Akuma no Riddle

Upon the understanding that a film, book or television show will feature assassins as its fundamental aspect, it’s likely that the immediate set of expectations we receive from this falls along the imagery of thrill, excitement and aesthetics. Akuma no Riddle is very much a show that exhibits these types of expectations. It sets the stage for a high-school battle royale well enough by introducing 12 female assassins, each with their own desires, and one target, a girl striving to survive the oncoming ordeal. The assassins and target must all participate in Myoujou Academy’s elusive Black Class, where they’ll assume the guise of high-school students,and whoever is able to successfully kill the target may have their any wish granted. However, due to a twist of events, one assassin successfully defects to the target’s side, vowing to protect her at all costs. It is quite an exciting premise and definitely promises those characteristic expectations of assassins. Unfortunately, Akuma no Riddle falls short on the delivery of said expectations and is ultimately a weak series. That is not to say that it fails solely because of its lack of deliverance. Rather, the series’ shortcomings can be directly attributed to a much greater, fundamental flaw located right at its very core. That and one particular misfire that brings down all hopes of the show had of being redeemed. The particular assassin that defects to the target’s (Haru Ichinose) side is Azuma Tokaku, the central character of Akuma no Riddle. We are affixed to her presence from the show’s very beginning and quickly learn that she is stoic, reserved, and not the most determined assassin out of the bunch. Her reason for defection is not initially made clear by the series though this is not a hindrance but a gateway for speculation that Tokaku has become subtlety attracted to Haru. Tokaku is very much the protagonist of the series though, due to her newfound predicament, she finds Haru, the series deuteragonist, in her company more often than not. Haru is a surprisingly cheery and optimistic girl for a girl of her position, and her grand desire is to achieve friendship with the assassins and graduate from the Black Class, not as enemies but as friends. It seems to be a vain goal but, we learn that through Haru’s past experiences, she has been shaped to think like this. The main characters don’t have the strongest or most convincing characterization they could but, it is done well enough to make them interesting to follow. What’s more interesting than their individual characteristics is their relationship. Tokaku and Haru share an inevitable bond that grows stronger with each assassination attempt, which is a pleasure to watch. It is probably one of the the series’ greatest strength. It’s not long before the series sets us free to discover the other 11 assassins and their motives. The quality of their characterization varies, but Akuma no Riddle sets out to define each and every assassin to their distinct character. However, the success of this greatly hindered by the great limitation of the series: its very own formula. Harkening back to the rules of the Black Class, assassins must hand in an advance notice to Haru in order for their assassination to be considered valid. From there, they must successfully execute their assassination within a 48-hour limit. Failure upon doing so means expulsion from the Black Class. In retrospect this is where the series limits itself. This is not an apparent limitation but it’s how Akuma no Riddle handles this rule that causes the series to become restricted. From the start of the assassination game, the series decides to formally focus on usually one assassin and their assassination attempt per episode. This type of formula of focusing on a different character each episode is a familiar one, so it’s all up to the execution to make sure that it’s an effective episode with strong characterization and memorable moments. Akuma no Riddle fails to deliver here. With the conflict of the show’s premise (Tokaku protecting Haru from her assassination), the 48-hour time limit, and only one assassination attempt per assassin, it’s obvious that there can be only one outcome. For the sake of the show to continue, it should be no surprise that Haru and Tokaku are able to prevail over their opponents, resulting in the opposing assassin being disqualified, never to be seen at Black Class again. This type of formula can get tired fast and yet, Akuma no Riddle decides to let it dictate nearly the entire series. It gets old seeing the same thing twice, nevertheless the 8th time as well. By deciding to have this formula, the series allows itself to become entrapped in a web of predictability. It doesn’t matter what happens to the protagonists in each episode because you know what the outcome will be. Surprise is effectively killed, despite the series’ best attempts to shake it up now and then. It is a breathe of fresh air when the series does shake it up, but the problem is that the formula is still there when it really shouldn’t be. It’s