As someone who prides himself on spotting anime sleepers, I’m kind of pissed at myself for not flagging Mars Red. I did nail Odd Taxi this season, and I thought enough of Mars Red to at least preview it. But it didn’t stand out enough to me to call it out as a true sleeper. And there was enough there to justify that, if I’d just looked a little deeper than I did. I suppose it’s just going to have to be enough to be doing my part to call attention to a superb series so few outside of Japan seem to be watching.
I’ve talked about the things that make this series stand out – the music, the cast, the atmosphere, the pure theatricality (which is perhaps a composite of the three) – and all were on display here. As befits an anime in the style of a stage play, classical music is a huge part of the episode. And so is Defrott, which means Sawashiro Miyuki’s talents are on full display. But there were some twists here which genuinely surprised me, too, and a story which bore the mien of a full-on tragedy suddenly looks as if it might have other ideas.
If I were to nitpick this episode at all, I might note that Rufus Glenn folded like a cheap tent as soon as things started to break against him. But then, Glenn has been kind of a ludicrous popinjay right from the start, so this was probably more or less in-character. Was it ever really within the realm of possibility that Rufus would win over Defrott? Nakajima was almost as much a paper tiger as Glenn, a fool blinded by his long accumulation of prejudices. But Defrott is no such easy mark. He’s the essence of Mars Red and probably its most compelling character (and if you’re the type to skip the ED, give it a watch – not only is HYDE’s song a belter, but it’s a chronicle of Defrott’s being turned into a vampire – seemingly in the middle ages).
One thing Mars Red doesn’t do is hold the audience’s hand much – a lot of stuff happens off-screen and we’re trusted to figure it out. It was never expressly spelled out what was going on with Ayame, but it becomes clear enough. Fortunately her elders are also much wiser, and were on to her all along. As a result Tenmanya and his charges are safely gone when Rufus’ droids show up to torch the hideout. Suwa takes responsibility for what happened, but his response is a little surprising. His reunion with Ayame on that boat (I thought vamps couldn’t cross water?) is only the second-most interesting thing that happens on it, but it’s definitely one of those twists I was talking about.
Two vampires being lovers – that happens, as we’ve seen first-hand. But a human and a vampire being together is another matter. It never occurred to Yamagami-san to burden his wife with his continued existence, and Shutarou studiously avoided contacting Aoi until he had no choice (their survival is one of those things that happen off-screen). It’s clear these two airheads still love each other, and Shutaro remains human in seemingly critical ways. Yet his remaining by her side never seems to be an option. There’s the matter of immortality, to be sure, but the true reasons run much deeper than that.
Maeda’s involvement in all this remains something of a mystery, but since the series opened with him I suspect he’s going to thematically be central to its conclusion as well. A snowflake with melts on the hand of a human lingers on the hand of a vampire, and the rubicon once crossed can never be crossed again. But I don’t see Maeda as having any real motivation to move forward at this point – unlike Shutarou he has nothing he wants to protect, and unlike Takeuchi seems to have no curiosity about the universe.
ibtachi
June 23, 2021 at 12:49 amI can’t rightly express how much joy it brings me I see how Mars Red chooses to use its run time — there are a lot of moving parts, but it seems devoted to show us only the moments critical to defining the characters, the world, and furthering the narrative. It’s such a rare sight in anime these days that you’ll find a series that is devoted to using so much of it’s tight 22 minute run-time to build atmosphere and a visual identity (instead of exposition).
Speaking of anime these days, I remember back in 2017 you’d need to be as zany & left-field as ACCA-13 to stand out as something that breaks the mold. It’s just sad to see that all it takes to break the mold in 2021 is… to be an original production (a very good one, my favourite this season in fact) with high-calibre writing and art direction.
Still, I’m thankful we got this, and I’m hoping it does well enough in Japan that we begin to see more theatrical adaptations in anime.
Guardian Enzo
June 23, 2021 at 6:47 amI can’t rightly express how much joy it brings me I see how Mars Red chooses to use its run time — there are a lot of moving parts, but it seems devoted to show us only the moments critical to defining the characters, the world, and furthering the narrative.
Again, I think this is a reflection of it being an adaptation of a play – and not just a play, but a dramatic reading. That makes for a challenging adaptation to an action-driven form like anime, but the essence of then material is character, character, character.
animealex
June 23, 2021 at 2:54 amI’m sorry, but I’m still giggling about how unimportant Rufus is to all the other vampires. They don’t even perceive him as a threat, just a nuisance. A civilian and not even a vampire. If he didn’t antagonize Defrott, he would still be alive. But he (like Nakajima) was so full of hubris, that seeing him fall (pun intended) was such a joy. “King of Fools” indeed. But hey, at least Defrott isn’t depressed anymore and Ayame can freely explore her unlife and, perhaps, make something out of it.
Krize
June 23, 2021 at 5:34 amThe show really does have me guessing on what is really intended for Maeda. I had fully bought into him as the protagonist of the first half of the show, and rather enjoyed his stoic competency at his job, but since then he’s gone in directions that have really defied anything I might’ve protected. I think it’d be an awful shame for Maeda to have survived (at the cost Yamagami’s life) just so he can die in combat against Kurusu, but like you say I don’t really see what else there is for him now. I think there’s also something be said about the tragedy element in that Defrott attempts to save both halves of an ill-fated couple with his blood and fails in both endeavors, but tragedy on that level seems almost too much..
Guardian Enzo
June 23, 2021 at 6:45 amThe only thing I can see with Maeda is he has unfinished business with Nakajima, so something is likely to go down between those two in the finale.
leongsh
June 23, 2021 at 7:58 amMars Red had tragedy writ large right from the start but in this penultimate episode, it appears to have sidestepped from it. Will wait for the final episode to put a definitive on it. Good chance it will since the matchup between Maeda and Shutarou looks to play out as a passing of the baton. Maeda lost his fiance and his military work is all that he had left. That he was also sold down the river by his superior, and having his closest colleague walking off into the sun, he has nothing much left. Shutarou still maintains his humanity core and has something to look forward to with his own fiance alive and knowing about his change to being a vampire. Considering how this series has played out, Aoi may make it there in time and her involvement will remind Maeda again about his late fiance. That will allow Shutaro to make it final for Maeda.