Mar 5, 2025
Oof. I normally love slow psychological or philosophical shows, but this was so poorly executed it took away most of the charm.
To start with what I liked - I loved Kino's character (although superfical, with a personality that's only hinted at) and their character design. The aesthetic, animation, style. Music, voice acting. Loved the slow pacing and atypical format of the episodes. I absolutely adored some of the characters that Kino met, as well as a few of the show's character focused stories (episodes 2, 10, 11). Overall, since I love slow atmospheric shows so much, I actually did enjoy it despite my strong criticisms.
...
However, the worldbuilding is either so shallow or unrealistic that most of the stories and visited countries have absolutely no effect on the viewer. For a show wholly centered around visiting countries, it makes it impossible to feel invested in the plot or message. This is worsened by the fact that the philosophy and politics are oversimplified and stereotyped to the point where they're borderline childish. Many other works have shown similar stories, with similar messages, but much better execution. The show tries to make some point that humanity is both ugly and beautiful no matter what, and tries to show that both sides are equally bad or good, but that simply is not true. It makes a joke out of the real life situations it showcases, like genocide, war, and fascist regimes. Kino has this non-involvement policy where they don't intervene to improve others' lives no matter how easy it could be, and this could be fine as it makes sense for the character, but it really ironically reflects how this whole show refuses to truly engage with its own stories.
Overall, meh.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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