Acca 13:
“The mystery anime that went completely MIA”
My first anilist review. I plan on doing these because I wanna get more active on here (Especially since I’m a huge anime fan) but also I think it’ll help me improve at script writing for YT. Will I get any engagement off this? Probably not. Will I get better at script writing? Eh. Eventually.
A quick side note aswell: Every review I do will mostly be spoiler free. I think that selling someone on anime by telling them exactly what happens in the story is lame and that if it doesn’t interest someone without spoiling them, probably wasn’t meant for them in most cases.
Also (Yeah I said a quick side note but it’s actually two). I’m going to break this up into semi quick sections (I say semi because sometimes I like to yap and yap abt shit) for the sake of writing and the sake of my YouTube videos in the future which will have more of a structure (Even though my style is almost no structure). Okay enough. Here we go.
Acca 13 is a Winter 2017 Mystery Slow burn that aired on January 10th 2017. It’s kind of strange because this anime is very under the radar for the most part. I’ll get to why in a second, but I’ve been in all the big anime communities over the years. From TikTok, to instagram, to Reddit, to now Anilist and prior to me logging in on this site I’ve NEVER seen a mention of this anime. It’s strange because there kind of is no reason for it to be?
Winter 2017 was lowkey a shit time for anime. My favorite anime movie ever aired: Kizumonogatari III: Reiketsu and one of the best anime seasons ever aired: Descending Stories: Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju but aside from that this season was…kinda garbage? Lol. I mean maybe the marketing wasn’t good? Or maybe I just don’t remember people talking about it when it aired but it’s whatever.
The story follows our protagonist: Jean Otus and his journey through the 13 districts that make up the world in this story. A bunch of politics and shit gets implemented and all you really need to know is that Acca protects and prevents shit from going left within said politics. It’s a journeyman’s/pseudo complex story with gorgeous visuals, beautiful osts and tight writing that leaves enough room to breathe for the viewer.
Music: 10/10
As this is a story set in…I actually don’t know but there’s a very Diesel/Solarpunk aesthetic. Even though the two are extremely different Acca manages to make it work here. And as expected the music perfectly matches. There’s hints of classical that completely change the tone of scenes and help elevate the atmosphere engrossing you within the world (Which is an extreme positive because this is a story that relies more on its world and lore rather than its characters). If you want a reference to what the music is like the best example I can give is the Persona Series. Obviously everyone loves Persona music so I’d give this category a 10.
Characters: 8/10
As I said previously this story doesn’t really focus too much on its characters. It’s really more about the politics and the plot points going on in the story. There’s not neglect from them necessarily so I don’t take away too much from Acca but I would’ve definitely preferred if the characters were given more time to shine and develop. They don’t shy away from doing this though and there are moments that really helped the characters grow on me. Specifically episode 8 really shines in this department. The story really takes dark and grimy twists and I’d give this category an 8. Could it have been better? Of course. Definitely and not nearly the worst I’ve ever seen though.
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World/Setting: 9/10__
I absolutely, and truly love the world of Acca. It beautifully sews and cuts its plot points together creating a fascinating adventure through the 13 districts portraying different social issues and ideas. Compliment that with character motives and you get some of the best story telling you’re ever going to get. Easy 10.
Animation: 10/10
There isn’t really much to say. The animation is gorgeous and absolutely breathtaking at times. No 3D CGI (For anyone who hates it, me personally it’s very hit or miss) and nobody is surprised when madhouse was the one who put this shot together, Easy 10.
Plot: 9/10
The plot is pretty much flawless because the dark truth is that: Slow Burn Stories are double edged swords. The only reason why this isn’t a 10 is because well it’s a slow burn. And although I love slow burns and longer series, There were very rare moments where I found it kind of a drag to get through this. Not because the pacing is awful or anything, but slow burns aren’t meant to be binged in my eyes. Dragging yourself through it never works and that’s what I found myself doing with Acca instead of giving it time. At the same time though I’m conflicted because even though it FELT like it was dragging I was invested the entire time and never did I feel like it was BORING. Which is why I gave it a 9. I think the second part outweighed the first despite both being prevalent at different points.
Conclusion: 9.2 or a 9/10 because concise decimal ratings are lame.
I thoroughly reccomend this to any mystery fan (I.e Monster, Death Note and things of that nature). Acca manages to meet all the requirements for a certified Mobby Classic and a phenomenal Detective Seinen that SHOULD last for ages because YOU SHOULD GO WATCH IT. A cerebral and definitive entry into the genre aswell as one that will stick with me for a long time. Thank u for reading if you made it this far also subscribe to me on YouTube please!
(Also who would’ve thought square enix was behind the production here? Based as fuck.)
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