English Dub Series Review: Angels of Death

No angels, only humans.

Our Take:

Angels of Death is honestly a show that takes a while to pick up. Altogether, it’s just okay- nothing bad, but nothing particularly standout either. This is kind of unfortunate, considering I picked up the show after hearing standout reviews of the game from two of my friends, both who consider it to be an incredible experience to undergo. After watching the anime, I don’t doubt them, but I feel like they are speaking fondly of the game- and only the game. I admit, I still haven’t played the game, but I think just by knowing the stories my friends have told me, I can piece together a pretty good idea.

Visual novels are notoriously hard to adapt into anime because of just how much needs to be condensed into a 12~13 episode run, and games are honestly no different. Animating a mini-arc is one thing, but animating the entire course of the game, plot twists included, seems like a little too much to handle. Not to mention that RPGMaker games have never fared very well upon being adapted into anime format, Ao Oni and Corpse Party being two prominent examples that come to mind. A lot of what makes the anime feel awkward is the fact that it’s not a very immersive experience. Anime, especially in comparison to manga and games, are incredibly low-effort types of media to consume because there isn’t anything that the audience needs to do but watch. There is no reading like with manga, and there is no decision making like in games. Watching something means you can also be on your phone or doing something else in another window while listening to what’s going on, something you can’t do for the other two mediums. The large disconnect that naturally is there with anime is in fact what fails Angels of Death the most.

One of the key moments in the story that my friends always highlight is the moment when you realize that Rachel isn’t just an innocent protagonist, she’s as unhinged and out there as the rest of them, and she’s, in fact, one the floor masters. You don’t expect Rachel to be like that because she is first framed as the victim being targeted by the floor masters, and also that she is the player character. She isn’t a fill-in protagonist as she has a very distinct personality, but she comes off as someone closed-off and naive, not someone who has the talent for murder just like the rest of them. In the game, you control Rachel, her actions are your actions, and a sudden deviation from that is a betrayal and a shock. None of us expect Rachel to be a cold-blooded killer, and even the hint where she pulls out the gun to shoot Cathy is a surprise. In the game, you have put some degree of trust in Rachel, and so this reveal is a guttural shock- whereas, in the anime, you’re an observer, not a player. You have a degree of distance, and so while the reveal is surprising, it’s less surprising because there’s not as much investment.

This is the main problem that plagues this whole anime. A lot of the more shocking reveals, even the tenseness of the atmosphere and how the rules that govern each floor vary so widely from one to the other is that these fears are steeped mostly in the atmosphere. The atmosphere needs to be immersive in order to function, and anime is simply less immersive by the nature of the craft. Not having that immersion doesn’t make for a terrible experience, but it makes a much more rushed and hastily put together time, instead of the moody and atmospheric depiction that a horror piece deserves.

However, one good thing I will say about the anime is the voice acting. Dallas Reid as Zack works perfectly, as he’s not afraid to chew the scenery and then some, selling it that Zack is extremely out there to a T. He sounds like a mad serial killer but also knows how to take it down a notch for Zack’s more quiet and intimate moments. It’s a kind of fluidity that really makes the character, and I for one enjoyed the voice acting a lot.

So overall? Play the game. The anime is alright if you want an overview, but even someone who hasn’t played the game is able to tell that it lacks the emotional depth that got so many fans hooked onto it in the first place.