probably the most roundabout & counterintuitive way to execute the series’ premise. Predictability is not the formula’s sole crime however. A very important and much focused on aspect of this series is affected as well: characterization. Each episode has a focus character and the show wastes no time in its attempts to characterize them and flesh them out. However, with solely one episode to work on a character (who probably didn’t get a lot of spotlight because prior episodes focused on different characters) Akuma no Riddle’s attempts at characterization are ineffective and insubstantial. There’s just not enough time to develop these assassin-of-the-week characters who won’t be seen again and any attempts that are made are just shallow. Usually a good option for this one-episode-character trope is to have these characters leave an imprint on the main characters and have them develop instead. However, Akuma no Riddle has no desire to do this. It solely attempts to develop these side-characters who will ultimately have no significant outcome on the story. It is entirely futile and the series doesn’t do a particularly good job at making us care for these characters anymore than we did before, no matter how tragic the character is. It’s thanks to this formula of strictly focusing on side characters that the series forgets to focus on the more interesting aspects of the series, like Tokaku and Haru’s relationship. If Akuma no Riddle had focused more on their relationship, we generally would have gotten character development that mattered and watching it would’ve been more rewarding. With surprise taken out and weak characterization in abundance, surely Akuma no Riddle should be able to soar with exciting, thrilling and aesthetic action. After all, the formula is not strict enough that it needs the action to subscribe to it. As I said earlier, Akuma no Riddle is not able to completely deliver upon these expectations. Assassinations are not as clever or exciting as one would expect. Most assassinations don’t have much effort put into them, they lack effectiveness and creativity, almost as if the assassins aren’t really trying to seriously kill Haru. Though this is unconvincingly addressed by the series later on, it doesn’t make it any more engaging. There’s a point where the series understandably breaks free from its formula, and surprisingly enough, it is almost able to redeem itself. The final three episodes are able to deliver thrilling revelations, truly exciting action, and well-built momentum for an engaging, albeit confusing, finale. However, it is what directly follows the finale that permanently sinks Akuma no Riddle. An epilogue that is meant to give closure to the series, while also attempting to please the viewer ends up becoming a complete misfire. It’s confounding in its own right, but as a direct cause of being an immediate follow-up to the climax, it becomes incredibly jarring and backwards. The finale sets up a definite ending, one that is understandable, and a good one for the series. The epilogue completely rewrites this climax, undermining it as well as everything else the series had built up prior. The bizarreness of this epilogue is outstanding that it’s almost surreal and its disparity with the rest of the series is too apparent. Akuma no Riddle had all the pieces, but assembly led to mistakes that ultimately brought down the series. It is still has its enjoyable aspects however. Animation, while not incredibly impressive overall, conveys the fight scenes and action quite well. The soundtrack accompanies scenes well, and while nothing stands out, it fits into the background nicely. Character design does stand out thankfully and each assassin has a memorably distinct design, setting them apart from the rest. The OP "Soushou Innocence" is notable in delivering a fittingly moody & energetic tune that fits well with the opening animation. Regarding the EDs, Akuma no Riddle generously gives nearly every assassin their own song which can serve as further characterization as to who they are. For example, the 8th ED "Mayonaka no Toubou" is able to effectively exude the melancholic delusion of a character through its lyrics, tune, and visuals. The art for these EDs are in good quality as well, matching the characters nicely and further indirectly characterizing them. It’s a shame that the series was not able to deliver the same level of characterization with such conviction. Even with Akuma no Riddle becoming a slave to its own formula, it can still be enjoyed. Tokaku and Haru’s relationship is pleasant to see (when it is actually focused on), the action is decent, reaching an all time high near the end, and some of the characters can still be entertaining (notably the ones given more prominence than others). However, its formula is its greatest enemy, bringing down the deliverance of expectations, characterization, as well as the effectiveness of its story. Along with a questionable epilogue, Akuma no Riddle is weakened and restricted from crafting the exciting, thrilling and aesthetic battle royale it wanted to be.

