Made in Abyss: Wandering Twilight

For starters, I must state that I really did enjoy this recap movie. However, I already miss the whimsical, slightly dark tone of the previous one. Raw optimism triumphing over grave hardships is traded in for bleak terror and gruesome horror. Not too far into the runtime, Riko and Reg are faced with decisions that could cost them their lives, and they very nearly do. What follows are some of the hardest scenes I’ve ever had to watch in anime.

This is one of the most controversial aspects of Made in Abyss: the juxtaposition of cute, chibi characters in lush watercolour environments, and the horror of the Abyss and the creatures that live therein. I have mixed feelings about it. On one hand, I can appreciate it from a creativity perspective; the dichotomy of cutely drawn characters experiencing horrible things makes said characters even more compelling, more than if the characters were drawn realistically. It makes what they are going through feel ten times worse, which makes you want them to succeed ten times more than normal. On the other hand, some of the scenarios we are presented with are conceptually horrific. From shots that linger on the purple skin of a broken arm, to seeing the effects of sadistic experiments done on children affect their bodies in real time, this show does not pull its punches. That other part of me thinks it’s pretty disgusting, and I don’t think that will change. But I think both of those opinions are two hands on the same clock face: they almost always point in two different directions, but they always work in harmony.

Everything that I wrote in my review for the first recap movie still stands for this sequel. The visuals are spectacular and beautiful, the music is everything this show requires and more, and the story is gripping and interesting. With the introduction of new characters, Nanachi and Mitty, some of the mysteries of the Abyss finally come to light, though they only raise new questions that make me excited to hear their answers. This movie is more of a slow burn compared to the first one; it focuses more on Nanachi and their backstory, as well as Reg as he tries to figure out more of his past and protect Riko in the here and now. Even though I haven’t watched the series since it first aired (and therefore, even though I can’t recall what had to be cut out), I can still recognize a couple of places where the story suggests that they were stitched together. But it never detracts from the viewing experience.

This is the furthest I’ve watched in this series. Like Riko and Reg, I’m stepping out into the gaping maw of the Abyss as I move onto the Dawn of the Deep Soul movie for the first time. I’m super excited to see what lies deeper, and what we can learn through their experiences.