Netflix releases newest original anime Last Hope, here are our first impressions

The latest post-apocalyptic anime, Netflix’s Last Hope, takes on an advanced scientific story arc, but with action sequences that throw us back to the early 2000s.

If it’s possible, imagine a world that combines the desert wastelands of Mad Max, the science rhetoric of Steins;Gate and the action animation of Bionicle.  It’s pretty difficult to picture, especially considering all three come from very different mediums of entertainment. Yet, Netflix’s latest anime release, Last Hope, creates that exact universe and could be changing the game for Japanese animation.

Netflix began exclusively streaming Last Hope (Jūshinki Pandora) in Japan on March 29, and released the anime’s first 13 episodes “worldwide” just yesterday. The English dub version is, amazingly enough, directed by anime voice actress Cherami Leigh, who is most famously known  for her role as Asuna in the dubbing of Sword Art Online and Lucy in Fairy Tail. Having been part of the groundbreaking success of SAO, it’s no surprise Leigh would be involved in Japan’s next high-tech-based series.

Episode one, “The Evolving Destroyer,” does more than a decent job at getting viewers hooked in the first five minutes. From minuscule details like lizards with biotech eyes, to big-picture illustrations like psychedelic rainbow shock waves that immerse the world, it’s easy to deduce that Last Hope creators aimed to captivate.

In this anime, humans are almost extinct due to the Xianglong Crisis (aka Shanron or Soaring Dragon Crisis) in 2031, when The Quantum Reactor,  a next generation energy source developed to replace dwindling environmental resources, exploded and unleashed an unknown energy throughout the planet.

As a result, all living things (besides humans), as well as machines, each underwent their own unique evolution and became known as the B.R.A.I. (Biological Revolutionary of Accelerated Intelligence). These enhanced entities began to evolve at alarming rates and, because of them, humanity was nearly wiped from existence. Those that remain fight losing battles with the B.R.A.I using Multi-purpose Organic Evolution Vehicles.

The main, mad-scientist character, Leon, resembles a slightly calmer Rintaro Okabe–yet just as socially distressed–and is suggested to have been a key player in the destruction of earth. Leo lives in Neo Xianglong, years after the explosion with his companion, Chloe Lau. The two are attempting to find a more efficient way to fight the B.R.A.I. when they cross paths with a platoon of contract fighters trying to fend of a massive crab-like creature.

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The animation in this show is nothing short of jaw-droppingly gorgeous, rivaling even that of A.I.C.O. and Violet Evergarden. The fluid waves of sparkles on chemically altered plants and microscopic models of DNA strands are traits not often seen in traditional anime. But tradition seemed to be of little consequence in Last Hope.  

It was no doubt a risky move for the creators to combine old-school CGI-like action sequences to their series, especially when even more popular films like Treasure Planet were not well-received due to the mix of 2D and 3D animation. However, the wonderful thing about anime is that, when it comes to new developments in storytelling, there’s so much more audience forgiveness with experimentation.

Anime has varied is so many styles, from the more Cartoon Network feel of My Hero Academia to the dreamy and sparkly canvas of Your Lie in April. Aside from the “old” days of Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Sailor Moon and Inuyasha, anime has rarely ever stayed within the guidelines of one animation style. Because of this, fans don’t really expect stereotypes, and that could be the reason they are more apt to animation changes.

With free range being all the rage, it’s likely that Last Hope ushers in a new form of Japanese anime, mixing different mediums of animation to entice more emotion and add smoother, more life-like movements to battle scenes and characters. But whether or not the style catches on, it definitely works well for this show.

Catch all of Part 1 of Last Hope, streaming on Netflix now. Feel free to comment below with your thoughts on the show.