An Anime Review of 'ID:INVADED'

ID:INVADED is the latest directorial effort by Ei Aoki and seeing that he was attached to the show, it was one of my most anticipated of the year. If anyone was to ask what a story that combined elements of The Cell, Silence of the Lambs, Minority Report, and Inception would look like. This show is what I would point towards. It is quite unfortunate that I was able to discern who the overall antagonist of the show is in the first episode, however the journey that the characters had to go through in order to find the answer for themselves with actual evidence was quite fascinating.

The narrative is broken up by different cases within the investigating group, and through each investigation we get to know more about the characters that we follow and the world that they live in as a whole. If I were to pick the two leads in the show, they would be Narihisago, and Hondoumachi. Though the rest of the supporting cast also has a crucial part to play in the narrative. Some characters who you think are one off characters remain and still manage to have an impact on the story, making for an intricate narrative that comes together wonderfully at the end.

The central premise is that of a special investigative division that has special operatives dive into the minds of the culprit in the hopes of finding clues within them to solve the crimes. What I find fascinating is that we see the effects of entering the mind of a killer in the person that is entering, how their demeanour changes, and how their personality changes. The criminals themselves are not that of the typical variety either, as the show does not hold back on the gruesome side of the murders that are occurring. The story goes to some fascinating areas that helps us understand the characters better, and at no point did I find myself feeling bored. Much like Ei Aoki's previous show Re:Creators, there are many instances of characters talking and exchanging information, though the information being exchanged is so fascinating I was completely sucked in.

From a visual standpoint the show has its highs and lows. The integration of both 2D and 3D animation is getting better and better, and this show handled the integration very well. The moments where the level of action in a scene is high, the quality of the animation increases in order to keep up. The character designs are fantastic, despite the realistic setting of the show, they manage to make each character stand out on their own. The colour palate of the show is wonderful to look at as there is a wide range within the frame, and the backgrounds are very detailed making the immersion of the world that much more simpler for the viewer. If I were to list out any negatives, it would be that the character models at times look odd, disproportionate, or even rushed. I would have no issue if this was something consistent or during the fight scenes, these are most noticeable during dialogue scenes on a still frame and it took me out of the show at times. This rarely did happen though.

The music was fantastic. The opening and the original soundtrack were great to listen to. What made it even more memorable is the fact that they used three songs from Miyavi's No Sleep Till Tokyo album, which is an album I love listening to. The placements of the songs were perfect and the fact that they used the track Other Side for the ending guaranteed I watched the ending as well.

This is a show that had me interested from start to finish, fascinating characters, an intricate narrative, concepts that were interesting to observe, and a visual and aural treat. A show that I highly recommend. It is available to stream on Funimation.