Akame ga KILL!, is a shonen dark fantasy action adventure. Tatsumi is a trained fighter from a remote village in the countryside. Tatsumi’s skills allow him to take on small fry monsters. He has dreams of making it big with his abilities in the imperial capital. Hoping to bring fame and fortune back to his village. Little does he realize the real monsters are the people that inhabit this world. It’s ruthless and cutthroat. The Imperial City is the center of all the conflicts, filled with unimaginable amounts of corruption and evil. Tatsumi’s naivety finds himself in deep trouble just minutes after reaching the city. Moments later he is rescued only to wind up becoming allied to a peculiar group of assassins named, Night Raid.
Akame ga KILL! is all around standard with the artwork, premise, and comedy. The series suffers from pacing as well. The first half manages to keep it at a relatively good pace building on the theme of whether it’s right or wrong to kill. The second half feels rushed and it doesn’t help that this series won’t get a 2nd season. Where Akame does shine is in the animation. The action scenes are enjoyable, and the music fits the tone nicely. The world is dark and grim so the hyper violent action complements the tone. The character development is good. You get introduced to each member of Night Raid as they train Tatsumi. In the short amount of time, they do manage to flesh out the main characters a bit more than I thought they would.
Even though there are average elements, it’s still entertaining to watch Akame. When everything is working the series is a must watch. Yet when the series begins to wane it feels sub par. If you enjoy slicing n’ dicing with some political intrigue and a dash of comedy, then give it a chance. Just temper your expectations as it lacks a 2nd season.
Episodes: 24 (1st season)
Director: Tomoki Kobayashi
Writing: Makoto Uezu
Cast:
Sōma Saitō as Tatsumi
Sora Amamiya as Akame
Music: Taku Iwasaki
Studio: White Fox and C-Station (ONA)