Nyaight of the Living Cat – 01
The notion of a zombie apocat-lypse show directed by Miike Takashi of all people sounds, to say the least, far-fetched. But this is Japan. This is animanga, and all things are possible. It’s no exaggeration to say one of the things that instantly appealed to me about this country is how deeply obsessed with cats it is. As an inveterate nekozuki myself, I get it.
I don’t know to what extent Miike is actually involved here (he does have anime roles sprinkled here and there on his extensive filmography). In the end it doesn’t matter I suppose, as Nyaight of the Living Cat is loads of fun. But only, I would guess, if you’re a cat lover. The concept is basically a cat-crazed world (90% of the population has a cat) succumbing to the “NN” virus, which turns humans into cats. The virus is passed through cuddles, which makes nekozuki especially vulnerable to infection. The focus is on a couple of refugees from a cate cafe, a woman (her older brother has already succumbed) and a man who’s lost his memories.
What this is, in practice, is a satire of both cat and zombie tropes, set to a death metal-lite soundtrack. The comedy hits where the two subgenres meet, because the last thing any of these people want to do is the very stuff they must to survive – to wit, make cats hate them. Hurt or kill them? Unimaginable even in the circumstances. Getting them wet or frightening them with masks is horrible enough. But the real question Nyaight of the Living Cat asks is this – is a world where you can’t squish toe beans and scritch chins one worth living in?
If you get the cat – and cat people – jokes, I imagine this will vibe with you. It mostly did with me. The animation is relatively low-budget but the direction is pretty sharp, and the sense of absurdity is strong here. I suppose we’re going to get a larger story where the origin and potential cure for the virus is explored, but I really think this show is mostly a pretext for cat and zombie jokes and lots of gravure feline shots. And really, there’s nothing in the world wrong with that.
Hotel Inhumans – 01
Hotel Inhumans is another seinen, and another show that struck me as having a bit of a sleeper vibe. And I think the premiere more or less lived up to that. It didn’t blow me away or anything but it was a very solid piece of entertainment. A good premise crisply directly by industry stalwart Amino Tetsuro (Shiki).
From the looks of things Hotel Inhumans is going to be a Death Parade-styled episodic series, with guests having their own story spun each week. The hotel itself is some sort of underworld refuge where wounds are treated and any request carried out by the able concierges, Ikurou (the brains) and Sara (the muscle). The first tale is that of a killer for hire who was promised that his younger sister will be released at age 20 if he kills for the head of the crime syndicate that bought him in China. But by the time the twenty years have passed a new punk has usurped the old one, and has no interest in keeping his promises.
While there’s a fair hint of melodrama to Sian and Mao’s story – she sends him a new verse of their village lullaby every year to prove she’s alive – it’s effective in a primary colors sort of way. It even gets a happy ending of sorts, if one is willing to stretch the definition a little. On the whole everything is thoroughly competent – the writing, the animation, the direction. Hotel Inhumans is a professional piece of work about professionals. As with any serial some stories are going to be better than others, but the series looks like it has a chance to be interesting.
