Forum - View topicNippon Sangoku: The Three Nations of the Crimson Sun (TV).
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Edjwald
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Nippon Sangoku: The Three Nations of the Crimson Sun (TV) Source: Manga (ongoing @ 6 volumes by Ikka Matsuki) Demographic: Seinen Animation Studio: Studio Kafka Genres: drama, psychological, thriller Themes: alternate history, corruption, factions, future, gore, government, idealism, military, politics, post-apocalyptic, power struggle, social psychology, strategy, tragedy, war Plot Summary: In a post-apocalyptic Japan damaged by nuclear war and corruption, the nation has regressed into a chaotic New Three Kingdoms era. Aoteru Misumi, once an obscure local bureaucrat, launches a risky campaign to reunify the fallen country. Armed not with weapons, but with exceptional eloquence and vast political knowledge. Air Date & Platform: April 05, 2026 (Sunday) Available on: Amazon Prime Episode Count / Runtime: Pending Trailer [EDIT: Fancy opener stuff edited. -TK] |
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Eilavel
Posts: 477 |
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So, there are some problems. Mainly, the use of a female character basically as a warning and motivation is... not great!
However, overall its good. The stylised colouring is nice. I like our fast talking, rational main character. The political arc starting from the bottom is promising and could be fun. I'm probably on board for this. Its a real horrible feudal dystopia. The casual ultra-violence might seem unrealistic for a "state"/society to modern eyes, but if you look into how some knights/lords/ect behaved historically its sadly closer to the mark than we might like to recall. |
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Eilavel
Posts: 477 |
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Ep2
If I was to compare it to another show from this season, it would be Needy Girl Overdose. It uses fast cuts and pretentious oververbosity to give a sense of portentousness to stuff that otherwise isn't really operating at that intellectual level (really, the setup at the end of the episode could come straight from Naruto so far). I happen to like those traits; the show has (much) nicer production value; and its much clearer on establishing its characters and stakes. Also, Shounen-battles but with "politics" is just overwhelmingly more interesting to me than v-tubers. But its got a degree of juvenilia running through it all the same. I'll watch the whole thing and I expect enjoy it. |
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Gina Szanboti
 Posts: 12725 |
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Yeah, I hated the fridging of his wife too, but I think I forgive them now. The thing I most appreciated was the effort to make talky exposition interesting with colorful and inventive visuals so that I didn't glaze over. It does unexpected things, even if for no narrative reason. Its sense of humor reminds me a bit of Golden Kamuy without all the animal slaughter.
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Edjwald
Posts: 3510 |
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I just caught up with this series last night.
Some people don't like their different types of food to touch on their plate, and I'm not really a fan of juxtaposing CG and animation and still frames and black and white and color and so on. But that's mostly because most studios can't do it well in my opinion. It feels more about budget than artistic choice to me. But sometimes it feels like it's being done skillfully for emphasis or to keep the viewer on edge, and I'm okay with it. So, in regards to Eilavel's comments, I only watched half of Needy Girl Overdose episode one before turning it off, because I could just tell there was no way I was going to vibe with the show's style or subject matter. But I got along with this show's visual style just fine. It's butt ugly, but that's kind of appropriate. |
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Edjwald
Posts: 3510 |
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Speaking of butt ugly but kind of appropriate, I also have mixed feelings about the way things went down with the wife.
I was still reading mainstream comic books (I quit because they got too expensive and event driven) back when the original "fridged" term got coined. Green Lantern. Kyle Raynor. Alex. Major Force. I didn't like the writer, and the cheap, manipulative, dismissive way the whole thing went down was a part of the reason why. In this case, it feels more like the whole "heroes being rooted in tragedy" dynamic to me. The wife didn't feel like a throwaway character even though she was thrown away. I think that was the point. She was too good to survive in the world that she was alive in. Hence the main character's determination to create a world where someone like her could survive. That sort of makes it better to me, but it's also why it sucks. |
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Edjwald
Posts: 3510 |
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This anime is definitely ugly in more ways than one, but it is a compelling watch, at least for me. I have rarely wanted to see the main villain get some karma as much as I've wanted the corrupt, shameless sociopath in this show to get planted, and that only in three episodes.
