English Dub Review: Sabikui Bisco “The Man Worth 800,000”

Overview

Based on the Japanese light novel series written by Shinji Cobkubo and illustrated by K Akagashi, with world-building art by mocha. Our first episode begins in a fictionalized post-apocalyptic version of Japan which has been reduced to a dystopian wasteland as the result of an airborne plague called the “Rusty Wind” which causes all things (including organic lifeforms) to rust away, with Mushrooms being the alleged cause of it.

A suspicious-looking priest visits a checkpoint all alone, yet on his back rests a bow a priest normally wouldn’t use. Meanwhile, Milo Nekoyanagi a.k.a Doctor Panda a doctor running a clinic in the town of Imihama is researching new medicines in secret in order to save his older sister, Pawoo, who’s being corroded by the Rust Virus. But within that very same day, a stranger appears before him…


Our Take

This was a very interesting and enjoyable episode. There was a slow burn at the beginning where we didn’t even see either of the main characters until halfway into the proceedings. But I guess it’s easy to assume that the monk guy in the opening is the obvious twist that we the audience can see from a mile away. Either way, this was a good introduction.

We also get a lot of world-building at the start with random exposition/info dumps by random characters in the scenery. The animation is also really good, and some of the scenery is very breathtaking and vast even if it’s giving off Mad Max/Trigun vibes. The character designs are also really colorful and stand out in the scenery as well, and Milo (aka Doctor Panda) seems like a likable character, but we still haven’t properly met the titular Bisco, yet he seems interesting in his own right.

Overall, I’m not too sure how to feel about this series from the first episode alone. The world-building was a bit difficult to understand at first, but by the end of the episode, it was clear. Still, I’m trying to further comprehend how this “Rust” disease works in this universe. But hopefully, there’s a plausible yet weird explanation of how Mushrooms were the cause of it which I hope we get some proper answers as the show progresses…