September 6, 2024 12:19 pm
A sea of blood, tons of references, and elaborate mayhem from the creator of Danganronpa.
Anime has long been used to promote other products. Most often it is an adaptation of a well-known manga or game, or simply a small part of a huge media franchise. The number of original series released each year can be counted on the fingers of one hand.
So it is especially nice to see something truly unusual in this abundance of sequels, prequels, and spin-offs. This is exactly what the anime Akudama Drive is. The name of the series' scriptwriter immediately catches the eye: Kazutaka Kodaka created the Danganronpa series, an eccentric and colorful detective story about school kids investigating the murders of their classmates.
Akudama Drive draws most of its inspiration from Western cinema, attempting to combine the bloody crime thrillers of the 90s, which are slowly going out of fashion, with the cyberpunk genre, which has recently experienced a renaissance.
What Is Akudama Drive About?
Once upon a time, a civil war broke out in Japan, pitting two regions against each other: Kanto, where Tokyo is located, and Kansai, where Kyoto is located. In this ancient war, Kansai lost and, after surrendering its positions, began to obey Kanto.
But a rebellious soul is not so easy to pacify, and over time, Kansai gradually began to escape the control of the state and the Kanto police. And the main culprits of this dangerous disobedience are the criminals known as Akudama.
Akudama Drive Is Inspired by Quentin Tarantino And Cult Western Movies
In almost all of his interviews about Akudama Drive, Kazutaka Kodaka cites Quentin Tarantino as his main inspiration, and this is obvious when watching the anime. Like Tarantino's films, the series collects famous scenes, images, and plot twists from other works and weaves them into its plot.
This is done as obviously as possible, so much so that the titles of the episodes are the titles of the movies that inspired them. For example, there are Se7en, Reservoir Dogs, The Shining, and Mission: Impossible.
At the same time, the plot of the episodes tries to follow the plot of the "original." In Mission: Impossible, the characters have to infiltrate a guarded subway station; in Speed, they are prisoners on a bullet train; and in The Shining, you can expect a blood-soaked hallway and a scene with a broken door.
Where to Watch Akudama Drive?
The first and only season of Akudama Drive is available to watch on Hulu and Crunchyroll.
A sea of blood, tons of references, and elaborate mayhem from the creator of Danganronpa.
Anime has long been used to promote other products. Most often it is an adaptation of a well-known manga or game, or simply a small part of a huge media franchise. The number of original series released each year can be counted on the fingers of one hand.
So it is especially nice to see something truly unusual in this abundance of sequels, prequels, and spin-offs. This is exactly what the anime Akudama Drive is. The name of the series' scriptwriter immediately catches the eye: Kazutaka Kodaka created the Danganronpa series, an eccentric and colorful detective story about school kids investigating the murders of their classmates.
Akudama Drive draws most of its inspiration from Western cinema, attempting to combine the bloody crime thrillers of the 90s, which are slowly going out of fashion, with the cyberpunk genre, which has recently experienced a renaissance.
What Is Akudama Drive About?
Once upon a time, a civil war broke out in Japan, pitting two regions against each other: Kanto, where Tokyo is located, and Kansai, where Kyoto is located. In this ancient war, Kansai lost and, after surrendering its positions, began to obey Kanto.
But a rebellious soul is not so easy to pacify, and over time, Kansai gradually began to escape the control of the state and the Kanto police. And the main culprits of this dangerous disobedience are the criminals known as Akudama.
Akudama Drive Is Inspired by Quentin Tarantino And Cult Western Movies
In almost all of his interviews about Akudama Drive, Kazutaka Kodaka cites Quentin Tarantino as his main inspiration, and this is obvious when watching the anime. Like Tarantino's films, the series collects famous scenes, images, and plot twists from other works and weaves them into its plot.
This is done as obviously as possible, so much so that the titles of the episodes are the titles of the movies that inspired them. For example, there are Se7en, Reservoir Dogs, The Shining, and Mission: Impossible.
At the same time, the plot of the episodes tries to follow the plot of the "original." In Mission: Impossible, the characters have to infiltrate a guarded subway station; in Speed, they are prisoners on a bullet train; and in The Shining, you can expect a blood-soaked hallway and a scene with a broken door.
Where to Watch Akudama Drive?
The first and only season of Akudama Drive is available to watch on Hulu and Crunchyroll.
