A place, neither in the world of the living nor in one of the dead. A judge, who will test the minds of freshly dead matching people in the most extreme conditions. All this, without any emotion to avoid any subjectivity and be able to make the right choice: send the spirit to be reincarnated, or in the void, lost forever in anger and regret.
Just said like this, I would be already ready to watch it, but it did not stop there. In fact, there would be a lot to say about this anime.
It brings and deals with complex subjects that can be frightening if we don't take a step back.
It makes you realize
how complex the human mind is and that the notion of right and wrong does not always follow the one of a just/unjust imposing a total objectivity.
- To be honest, I didn't thought this anime would go that deeper about its subject, I was not really for having a whole plot around the concept of judgment, by I got it anyway, and it was really good.
At the beginning, I was afraid that it would be an episodic anime (in the sense 1 episode = 1 pair of guests). So I was pleasantly surprised to see this rhythm quickly broken.
Moreover, these guests all have their own personality and above all their own story of development, which makes them very different and lets the viewer immerse himself totally in their story.
About the design and the animation, it's quite simple, nothing special to say about that. You can note the fact that the mouths are relatively low on the face (which I must admit I didn't like but I got used to it).
I really liked the opening
In addition to the main story, we are offered an interesting and mysterious secondary story.
Episode 10 also has an easter egg to another anime. I give you the name of this one in a spoiler if you want to guess by yourself:
Spoiler, click to view
Death note We also learn in episode 10 something very interesting, which was a huge step in the story - or at least for the main character. (I'll put it in a spoiler if you want to come to this reflection by yourself)
Spoiler, click to view
We learn that everyone can have (and even has) a dark self and that we are all capable of the worst if we are pushed to the extreme.
In conclusion, this anime has been able to bring a reflection on the human being, the difference between what he says and what these words mean, how he thinks (sometimes deducing too quickly from the facts), what he is capable of when he is triggered with "extreme conditions".
It shows how, although very complex, emotions are essential to live and to make judgments.
_So I would recommend Death Parade if you like psychological anime. If you wanna have a good time watching an anime while bringing you to a deeper reflection, don't wait anymore. The end really got me on that._
