Day 9 of Otakutober: What the Hell’s Paradise?! A Review

Hey everyone! It’s time for another blog in Otakutober! In this review you’ll find a note from Luna about her thoughts on the anime as well as my own. We’ll mention plot, music, art, popularity and origin stories. Now let’s get to it!

Luna’s note:

When it comes to anime that got overhyped this season, I personally think that one of them that sits at the top of the overhyped train was Hell’s Paradise. Naturally, I had to watch it and ask these questions of myself: was it worth the hype? Is it really that good? The only way for me to find these answers was by watching this show. And I’m going to tell you right now: my answer is yes and no. It was and wasn’t overhyped. Here are my thoughts on why;

Hell’s Paradise is a story that seems very straightforward upon first watch. A bunch of criminals essentially get dumped on an island. The main character is known for being a straight-up demon, and he lost his wife prior to the show and therefore his will to live. After a series of attempts to kill him to no avail, our main character ends up on–THE ISLAND–aka Hell’s Paradise! Along with a slew of other colorful characters including his almost executioner, weirdly sexual plant creatures, a crazy guy and his rather chill brother, a shinobi, and much more! Honestly, there are so many characters, it’s a little hard for me to keep up with all of them.

Star’s overall thoughts:

I will agree, it wasn’t special in terms of a shonen. But it’s not a shonen, it’s seinen. Frankly, the adult and mature themes make the consequences very high stakes. This anime is not for the modest or the light-hearted. In a lot of ways, it’s a survival anime. So there’s an abundance of characters who will be introduced and thus killed eventually.

Origin

I, Star, found a lot of folklore echoing back to Japanese tales as well as Buddhist stories. Many different tales have been about the small yet scattered islands of ships getting lost, people never returning from simple trips and vengeful spirits haunting islands; so this story wasn’t too farfetched for the time historically.

As for the Buddhist references, like most religious teachings the stories told are to scare the followers so that they don’t stray too far from the righteous path. Buddhism is no different in this case. Spirits resembling animals and plants while changing sexes displaying a sort of androgynous beauty are part of the teachings. This anime shows that from a skewed and powerful cultist’s vision where the characters are subjected to these horrors and beauties in their own realities.

Animation

Nothing compared to the acrylic style painting in the manga, but it definitely has gorgeous moments of artistry. It showcases vibrant colors of the island and the nature you see throughout the show. It’s got deep darks and blinding brights that are married well.

Music

The opening and ending songs are by popular upcoming artists and they are very cinematic. Showing the passing of time and the transformation of the island and characters I thought were done very well.