Anime to Watch: Erased

The first thought I had after finishing Erased was I have to tell everyone to watch this. Erased is a quick 12 episode anime that came out a few years ago, and it’s totally worth your time. There’s plenty to talk about and appreciate with this one, so I’ll jump right into it.

I’m keeping the plot of Erased super vague here. I usually try not to give spoilers, but I’ll give you a little description of the setup, and the basic plot. Not the case here. Sorry everyone. It’s a murder mystery, and that’s all I’ll be telling you.

Erased focuses on Satoru, our main character, and how he tries to protect his friends and family from this unknown murderer. Satoru himself is a great character, and the way he emotionally grows over the course of the show is subtle and so well done, you almost don’t realize it’s happening. Erased has a lot of small moments with characters that signify greater things, and it shows just how the plot is well written and thought out. There’s a standout moment where a character cries over a delicious meal, and it brought tears to my eyes. Nothing out of the ordinary happens in this moment, but the way such a small thing impacts the characters makes it hit right in the heart.

The plot is also great, both in its small intricacies and its simple premise. There’s a murder Satoru has to stop, and there’s no straightforward way to do it. There’s tons of planning and maneuvering from the characters that will keep you on your toes the whole time. The cliffhangers are intense, and the twists keep coming. I found that I was able to predict the killer’s identity, but I didn’t even care It’s still one of the best villain reveals I’ve seen, and was so tense I was almost screaming at my laptop. Plus, there were plenty of twists that came afterward that completely took me off guard. You’ll be very invested in this show in no time, and there’s never a dull moment.

Something that will immediately draw you in with this show is the opening. Now, anime openings are known for being hype as hell, but this one seriously outdoes itself. Calling "Re:Re:" a rock song is true, but it doesn’t seem to describe just how good this song is. The beats line up perfectly with the animation, and every time the song starts, you’ll be sitting there head-banging the whole time. I listen to this song daily, and chances are, so will you once you hear it. Don’t get me wrong, the ending is also great. It’s softer than the opening, and matches well with the emotional tone of the show. However, I’ve decided that people who skip this opening are not to be trusted.

I mentioned animation above, so I’ll go into that next. Where do I start with Erased’s animation? It’s really stunning. The motions are so fluid with the characters, and some of the scenery is drop dead gorgeous. I think my favorite has to be the entire ending scene. The lines and the shading all have a bluish tint to it that stood out immediately. The character designs are great to look at, and everything down to the shape of a person’s mouth helps convey the kind of person they are and their emotions. It was just really, really, enjoyable for my eyes. There are some other subtle things that go on, like changing eye colors, images in the opening changing as the episodes go on, that really puts this show in the top tier when it comes to animation.

Voice acting is another element I like to focus on with animation, because you can’t have a great show without great voice acting now, can you? I watched Erased subbed, and the sub was good enough to make me want to revisit this series dubbed. The voices fit perfectly, specifically Satoru, his mother, and the teacher. The teacher, though his role is minor, was probably my favorite. He had that calming voice that fit his character, and I was always excited to see him on screen.

Overall, you’ll be hard pressed to find a weak spot in Erased. It’s fantastic from start to finish, and it’ll make you feel every emotion under the sun. What’s better, this show is also available on Netflix now, so it’s easily accessible and totally worth your time. What are you still doing here? Go watch Erased!