Mayoiga – The Lost Village: Season 1/ Episode 1 “Look Before You Leap” [Series Premiere] – Recap/ Review (with Spoilers)

30 people ranging from their teens to possibly late 20s get on a bus toward a promise land named Nanaki Village. A place which supposedly has no rules, no expectations and a person can start anew.

Episode Rating: Stick Around

Review Summary

I wasn’t originally going to watch this since on AniChart the way it was described didn’t make it sound interesting at all. However, considering the sheer amount of odd characters, and this vibe that likely there could be multiple deaths in the series, based on how creepy it got at times, I became intrigued. However, with 30+ some odd characters who don’t present any reason to latch onto them, and our possibly lead not being that interesting, it seems the possibility of death and what Nanaki village holds maybe the two things which can save this series.

Main Plot (with Commentary)

Upon the concept of hearing how a bunch of people are trying to start their lives over, you’d think something horrific happened to these 30 some odd people and maybe the series would explore that. However, based off the perceptions gathered from the first episode, it seems outside of one girl, Nettaiya, trying to get away from her stalker, everyone else has the most mundane problem. Of which pretty much it seems they are sick of their life’s current trajectory or tired of the way society has oppressed them.

Something which hampers the story a bit for like the bus driver says, with everyone being so young, and making their reason for starting over so petty, it makes it hard to get into things. Heck, even for the current presumable lead Mitsumune it is kind of hard to latch onto him since it seems he is running away from home either because his parents have expectations of him or maybe because he feels like he wasn’t coddled enough.

Yet, despite these issues, there is Nanki village. A place which even the cops don’t know where it is and with various theories as to why it is left alone, if not abandoned. That perhaps is the sole thing keeping me hanging on for with this weird group of people expecting everything and more from this place, it is going to be interesting to see if their hopes and dreams for it are dashed or if Nanaki village may just be all they have wished for.

Things To Note

One person, named Hayato, maybe some sort of saving grace. If only because he seeks to learn the truth about Nanaki Village vs. is trying to escape there due to some personal issue.

Highlights

With more than 30 characters in the series, it is likely someone may end up tickling your fancy and will be the person you connect to.

Considering how the 30+ characters have the type of personalities you’d expect in a comedy, due to how exaggerated and odd some of them are, yet they are in a world seemingly set in reality, it could be interesting to see how they all clash. Especially considering the personalities include a feminist, a Romeo and Juliet pairing, a wannabe rapper, a serious gun lover, a couple of oddballs who don’t like talking, someone who is very sensitive to authority, and a lot of other weirdos.

Low Points

With 30+ characters the show has a bit of an uphill battle. For while it seems the focus will be on Mitsumune and Hayato, there are 28+ others who they have to develop as well. Which, so far, based off introductions, it maybe hard to come off with something compelling to make you care about anyone. I mean, just take Mitsumune for example. It seems his main focus is getting from under his parents’ thumb and the show tries to go deeper by showing how he has some sort of issues thanks to his mother. But if the taste we are given when it comes to Mitsumune is what is expected from everyone else, I don’t think this show will get better with time.

On The Fence

As noted in the summary, this episode is low key creepy. For one, most of the cast don’t seem to necessarily have their head on straight, and then the bus itself is traveling through fog and making stops in places which look abandoned. Add on two creepy nursey rhyme songs which deal with death, and it is hard to not feel like the show is a bit off. Which could be a good thing since it may push us to care about these characters and present maybe some weird, but interesting, back stories and situations. However, my hopes and expectations could be like those on the bus for Nanaki. I, as of now, have hopes and positive expectations of the show. Yet upon coming to Nanaki, and understanding what it is really about, I, like the cast, could have my expectations drop and be ready to leave this whole experience behind.