable to make. The mysteries of the Abyss fascinate humans, and they head down to explore. The adventurers who venture into pit are known as "Cave Raiders." A little orphan girl named Rico lives in the town of Ōsu on the edge of the Abyss. Her dream is to become a Cave Raider like her mother and solve the mysteries of the cave system. One day, Rico starts exploring the caves and discovers a robot who resembles a human boy.

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=18952

So, found another contender for best anime of the season. For a Summer Season that looked like pure shit going in, it's come out with quite a few cool series. Made in Abyss was a series I was overlooking because it seemed like it would be a kid's show, but this is definitely an adventure seinen (certainly with kid protagonists), and it's working very well for me.

Something new, something fresh, with plenty of fun, energy, and charisma... with horror and tragedy in the periphery. Make sure to give it a try.

Horriblesubs releasing.

Anyone else watching it?

[MFauli]

It´s a good anime, but the artstyle for the characters kinda ruins if all for me. Fantastic environents, nice animation and music, but ... characters that look even younger than they´re supposed to be. If characters had more usual artstyle and were a bit older, the whole "let´s go down into the most dangerous parts of the abyss" would be a lot more believable.

Also, Riko being nude in the last episode was ... weird. Maybe not from her point of view, but I kinda wanna question the author who decided that was necessary.

Anyway. Despite all that it´s a good watch. The animals in last episode had a HXH-feel to them with the whole trapping of humans and such.

[Munsu]

Yeah, I agree with the designs making them look younger than they should. On the other hand, it gives me a bit of the Now and Then, Here and There quality that heightens the "horror" of kids in an "ugly" world. So I can manage it.

More than the characters, I'm just very interested in where this world is taking us and how far they'll dare to push the envelop, if it needs to be pushed.

[MFauli]

Uhhhhh, sorry, but that triggered me :P Now and Then, Here and There is one of my favorite anime series. But the childish character design in Abyss imo is so over the top that it hurts the experience (as well as Riko and Regu not properly reacting to the dangers they approach - Regu´s vision of Riko being eaten was the one such scene, but he´s the robot. Riko should be much more effected ...). Whereas NaTHaT better meshes character designs and overall artstyle and delivers much better on the character reactions (Shou might react like a dumb movie-goer in the beginning, but is hit hard by "reality" when he´s beaten up, hanged up outside of Heliwood, and then watches people die).

Maybe something like that "reality shock" is what Abyss leads up to, but atm I don´t expect it. Seems more like Riko will be a happy-go-lucky traveller with Regu cleaning up behind/in front of her.

[David75]

Please do not spoil my enjoyment with sour comments.
Sure that show has many shortcomings, but I enjoy every second of it.

Thanks

[Munsu]

Please do not spoil my enjoyment with sour comments.
Sure that show has many shortcomings, but I enjoy every second of it.

Thanks

Yeah, this.

Also, I think the qualifier I gave to the statement with "gives me a bit of" is quite self explanatory.

[MFauli]

new episode is out
------------------

Ok, I can do with less naked Riko, you know ...
Also, is Maruruk a girl or boy now? They left it unanswered. Or was it just supposed to be Regu being awkward?

Not so much happening otherwise. Creepy woman ...

[David75]

Ep10
Some people have been shocked. I can certainly understand that, as I admitt it was hard on me, not for the surprise, more for the empathy and compassion...
No surprise here, that world really is harsh. Riko nearly escaped lots of hazards already, it's a wonder she's still alive even with Reg's help.
Getting that badly injured goes with the reality of that world, somehow Nanachi arriving now is almost a letdown. But at least those who care will spend a better week waiting for next ep.

Nice predator. Very much what a truly smart beast should be able to do, always balancing the odds and taking action after a long observation period.

[MFauli]

It was certainly one of the best episodes. Finally got to show Riko that entering the abyss with her childish attitude ("I wanna, I wanna, I wanna!") bit her in the ass. It was especially nice because Regu not long ago told her to shut up because she was shouting in her usual happy-go-lucky behavior. Really made me angry, how she was still behaving as if this journey was a vacation. And BAMM, divine punishment. Perfect.

