B: The Beginning Returns

Aside from Attack on Titan, there are not too many anime studios plot and character development with a serious nature. Opening up with a light-hearted soundtrack, along with light-hearted character interactions, the second season of B: The Beginning which is created by the well-known anime studio Production I.G., has arrived on Netflix. Though it may only have six episodes for this second season, the mysterious nature surrounding reggies quickly takes root once again. Instead of having one primary protagonist, B: The Beginning, lays the groundwork for two protagonists. The first one being the detective Keith Flick, while the other one being the reggie simply known as Koku. Each character works to push the plot forward in their own way.

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It is not every day that an anime manages to lay out creative literary tools such as symbolism and foreshadowing, but B: The Beginning manages to encapsulate such devices without straining itself. These plot devices happen in a natural way as the viewer experiences them from moment to moment. Exactly halfway through the episode, one of the antagonists, Yukikaze, sets the theme for the episode. He states to his ally: “The source of all failures in any era is always carelessness” as he is monitoring the conversation between Koku and Kirisame. This sets the standard for repeating themes of caution and attention throughout the episode.

Before this moment, the season had opened up with Lily Hoshina, a major supporting character with a high intellect reminiscent of Keith Flick. Lily’s character delivers the light-hearted moments of the series, often comic and silly. At the beginning of season 2, Lily’s character helps in setting the theme, carelessness, which is later stated by one of the antagonists, Yukikaze. Lily’s character is ultimately a foil to Keith. They share a few similar qualities such as their high level of intelligence and analytical skills, but the two are ultimately far different in terms of personality. Lily is a happy, resilient, and gentle soul, while Keith is a serious natured, often depressed individual.

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As Keith is analyzing an on-going crime scene in the an investigation he wasn't supposed to be a part of, other officers apprehend him instead of paying attention to what is obviously much more important. Keith quickly points out their negligence, but it is far to late as the criminal jumped from the building. Their inaction and failure to monitor the criminals every moved prevented them from saving his life. Due to the negligence of the officers, they were unable to apprehend the criminal. This moment demonstrates how both an antagonist and a protagonist, Yukikaze, and Keith, are not foolish enough to neglect any possible outcome of any given situation. A clear theme such as this, if one at all, is not seen in the typical anime series, but the careful direction of the show allows a common theme like this to be setup for each episode. Often, the themes that are present in B: The Beginning are often repeated and echo into other episodes as the plot thickens. Along with ultilizing foreshadowing to give each episode a clear theme, the anime also utilizes symbolism to give light to key character traits and pivotal plot points throughout the series.

One major repeating symbol through the series is Koku’s eyes. Each eye is a different color with one being blue, and the other brown when he is not in a transformed state. It is a clear representation of his life as a human and his life as a reggie. Each eye demonstrates the two different worlds he is apart of, but ultimately, he belongs to neither. His predominate will is to be part of the human world; however, other reggies continue to force him back into a life he no longer wanted to be a part of. Upon being threatened with the possibility of his beloved Yuna being murdered, he steps up to use his god-like abilities to assassinate government officials as most reggies have the intention of turning the world upside down. Regardless, he still cannot find it in his will to kill humans. It is apparent that he does not wish to kill humans as he wishes to walk the world as one of them, a common theme seen in many fantasy series throughout the history of storytelling. However, most anime series do not give such careful attention to the finer details of what can be a truly great plot.

What would a good anime be without excellent and relentless animation styles? The overall animation style of the series utilizes dark lighting with eerie music set-up for almost every scene; however, occasional light-hearted music and comical character scenes, typically featuring Lily Hoshina, aid in relieving the viewer from overall dark and gritty atmosphere. Many anime series are unable to depict characters moving at lightning-fast speeds, but B: The Beginning is able to shock and impress audiences by using different methods. For example, there are some scenes where the camera shifts to the first-person perspective to witness a character moving at such high speeds. By animating the motion of a person witnessing something at high speed, it allows the audience to get a different kind of perspective not seen in your average anime series. Though there are some scenes where the studio could have used better animation or art style in general, the series does a good job of making their characters look cool, interesting, and flashy.

The overall lighting of the series enhances darker themes. At one point, Koku is in a dark forest, but the only light in the scene is coming from his cellphone. Though it may seem like a minor detail, many studios do not take the time to enhance a scene in such a subtle way. The indirect details, however small they may seem, often make an anime series stand out among the other series airing at the time. While many anime studios are renowned for their artstyle with food, B: The Beginning is impressing audiences by utilizing dark places lit up by smaller glimmers of light. At one point, the light shining from the moon reflects off of the water giving a comforting amount of light to what would normally be a scene surrounded in darkness.

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To stack on top of the overall animation style, B: The Beginning utilizes eerie music to enhance the serious nature of the anime. By using this type of music, the anime is able to build up to major scenes in a compelling way, which aids a plot shrouded by mystery. No element ever of the music never feels out of place, working symbiotically with the animation style and detective-style genre elements of the series.

With superb characters, daunting antagonists, over-the-top dark animation enhanced by lighting, and daunting music used to enhance each scene, B: The Beginning is an anime worth checking out for even casual anime fans. The light-hearted scenes from time to time will allow viewers to take a breath of fresh air from what has an overall serious tone. The studio knows not to always take itself far too seriously, which is refreshing for any anime series. Although there are currently only six episodes for season 2, anime fans will find themselves pleased by the refreshing plot development which unfolds throughout each episode of B: The Beginning. Anime viewers will quickly that this anime series is worth giving a chance, especially since Production I.G. is the studio behind it, who is always known for producing incredible content. B: The Beginning is sure to hold people over for the next great series, if not becoming one of their favorites and possibly a cult-classic in the anime community.