KAIBA

DESCRIPTION

CAST

REVIEWS

• 

  planetJane

  100/100
  A masterpiece of its medium, and profoundly ahead of its time. Kaiba deals with themes of love, loss, and memory.

  Spoilers below.

  ---

  I've always had this pet theory that you can, very broadly, sort all pieces of media into one of three categories, based on how closely they relate to other works in their medium in terms of shared themes, character archetypes, style, narrative elements, and so on. Most media falls into the first two categories--derivative with no major changes to the norm, or derivative with some sort of twist. This is neither a positive nor a negative and really, is just how storytelling operates, so there'd be no sense in lamenting it even if it were a negative.

  Then you have a third category. Things that walk so far outside the usual orbits of their medium that their place within them is questionable to begin with. It is here where Kaiba resides, on the farthest outlands of anime as a medium, sharing more real estate with experimental a-narrative work like some of the Genius Party shorts and 60s cartooning from around the world than it does with its contemporaries, and with a soundtrack that foregoes the usual anime soundtracking tropes in favor of a moodier score dominated by surreal washes of sound and lurching one- or two-instrument tracks, Kaiba is wholly unlike anything else that premiered in 2008. '08 saw the premiers of the third Yu-Gi-Oh! Series, Black Butler, the Soul Eater anime, and reboots of the Casshern and Macross franchises. Nobody was doing anything like Kaiba in 2008, and almost nobody is doing anything at all like Kaiba now.

  So what then, is Kaiba? That's a question that's surprisingly hard to answer. As alluded to, it defies easy genre classification, it mixes elements of cyberpunk, romantic drama, the Japanese genre of the "world story" (think Neon Genesis Evangelion), and even a twinge of black comedy. Kaiba takes place in a world where memories can be stored in tiny cones called "chips", and bodies are interchangeable. The consequence here is that there have come to be more chips than bodies, and the latter are themselves now a commodity. But that's not all! Memories themselves can be uploaded, downloaded, altered, erased, or fabricated wholesale. They, of course, are a commodity too. This sort of thing is really where Kaiba's cyberpunk shows through, it's positively Ghost In The Shell-ian.

  The first half of Kaiba is largely episodic and here it somewhat resembles "traveler adventure" anime in structure. Things like Kino's Journey or Gun x Sword or (to give a western example) Samurai Jack. Our titular protagonist--who throughout a fair chunk of the first half of the series is stuck in bodies not his own--wakes up amnesiac with nothing but a locket containing a picture of a girl in a place called "The Underworld", whose population are oppressed by the rich living in "Heaven", physically above them, and protected by a thick smog of memory-erasing gas in between. With the help of a vigilante named Popo he escapes to a luxury space cruiser, where he travels from planet to planet on as a stowaway. Kaiba and his companion Nyon-Nyon (and their pursuer, the bearlike cop Vanilla) get into a number of….well it's hard to call them adventures, simply because most are horribly tragic.

  Take the example of episode 3. When our heroes arrive on a small planet (no name is ever given), we're promptly introduced to Chroniko, an impoverished girl with long blue hair and a pair of bright purplish boots that she is quite proud of. We learn that she wants to save money so she can someday leave the tiny backwater planet she calls home. Then we learn that her body is being sold--quite literally--to help out her mother and brothers. We learn that this isn't the first time some part of Chroniko has been sold for profit, we learn that memories of her favorite books and music have been sold too.

  Of course to Chroniko this all comes out in the wash. She assures herself that one day, after her brothers get good jobs, her mother will buy her a new body and she'll live again. Not long after, we are given a scene where this is quite emphatically proven to not be the case. Chroniko goes to get her procedure done, and the doctor supervising it tells her flat out that her chip will not be saved, and she will never return home. She is promptly dismantled as the horror of her situation sets in.