If it weren't for Lord Taira, I'd say that this show reminded me of Alderamin on the Sky, a fine anime about a genius strategist (and no account rascal) in a corrupt world. But this anime makes the opponent feel much more personal. The emperor so painful to watch that I had to fight the urge to fast forward a time or two. I like General Ryuumon. It was hard watching him kneel like that. I'm probably wrong, but I feel like Misumi is going to meet the talented dictator at some point and see more than a little of his dead wife in her. |
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 12725 |
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Ep 3
Taira strikes me as sort of a Trumpian figure in that it doesn't matter if he is actively working for the enemy or is just a narcissistic, power-hungry idiot playing into the enemy's hands, as the outcome would look exactly the same. Since they'd just established that Taira deserved the death penalty, I thought it was a wasted opportunity for the general not to rise up and take him out right then. I'm sure he could do it unarmed. I think the emperor would have been relieved and would've backed him. I don't think Taira's 5-second sword guys would avenge him (unless they're his sons?). I like all the mains now. The solutions to Ryūmon's test were unexpected (ok, I did pretty much guess what Asama was planning), and it was funny that Misumi made him question whether he'd planned it all or not. I keep forgetting this is post-tech Japan and not the historical Sengoku period (though they dress like Meiji era). 
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Eilavel
Posts: 477 |
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Taira is at least smarter than the emperor- he shows at least some insight. he's going to be made the fool by our protagonists, I'm sure, but he's totally hateful but clearly not completely inept- an ideal hate sink.
The characters are briefly sketched but likeable. I found the test slightly predictable (it really could be Naruto!) but that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it. Its willingness to constantly escalate the scope, stakes and brutality, however, sets it apart. I expect a fun season. |
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Edjwald
Posts: 3510 |
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Yah, but that's a pretty low bar. I think Taira's an entirely political animal. He's cunning and good at corruption and blackmail and extortion, but he doesn't get war strategy because he has no clue how people with real convictions or people who have nothing left to lose might act. I found myself wondering if Ryuumon kneeling like that (seemed out of character) was on the advice of our MC. It seems clear Taira set that meeting up to remove his opponents. That's why he was acting so provocatively and calling Ryuumon a coward, which is patently absurd considering Ryuumon is a seasoned warror and Taira is a soft lived toad who hides behind other people. |
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Eilavel
Posts: 477 |
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It could be that; I wondered if it was more to show that Ryuumon thinks a bit like our MC; that is to say, highly results driven.
Anyway, yeah, was just noting Taira isn't a totally useless heel, still looking forward to his death as a possible peak satisfaction moment of the entire spring season because he's a top notch hate engine. |
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Eilavel
Posts: 477 |
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Interesting to see our protagonist play the martinet; its an unusual choice, but appropriate for his character and probably beneficial in the context of the level of corruption involved.
Fun stuff in the other state. A coup, and it appears both the new and the old leader are more likeable than the top leader of our protagonist faction (not, admittedly, a high bar). This is clearly intentional, how external enemies are leveraged to destroy the internal one seems the likely outcome of the season. |
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Edjwald
Posts: 3510 |
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It would be nice if Aoteru will use the rebellion to ultimately topple Taira for the benefit of all concerned.
But given the general harshness of this show, I also wouldn't be surprised if it turns out to be a cynical but realistic commentary on the nature of war while I watch two main characters I'm rooting for fight for a bastard everyone (including me) hates while fighting people I'm also rooting for. When you see what the fat bastard (no relation to the Austin Powers villain) has been doing his own country, it's hard to blame Wajima for wanting to resist, but I'm also not clear on how realistic her decision to fight is. The fact that the show keeps referring to her as a dictator gives me a bit of pause too. Lots of unknowns, and the guy she killed didn't seem stupid or like a crap weasel. But I admire her conviction and courage. I do find myself wondering what Aoteru would do in Wajima's shoes. |
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Eilavel
Posts: 477 |
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Yes; in fact, the worst person we see on that side of things is the habitually violent pro-coup officer.
Being a dictator isn't really that much of an impediment here; while the coup was against a "president" all the governments appear to fundamentally be autocracies, a dictatorship is just more personalised. But yes; I don't expect a happy ending to invading Yamato for them. |
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Edjwald
Posts: 3510 |
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Oh, I agree on all counts. What gives me pause is that the voice calling her a dictator is a narrator who seems to be speaking from the perspective of looking back on the past while knowing the future. It makes me wonder if she'll have to do things against her idealistic intentions as the situation becomes more desperate.
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