The monster was super cool. An actual menacing beast. Regu probably couldn´t one-shot it even if he had tried. Although I gotta admit: This beast is almost comically dangerous. Intelligent, fast, strong, and poisonous. I hope we get to see a reasonable weakness when it´s inevitably defeated in a later episode. Considering that it could somehow read Regu´s thoughts, maybe the way to victory is by thinking fake-ideas , but then move differently? Dunno :>

Now, the one reason why I cannot yet be that impressed by this episode as apparently the entire rest of the internet: What are the consequences really? We saw Riko´s arm swelling up. We see Regu starting to cut off her arm. But then the out-of-nowhere friendly monster appears to save them. And from the wording it is likely that not only will Riko´s life be saved, but also her arm. And that´s ... well, bullshit. It robs this episode of its severity. It´s like watching Dragon Ball, seeing Goku half-dead, only for him to pop a senzu bean.
And come on, that arm really should be beyond repair. Not only the swelling, but Regu splintering the bones in tiny peaces, then starting to cut. Lol wow.
If her arm heals entirely, then this episode is little more than a painful lecture. Which is still good, of course. But it´s nowhere near the gravity of her losing the arm ... or even dying. Both of these would give the series as strongly needed change of pace. No more sightseeing and stories about dangers, but actually experiencing that danger.

Still, good episode. Nice animation during the fighting. Looking forward to next week.

[David75]

Regarding the beast, it's not that it can read their minds per se.
It's got great observational skills and has been monitoring them for a long time, probably as soon as they quit Ozen.
That beast is kinda like a sniper, it only lacked the insta kill/disabling technique required against Reg, even if it's target probably was the weaker Riko.

[shinta|hikari]

@Mfauli - Friendly beast did say that the arm will no longer be as before. Maybe it will be mostly paralyzed or deformed, so that is a pretty permanent consequence, if not as severe as losing it completely.

@David - Enemy beast seems to understand words. It kicked the pickaxe right after lolibrat mentioned its presence and implied its importance.

[David75]

@Shinta: it's true that it can probably understand reg&riko's language. But even without understanding the language, the beast can understand intent, it can understand body language, the way reg and riko look at the weapon.
Said beast probably knew of the weapon when it was used in a previous ep, as Reg was weary of a presence for a long time.

I'm not trying to prove it doesn't understand language, it would also be great if it did. I'm also saying it can use skills and intelligence to understand the same things without the need to understand the language. Which is also great. I do not know if we will have a clear answer on that detail. Not that it matters a lot anyway.
Last but not least, we do not know how, but that beast that was using corpses to call for other preys was able to reproduce proper language too. Maybe some kind of "zombification" of the corpse. But being able to access the language center and use the right concepts/wording is quite a feat. Or that beast too knows the language perfectly and only needs the corpse as the most fitted instrument to voice correctly the trap words.

[MFauli]

@Mfauli - Friendly beast did say that the arm will no longer be as before. Maybe it will be mostly paralyzed or deformed, so that is a pretty permanent consequence, if not as severe as losing it completely.



Yeah, there's hope. OR Riko gets a mechanical arm like Regu, in which case she'd get an upgrade over her real arm ;>

[neflight86]

I am glad that the reality of her (their?) unpreparedness is brought to fruition, at least somewhat. Other than her mother possibly dying in the meantime, there was no reason to force this trip so early when she was already essentially in a training course for getting ready for the journeys into the Abyss.

One thing that kind of bothers me is the ascension curse sickness being activated apparently if you ascend at all? I figured it would activate if you went up a level, not a few feet, as in episode 9. Does she risk death by jumping? Good to hear it is apparently an invisible entity that comes and goes. I always like another mystery to think about.

[David75]

Lyza being out of the picture is a nice thing to get better character developpment for Reg and Nanachi.
The curse explanation was quite clear. We now can take it as a specific rule of that world.
I do not know if Nanachi really meant that you can read toughts thanks to the curse and see the future. But it might be that you can sense any alteration in attitude or muscular influx and then anticipate what your target will do next.

[Kraco]

Episode 12


- - - - -




I used a few evenings to marathon what's out of this. Quite a remarkable series. The rather unique, young looking character designs are a bit distracting but also make that obsession bound world even more macabre when people looking like little kids are doing stuff like this. However, when the characters look like this, and not like typical 00's or 10's cookie-cutter anime faces, it gives them extra personality, or characterisation, with no additional effort. A bit like Range Murata's designs, for example. However, even with that in mind, this really does have some strong characters like Ozen and now Nanachi. It's the little things that really build a fictional character, and it feels like these two have loads of little things on their shoulders. Surprisingly enough, when my furry tolerance usually ends at ears and a tail, I find Nanachi quite likable. She's so wholesome, I suppose.

