ViscountGamingDigIt

Quick rewatch before S2

The reason it won any awards is that Lazarus is a woke, DEI-checkpoint anime directed by Shinichiro Watanabe, who also did Cowboy Bebop. I looked up what some of the 'based' anime reviewers said about the anime since I'm not gonna watch it... It's got the whole nine yards with climate change sermons, lectures about wealth inequality and capitalism, racism, feminism, and even LGBTQ+ representation with transgender women and a lesbian character. All of that wrapped in a paper-thin plot, weak story, forgettable characters, and more of that pretentious, atmospheric cool vibe that Watanabe tried to replicate from Cowboy Bebop. ... and here is a HOT take. I never liked Cowboy Bebop. I thought it was "okay" but IMO it was the first western tourist anime that blew up thanks to Adult Swim. It was never a mainstream hit in Japan at first, but it became a gateway anime for global audiences. People liked the vibe and style, subtle themes, and the characters... It was a 'safe' anime without a lot of the more uncomfortable themes common in Japanese media even back then. For me, Cowboy bebop was boring, pretentious, and tried too hard to look cool and 'sophisticated', which to me felt fake. The whole existential melancholy, found family, too cool to care energy made it feel empty. Well, turns out I'm right. That's the same DNA Watanabe tried to inject into Lazarus cranked up to 11. It flopped, carried only by the same usual suspects of mainstream anime tourists and Crunchyroll awards.

I miss when entertainment was more physical with in-person launch at the store, on-site game events, and physical game discs🚀