Summary
Hell’s Paradisewas a new Shōnen anime with a lot of potential and hype behind it and yet, for some reason, it failed to meet fans' expectations and went largely unnoticed in terms of overall conversation and praise. It’s one of what fans call Shōnen Jump’s “Dark Trio”, comprised ofChainsaw Man, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Hell’s Paradise. But the fans saw the story behind the manga and the author.
When they found out that the anime adaptation was going to be made by Studio Mappa, the same people behindChainsaw Man,Attack on Titan,andJujutsu Kaisen, excitement was overflowing. However, fans grew increasingly disappointed with the adaptation once the anime premiered and progressed. Why was the anime for Hell’s Paradise so underwhelming and underappreciated by fans?
Hell’s Paradise Fell Behind
High Expectations Fell Flat
Hell’s Paradise follows the story of Gabimaru the Hollow, ayoung ninja who is seemingly unable to die. After being captured during an assassination mission, he is sentenced to die, but every single execution effort fails due to his superhuman body. Gabimaru meets the executioner, Yamada Asaemon Sagiri, who offers him a pardon for his crimes by the Shogunate if he fulfills a very special mission.
Gabimaru must find the elixir of life in the legendary realm of Shinsenkyo. But he is not the only one sent to the Island. A large group of death row convicts accompanied by executioners just like Sagiri, and whoever finds the elixir and brings it back with the executioner alive gets a pardon for their crimes.
The anime’s premise is a fresh and darker ideathat immediately hooks audiences, Shōnen Jump has had a resurgence of much darker manga being serialized in the magazines, and Hell’s Paradise, Chainsaw Man, and Jujutsu Kaisen are the best examples of this. With the rise of dark anime likeAttack on Titan, darker anime is often widely accepted and even preferred by fans, but just a cool concept isn’t enough to warrant a successful series.
My own life takes top priority and I’m not planning to die. My whole goal’s to survive and make it home. Home to my wife. I’m not about to lay down my life. But I’ll sacrifice whatever it takes otherwise. My ideals, reason, sense, even my humanity.
There are many other series that have less or just not as captivating premises but have had tremendous success in the anime sphere in the last decade. Shows likeDemon Slayeror Jujutsu Kaisen have often been accused of being carried by their animation, proposing the idea that their stories are not anything special but the incredible animation done by their respective studios hasdone wonders for the stories' success and appeal to audiences.
Nowadays, due to the success of Attack on Titan, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Chainsaw Man, whenever fans think of studio Mappa they think of spectacular and breathtaking animation, so when Hell’s Paradise was announced to be animated by the same studio, there was a very high expectation already on the series. And when the time came, Hell’s Paradise simply didn’t fulfill the task that the previous works by Mappa had done. In today’s anime industry, a good story simply isn’t enough to guarantee the success of a series.
Audiences now more than ever prioritize good animation and art over anything else, for better or for worse.While Hell’s Paradise had a good premise and a good story, the lackluster animation compared to its predecessors simply made it fall behind what fans expected of it. While it was still appreciated and garnered many fans, Hell’s Paradise simply didn’t deliver on the promises that were set in Studio Mappa’s name. Most of the conversation simply relied on superfluous aspects, such as the character of Yuzuriha, who became incredibly popular thanks to her alluring design and personality.
And whileseason two of Hell’s Paradise has already been announced, it’s safe to say that season one largely went unnoticed and was underwhelming for most anime fans, who expected a visual spectacle similar to other Studio Mappa modern action anime shows. It will be up to season two of the story to deliver on the expectations fans of the manga and new fans had of the anime.
Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku
Hell’s Paradise takes place during the Edo period in Japan, where a group of prisoners facing execution are sent to a mysterious island. Once there, they become stranded and are forced to help each other and fight against monstrous residents. Hell’s Paradise is based on a manga series of the same name by Yuji Kaku.