The term ‘devil’ can transit a variety of reactions towards an audience. Here we have a show named Akuma no Riddle (translated as Riddle Story of Devil). And incidentally, we have an angel-like character with and energetic personality named Haru Ichinose who gets herself into a mess that threatens her very existence. Luckily, she’s not alone because Haru’s got a protector. Her name is Tokaku Azuma and she is not a pushover, not in the art of assassin anyways. To call Akuma no Riddle a memorable art piece though could be both an understatement and overstatement. For starters, we have a diverse and colorful cast ofcharacters who transfers into the infamous all-girls school known as Myojo Academy. One particular class stands out known as the ‘10th Year Black Class’. It’s here where the show tells its story as Haru is marked a target for death by the other transfer students. As a show based on setting of survival, the premise tells of a different setup. Rather than a free-for-all and every killer for themselves, it’s all against Haru. Apparently, the victor gets themselves a wish, something that I’m sure almost everyone wants if they ever had a chance to make a fantasy into a reality. While all this seems interesting at first, the first episode only introduces its premise that is underwhelming. The premise serves a device to show the deadly game as Haru becomes the prey and the transfer students are the predators. It’s easy to figure out the concepts of the game though since the show explains itself early on with the mechanics. The part where it gets confusing is the ultimate purpose of the game. Mystery draws out throughout the show like a riddle with characters in the background such as Nio Hashiri to spellbind the audience’s curiosity. Throughout the show, there’s an instinctive towards the assassin’s motivations, which differs between every character. However, one prominent attribute involves Tokaku’s will to protect Haru from harm. Her motivation is uncertain besides a few cryptic hints relating to possibly Haru’s past and herself. In essence, the show is one big riddle with her motivations and how they fight for survival at the school. For Tokaku and Haru, they develop a close and innate relationship spawned by the time they spent together. Existing as polar opposites, there’s some development between the two although the duo feels incompatible. For instance, Tokaku is someone who hates others getting close to her and dislike people referring by her first name. On the other hand, Haru is energetic, sociable, and often tries to brighten a gloom and doom atmosphere. Curiosity spawns as how these two can co-exist together as a duo when their lives are at stake every single day at the academy. Like mentioned before, each assassin is different with a different personality and even killing method of choice. In total, there are 12 of them including Azuma. Here’s where the problem comes in when it follows the adaptation. The manga has only been publishing for about a year and its inconclusive how it will end. In other words, the anime braces itself for a possible anime original ending. But that’s not really the main problem. The main flaw here is characterization and development of the assassins. As a one cour show (12 episodes), the show implies that each assassin gets only about a full episode of screen time. That’s also fallacious because in one particular episode, three assassins are eliminated all the same time while one of them didn’t even get her own chance at Haru’s life. In retrospect, it means that there will hardly be any concentration or focus on an assassin’s character. The only focus it spends is the flashbacks that often feels too centralized, predictable, and sometimes cliché. Director Keizou Kusakawa appeals to the audience with his gimmicks that quickly turns itself into a twisted game as each episode progresses on. More and more students are “transferred out” of the class, but in reality are expelled/killed. His previous works on series such as Sekirei and Campione also relied on a main character to fight for glory and triumph against other skilled adversaries. Here, it follows a similar suit only that it seems episodic in nature. By worst, the series also likes to pull out some oddball conclusion with its finale that seemingly circumnavigate backwards with its original theme but destroying the grim feelings of despair. Perhaps the unaired special OVA will find its way to depict a more accurate image. Diving into this show also will feel like dark academy adventure. To get the best experience, it would be to familiarize yourself with the various characters. This could be a problem since most of them are hardly relatable as result of their weak development. Not to mention the fact that all the assassins have deadly skills, it’s hard to picture yourself in their shoes in the first place. But luckily, there is a catch of diversity. Each episode offers something new with the characters. They attempt to kill Haru with every chance and seizes that opportunity. The methods they formulate results in creative ideas that although seems gimmicky but is also unorthodox in an unique sense. These include diffusing strategically placed bombs, fighting on stage in front of an