Introduction

Danganronpa has to be one one of my favourite game series of all time, up there with the likes of Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 and FIFA (yes I know its bad now but the old games were amazing). It has great characters, good plot and its not only engaging but fun too.

You might now be wondering "Satonee, why are you talking about a game when this is a anime review?". Well the Danganronpa anime is an adaptation of this series I love so much, and to say it doesn't live up to the game is an understatement. Its missing some of the biggest elements that make the game so endearing, mainly because it just can't be done in a anime. I want to explore why exactly why this adaptation is kinda shit and if it was just doomed to fail, so lets jump into it.

Also I'm going to be writing this under the assumption you have some basic knowledge on at least the first game and what happens, so if you don't you're welcomed to leave if you want to watch this anime spoiler free.

It Feels Rushed

The anime generally feels too rushed especially compared to the pace of the actual game. We have one episode of no killing or class trials and thats about it, no chances to really get to know the characters especially after the second class trial where we literally just focus on either alter ego (for 2 arcs) or class trials for basically the rest of the show. It just feels rushed and the unlike the game you never have a chance to get attached to characters, so if one dies you feel nothing. Theres this certain execution in the third game that had me bawling my eyes out but here I doubt anyone felt even sad for any execution or death or anything. It lacks that X-factor that Danganronpa has, which I put down to 13 episodes not being enough. Maybe 3 more would of probably given us time to develop some attachment to characters, although I can see how that could also just be boring I think it would of given it more emotional impact if it did.

Major Elements Are Missing From The Games

This is to no fault of the anime honestly, but some of the key elements from the games are just not here. The biggest of these (and my favourite part of the game) is free time events which honestly makes Danganronpa, well, Danganronpa. This is where you can choose which characters you want to hang out with and if you give them a gift they like you can learn even more about them, progressing your bond with them.

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The great characters the game have are made great because we learn about their past, it not only is character development but makes us more emotional invested in the game as a whole. Its like we are actually there and know these people, so when they die it hits different. This anime lacks the emotional impact of the game and major things like the free time events not existing or the lack of choice you get shows a lot while watching and when it tries to throw these curveballs at you it ends up just falling flat every time. This basically shows me that this adaptation was doomed to fail, if you can't put in some of the most important elements of the source material without anything to compensate for it then how can you expect it to be a success?

Feels Incredibly Low Budget

Everything about Danganronpa: The Adaptation screams low budget to me. I don't know if they were trying to make this with the same budget Spike Chunsoft had with the first game (apparently at the time the director Seiji Kishi and his team could relate to the games low budget at the time) but oh my it makes this anime a lot worse. You aren't going to find this in a quality higher than 480p which for todays standards is like (for example) spy family being 720p at best. The animation is awful, it feels extremely hazy and is on the same level of quality as 2004 anime. The plot being more drawn out, interrupted by free time events so you can actually engage yourself in it is completely thrown out the window and is rushed as fuck. The writing is boring to say the least and by the end you just feel like you've wasted your time honestly.

It At Least Makes Sure It Isn't As Edgy As It Could Be

I think one of the parts this anime actually gets right is that it prevents "edgyness" where it can. The concept of a game in a school where 15 people kill each other to leave seems like it mainly appeals to the 14 year old emo edgelords that listen to MCR like its the bible (which honestly it does a good job of doing that). However for people who aren't like that it doesn't really feel like its purpose made for people 12-14 in the way it actually plays out. I think the pink blood really helps with this:

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I think if Danganronpa used real blood then it would tip it over the edge of being edgy. You can see how the red blood makes it more gory and horrific which is a theme in most edgy anime. Shows like Another and Tokyo Ghoul are hindered because of their excessive use of gore, and Danganronpa being a game about people literally killing each other means minimising how horrific the gore is (by making gore pink) makes it a lot more palatable to a wider audience. I think more generally the game feeling a lot more bubbly with its iconic soundtrack and character design also helps with this.

Conclusion

After all we've talked about can we actually say Danganronpa: The Animation was doomed from the start? Yes. With important content from the game missing, how constricted they had to make the story to fit it into 13 episodes and the low budget it was seemingly given, this adaptation clearly stood no chance from the start. Honestly though, it still could of been a lot better.

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