It seems that in the anime world, at least one title that is both completely f**ked up and brilliant comes out every year. Last year it was “Undead Murder Farce”, before that there was “Chainsaw Man” and so on. This year’s “treat” is definitely “Undead Unluck” based on the manga by Yoshifumi Tozuka.
Where to watch
That this is a special title becomes evident from the first scenes of the first episode, where Fuuko Izumo, a girl whose superpower is Unluck, and at some point was responsible for an incident that left more than 200 people dead, including her parents, is about to commit suicide. Before she can, however, she is rescued by a butt-naked superhero named Undead, who kidnaps her and forces her to explain her powers at his hideout. He also explains (kind of) that he has amazing regenerative abilities and desires to die the best death possible, disliking his immortal life. Fuko starts calling him Andy, and the two become a duo, particularly after they are attacked by agents of the Union.
While Undead exhibits his absurd use of regenerative power, as he uses his own maiming as a boost of both power and speed, leaving buckets of blood all over the place, Fuuko reveals that the more intimate the contact, the more intense the disaster that befalls the person who touches her. Thus a small kiss on the cheek results in a meteorite dropping, and the realization that a person who kills everyone who touches her and one who cannot die can be the perfect couple. While Undead is considering what will happen if they ever have sex, they soon find themselves part of the Roundtable, an elite group within the Union, who aim to kill God and change the fate of humanity. Eventually, it is revealed that another group with powers of the same caliber is also active, with the clash being inevitable.
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As you can understand, this is an absurd story, which follows one of the new trends of shonen and shonen-like anime, of taking “loans” from various titles of the past, although the way Yuki Yase implements them here, makes his effort anything but ‘copying’. One can definitely see a bit of “Trigun” while some “Bleach” elements with the appearance of the two groups and the twist that appears later on are also quite evident. Furthermore, the round table and the book that gives quests, rewards and intense punishments have obvious medieval and biblical connotation, particularly with the “Babel Tower’ arc.
What truly makes the series stand out though are two things. The first is definitely the way the frequently pantlyless Undead uses his power, with the ways he is not reluctant to cut any part of his body, including his head, to gain more power, being as absurd as it is fun to watch. The combination of constant blood baths and nakedness will make anyone laugh, while the lack of any kind of political correctness is definitely a tick on the pros column.
The second is that deep down, “Undead Unluck” is as much a romance as it is an action title, with the flirting and the will-they-won’t-they of the two titular protagonists being at least as appealing to watch as the rest of the elements here. Particularly the way Fuuko obviously likes the shameless Andy but is waiting for him to make her adore her is one of the most appealing elements in the whole series, with the whole chemistry of the two being excellent.
After the midpoint of the 24 episodes though, and particularly after the revelations of the true purpose of the roundtable are revealed, the series definitely slows down, with the quality of the story deteriorating. The what ifs, the flashbacks, the time travels are not particularly well handled, even if the mangaka character and Tatiana compensate to a large degree. The ending, though, definitely brings the series back on track, closing the whole thing on a positive note.
The technical aspect of the anime is on a very high level. Hideyuki Morioka‘s character design is exquisite, with the plethora of characters being quite unique in their presentation and quite original in their conception. David Production‘s animation finds its apogee in the action scenes, the way Undead maims himself, and the way both affect the surrounding, in an additional testament to the quality of the backgrounds in the anime. Granted, some cliches here and there do exist, but in general, the technical approach is innovative, and this even includes the way it approaches fan service.
“Undead Unluck” is a great series, fun from beginning to end on a number of levels, and definitely one of the best titles of the season.
