Anime Review: This Monster Wants To Eat Me Episodes 1 And 2
This Monster Wants to Eat Me is an anime TV series based on the original Japanese yuri manga written and illustrated by Sai Naekawa, serialized and published by ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Maoh magazine since August 2020. The anime TV series adaptation is produced by STUDIO LINGS.
The story revolves around Hinako Yaotose, who lost her parents and older brother in a tragic accident during the summer. Since then, she lost her will to live and wants to die to reunite with her family. But for some reason, she's been holding back on her desire to end her life.
She then meets a mermaid named Shiori, who tells her that some yokai wants to eat her. Additionally, Shiori revealed that she's also a yokai and wants her flesh and blood as well, and vowed to protect Hinako until she's ready to eat her. Having learned of Shiori's true intentions, Hinako then accepted her fate and thought Shiori might the answer to her desire of ending her life and joining her family.
Hinako is obviously an introvert due to losing her family in the past, but she's not totally alone, however. She has her classmate and childhood friend, Mako Yashiro, always keeping her company, sort of, in episode one. The scenes of Hinako slowly drifting underwater show a glimpse of how she wants to end her life. But every time that happens, there's some hesitation from her.
While Hinako is the main character, Shiori made it clear in the first episode that she's not only her "hero" but also the villain who wants to devour her. Simply put, Shiori is like a double-edged sword. It was rather straightforward, but there's obviously more to Shiori's intentions of eating her.
Having said that, Shiori wants Hinako to be in her "delicious" state before she finally eats her, but Hinako hinted that she wants to speed up the process and not wait for her to reach her "peak". Shiori was a bit taken aback by what Hinako was trying to convey in episode two.
Mako is obviously very overprotective of Hinako, especially when Shiori came into the picture. She even forced Hinako to play hooky just to hang out with her. For some reason, there's more to learn about Mako's character in the upcoming episodes.
In the latter part of episode two, it seems she understood Hinako's hint during their lunchtime conversation at school, when she suddenly appeared at Hinako's house and invited her to come with her to the summer festival. Hinako's not a fan of summer festivals for obvious reasons.
Monster Wants to Eat Me isn't exactly your typical anime TV series. It tackles some sensitive topics like grief, tragedy, depression, and suicide. Hinako represents those topics mentioned. It seems like a bright and cheerful anime, but it has a dark story. In some way, she reminds me a bit of Shinji Ikari of Neon Genesis Evangelion.
While there are some light moments, like Mako goofing around with Hinako, the anime's serious tone clearly stands out.
Props to STUDIO LINGS for the anime's bright visuals, despite its rather deep plot. There were a few cuts with stiff animations, but hopefully, there will be improvements in the succeeding episodes.
Those who have read the original manga won't be disappointed with the anime TV series adaptation of This Monster Wants to Eat Me. If one is looking for an anime with a dark yet compelling story, This Monster Wants to Eat Me is a must-watch.
This Monster Wants to Eat Me is now streaming on Crunchyroll with new episodes every Thursday.
