Beastars Final Season (original) (raw)

One of the things you want to see in an anime adaptation is what it can do differently or even better than the manga, this without of a doubt meets both of those. I am obviously going to have a little bias with this IP being my all-time favorite, however, even with that there were a few things I can acknowledge that are left to be desired in the source material.

This review contains spoilers, however, the TL;DR will remain spoiler-free.

TL;DR: Season 3 brings a mix of slice-of-life world-building and mystery angles that the previous seasons displayed. The issues the manga had with pacing and the... commonly phrased issue of, "distractiveness" in my opinion, are nowhere to be found. It is clear Studio Orange cares about this property and knows exactly how to form a clear vision for this series. Not to mention the intro (like all other seasons) is an absolute banger, and the artistry is uniquely Beastars. If you like navigating moral issues and witnessing/relating to awkward situations (even adding a bit of action in there), then I can not recommend this season of Beastars more.

Story/Plot: 10/10 - This show took what was a clear vision but in parts into a single coherent vision that shows what Beastars is meant to be. The scenes in every single episode blend beautifully and naturally with the next, adding to the character's depth in not only their own growth/mindset but in how they are holistically placed in the world around them. The major elements that were switched around from the manga like Melons incorporation with the Shishi-gumi (and subsequent rewriting of the Reapers Drop scene) and the reimagining of the concept of drugs (giving a bigger purpose to the "Bloodbone Drug"), adding a new realistic in-world dimension of how things operate. It can be argued thats what the black market's function was to convey, however, I argue it still does in which it represents harsher drugs while the tamer stuff introduced is exactly that, tamer. Granted, even with the praise and 10/10 score for the plot, it does go without saying that this season does end on a nasty cliffhanger (literally) but, I am completely fine with this as it is confirmed this isn't the end of the show.

Characters: 10/10 - Every single new character introduced in this season is perfect, they aid the themes, and drive the plot forward meaningfully. Seven (Sebun), Yahya, Gosha, Sagwan, Leonna, Melon (and yes even the little poop guy); they all play important roles in adding dimensions to Legoshis character development and showing the different perspectives that make up their world. Going more into legacy characters, the developments of Louis, Juno, Haru, and even the whole drama class was very refreshing and reminded me of why I love this series.

Music: 10/10 - The intro is (as expected) peak as per usual with Beastars, even the outro has an amazing piece accompanied by pleasing visuals. Most of the classic scores from the first season make a reappearance accompanied by new appearances making a great catalog to choose from. Granted, there is nothing super special about these scores or leitmotifs, but, it does its job as being an aid to the scenes and setting up the audience to expect what the motif comes with. All-in-all the music is undoubtedly one of the best components of Beastars, as those who detest watching the show still admit the intros are bangers.

Art/Animation: 10/10 - This is the component I most love about Beastars, from the very beginning of the adaptation studio Orange experimented with stop motion, watercolor, and the mixture of 2D/3D animation. Season 3 brings what I missed in season 2, being a new vibrant experimental intro that is pleasing to watch. Also, as mentioned earlier with the outro, the paper-mache cutouts is very cool to see. In terms of the animation in the show itself, every aspect from previous seasons has also been improved. The choreography, camera work, facial expressions, just everything I can list. The only part that tells me it could've been better if they maybe experimented more in the actual show with different art styles like season 1 had, but, I got more than enough of that with the intros and outros.

All-in-all I thoroughly enjoyed this season and it marks a great addition to the series. Can't wait to see what meets us in season 2!