I wonder if the curse would affect less if one ascended really slowly and in a gently sloping manner. Or would it accumulate just the same? Obviously the best place to ascend would be far from the center. If there's no way there, just make your own. In fact if you made a completely new vertical shaft away from the center, in solid rock, would the curse be there at all?

I can't say Nanachi wanting to end Mitty would have come completely out of nowhere. Even thought Nanachi looks so fluffy, she had to be an accomplished adventurer to be down there, or at least associated with such. She seemed to work for a white whistle at one point, so she has seen much. She has buried of a bunch of adventurers as well. So, she can't be soft and has seen more than enough death.

[Kraco]

Epsiode 13 Final



- - - - -



Quite a powerful last episode. It could have still been a bit stronger if it hadn't been already revealed that Nanachi and Mitty were experimental subjects. Although that rotten white whistle dude was so shady through and through that nobody would expect anything but the worst, but at least there would have been the chance of a red herring if it hadn't been said before he was the culprit. Still, it doesn't lessen the ghastliness of this. Such a tragic fate, but at least Nanachi now found a couple of friends, however unreliable they might be.

I just wish that fucker hadn't been shown as the last scene in the episode, suggesting he might get his hands on the MCs. He would use Riko as another guinea pig and cut open Reg to reveal his secrets, no doubt about that.

This will be among my top 3 anime of the season.

[Munsu]

Season 2 announced for 2022:
https://twitter.com/miabyss_anime/status/1389747016280932353

[neflight86]

Just watched the next arc (Dawn of the Deep Soul movie) and Ep 1 of the season 2.


I just wish that fucker hadn't been shown as the last scene in the episode, suggesting he might get his hands on the MCs. He would use Riko as another guinea pig and cut open Reg to reveal his secrets, no doubt about that.

Right you were. The movie brought us right back to the uncaring cruelty of this world and was a fair sort of side story for Riku to get her white whistle. The dollops of sadness and suffering risked feeling a little try-hard, but I think that is more my resentment for how the injustices are simply allowed to be. The fights were not a strong suit and Bonedruid(sp?) made a good sort of unflappable villain. Strange that Reg got his arm back, but it being done with the help of Bonedruid is the most believable way to do it. Worthwhile movie that made me feel.

S2E1
...picking up from that with a cold open into a prequel/origin story. Intriguing and I look forward to how both stories continue in parallel, hopefully.

This show can be really special when it isn't breaking into tone shattering scatological humor or underage sexual exploitation. On the one hand, it does lend a unique texture and a respite from adventure and misery, the two other modes Made in Abyss typically runs on, but at the same time, that direction is fairly off-putting and dampens my excitement to share this with others...

[MFauli]

episode 1 season 2:

So, question: Is the movie part of the canon story? I haven't seen it, so not sure, but the start of s2 was very confusing.

I will say that I enjoyed most of the episode and the exploration of this world is stunning and it only makes me more hyped for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 later this month which offers a similar beautiful, alien world. As for the story, I got no idea what's going on, but that might be a mix of not having seen the movie and not remembering much of season 1 outside of "they kept going downwards".

What I can't ignore, however, is the author. I scrolled up and saw my posting where I criticized the unnecessary nude scene in season 1. Well, season 2 starts off literally the first scene with a WAY TOO detailed rape scene. And not enough, the episode ends with a loli girl taking a shit in front of other people. I'm not saying scenes like that should be forbidden, because fuck censorship. But at least I want everyone to acknowledge that this story's author is most likely a pedophile. Because damn, that's some real fetish stuff in this episode, plus the out of place-looking loli design of all young characters. I still hate these character designs, especially when adult characters look perfectly fine. But these super-deformed faces of the children ... as if they're from another anime. Meh.

Anyway, I'll watch this one for the environments. And again, pls tell me whether the movie is part of the main story or filler, thx.

[neflight86]

Yes, movie is canon. It bridges the end of s1 and the start of s2 (it is how they got from layer 3-4 to layer 6). Riko didn't used to have a white whistle.

[MFauli]

Yes, movie is canon. It bridges the end of s1 and the start of s2 (it is how they got from layer 3-4 to layer 6). Riko didn't used to have a white whistle.

But from what I read, only movie 3 is canon, right? movie 1 and 2 seem to be recaps. can someone confirm?

[neflight86]

Yes, there are recap movies. The one that is canon is called "Dawn of the Deep Soul". Its an entire arc.

