Common Name: Nanbaka
Alternative Names: The Numbers
Score: 7/10, 5/5
Length: 25 Episodes
Genre: Comedy, Action, Drama
Summary: Nanba Prison is a high-security facility where the most dangerous and skilled criminals from across the world are kept because no one can escape from Nanba Prison. Deadly traps. Constant surveillance. Guards with superhuman strength and willpower. All these things ensure that one founding tenet is never broken. Even so, the idiot prisoners of Building 13 rarely end a day without trying to escape at least once.
Review: Honestly, if this were the kind of show to inspire enough criticism, I could find a lot wrong with this show's premise and execution. Tattooing numbers on inmates is a stylistic choice that would be seen as highly offensive. There's a bizarre kind of glorification of violence in a place that should actively discourage that kind of behavior. Heck, this show even glorifies the prison system to a point of insanity.
There are problems aplenty here.
Insanity, however, is the standard of this show. What starts off as a happy-go-lucky prison comedy frequently dips into standard action and drama situations without any explanation other than statements along the lines of, "Why the hell not?!" and, "This is Nanbaka. Why would we take this seriously?". In fact, I'm pretty sure that latter statement was actually a quote at one point. In any case, since the anime can't be bothered to be serious, I don't feel particularly obligated to be the hardass that I normally am. I'm even of half a mind to reduce this to little more than one of my recalls: say's it's good, dumb fun and end it at that. Heck, I might even throw in some GIFs of dancing bears for the hell of it. Too bad for you though, this show does have some legitimately solid points that are worth talking about and I have a file size limit to consider with each of these posts so there won't be any dancing bear GIFs either. So, let's get this sham of a review about a sham of an anime over with.
That's probably the aptest term to describe this show. Extraordinary.
As I said before, Nanbaka is something of a gag comedy anime that happens to take place within the most secure prison possible. Think Alcatraz, but with superhuman prison guards and in the middle of the ocean somewhere near Japan and the size of...New York...I think. As the name implies, though, this show is about the idiotic Nanba prison and its ensemble cast of prisoners and guards. While there are quite a few prisoners I could mention, there are only four that can truly be called main characters of the show (the same four in the image above). First and foremost is the show's "main character" Prisoner No. 15, Juugo. I use quotation marks there because Juugo doesn't really do anything that warrants that status aside from the show being centered around him and his repressed past. He isn't an unlikable character, though, since he's the type whose just awkward around people and, at the start, lacks the drive to have much of an impact in his own right. Due to his ability to unlock anything, he's more than content to play the stoic but amicable key that opens the way out whenever he and his cellmates feel like escaping. Speaking of which, next is the actual leader figure, No. 11, Uno (right of Juugo) who is a skilled gambler and wanna-be ladies man. Underneath all the pomp and hair care is a person with willpower and patient understanding that is rarely seen in others. There's also No. 69, Rock (right of Uno), a numskull who loves eating and fighting as much as his friends. Lastly, there's No. 25, Nico (left of Juugo), who is the otaku cinnamon bun of this show, too innocent for this world of criminals. While that old meme is used in jest, it is accurate since Nico seems to have done nothing to earn his place in Nanba prison. Rather, he's something of a victim of his mysterious past which has left him dependent on the complex drugs and medical care within Nanba Prison. With the main prisoners out of the way now, I can move on to my personal favorite character--the head supervisor of Prison Block 13, Hajime Sugoroku.
AKA the One-Punch Man of this show.
Yup. Best character right there. While the other Supervisors are just as important, Hajime stands to be the only one really worth talking about since the others are typically reduced to little more than walking jokes and references to the story of Momotaro with the love-stricken warden, Momoko, as their leader. Inhumanly strong, strangely caring, and a bit of a worrywart, Hajime is the order to the chaos that are the prisoners in his care, Juugo's group. Whenever they act up or try to escape, he rushes in to shut them down and has never failed to do so. More often than not, though, level-headed and calculated violence is his means of solving the problems that crop up under his care, but he is hardly cruel in his methods. If he needs to harm someone, it's because his job or pride demand it and not because he wants to. Most of the time, though, he's more than happy to coddle his inmates if it means they'll sit still and give him a moment of peace. So, with the stage and the cast set, the story can commence, albeit with some frequent pauses for comedy's sake thrown in to pad out the more intense and thoughtful moments.
A picture is worth a thousand words. Hajime can express it in five.
Insane is a word that typically gets overused a lot. I frequently catch myself using it as a replacement for "crazy" or "silly" when it means so much more. This show is insane in a literal sense. It is strange and expresses itself in ways that make little sense to the average person. It is prone to violence at random moments. It even has brief moments of clarity once things slow down or balance out; and when these moments do come they leave you with a bit of insight that changes how you view its source. The insanity becomes something a little closer to sane in your own mind. Now, I'm not saying this show is an aspect of a Deep One or anything like that, but the metaphor is apt. What originally starts off as an idiotic prison comedy gradually takes a more violent turn as it incorporates action and shounen anime tropes that wouldn't make much sense in any other anime. Once the show wears itself out from all the comedy and fighting, however, things take a thoughtful turn that makes this show something legitimately interesting to watch. I mean, I can't think of any other show that left me awestruck at its near constant use of glittery sparkles and expressive colors, because, of course, such an aesthetic choice means something. For once, there might actually be something under that ugly yellow wallpaper or a reason the curtains are blue. Like I said, despite how it appears and how much it laughs at its own ridiculousness, there's actually something worth discussing here. There's not enough to give it a particularly high score, but it does offer a lot of food for thought for something that came in a bright and colorful box.
Even without that layer, though, I have to give Nanbaka some serious praise. It's a wacky and legitimately fun show that relies on gags, self-referential humor, and utter absurdity to keep its audience interested. It has some solid animation when things get heated as well as a color palate and aesthetic that make it unique. I won't say it's for everyone, but if you like show that mix things up for humor it interest's sake I'd recommend it several times over.