audience in the disguise of a school play, or even literally solving riddles. And to further diversity themselves, each character has a different persona whether it’s a sadist (Isuke Inukai), innocent little girl (Hitsugi Kirigaya), assertive (Koko Kaminaga), or even one with dual personalities and among others. Haru’s presence creates a strange vibration between some of these characters as she is too fragile and incomparable to them. It mixes in the wrong way when it comes to developing any sort of relationship with them. And because they are assassins, the only relationship is decided by life and death. A variety of themes is dealt with throughout the show whether it’s friendship, jealousy, regret, or vengeance. It explores the basics of human nature in a dark way since most of the characters seems to have a troubling life based on the various flashbacks. But these concepts don’t have a profound way to express themselves. Looking at on the surface, there’s a feeling of cuteness molded with dark configuration. Even the girls that fights for “justice” plays roles as anti-heroes rather than a figure of admiration. But for what’s worth, Azuma perhaps the most dynamic character for her self-motivation to protect Haru. In attempts to protect Haru, we learn more about Azuma including parts of her past and visage as an assassin. We also see different sides of her through the relationship between the duo. But ultimately, this comes down to storytelling as the main premise is still intact throughout the series. As Haru is the main target, their relationship is tested by the human nature and instinct. It’s also explicitly shown that the show does take itself seriously, perhaps too much for its own good. Whether these are the taunting riddles, intimidating expressive eye gestures, or even torture scenes, the show makes its oddball point. But despite this dark nature, it also tries to humor the audience with its gags. These include the yuri vibes between some characters including Haru and Azuma. This shouldn’t be surprising considering the way the show is setup. But other tactics of humor attempt often includes Haru’s lack of sense and the denseness of the classes’ teacher, Ataru Mizorogi. From a motivational case, this doesn’t work right since the show has a grim and more mature setting. The girls are dead serious on killing Haru so when comedy sometimes come into play, it doesn’t balances itself right. Diomedéa, known for their previous involvement with other game scenario-esque shows such as Problem Children and NouCome adapts similar gimmicks. Only this time, it focuses on the deadly side with its character designs. In fact, every character in the show has an appeal to color themselves as a competitor. Some seems intimidating while others are innocent but all the assassins are deadly in respect when they show their true colors. This is shown prominently by how the camera focuses exclusively on their eyes. It depicts the anti-thesis of schoolgirls are like, especially in a prestigious school. They hide their true nature until the moment comes to strike just like assassins. As far as their face gesture, it crafts this gimmick right by nature. Character outfits are also decorative with distinctive figures to match their personalities. However, do expect some fan-service when it comes to pool episodes, censored bath scenes (TV version) and the shock violence that comes out as cheesy. The soundtrack isn’t a super powerhouse but does works very well as a supplement to this show when it works with the characters. The most noticeable aspect involves the ED songs as each assassin gets her own theme song (when the episode focuses on them). The OP song remains unchanged however with depiction of the assassins in femme fatale like poses and a catchy aesthetic rhythm. Not to mention, the song contains some spoilerish scenes involving their weapons. For most of the character voices, they show their tone of intimidation and violence. I’d give credit to most of their mannerisms to stay consistent with the characters. However, Haru’s voice mannerism greatly contradicts this with her innocent nature. We also get a variety of soundtrack to depict the heavy action toned sequences. Some works out right while others feels repetitive but ultimately does the job to craft a decent balance of sound mixture. Akuma no Riddle’s endgame is the fact that the show focuses exclusively more on story rather than character development. Demanding for that would leave you unsatisfied. After all, the ultimate goal of the show is to deliver Haru’s execution and fulfill the wish of an assassin. While all this sounds dandy, it also tries desperately to appeal to the audience with its misplaced comedy, shadowy flashbacks, and shallow character relationships. And although it showcases yuri at times, it isn’t a prominent feature to that end either. But the show does offer great diversity with its colorful character cast. For all its faults, the show’s raison d'etre can still be appealing and leave audience wonder who or what happens next. Make no mistake though. This show isn’t just some Romeo and Juliet story about two girls but rather their tale of survival. Because in their world, the strongest prevail and the weak perish.