  It is one thing for a character to be killed on-screen, and for the audience to watch them die. It is quite another for their existence to be, effectively, entirely erased and scattered to the wind as Chroniko's is. A show less interested in exploring its universe's nature might leave things at that, but the latter half of the episode is devoted to exploring Chroniko's memories, and the regret her mother feels at having sold her. Eventually, our protagonist even ends up in Chroniko's body--literally left in a trash heap by the smugglers who bought it. Ironically Kaiba-Chroniko is saved by the cop Vanilla from these smugglers (who seek to reclaim their quarry). Somewhere in here I must note that the man who sought to buy Chroniko's body was a literally duck-faced pedophile. It is a thorough gutting of her character. Someone so innocent is destroyed utterly by the depravity of the privileged rich.

  These themes and ideas begin to coalesce into a wider narrative in the show's latter half. Popo returns, the girl from the locket shows up, Kaiba himself is revealed to be King Warp, who we're lead to believe is a vile tyrant, ruling from Heaven over the people in the Underworld below, and the way that Kaiba's earlier episodic elements tie into these later more connected episodes is really something special. As an example; the recurring narrative of broken mother/child relationships repeats--first with Chroniko and her adopted mother selling her body, then with Popo and his mother selling her own body to save her son's life, only to be rejected by that same son, to finally, Kaiba having once been poisoned by his own mother for apparent reasons of political intrigue (though notable this last one turns out to not quite be the case, but the repetition remains).

  In the world of Kaiba, these problems--broken parental relationships, people being condemned to horrible fates in bodies not their own, the commodification of body and memory, the gap between the rich and the poor, and even the late-game menace of the Kaiba Plant (no relation except by name) threatening to devour Heaven itself--are not just related, they are the same. Each feeds into each other.

  To call Kaiba groundbreaking is no overstatement.

  It fills me with hope and joy for the medium that Kaiba's stylistic children are just now beginning to propagate. From Flip-Flappers--which shares its fixation on memory and mothers--to TRIGGER's sugar high crossover-fest Space Patrol Luluco, which is another peculiar take on the "world story" genre, it really feels like Kaiba's time in the sun is just starting to come. Perhaps it will remain an underground source of influence forever, but really, if you love anime or animation in general, if you love the strange and weird and wonderful, Kaiba almost certainly has something for you. There is so much I have not touched on--and have no room to touch on, really--that I simply must implore you, if any of this sounds at all interesting, to give Kaiba a go for yourself.

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• 

  Pockeyramune919

  90/100
  Kaiba is a strange and beautiful hidden classic.

  

  Kaiba was interesting, to say the least.

  And I mean this mostly as a compliment. While "interesting" is usually used as a thinly veiled insult, this show has so many good things going for it that the simplest way to express my feelings is to say it's "interesting." While there are things that I was iffy about, overall, Kaiba is an amazingly unique anime experience that's a wonderful example of what the medium is capable of.

  One of Kaiba's most notable qualities is its art. I happened across Kaiba when browsing Youtube one day. I watched a bit of this clip and I was extremely drawn to the show. I'm a sucker for non-standard art design in anime and Kaiba scratched that itch. Kaiba features very simple designs that one might not think of when they hear the word "anime." The designs harken back to classical western cartoons as well as the design work of Osamu Tezuka of Astro Boy fame. This simplicity can allows for some very exaggerated designs: from the brutish, vaguely Hippo-like Vanilla, to the dopey Butter, to the ridiculously voluptuous Lum, the character designs do a great job of not only conveying personality but also of being interesting. And that's not even getting into the simple backgrounds that look as if they were carefully painted. While Kaiba doesn't ever go full Looney Tunes, its art-design can be comical: case in point, there's a moment when Kaiba has a full-on balloon stomach from overeating. Not to mention, the colors are quite vibrant, making practically every frame pop. The simple, "childish" designs contrast nicely with the off putting and/or adult situations the characters find themselves in.

