You’re a death row convict who must obtain the elixir of life in order to get a pardon. You’re also a mass murderer who hates killing.
That’s the plot in a nutshell to “Hell’s Paradise,” a battle anime produced by MAPPA, set in Japan’s Edo period.
Specifically, it’s the story of Gabimaru (Alejandro Saab), a superhuman assassin betrayed by his seemingly immortal village leader, who has survived multiple execution attempts. He killed because of his job, but all he want to do is get back home to his wife, Iwagakure (Skyler McIntosh), whom he believes is waiting for him.
He gets roped into the shogun’s quest to capture the elixir of life on a strange island. It’s filled with supernatural monsters that have decimated each prior search party, hence why the shogun is turning to expendable criminals.
The catch is that there is only one pardon, so everyone who goes to the island is a rival. They are each accompanied by samurai executioners who are members of the Yamada Asaemon family, who serve as their monitor. They are to be executed on site if they disobey their monitors, but as the powerful forces of the island start wiping them out, the survivors form a kindred bond and the lines between samurai and criminal are blurred.
Gabimaru’s monitor, Sagiri (Marisa Duran), is the only woman Asaemon. She is the lowest ranked one despite being perhaps the most skilled because of that. She aims to achieve perfection for her executions, in hopes it’ll put her mind at ease with the lives she’s taken.
Shion (Reagan Murdock), a blind senior Asaemon is another standout character. He serves as a wise mentor figure and helps the survivors understand the mysticism of the island, which is slowly unraveled. He eventually accompanies an innocent young girl wrongly put to death named Nurugai (Cassie Ewulu) and is the first Asaemon to protect the criminals they were assigned to look after.
There’s also Tamiya Gantetsusai (Phil Parsons), a boisterous swordsman who wants to become a legend, Yuzuriha (Jill Harris), a female ninja capable of advanced combat techniques, and the brothers Chobei (Nazeeh Tarsha) and Toma (Matt Shipman), the latter of whom infiltrated the Asaemon clan as a monitor in order to free his older brother.
Season 1 is clearly the first part of a larger story and therefore has an incomplete conclusion. But it leaves an excellent impression. Its battle systems work and Gabimaru is an easy character to root for, though the series does come off as juvenile sometimes.
Specifically, it’s filled with characters whose only distinguishing trait is that they like to kill — these are a dime a dozen in anime, and I really wish this trope would be banished from modern manga and the anime that arise from them.
Gabimaru and Sagiri show the most growth so far, with everyone else being disappointingly one-dimensional. However, if they’re developed, I think this anime could soar in popularity.
Gamimaru slowly becomes more human and learns to care for people who fight for him. He also manages to get reinvested in life, as he had previously given up. However, there’s clearly more to his story, as the ending of Season 1 teases.
Sagiri, on the other hand, learns to abandon her mission as an Asaemon and boldly declares that she will save everyone’s lives on the island — criminal or samurai. It’s a big departure from her passively accepting her orders and retreating into her profession.
If you have the time, this is worth watching. At 13 episodes under 30 minutes, it’s not a huge commitment and it flies by pretty quick.
This isn’t one of my favorite anime, but it has the potential to be.
“Hell’s Paradise” Season 1 gets an 8/10
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