[Kraco]

I have a feeling I haven't watched the movie either. But then again, I don't remember the ending of the first season either, so I just started watching this S2 hoping I could somehow follow the story. I suppose I need to check out the movie, in the meantime.

[MFauli]

I have a feeling I haven't watched the movie either. But then again, I don't remember the ending of the first season either, so I just started watching this S2 hoping I could somehow follow the story. I suppose I need to check out the movie, in the meantime.

I mean, I don't feel like I need a movie. Season 1 ended with them exploring the abyss, season 2 continues there :>

But I guess I will watch the movie anyway.

[David75]

Can only go down, never up, feels like a blackhole somehow.
Still a harsh world and unnecessary scenes.

So I guess we have a bridge from the past with the very first explorers that were strangers and our S1 crew.

[neflight86]

2

Strange they didn't go into the ancient(?) expeditionary crew at all this episode. Their story is easily as interesting as the main one, and has more tension since we can be sure they are all long dead.

Nice that this village of cave raiders-turn-mutants is friendly enough, but maybe they simply aren't very able bodies anymore. When they mentioned the 'force field' was being blocked, did that mean the curse?

I still wish it was more concrete just how much ascension is required to trigger the curse. Shouldn't Riko have suffered an effect when Reg pulled her out of that trap/pitfall?

[neflight86]

3

Nothing like a protracted anus to really set the mood during exploration... Unsettling artistic tendencies aside, this 'hollow' society is eerie and mysterious- just like I like my untouched civilizations. The missing barrier is a bit convenient; wonder if it can be harnessed elsewhere?

Glad they touched on the old explorers again before we forgot about them. I eagerly await their grizzly fate.

[neflight86]

4

Strangers in a strange place. For an episode about navigating the unknown without their compatriots, this was quite engaging.

Reg has been Reg before, and his little friend wasn't able to fill in some details, though perhaps she might be able to restore his arm (that Rico is still carrying around).

Rico's post diarrhea exploration of the town made it less than inviting and of course has some exploitative looking scenes while she made a new friend.

Nannachi's dive into the 'local culture' was the most interesting, and pressing, as this place seems to somehow be able to conjure the heart's desire and by accepting it, you become one of its denizens and are subject to the rules of valuation. I doubt her journey really ends here, but the justification for her to escape it should be interesting. I was surprised when the villager was able to surmise details about Mitty that further implies this whole village might just be another predatory organ that can read thoughts.

[neflight86]

5

Nannachi, you done goofed.

I hope that the 'elder' wasn't actually able to make an exact copy of Mitty, soul and all, based on some observations. Souls should be more special than that, or the characters, and the audience by extension, are putting around some serious nihilism that this story doesn't need to tip the scales of any further. No one has any intrinsic uniqueness or value, so what is all of this for?

I hope we got some more explanation of how the explorer party became... this soon. Everything is so alien that with nothing to relate to, I'm beginning to glaze over the world building and exploration until I get some answers about the origin, knowing they exist.

[neflight86]

6

One can wonder how this village has survived so long if they lose what looks like half their members and a 'sage' every time they invite a hunting target into their village... Even if it was an anomaly, the timing is too coincidental for a threat that great given how long they have existed down here.

Looks like the (new) furry one will be the missing piece to get Nannachi free from the serpent. I was hoping for some more elaboration of the old explorers and their fate (at least two seem to still be living- red head and the Sanji-turned-hollow sage), but it looks like there is no indication of that happening any time soon. Will this entire season simply being separating from this village?

[neflight86]

7

Am I correct in assuming that the babies were served to the remaining pilgrims to cure them? I don't understand at all how that would have worked, but this is one of the few shows that have sold me on the unexplored nature of the lands enough for to assume it makes sense somehow.

Really, though, the lengths this show is now going to to craft tragedy are officially humorous. This will become a problem when we begin to predict things based on "what would make this into the biggest tearjerker".

[neflight86]

9-10

There's feelings everywhere, but I've almost completely lost the plot. Why does Faputa need to take revenge on the residents of the city? Was the little sacrificial girl that bitter to lose her children that she had the wherewithal as a blob to will one final baby with a mission to kill them all? Is that the takeaway? Reg's involvement seems tangential at best, though integral. I expected a much bigger part for him to play in the backstory, but he was just walking along and found her... And apparently Perushka was suffering in whistle form this whole time?

I enjoy the show, but I could really use some more concrete explanation of this entire arc; it's just a mess for me, narratively, and that blunts the emotional impact which is a shame.