  

  This is all to say that Kaiba is very easy on the eyes. While this might not mean much to some, it helped me stay engaged. I found myself paying attention because of the beautiful art alone. Even the episodes I wasn't as keen on, via art, provided something to hold my interest. The worst thing a creative work can be is boring, and while art usually isn't something I focus on, a really unique style can help a work stick in my mind. It's a testament to just how beautiful I find Kaiba's artstyle that I'm talking about it at length instead of blowing past it in order to get to the story. I'd suggest checking out Kaiba just to see the art in action.

  Don't let my praise of the art cause you to think the OST is a slouch. The beauty of Kaiba can be heard in the first moments via the opening song, "Never." A vaguely techno beat combined with the ethereal singing of Seira Kagami and atmosphering background instruments inform viewers of what type of show they're about to watch. The opening, like the show in general, is very warm and beautiful, yet sad. Upon hearing it, it quickly became one of my favorite opening songs. The ending song, "Carry Me Away," is similarly beautiful. The songs of the OST vary, from the dark, industrial-themed "Initialize," to the generally light and bubbly versions of "Planet." In general, though, all the songs are atmospheric, fostering the somber mood of the anime. I recommend you check out the OST as a whole, for it's very good. The song I'm linking isn't a part of the official OST, but it's such a great song and its use in "Chroniko's Boots" is a big part of why that particular episode is my favorite in the series.

  But as much as I love the music and artwork, at the end of the day, I personally still hold story as the most important component of an anime. So, what words do I have regarding Kaiba's story?

  Kaiba is, in a word, odd. Just thirty seconds into the clip I embedded and you can tell this show is weird. Many of the video's comments are a variation of "WTF." That can be pretty indicative of your reaction to the show. Many things will happen that will prompt you to ask yourself "what in the world did I just watch?" There will probably be times when you'll want to rewatch an episode or clip in order to understand what happened.

  Though, I must say, the premise is easy enough to grasp. In the world of Kaiba, effective immortality has been achieved via memories being contained in chips. One can place memory chips into a new body of their choosing. This choice, however, is generally only available with the rich, with the poor living in squalor. They often have their memories or bodies stripped from them or give them away willingly in order to make ends meet. A young man with a hole in his chest and a triangle symbol on his stomach awakens, with no memory of who he is. All he's given are the names "Warp" and "Kaiba." His only clue is a locket containing a blurry picture of a woman. The show follows his journey to figure out the identities of himself and the woman in the locket. While he does this, his path crosses with an organization opposed to the transferral of memories and bodies.

  

  A lot of the oddity comes from the sci-fi elements and getting acclimated to this strange, new world. Some of it is simply an exploration of the story's transhumanist themes combined with topics that aren't explored in the media often enough. How does being able to control multiple bodies change how we have and perceive sex? How would one deal with suddenly changing the biological sex of their body, finding they have periods? Transhumanism is my jam, so I thouroughly enjoyed Kaiba dealing with it. It can be a bit confusing at times, but I didn't find it daunting, simply an invitation to rewatch it/read others' interpretations.

  

  I will say that if based on the clip, you find the second episode a bit "much", it's one of the strangest episodes of the series. It's quite sex-focused (which is fine by me as I enjoy exploring sex via media, but that's neither here nor there) in a way that other episodes aren't (though the topic of sex crops up at least one other time). I can guess why Animecrush felt the need to share this clip, not just because it would get clicks, but because it's indicative of the themes of the show. Yet, as the rest of the episode shows, these themes are explored not just via oddity, but by emotion.

  Kaiba is a surprisingly emotional show. Kaiba is at its best when it's character-focused and showing how various people deal with the world they find themselves in. Episode three, "Chroniko's Boots" is my favorite in the show due to how hauntingly beautiful it is. It is here that we see the depth of the horror that transhumanism can bring. Chroniko ultimately wasn't in the show for very long, but she leaves a hell of an impact. My second-favorite is probably "A Muscular Woman," for doing the opposite and showing that love can transcend beyond the boundaries of a physical body. It's an episode that becomes even better in hindsight.

