For this review I’ll be splitting it up into 5 categories, and rating each accordingly, these categories are: Story, Characters, Music, Art and Overall Enjoyment.
Story (8/10): While at first glance the story of DRRR may seem like a simple gang war story, with high school students stuck in the middle, the story truly revolves around the characters and their secrets, and how these secrets affect their lives and the lives of the people around them. The 3 main characters, Mikado, Masaomi and Anri, while being best friends, all have parts of their lives that they hide from the others, which causes the friend group to slowly fall apart as they begin to focus primarily on their other lives away from each other.
Characters (10/10): The characters in DRRR are the main aspect that stood out for me while watching the series. The cast of DRRR consists of many unique characters, all with their own problems and livelihoods, with no main character feeling underappreciated or overlooked.
Masaomi Kida: My personal favourite character in DRRR is Masaomi, during the first half of the series, he is seen as an energetic and flirtatious young man, who is ecstatic when his best friend Mikado is finally able to move to move to Ikebukuro and attend the same school as him.
Spoiler, click to viewHowever, throughout the second half of the series, Masaomi’s attitude drastically changes as he is reminded of his past actions as the leader of the Yellow Scarves, a gang that has reappeared after disappearing a few years before the events of the show. Masaomi uses his power in the gang to try to rally them into finding and killing the attacker of his love interest, Anri.
Masaomi is a great example of good character development, because although he turns against his friends, by the final episode, he realises what he has become, and leaves Ikebukuro to find his own peace.
Izaya Orihara: Seen as somewhat of an antagonist by the other characters, Izaya is obsessed with humans, and loves observing their reactions to certain situations. Izaya is often seen in his office, comparing the other characters to chess or shoji pieces on a board for his amusement. While he is clearly evil, Izaya is a great representation of an “Overlord” type character, who simply looks down on everyone around him and gets amusement over their struggles.
Shizuo Heiwajima: Shizuo (or “Shizu-Chan” as referred to by Izaya) is well-known throughout Ikebukuro as the strongest man in the city, and is able to lift almost anything with his bare hands. Shizuo is seen by Izaya as his only threat (other than Simon) due to his immense power and unpredictable behaviour, leading to a rivalry between the two, with Shizuo often yelling out Izaya’s name in anger.
Spoiler, click to viewAlthough, Shizuo has his own problems too, his relationship with his brother wasn’t the best as his brother had become a famous movie star, while Shizuo was constantly fired from his jobs due to his fiery attitude. This also lead to Shizuo hating his own power, and fighting in general however, he still believed that people like Izaya should be punished, and he is willing to do it.
▶ Music 9/10: Both Openings Uragiri no Yuuyake (Theatre Brook) and Complication (ROOKiEZ is PUNK'D)are amazing starts to every episode, immediately getting the viewer excited with what’s next to come. A unique aspect of the openings in DRRR, which I haven’t seen in many other anime, is that they have a recap of previous plot points midway through the openings. While this may seem tedious, it is a great way to remind the watcher of things they need to know before viewing each episode. Both endings are also quite good, allowing the viewer to relax while preparing for the next episode. The OSTs throughout the series are amazing, perfectly setting the tone of each scene, with dramatic, funk-like music playing during dramatic moments or fight scenes, and softer music playing during emotional scenes.
Artwork 8/10: DRRR, unlike a lot of anime, uses CGI in a few scenes to great effect without it looking bad. The overall art style of the series, while appearing simple-looking, is well defined and a pleasure to look at, with the occasional CGI mixing well with the hand-drawn art.
Overall Enjoyment 9/10: DRRR was a thrill to watch, there were many surprising plot twists and other revelations that kept the series engaging and the way characters interacted with each other through fights or normal interactions kept the world of DRRR feeling realistic yet different to our own.
