We’ll here it is, the review you’ve all (OK, some of you) have been waiting for. As I envisaged a while back now, this is my review of the Mushishi (蟲師?) anime TV series by Hiroshi Nagahama which is based on a manga by the same name written and illustrated by Yuki Urushibara.

By means of a little preamble, I have to confess that this was my second attempt at watching Mushishi. I originally started watching the series about 5 months ago after a recommendation from a friend and seeing the overall high reviews the series received as a whole, I thought I would give it a go.

I started watching the series but by the time I reached the fourth or fifth episode, I had completely lost interest. I immediately rubbished the entire series and thought that this one was definitely not for me.

After all my staple anime diet revolved around Bleach, Naruto and One Piece, while some of my favourites include Berserk, Claymore, Death Note and Kenshin. For the anime fans among you this will already give you a pretty clear picture of what my anime preferences are like, put simply; if there aren’t big swords, massive battles or characters with superpowers in it, I’m unlikely to stay tuned beyond the first 10 minutes of the first episode.

A few months ago I finished Cowboy Bebop, a series, much like Mushishi which did not fit my anime mould and I completely disliked it the first time round but through some persuasion from Steve I picked it up again and thoroughly enjoyed it! Following Cowboy Bebop, I was in the mood for giving second chances.

This time I picked up Mushishi with an open mind and no preconceptions, ready to go wherever the story lead me. The result? Well continue reading.

What Mushishi is not.
This has to be the starting point. Especially if you’ve ever only watched one type/style of anime and your knowledge and/or experience of anime has been quite narrow thus far as Mushishi is quite unique in style, content and delivery.

1. Mushishi is not Bleach:
   There are no special weapons, powerups or special limit break style moves. Nor is the lead character a teenager that will some how always save the day but learning a new level of fighting.
2. Mushishi is not Naruto:
   There are no shinobi/ninjas or powerful beasts that are sealed into peoples bodies, although that concept would not be an entirely foreign one in the world of Mushishi. Also there is no over arching storyline driving the character(s) to a predefined destination lead by fate.
3. Mushishi is not Cowboy Bebop:
   If your after spaceships and/or space cowboy bounty hunters looking for the long lost love then your out of luck here too. There is no love story nor are there any space vehicles in Mushishi — a tragedy I know.

I could go on but I hope you get the jist of what I’m trying to say. It is markedly different from the “mainstream” flavours of anime that are quite common or widely known today.

So then what is Mushishi about?!
Mushishi revolves around the existence of supernatural entities that exist within nature, they are considered to be the very basic essence of life itself. They are ubiquitous and transient, invisible to most people who are not gifted with the ability to see them, although some are easier to see than others. We are told early on that the ones that are easier to spot are less dangerous than those are not.

While they posses a collective term there are many types of Mushi in the world and they come in many different shapes and sizes and also have their own classifications. As mentioned already, some Mushi are more dangerous to people than others as some Mushi coexist with humans.

What about the characters?
With that understand we can move on to the lead character Ginko. We start the series knowing very little about Ginko and it’s not till episode 12 (”One-Eyed Fish”/”Sugame no uo”) that we are treated to a little bit of a backstory although even after that, much remains unexplained about his exact origins and his life before he was a young boy or Mushi-shi.

The term Mushi-shi from which the series gets it’s name refers to Ginko’s vocation as he is a Mushi master. He has a profound understanding of Mushi and travels from place to place, in part, to solve Mushi related quandaries and also because of his unusual capacity to attract Mushi, which is why he is constantly smoking as the smoke helps to keep the Mushi away from him.

Whats the storyline like?
First off Mushishi is entirely episodic. There is no overarching storyline that links all the episodes together and there are very few (possibly 2 or 3) reoccurring characters beyond the lead character Ginko.

The fact that there is only one central character and no connection from one episode to the other may suggest that whole series is a jamboree of elements with no purpose or direction and that can leave you to conclude that it’s going to be either boring or poorly constructed as you work through the 26 seemingly insular, unrelated and isolated episodes. And in a sense, you may be right in thinking that but the truth of the matter is quite the opposite.

The concurrent theme of the Mushi and the exploration of the Mushi throughout the episodes helps to develop a degree of understanding about the world the characters inhabit. There pervasive nature and the different forms and manifestations of these Mushi help build a picture of the interconnectedness of nature and people. As despite their circumstance or where they are, everyone is affected in one way or another by Mushi as they attempt to live along side these supernatural life forms.