  

  The latter episodes of Kaiba are quite ill-received, if rewatch threads are any indication. I've seen one person decry that the show "jumped the shark." It's undeniable that the latter episodes are of a different makeup than the first: they're less character-focused, opting instead to focus on both plot-progression and world exposition. The results are mixed. While I really, really appreciate finally getting to know Kaiba's identity and his relation to the woman in the locket, exposition could have been handled better. Flashbacks are structured in a way to be intentionally confusing (I wasn't even sure a flashback was a flashback until midway through the episode) and the plot can come across as a bit convoluted. There's cloning, death fakeouts, quadruple crossings, etc. It's just a lot to grapple with in a short timeframe and I'm still not sure I get it. There are still tender moments, to be sure, (particularly in episode nine, "Kaiba") but they're not nearly as abundant as before. Over all, while I'd say saying Kaiba "jumped the shark" during its last episodes is quite an exaggeration, it's definitely a departure and not one I'm 100% on board with. But at the very least, unlike some series, the ending is pretty straightforward. Open-ended, sure, but I get the main points and it ended on a sweet note, which is always nice.

  

  Kaiba can be strange, it can be confusing, it can honestly be a little off putting, but it's also touching and speaks to many poignant themes. Is it perfect? No. It can be too obtuse at times and me and many others find the last stretch overly convoluted. However, these hiccups don’t stop it from being one of the most unique shows I've had the pleasure of watching. I was fairly engrossed from start to finish. It is a treat visually, musically, and narratively. I heartily recommend this show to someone looking for something both different and beautiful.

  9/10

  A-

  
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• 

  WheelMicBum

  20/100
  Needless to say I didn't enjoy it. Poor show

  Yes, it's time for Kaiba, the origin of many angry rants.

  The premise doesn't sound too bad

  Now for the worst part of it all. The characters. If you're already angry at me, stop reading because I will not be gentle.

  Let’s talk about the protagonist first.

  Thus, he serves as a mere self-insert character for wish-fulfilment and at the end of the day, there’s nothing ‘individualistic’ about him. Gary stu is probably what describes his character the best, and if paired with the Mary sue of the show, we get a lead couple that seems to have been cut out straight from a tacky romance fanfiction.

  Yes, when I mentioned ‘Mary sue’, I was referring to Neiro.

  While initially she’s portrayed as a strong, independent female player with a tsundere-ish attitude, it doesn’t take her long to make a transition from that to a deplorable damsel in distress, requiring her knight in black robe to come to her rescue whenever she’s in a bind.

  The only good character, literally, is the bad-ass sheriff guy. He punches women in the face in a way that makes me think he is angry to be in the show at all. Winner.

  Vanilla - This is Kaiba's brother. He honestly has layers and was a plus to the show in my opinion. I don't know why he's in this show, he doesn't belong in it...

  As for the supporting cast, they are either really well done and don't get enough screen time, or get some but are very obnoxious and you'd just wish they'd go away. Because of this, none of them are worth even mentioning, even though I quite like some of them.

  I had no problem with the visuals. They were competently done. Although the only noteworthy artwork, in my opinion, is the opening, which is just beautiful.

  As I have already stated, the opening is great, and I watch it almost every time. Same goes for the second opening and both endings. I highly enjoy all of these.

  The rest of the soundtrack often uses rather loud sounds and more pounding instruments for a higher feeling of creepiness and awe. But it can also tone down that feeling, incorporating a soft piano for those more heartfelt moments. The tracks fit the mood of the anime but aren't worth listening to outside of the anime itself.

  And then begins the second arc which, to be blunt, is a letdown again.

  Watch it to witness the writing yourself. But more importantly, by watching the show you can better understand the reviews or, better yet, write one yourself.

  Enjoyment: Terrible, lame fights, unnecessarily confusing ending, and contains no value

  Overall - This show has so many fans, and I really don't know why. Its plot is rushed and terrible. Its characters so flat, it's almost funny...almost. Its romance is highly misogynistic and terribly developed. I felt insulted watching this, and don't understand how any could like this show. Even Gamers.

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