Pluto anime on Netflix in October

[Erik.]

As some of you know I'm a huge Urasawa, specifically Monster and Pluto fan. I own both manga and the Monster anime, which is also my favorite anime ever. I've been hoping Pluto would get animated for years, ever since I first read it, because I know it has just such a great and intricate story that would do very well with anime fans that feel like reading 8 volumes is just too big of a hurdle.

Anyway I discovered a few weeks ago Netflix is actually making an animated version, set to come out this October already. Here's a trailer and a sneak peek:


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Honestly I have mixed feelings about this. I am absolutely thrilled it's finally happening but at the other hand I'm absolutely terrified Netflix will fuck it up. Series on Netflix are always either huge hits (Dark) or huge misses (Rings of Power imho). I feel like the stakes are so high for me personally, which is only natural after rooting for it for years...

On the other hand both the producer and director are awesome veterans: Masao Maruyama who made Trigun, Ninja Scroll and others, and worked with Satoshi Kon for example, but most importantly he is the producer of Monster itself (a great sign Netflix is putting the right emphasis/weight on this). And Toshio Kawaguchi who did key animation on freaking Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Princess Mononoke, Gundam, Totoro, Tenshi no Tamago...

So those are really good signs. I guess now the only two things that matter to me are a) if the story doesn't deviate from the original, and if Netflix gave full reign/freedom to adapt, and b) if the serious/dark vibe/feel is the same as in the manga. (and maybe a third one if I can get over the fact they use so much cgi nowadays lol)

What do you guys think? Anyone else looking forward to it? ^^

[abaj]

This looks fantastic. I re-read Pluto months ago and it's one of my favourite Urasawa works because Pluto managed to elevate the source material to something more to my palate (nothing against Tezuka, but I found his contemporaries to be largely better than him). The smears on Gesicht as he prepares to confront the suspect looks so sleak and how I'd expect him to move. I'm looking forward to seeing it.

[Erik.]

This looks fantastic. I re-read Pluto months ago and it's one of my favourite Urasawa works because Pluto managed to elevate the source material to something more to my palate (nothing against Tezuka, but I found his contemporaries to be largely better than him). The smears on Gesicht as he prepares to confront the suspect looks so sleak and how I'd expect him to move. I'm looking forward to seeing it.

It's been a while since I read it but I especially love the philosophy behind (I hope I remember it correctly) Astro (or any AI) not waking up/birthing a consciousness without a surge of human emotion, be it anger, sadness or love, because without it there's just this useless brain/computer with an infinity of equations and possibilities, none of which will ever be activated without emotion to drive it. The idea that emotion is what drives our consciousness/makes us human really stuck with me. It's just so mind-blowingly profound that I'm glad the anime will make it accessible to a larger public.

And it goes for Monster too. I just love Urasawa's profound focus on morality, philosophy and psychology.

[Maneki Neko]

Oh wow, this looks like it will be a must watch. My wife and I binged Monster within a few days a few years ago. The characters and story were entrancing, and I liked the hard hitting moral questions it raises but doesn't entirely answer. A lot of stories these days do too much telling and not showing, like we're not intelligent enough to come to our own conclusions on social or political issues.

"On the other hand both the producer and director are awesome veterans: Masao Maruyama who made Trigun, Ninja Scroll and others, and worked with Satoshi Kon for example, but most importantly he is the producer of Monster itself (a great sign Netflix is putting the right emphasis/weight on this). And Toshio Kawaguchi who did key animation on freaking Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Princess Mononoke, Gundam, Totoro, Tenshi no Tamago..."

This gives me hope. I myself am not a fan at all of CGI in anime unless its incorporated well, otherwise it looks jarring and out of place and breaks my immersion.
An example of good CGI I think was Beastars.

I will definitely be checking Pluto out!

[Erik.]

Oh wow, this looks like it will be a must watch. My wife and I binged Monster within a few days a few years ago. The characters and story were entrancing, and I liked the hard hitting moral questions it raises but doesn't entirely answer. A lot of stories these days do too much telling and not showing, like we're not intelligent enough to come to our own conclusions on social or political issues.

"On the other hand both the producer and director are awesome veterans: Masao Maruyama who made Trigun, Ninja Scroll and others, and worked with Satoshi Kon for example, but most importantly he is the producer of Monster itself (a great sign Netflix is putting the right emphasis/weight on this). And Toshio Kawaguchi who did key animation on freaking Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Princess Mononoke, Gundam, Totoro, Tenshi no Tamago..."

This gives me hope. I myself am not a fan at all of CGI in anime unless its incorporated well, otherwise it looks jarring and out of place and breaks my immersion.
An example of good CGI I think was Beastars.

I will definitely be checking Pluto out!

That's exactly what I love about Monster. The questions: does anyone really deserve to die? and: who is the real monster? And did Johann know somewhere he was not the one at the Rose Mansion but Anna/Nina, and by taking the trauma on himself and killing everyone connected to them was he trying to take care of his sister and erase her pain to protect her (besides destroying and erasing Bonaparte's "lifework" in revenge)? In his own skewed mind of course, since she was happily living in Heidelberg with her foster parents until he killed them. At least that's what I suspect. Though like you said most questions are left unanswered.