It’s always nice when the season gets its first “house money” series, and for this one it’s Kokkoku.  This one was on my radar enough for me to preview it, and there were some reasons to be optimistic (or at least interested).  But I was pretty much flying blind coming in, and I found the premiere to be quite excellent – it delivered a lot for one episode, and set the stage for what looks to be a potentially very interesting story.  For one week at least, Kokkoku exceeded my expectations.

What were those reasons for particular interest?  Kokkoku is a seinen, for one, and while that’s no guarantor of success it’s the demographic that probably produces more really good anime per capita than any other (though very few are produced to begin with).  It’s also the TV debut for Geno Studio, formed to finish the Genocidal Organ film project after Manglobe ceased operations (and since they’re also in charge of Golden Kamuy – probably 2018’s most anticipated anime – there’s a huge curiosity factor here).  And Geno has put together a mega-experienced staff here, led by director Oohashi Yoshimitsu and Animation Director/Character Designer Hinata Masaki (original character designer Umetsu Yasuomi is something of a legend, too).

It’s only one episode of course, but Kokkoku delivers a very satisfying supernatural thriller in its premiere.  The story centers around the rather dysfunctional Yukawa family, led by Grandfather (Yamaji Kazuhiro).  There’s a hard-working older sister with a young son named Makoto (Iwata Ryuuto, obviously an actual child), a NEET older brother and unemployed house dad, and the central figure – a young woman named Juri (an excellent Anzai Chika).  Juri is 22, fresh out of college and on the hunt for a job “in the city” – so far, without much luck.  And she clearly doesn’t hold most of her family (including all the men apart from little Makoto) in high esteem.

One of the things this premiere does best is depict the dysfunction inside the Yukawa family, whose interactions are awkwardly authentic.  Juri notes that Makoto is perceived as the family’s last chance to “raise a decent adult” – though one wonders if she really means “man”.  But there’s an underlying weary affection in Juri towards her father, grandfather and brother – or so at least it seems to me (and this becomes more apparent with events later in the episode).  There’s also a sense of a lot of unspoken background between these people, events that led them to where they are now – and I like how Oohashi-sensei lets it hang in the air, rather than beat us over the head with clumsy expositional dialogue.

The sci-fi element here involves “Stasis” – the time travel element which comes into play when Makoto and his uncle Tsubasa (who Juri has shamed into picking the boy up from nursery school in her place) are kidnapped.  The kidnappers demand 5 million Yen (about $50,000) in 30 minutes, or the two will be killed – and there’s all sorts that seems odd about this.  Why target a seemingly lower middle-class family – and give them so little time to pay up?  The answer becomes clear soon enough – this is a trap, and Jii-san is the target.  He’s inherited a mysterious stone which allows him (and anyone touching the stone when he invokes his spell “Aegis”) to stop time while retaining the ability to move freely.  Juri has vague memories of this as a child – her father, seemingly, does not.

All this reminds me a bit of another seinen thriller, Kamisama Dolls, in that we have a small-town at the heart of a mysterious power, and a deft hand in depicting awkward dynamics between the cast.  I doubt it will end up being quite that good, but that’s a positive association for me because I love KamiDolls.  As to the production, the visuals are stylish and occasionally very striking, though there’s an over-reliance on CGI and some off-model character moments that suggest the budget for Kokkoku may not be huge.  There’s a lot to like here – this is obviously not cookie-cutter anime and that’s a big positive to start with, but the first episode showed a lot of wit and sophistication in both the writing and direction.  Color me intrigued.