Zombie Land Saga

Zombie Land Saga

Streaming on Crunchyroll

Episodes 12

Language: Japanese

Genre: Comedy, Music

Level with me here. Imagine you're a teenage girl, you die in a tragic accident, then wake up a zombie Idol? Zombie Land Saga is just that. Seven girls more or less wake up as zombies to be told that they would become idols to save Saga.

If that isn't a setup for a good laugh. I'm not sure what else is.

Watch the official Crunchyroll trailer and have a laugh before you watch the show.

I'm the type to watch horror movies and laugh through the gory stuff. Wait to call me a monster until after you finish Zombie Land Saga, the reevaluate that opinion.

From the first scene, we know the main character is Sakura Minamoto. She's getting ready for the first day of her second year of high school, is psyched to drop off her idol application, flies out the door. The trailer didn't show; spoiler for the show's first minute, she got hit by a truck.

As much as it was a shock, I admit, after the welp, I laughed. Things did take a dark turn rather quickly, but it was expected Zombie is in the name, so I figured that we would see at least one character taking a tumble.

Throughout the season, Sakura takes center both on stage and among the characters to help each person overcome their struggle with being in the girl group or accepting their current situation.

In the end, the support she's given to everyone else is reciprocated when she finally needs support. Everyone else is rallying behind her.

Taking a step back, let's reflect on one of the best scenes of the show. Who doesn't love an Idol putting on an epic rap battle?

Sakura and Saki go head to head at the first performance post all of the girls waking up from their zombie state. Of course, while Sakura is on stage giving it her all, the other girls aren't convinced.

While the rap itself isn't the funny part, the circumstances entertained me the most. Let me take a moment to set the background…

In the group's first performance, Sakura was the only one awake and performed as an Idol group at a metal concert. The Zombie screaming fit in with the crowd, causing them to pick up some fans. In their second performance, everyone is awake, giving a show for seniors at the community center.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ok2b0MrpA_0

I laughed more at my confusion of how it went from a typical idol song to a freestyle battle.

Also, did anyone else ask where Yuugiri got the Shamisen?

Now I've said enough to introduce you to the show; I do have a few things I want to get off my chest; spoilers are afoot, so beware.

While all the girls are somewhat from different time periods, apart from Yuugiri, they all lived and died in the last 30 years. While they don't exclusively say where each of them grew up in Japan, I would think that becoming idols is a high profile enough gig that family and friends would recognize them.

Call me crazy, but given both Lily and Saki's encounters with the past, I'd personally be beyond freaked out if the doppelganger of someone I once knew showed up suddenly.

While the show initially presents itself as a horror, it changes by introducing many comedic aspects and still keeps the typical drama elements. Many of the characters were forced to face their past and find the opportunity to resolve events from their past life.

Ai was a former idol that died from a lightning strike while on stage. In one of their concerts, the other members were able to help her move on from fear.

Saki relived her death and helped her best friend's daughter see another side of life. Hopefully, she learned to respect her mother more. On a real-life note, even though we'll never see this scene, Saki's reappearance could start a dialogue between her best friend and daughter, helping one another to understand the perspective of the other.

Lily's death was both comedic and tragic. Reuniting with her father allowed us to see her backstory. While it wasn't explicitly mentioned, her death scene alluded to the possibility of her being a trans girl. This added some unexpected depth I wasn't expecting.

The final episode of the season ended on a high note, and of course, I was left with questions. While we had a backstory and resolution for most of the characters, a few thoughts came to mind.

First being… How did they actually become zombies? Unless someone had this plan in the 1800s if they dug up Yuugiri, wouldn't she be only bones?

Second mystery… Who is Koutarou Tatsumi? We know that he has been a mastermind for orchestrating different events throughout the season. Still, we also know he was an old classmate of Sakura. The rest is a mystery.

Hopefully, in the second season, we'll learn his origins.

Good news, everyone! I say this Professor Farnsworth style… Zombieland Saga is getting a second season Zombieland Revenge! The new season aired on April 8th. If you loved these zombie singing idols as much as I did, make sure you tune in.

We'll find out if these girls can singlehandedly save the city of Saga with their voices.

Second Season trailer!