'Death Parade' TV Review- Can An Anime Make You Want To Live?

This series aired in 2013.

Death Parade is a thriller anime created, written, and directed by Yuzuru Tachikawa. All twelve episodes were produced by the Japanese animation studio Madhouse with Funimation, now Crunchyroll, handling the English dub.

Decim (Alex Organ) and his Assistant (Jamie Marchi) run the bar Quindecim on the fifteenth floor of an unknown building. When customers arrive, they do not even remember how they got there, but are encouraged to play a game. Soon, it becomes apparent. They are people who have already died, and Decim, the Assistant, and his manager, Nona (Jad Saxton), are arbiters who decide if the customers get reincarnated or go to the void. The Assistant begins to doubt her duties, especially when she begins having nightmares that seem to hint at a previous life.

Though concepts of Heaven and Hell are replaced with a more pagan interpretation of reincarnation or entering a void, I found this anime incredibly interesting. Through the eyes of the various customers, we see the frailty of life and how humanity tends to take it for granted or can dismiss it altogether.

Now, some of the lore does get bogged down by unnecessary explanations for certain things, and I feel like some of the secondary characters were not necessary. However, outside of that, I was hooked.

Decim is a somber, stoic, and unemotional judge, one who determines where the customer should go. He encounters a newlywed couple, an otaku, a detective, and a celebrity, but he takes no pity on them. The Assistant does and begs him to look at their humanity and not just make a snap judgment. This dichotomy is what makes the show so compelling.

Besides the storytelling, the artwork is fantastic. It shows the difference between the human souls and the arbiters, not to mention that it has some incredible sound design. I especially want to celebrate the upbeat theme song, compared to the bleak nature of the plot.

Many fans want a second season of the show. Personally, I think that is a bad idea. I like how it told the story through the eyes of Decim and his Assistant. We see their customers and learn more about them, making it have a climax that you do not see coming. It was a solid ending and one I would not want revisited.

Check out the OP theme song below:

PARENTAL CONCERNS: Bloody violence, Foul language, Substance abuse

What do you think? Let me know in the comments below. Tell me if there is a novel, comic book, movie, or anime you would like me to review.