In the sci-fi anime series ‘Spriggan’, agent Yu Ominae is tasked with retrieving artefacts left behind by advanced ancient civilisations. Season 1 is now streaming on Netflix.
Story
In the present day, warnings in the form of ancient scriptures have been left behind concerning the artefacts they left behind.
The ancient civilisation that wrote it grew too advanced for its own good and ended up getting destroyed.
ARCAM, an organisation that claims to be the saviour of the world by preventing these relics from getting into the wrong hands, assigns agents to retrieve them.
These are known as ‘Spriggans’. Yu Ominao, 17-year-old S-Rank Spriggan, is the protagonist of the series. His role is to retrieve the artefacts for ARCAM and prevent organisations from around the world from capturing them first.
Throughout season 1, he comes across various relics and obstacles while attempting to complete his missions for ARCAM.
Positives
Spriggan has quite an intriguing concept. Advanced scientific artefacts still shrouded in mystery give the show a lot of creative freedom, which it handles well.
The characters, right from Yu to his teachers Oboro and Bowman, are complex and interesting. While Yu can come off as invincible at times, the fact that he questions ARCAM openly gives his character depth.
The relics rouse curiosity. You just can’t wait to know what marvels the next episodes hold. From a war machine to immortality, Spriggan has it all.
It cleverly juxtaposes actual history with the fictional world of the anime. Hitler’s secret accomplice, the vanishings of planes and ships from across history; there’s an excellent blend of reality and imagination.
The season finale provides much to look forward to, as everything that Yu has believed thus far is questioned.
Negatives
The deus ex machina is quite obvious. No matter how dire the situation, Yu and the other Spriggans seem to come out in perfect shape.
The show is similar to anthologies, with each episode narrating a different story. This leads to inconsistencies, as some episodes are clearly stronger than others.
The animation is a mixed bag. Some scenes are animated beautifully, while others are a 3-D mess.
Verdict
Spriggan is a top-tier Netflix original anime with a narrative that will leave you wanting more by the end of its six-episode first season.
Rating: 3.5/5
Also Read: Spriggan (2022) summary and ending explained