What about the artwork and animation?
Mushishi is an anime that is steeped in Japanese folklore and tradition. The period in which it takes place is largely uncertain but it’s fair to assume that it’s not modern day Japan due to the clues in the attire and the scenery, however Mushishi does give a limited view of Japan due to much of the stories taking place in rural regions in small remote villages. This old style period of Japan helps to add to the mystique and authenticity of the stories as we get a sense of how these stories were past down from generation to generation, telling of a time when things were, maybe, simpler. It also means that Mushishi has a high degree of cultural nuances for those that have an appreciation for Japanese culture as the many people Ginko encounters all portray the various people of a more classical/traditional period of Japans history.

The actual animation of the Mushisi series is one of the most amazing things about the series. The characters, the environments and even the Mushi have been so beautifully designed and animated that really do deliver both a wonderful animated experience of the world Ginko inhabits.

I particularly like the style employed around the drawing of the faces which at certain angles or in certain instances or drawn without any facial features due to distance or shadow that would normally be cast on ones face. At first it seems like a lazy way to draw the characters but on occasion it does help to convey a sense of emotional emphasis, which is ironic because normally the presence and use of facial features is required to do so instead of the absence of facial features altogether.

The voice acting is also first rate. I only watched the sub and I’m not sure if there is a dub version at the moment. The audio in Mushishi, in conjunction with the drawing and animation is used to great effect in building atmosphere especially in those episodes where there are scenes of extended silence and the viewer is left to focus on the happenings on the screen. At no stage did I find the audio overwhelming or did I find there to be too much talking even though there is plenty of conversation between the characters and Ginko as we move through the episodes and much of it revolves around the explanation of a problem relating to Mushishi and then the solution by Ginko.

There are also episodes where we are treated to a voice over which sounds like the voice of an older woman/granny who relays some background information about the episode. The voice is also there from episode one as we gain a brief overview of what Mushi are and their place in the world. These voice overs seem to emphasis the storytelling style of Mushishi and it’s quite easy to imagine a grandmother telling these stories to her grandchildren as bedtime stories, which could be one reason why a few people have suggested they enjoy watching Mushishi before their own bedtime.

Sounds great so far, do you have a few examples?
Why yes I do. There are a number of fantastic episodes but I thought I would pick out my favourites that really left me thinking: “WOW!”.

Episode 12:  ”One-Eyed Fish” (”Sugame no uo”)
This one was particularly interesting because we learn more about Ginko. If you’ve started at Episode 1, you would have waiting quite a while already to find out more about this mysterious central character.

Episode 17:  ”Pickers of Empty Cocoons” (”Uromayutori”)
I found this episode quite shocking and while I don’t want to spoil it for anyone who hasn’t seen it yet,  the moment the accident happens I was completely not expecting it. Before you even have time to recover the episode ends on quite a sombre note, something quite characteristic of the Mushishi series.

Episode 21:  “Cotton Changeling” (”Wataboushi”)
For me, this episode probably would raise the most controversy as the episode seemingly directly asks the question, what makes something human? It was especially haunting to watch the changeling’s gain consciousness and it made the end scenes particularly disturbing but I think the whole episode and storyline was masterfully executed.

Episode 25: “Eye of Fortune, Eye of Misfortune” (”Ganpuku ganka”)
An episode with a little more dialogue but again a wonderful premise for a story that made me both envious and sad for the woman Ginko encounters who was blind until a Mushi entered her eyes. The final few scenes when the Mushi tries to escape from the womans body is also quite weird and may not be great for the squeamish amongst you.

Then what about the ending?
The ending of Mushishi seems abrupt in my opinion. The final episode does not draw any massive conclusions to the series nor do we go away knowing everything about Ginko. In my opinion there was no closure but I had hoped this was because it would leave room for an additional series to follow.

Final thoughts?
I have to say that this was such an enjoyable series to watch. I found watching the episodes a great way to relax, there was no excessive violences and it really felt like I was being told a story more than anything. The artwork can only be described as beautiful and the characters where interesting and varied.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the series so if you’ve watched it, drop a few thoughts below or if you haven’t yet, let us know if your planning to check it out!

Some additional reading:
Mushishi Review by Yumeka.
Mushishi Review at psgels.blogsome.com
Mushishi TV Review by Tama-Neko.
Mushishi Review by Carl Kimlinger.
Mushi-shi: Volume 6 (Review) by Jitendar Canth.
Mushishi First Impresssions by Hung Truong.
Mushishi episode 26: the sound of footsteps on the grass by Martin(of Mono no aware).