Make My Day Anime Review: A Derivative Yet Forgettable Experience
Read our review of Make My Day, an anime series that falls short in creating a memorable impact. Despite incorporating familiar elements, the lack of originality and unique spark prevents it from truly standing out.
Make My Day Anime Review: A Derivative Yet Forgettable Experience
Make My Day is an anime series that aims to deliver a thrilling science-fiction action-horror experience. Directed by Makoto Honda and streaming on Netflix, it follows the story of James ‘Jim’ Mirror, a part-time guard on the icy planet Coldfoot. However, despite its intentions, Make My Day falls short in creating a memorable impact.
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One of the immediate criticisms of Make My Day is its lack of originality. The series incorporates familiar elements, but fails to offer a unique spark that would make it stand out. The premise revolves around a greedy corporation exploiting resources on a desolate planet, accompanied by underpaid security forces and menacing alien creatures. This premise, reminiscent of iconic films like Alien and Avatar, leaves Make My Day feeling inferior in terms of quality and impact.
Even without direct familiarity with these films, finding novelty in Make My Day proves to be a difficult task. The influence of Alien and similar works has spawned numerous derivatives, resulting in a sense of repetitiveness. The series lacks originality and fails to offer fresh perspectives within the genre, diminishing its potential to captivate the audience.
Lack of Originality and Fresh Perspectives
Make My Day’s lack of originality is a significant drawback. The series heavily relies on borrowed ideas and fails to establish its own identity. While it attempts to maintain a hard sci-fi aesthetic with practical equipment and sensible vacuum suits, it falls short in exploring the scientific aspects in depth.
The resemblance to iconic films like Alien and Avatar is striking, making it challenging to ignore the comparison. This familiarity not only diminishes the novelty of Make My Day, but also leaves it feeling derivative and unoriginal. Without offering fresh perspectives or innovative storytelling, the series fails to captivate and engage the audience.
Lackluster Characters and Narrative Depth
Make My Day does present a few commendable aspects, such as the likable protagonist, Jim Mirror. His passion for art adds depth to his character and makes him relatable. However, the series falls short in developing its supporting characters. With a rapidly expanding cast, it becomes challenging for the audience to remember names and invest in their arcs within the limited eight-episode series duration.
Furthermore, Make My Day fails to deliver meaningful themes or social commentary. While it initially hints at an anti-corporate and anti-security state sentiment, the show ultimately redeems every villain, downplaying their evil actions. The lack of reflection on the cruel treatment of prisoners and the disregard for the environmental consequences of resource mining diminishes the potential impact of the narrative.
Subpar Visuals and Lackluster Action
Visually, Make My Day fails to impress. The CG animation lacks life and excitement, making it challenging to engage with the events on screen. The alien creatures, resembling giant orange tardigrades, lose their initial intrigue as their repetitive appearance becomes comical rather than menacing.
In terms of action sequences, Make My Day also falls flat. The scenes intended to be thrilling suffer from awkward pacing and lackluster execution. As a result, the action fails to create the desired impact and excitement, leaving the audience underwhelmed.
Confusing Subplot and Predictable Conclusion
The subplot involving the robot Casper adds confusion rather than depth to the narrative. Casper’s design and personality fail to resonate with the audience, and the attempt to create a dramatic finale centered around friendship feels predictable and out of place.
In conclusion, Make My Day lacks its own identity and relies heavily on borrowed ideas. Its subpar visuals, lack of thematic depth, and confusing subplot make it a forgettable experience. With its derivative nature and unimpressive execution, it’s best to skip this series and save your time for more compelling anime offerings.
