Being stuck at home, while not that different from my usual routine when in the UK, I've found myself watching a number of series that have been on my radar for a while. Oddly, The Seven Deadly Sins wasn't actually one of them, rather the result of a late night and a casual trawl through Netflix. I'm still not sure what exactly drew me to the series, but once invested I found myself oddly drawn to a mix of fantasy, comedy and action that I found to be rather reminiscent of Saturday morning cartoons. Well, if not for all the gratuitous groping and chilling slaughter...
A Netflix Original Series, The Seven Deadly Sins is based on the manga of the same name by Nabaka Suzuki and was the second anime to be exclusively licensed by Netflix way back in 2015. So to say I'm a bit late to this particular party would be an understatement.
The show is set in a time before the human and mythical world's were separated, and as such we're treated to magic, giants, knights and monsters, thrown together in a pretty terrific mix of action and adventure. The central tenet, that a rogue group of knights known as The Seven Deadly Sins, went rogue and have since disappeared following an infamous massacre, lays the ground for lots of juicy revelations and plot twists. Added to this, the sins themselves are a mixture of mythical and legendary figures, from the King of the Fairies (aptly named King) to Merlin herself. Yup, Merlin's now a sexy woman in a very skimpy ensemble - works for me!
Our heroine is a Princess named Elizabeth, who is searching for these legendary villains in a bid to investigate The Holy Knight Order who she fears have become corrupt. What she finds is a short and gropey youth named Meliodas who runs a pub which travels from town to town on the back of a giant pig. Of course, he's one of the Sins she seeks and from here we begin our quest to find the rest of the team and discover the truth, restore justice and have a fight or several along the way.
True, there's nothing particularly groundbreaking here (pig pub aside), it's a fantasy tale as old as the genre itself, but what it does have is a certain spirited exuberance and a solid grasp of the genre tropes. It may not have invented the proverbial guitar, but it plays the instrument like Hendrix at times.
Before long we've met enough of the original Seven sins to create a fun and intriguing main cast - the Giant Diane is an energetic tomboy with a crush on her Captain, Ban is an ill-mannered, immortal thief who embraces battle with an unrestrained glee, and Gowther is an emotionless yet blunt powerhouse. Any one of these alone is a formidable opponent, but taken together they are truly staggering as a unit.
Luckily the bad-guys have a few things going for them. Firstly, they've tapped into demonic powers and are greatly enhanced. Secondly, some of their number are pretty hot, so you have carnage and sex appeal as only Shonen can provide, with battles and powerful beauties aplenty. But while this aspect caters to the hot-blooded male, there's plenty of well-toned manliness on display for the ladies too, plus some great cosplay-fodder to appeal to both. It does feel like it was designed by a committee, but to be fair it was a good day at the office when they threw this together.
Aside from the inherent appeal, the writing is pretty good. Not just the story, which of course utilises every trope in the book from tragic romance to secret powers and shady histories, but also the tricky bits like pacing, character development and sympathetic motivations on both sides. The politics of the show (of the traditional sort) are well thought through and provide more than just a good vs bad dynamic. Watching the characters bicker, fight and switch sides is hugely rewarding. In particular I enjoyed the develpoing friendship between Jericho and Guila, two Holy Knights who give us an inside look from the frontline at the powerful organisation they serve.
Even now I'm still in two minds about the character designs in the show. They look just a little bit "Archie Comics" with the way the mouths are drawn (took me ages to nail down what it was that seemed off) and the designs are very simple. It's certainly not cheap, but it lacks the polish of shows like Grancrest, Mysteria Friends or even Doctor Stone. I suppose it's this slightly American aesthetic that makes me think about Saturday morning cartoons.
If I have one criticism of the show, it's that the tone is generally all over the place. It's highly comedic one minute, the next you'll see the aftermath of an attack, with the dead bodies of women holding their babies strewn across the landscape. The show doesn't go dark and stay there, it bounces from comedy to tragedy and back again without much of a breath, and that's not to mention how jarring it then makes Meliodas as he starts joyfully groping Elizabeth again. It's not a dealbreaker, but it is noticably tactless.
If you can get past this one niggle, you have a fun show with engaging characters and lots of lovely nods to Arthurian legend. Yes, the once and future King does make an appearance, but he's definietely a cameo in season one.
If you're starting to go stir crazy and are looking for another series to binge, I'd highly recommend The Seven Deadly Sins.
The Seven Deadly Sins seasons 1-3 are available on Netflix
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