Gannibal

This series has a lot of things going for it: action, drama, and high suspense in each episode. The location in rustic Japan is gorgeous, the lush landscape in stark juxtaposition to the macabre happenings in the village run by the villainous Goto family. Great cast and acting, especially by our brave hero, Officer Daigo Agawa (Yagira), self-tasked to take them on.

Gannibal is an intense story of madness and evil brought on by depraved fanaticism. There's also something to be said about perverse family loyalties and doggedly holding on to customs that would make anyone cringe in horror. Very much enjoyed and hope a Season 2 will pick up at the very harrowing moment Episode 7 ended with.

Gannibal is a thrilling and captivating mystery series that sets itself apart from the typical fast-paced police procedural dramas. With a haunting opening scene of a police officer in hysteria, the show immediately draws you in and keeps you on the edge of your seat with each new episode.

The pace of the show is slow, perfectly capturing the stillness of the isolated forest setting and allowing for the mystery to unfold at a deliberate pace. The cinematography is stunning at times and the directing is expertly executed, particularly in the opening scene. However, there are moments when low-budget special effects or unrealistic gunplay briefly break the illusion, but the show quickly gets back on track with its masterful storytelling and gloomy style.

The protagonist, a young and impulsive police officer, is transferred to the small town with his wife and daughter, tasked with uncovering the disappearance of his predecessor. The mystery unravels layer by layer, building suspense and leaving the viewer eagerly anticipating each new episode.

Overall, Gannibal is a refreshing and well-crafted show that offers a unique take on the detective genre. Its dark overtones, slow-paced suspenseful story, and stunning visuals make for a truly mesmerizing experience.

Beginning with a wonderfully executed opening scene of a police officer in hysteria, the show captures you with a sense of morbid intrigue and somehow just builds upon itself with each new episode. However, this isn't a fast paced show that throws high speed curve balls at you to catch you off guard. Instead, it works at a pace that more reflects the perfect stillness of its isolated forest setting, with a slow moving sinister undertone beneath its canopy. You follow the trail of a new, young, and impetuous police officer who's transferred with his wife and daughter to a small town precinct as its only law enforcing officer. While presiding over the unassuming sleepy territory, he never quite settles down as he attempts to uncover the disappearance of his predecessor (the very same hysterical officer from the opening scene). The detective mystery unravels one layer at a time but not so quickly that the viewer quite figures out what's happening too soon. The end of each episode creates a brooding desire to guess what will happen in each new following episode as the story builds suspense and the towns nefarious secret begins to show its face.

The directing is top notch at times, as in the opening scene. And the cinematography is artful-at times. However, the show isn't perfectly polished and ends up breaking you from its hypnosis at points, usually caused by low budget computer effects, or unbelievable gun play. As an American watching a Japanese show with gun fighting and usage, the gun physics was laughable. A shotgun with no recoil from shooting what appears to be slugs was boggling to me. But you can't blame a culture that doesn't glorify gun violence to pay much attention to that type of detail. Nonetheless, the show tends to stick to its lane of masterful storytelling over pretending to be a fast action shoot em up, thankfully. It's not long after each noticeable deviation before Gannibal entrances you back in with its storyline and gloomy style.

This show is well worth the watch, definitely refreshing despite its dark overtones.

What a wonderful series!

Stumbled upon this series just by luck and boy was I impressed!

1. Story has just the right pace. There is enough buildup for the main story but something or other keeps happening so we feel involved all the time.

2. It's very Beautifully shot. Camera work is exceptional. Specially in episode 3. The director and the cameraman have done exceptional work.

3. All the characters are developed reasonably well. The lead is just perfect for this role. And his personality is built in a very believable manner. No one acts cringy or cliché.

4. The myths or urban legend around which the story is revolving is also dealt in a different way. Not like typical Hollywood series.

I would totally recommend this.

In the 5 episodes that I've seen I can't find a fault.

The story is unique but then the pacing of the series makes it dull sometimes. At one point I thought the climax was coming but then the buildup stopped all of a sudden, leaving me with confusion and immense disappointment.

The most unacceptable part is the ending. I thought the entire backstory would be revealed at last, but then the series suddenly ended with half of the truth remain concealed. I guess it was done on purpose to leave it for Season 2? Not sure if I would give it another shot if there is another season though.

Acting of the cast is impeccable though. Yagira Yuya was the reason I watched this series and he never disappoints me. Baisho Mitsuko-san, the actress who played Goto Gin, the grandmother, gave me chills down my spine.

The score serves the series really well in heightening tensions and suspense too.

Overall is fine but I really hate it when a series is not ended properly because some people behind it want to make a sequel.