Fandom 50 (8/50): Dorohedoro
Mar. 25th, 2026 11:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
yelpDorohedoro season 2 is coming soon! I randomly stumbled into season 1 knowing absolutely nothing. The first thing I saw was some guy with a lizard head clamping his jaws over another guy's (mostly regular) head. Stuck inside the lizard jaws, second guy thrashes around frantically until a third guy appears from deep in the lizard gullet, scrutinizes him, and says, "You're not the one." That's... Dorohedoro!
But seriously, it's a fun show. Those first 30 fever-dream seconds resolve into a coherent world: just as chaotic and weird as you'd expect from that opening, but with its own logical and internally-consistent rules that are just slightly nuts.
It's a world of two parts: first a land of magicians with a variety of abilities, which manifest through black smoke they exude from their bodies. (They can also use the black smoke to power machinery/vehicles, which, okay, why not.) Then there's also a kind of slum called Hole (resulting in gags like this) where magicians go to practice their magic on hapless victims.
Everyone in the magician world wears a mask and that's normal: either a prestigious one made by devils or a DIY one if you're not good enough for that. At one point, blue bugs start buzzing around at night, which reminds all the magicians that of course it's almost Blue Night - a time to find a strong partner who will be bound to you, physically, magically, viscerally, for the year. While some enter into it willingly, and some are too weak to be appealing, it's accepted that others will use any means, including violence, drugging, and kidnapping, to make that contract by force. It's just so chilling that people deal with it as an unfortunate but normal part of society.
I'm always a sucker for good worldbuilding, and by good here I mean 1) strange yet 2) sensible, and as much of both as possible. I think pretty much one of the most impressive things in the world is raw creativity. Randomness looks effortless but it's hard to be divergent and truly original, isn't it? Creating randomness is hard for computers, and it's hard for humans. We're pattern completers, we produce more of what we consume. It's like that thing in A Wrinkle in Time, where the evil brain forced everyone into its rhythm, and it was a supreme act of willpower to rebel? Yet it's always a pleasure to get to experience something novel and unexpected. I think we in fandom are regularly surrounded by a lot of creativity and it's easy to take for granted when it's a feat of magic in itself.
And then there's Noi and Shin. They're partners, actually a pair of hitmen for this mob boss kind of guy. (By the way, the show is pretty bloody and violent, so watch out for that.) Noi is so enthusiastic about Shin, whom she calls "senpai" in the same excited voice every single time, and about fighting, which she is so extremely good at. Her powers are actually healing, related but it does nothing to soften her persona or her intimidating build. On the other hand, I love when she takes off her mask and the volume of hair that spills out is such an unexpectedly feminine touch. And then there's Shin, who was such a skinny, messed up kid, who literally cut himself apart for power, bit by bit, casually gambling whether he'll find it first or just die. Now he and Noi are powerhouses who don't even use their abilities in most cases, because it's not sporting. Shin fights with an absurdly tiny hammer, which is actually just a regular-sized hammer (tool), but it looks pretty silly as a weapon. They do have a fun combo where Shin rushes in and gets shredded up, and Noi exudes her healing smoke to restore him by the time his blow lands. IDK, they are so into each other in non-gushy way (well, Shin at least), and so separate from everyone else. Really the best of partner duos that are perfectly in tune.
Anyway, I finished season 1 about a month ago, and stopped myself from reading ahead in the manga because I wanted to experience the rest in anime form. I've read a couple chapters so far, but I'm taking it slow so I don't catch up too fast. The manga has a very gritty, almost unpolished style that works well for this kind of murky, often disturbing world. For a black and white medium, it somehow feels especially, oppressively, black and white.
Side note, I think it's been about 1 year since I started doing fandom50, so I guess I made it 8 posts. Hmm, 16% completion is not bad, considering. Guess there's nothing stopping me from continuing to work on it!
But seriously, it's a fun show. Those first 30 fever-dream seconds resolve into a coherent world: just as chaotic and weird as you'd expect from that opening, but with its own logical and internally-consistent rules that are just slightly nuts.
It's a world of two parts: first a land of magicians with a variety of abilities, which manifest through black smoke they exude from their bodies. (They can also use the black smoke to power machinery/vehicles, which, okay, why not.) Then there's also a kind of slum called Hole (resulting in gags like this) where magicians go to practice their magic on hapless victims.
Everyone in the magician world wears a mask and that's normal: either a prestigious one made by devils or a DIY one if you're not good enough for that. At one point, blue bugs start buzzing around at night, which reminds all the magicians that of course it's almost Blue Night - a time to find a strong partner who will be bound to you, physically, magically, viscerally, for the year. While some enter into it willingly, and some are too weak to be appealing, it's accepted that others will use any means, including violence, drugging, and kidnapping, to make that contract by force. It's just so chilling that people deal with it as an unfortunate but normal part of society.
I'm always a sucker for good worldbuilding, and by good here I mean 1) strange yet 2) sensible, and as much of both as possible. I think pretty much one of the most impressive things in the world is raw creativity. Randomness looks effortless but it's hard to be divergent and truly original, isn't it? Creating randomness is hard for computers, and it's hard for humans. We're pattern completers, we produce more of what we consume. It's like that thing in A Wrinkle in Time, where the evil brain forced everyone into its rhythm, and it was a supreme act of willpower to rebel? Yet it's always a pleasure to get to experience something novel and unexpected. I think we in fandom are regularly surrounded by a lot of creativity and it's easy to take for granted when it's a feat of magic in itself.
And then there's Noi and Shin. They're partners, actually a pair of hitmen for this mob boss kind of guy. (By the way, the show is pretty bloody and violent, so watch out for that.) Noi is so enthusiastic about Shin, whom she calls "senpai" in the same excited voice every single time, and about fighting, which she is so extremely good at. Her powers are actually healing, related but it does nothing to soften her persona or her intimidating build. On the other hand, I love when she takes off her mask and the volume of hair that spills out is such an unexpectedly feminine touch. And then there's Shin, who was such a skinny, messed up kid, who literally cut himself apart for power, bit by bit, casually gambling whether he'll find it first or just die. Now he and Noi are powerhouses who don't even use their abilities in most cases, because it's not sporting. Shin fights with an absurdly tiny hammer, which is actually just a regular-sized hammer (tool), but it looks pretty silly as a weapon. They do have a fun combo where Shin rushes in and gets shredded up, and Noi exudes her healing smoke to restore him by the time his blow lands. IDK, they are so into each other in non-gushy way (well, Shin at least), and so separate from everyone else. Really the best of partner duos that are perfectly in tune.
Anyway, I finished season 1 about a month ago, and stopped myself from reading ahead in the manga because I wanted to experience the rest in anime form. I've read a couple chapters so far, but I'm taking it slow so I don't catch up too fast. The manga has a very gritty, almost unpolished style that works well for this kind of murky, often disturbing world. For a black and white medium, it somehow feels especially, oppressively, black and white.
Side note, I think it's been about 1 year since I started doing fandom50, so I guess I made it 8 posts. Hmm, 16% completion is not bad, considering. Guess there's nothing stopping me from continuing to work on it!
no subject
Date: 2026-03-29 04:57 pm (UTC)