Synopsis
Set in the far northern lands of Japan known as Hokkaido, this is the tale of Sugimoto. Once a soldier in the Russo-Japanese war of the Meiji era, he had gained the nickname "Invincible Sugimoto.” Now in hopes of saving the widowed wife of his now deceased comrade from the war, he seeks the riches promised by the gold rush. In his hunt for gold, a drunk man tells him the tale of a hidden stash of gold by a group of criminals.
Partnering up with an Ainu girl (Ainu being a group of people who were said to store large stashes of gold to fight the Japanese) who saved him, the two set out in search of former prisoners who bear tattoos that lead to the gold while also facing against others who also seek the hidden stash.
The Good
Amongst the different anime that have come out for the season, this writer believes that this series by far has one of the strongest introductions to its story. It presented Sugimoto in a way that the viewer was able to get an idea to his general character and abilities and it gave just enough on the tale of the hidden gold. Then there is also how Asirpa and her partnership with Sugimoto was given sense with their different motivations. Simply put the character and story establishment were the strongest of the episode.
Other than this, there is the action of the episode. From the very first scene of the episode, the action basically exploded on the viewer. When the focus was on Sugimoto, you could feel his determination and relentlessness in the way he fights, the same goes for other fight scenes that he goes through. On a smaller note, the designs of the character make for a great visual for the series.
The Bad
For the first half, there didn’t seem to be any large issues for the episodes. That is until the bear makes its appearance. Not only was it computer generated, it was so computer generated that this writer questions on what exactly the point of it being done this way. On one hand, the design of the animals is pretty solid along with their animation. On the other hand, however, they just seem out of the place when placed with the general art of the episode. Luckily for this series however, this seem to be the only notable issue with the episode.
Conclusion
As stated, the series has given a very strong introduction to its story, characters and mystery. Just the entire episode just established everything while enticing the viewer to watch the next episode shows a lot of potential for the series. So far, the only issue to be found is with the computer graphics inserted into the episode. Overall this is a great action mystery series to check out.
Rating: 7.5/10