The concept of the survival game and battle royal is very mainstream today and is favored also by many people, a lot of anime that uses this concept with the objective of achieving huge profits that make anime these days feels more commercial. One of those anime is Riddle Story of Devil or commonly called Akuma no Riddle, a show that comes from Diomedea studio (known for the anime Squid Girl). The story is illustrated in Myojou Academy, a boarding school for women. The school has a special class named Black Class, containing 12 assassin who has a mission to kill 'the target' whichis in the same class as well. One of the weaknesses of this anime is the supporting element of the story that almost didn't run at all, the concept of battle royal that usually thrill and exciting can not be felt. Also, the anime is not paying attention the importance of an originality of a masterpiece, the story didn't have an identity. Furthermore, Akuma no Riddle has a plot that is very common, the plot is not well organized and feels very easily predictable from the beginning, the ending looks very forced. There are plot holes that still empty until the end of the story. Exacerbated by many unexpected fan service appear everywhere like rain. These factors above really makes Akuma no Riddle very weak in the story section. The animation possessed adequate existing standards, as well as the character design. But it doesn't fit with the story feeling, figure portrayed an assassin less on character design. Even so, there is no problem in that their actions show. In terms of sound and music, Akuma no Riddle quite above average. The opening song very lively, the ending songs is quite interesting because each episode has their own ending songs. While the voice actor does their job adequately. Deepening the characters in this story concept is difficult, let alone this show consists just 12 episodes, very difficult to make an interesting character in that short periodic of time. This happens on Akuma no Riddle, the anime impose to tell all of the character's past. But do not notice how shallow the development of the character they make, which creates a backfire to the plot. The main character also has a very weak motive and irrational reason in helping the target. Akuma no Riddle may have a lot of shortcomings in terms of story and character, but it didn't make this show very ugly until you want to dispose of this radioactive far away, maybe recommended for people who are looking for action and fight rather than a story. Finally, you like it or did not it depends on you.

Ok, so this is my first review and I'll be as honest and thorough as possible for an readers. Ok so basically Akuma no Riddle is about a girl named Haru who has to survive a classroom full of assassins. That's really the gist of it. That being said, let me move on to my scores and why I rated them as such. Story: 4/10 The story was very much lacking in this show, and I say that with utter disappointment. This was a show that when it first started, had the set up to be an awesomely written masterpiece full of character development andplot twists. Sadly, that didn't happen. I was hoping for characters that were in the class for ulterior motives, or that had such an elaborate plan that it lasted longer than one episode. This didn't happen at all. This show is basically a generic battle-royal. Not that I have anything against battle-royal style anime and manga, but I honestly expected more out of the show and its characters. The other disappointing thing, was that whenever a particular assassin was the focal point of an episode, that was it. They got one episode and then done. They got two episodes only if they didn't start their battle in the beginning of their first one. Art: 7/10 The art was pretty good. It wasn't anything stellar and it certainly had some horrifically drawn moments, but those were very rare and it had plenty of other scenes where the art looked excellent. Not a master piece, but certainly above average. Sound: 10/10 The sound was probably the highlight of the show. The tracks during the fight scenes were good, and the tracks during emotional scenes were good as well. The best part however, were the OP and the EDs. The OP was amazing, and each assassin had her own ED. So basically when it was that assassin's turn in the show, it played their ED at the end. All of the endings were unique and very very good. The lyrics also reflected the characters extremely well. If you are a fan of anime music, this would definitely be a reason to check out the show. Character: 6/10 This pretty much plays off the same reasoning I had with the story score. Just as there was a lack of plot twists and really good story development, there was an extreme lack of character development as well. None of the characters were outright terrible to begin with, and some were more interesting than others off the bat. Their personal reasons for wanting to assassinate Haru were pretty much all interesting too, but that's all you get from them. Like I said under story, after they get their one episode spotlight, that's it. So character development really becomes impossible. Enjoyment: 7/10 I rate this as high as I do, simply because I enjoyed it for what it was; a battle-royal high school anime. Sure if I take into account the poor story, lack of character development, and the ending (wont spoil it at all, but just me personally, I didn't enjoy it) then I would rate it a lot lower. That's precisely why my overall score is lower. BUT if you take the show at face value and just accept it for being a generic battle-royal with a bunch of fighting between unique assassins, then it's pretty entertaining to watch. Overall: 5/10 When I take every part of the show into consideration, I cant score it anything better than mediocre. While it didn't completely blow at anything, it didn't excel at anything either, especially in parts it should have. The story could have been SOOO much more, and along those lines a better story could have brought much more in depth characters. I wont say it isn't enjoyable to watch, but if you're looking for some masterpiece of a story, with characters that will blow your mind, then this show is not for you. If you're just looking for an action anime, with good music and very minimum yuri, then you might want to take a look at Akuma no Riddle. Just an extra tid-bit here - but if you're one of those people that flocks to the manga to get more details or if the anime has a bad adaptation, then don't. This is one of the EXTREMELY RARE cases where the anime is better than the manga...and I mean significantly better.

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