A powerful necromancer called the “Corpse God”, who transcended his humanity is defeated in combat. Before his demise he casts a spell that allows him to reincarnate to have a peaceful life. Well… didn’t work exactly as planned. He got thrusted into the freshly dead body of a 16 year old boy in today's japan. Thanks to a series of not so fortunate events he gets entangled with people from the underground. Despite being in a different world he still wants to find a way to live a peaceful life. Despite his goal, life has a strange way of keeping him on his toes.
To be fair it is a part one of the seasons and it kinda feels like it. All the episodes function more like a prelude and world building than anything else. Unfortunately it works to the detriment of the 12 episodes.
But let’s start with the main cast.
Corpse God - our main protagonist. In his former life he was hunted as an evil calamity and slain as such. Despite that it does appear he had some pretty good reasons to be a dick the people he killed. To no one's surprise he has a tragic backstory because… of course he does. Tragic backstories to MCs nowadays are a dime a dozen in manga and anime so I’m not even gonna pretend it’s interesting because it’s not. It’s the same generic shit You saw a million times… but with a skeleton. So I guess You haven’t seen this iteration all that often. Still boring. Despite being in a new world he’s tragically passive. Yes, he has a goal and even starts a business but most of the things that happen to him happen “to him” and not “because of him” which leaves him as a reactionary hero. Something I truly despise. He has no personality to speak of and, to my surprise, the show acknowledges that in the last episode and even gives a half assed excuse for it. It is more that most shows give about the lack of personality so i guess it’s a plus. As he is now he is another nerfed but still pretty OP, boring protagonist with no personality. A pretty good premise turned lacklustre execution.
Polka Shinoyama - the 16 year old boy who got killed and whose body is now inhabited by the Corpse God. Not much is known about him except he is an heir of a rich family, has more empathy than brain and is kind. His soul now inhabits a shark plushie, something he doesn’t seem to mind in the least. To be fair in the grand scheme of things he’s just a useless mascot who gets himself in ecchi situations once in a while.
Misaki Sakimiya - The girl who killed Polka. She’s a hired gun with a reputation of putting down other killers. She seems to be emotionally unstable and detached from reality. To be fair in the beginning, both in her design and character she seemed to me like an amalgamation of Junko Enoshima and Toko Fukawa from Danganronpa. Not a bad place to start and her character does go in a bit of a different route than those two. After getting killed, mostly by accident, by the Corpse God, she gets resurrected as a zombie. Something she’s perfectly ok with and even has some fun with her new skills. She is tragically underutilised in this show as she’s the best part of the main coterie.
Takumi Kuruya - an information broker who uses his drones and hacking skills to keep tabs on important things. Despite being suspicious of the Corpse God in the beginning he warms up to him rather quickly. He even helps with his fortune telling business venture. Not a very original character and as such is pretty much forgettable.
Now that we have the coterie out of the way, let's talk about writing.
It’s… well.. It’s everywhere and nowhere all at the same time.
There is a plot somewhere there, hidden behind all the world building and characters introduction. It’s a shame that the plot isn’t run by the MC but everyone else. Let me explain. Our hero is stranded in a new world, has a goal in mind and even an idea on how to achieve it. But every dramatic thing that happens is a result of someone else's decisions and action. It’s more often than not that he gets involved by chance or because of the body he inhabits. He has little to no real power as a story catalyst. Like I said before: Things happen to him, not because of him. That changes a little in the last two episodes but before that he’s just there along for the ride.
Apart from that the story is actually pretty interesting. It starts out as almost a dark comedy reverse isekai but the longer the show goes on the more it shifts into a pretty solid thriller with its very own secret organizations fighting for power, assassinations and even some supernatural elements for good measure. It’s a solid idea.
The problem is that all that needed a set up. That’s what those 12 episodes are (I really hope so) - a setup to something more grand. Now don’t get me wrong, You can still have a good time watching them but at the end You will be left with blue balls and a WTF face. I honestly am a bit hyped for part two because I hope they will deliver on the type of thriller (maybe even a political one) that they set up.
All in all I think that despite its flaws and being just a prelude to more things to come it’s a solid watch. If for nothing else the premise and Misaki are rather enjoyable.
