Is The Promised Neverland Good?
Yakusoku No Neverland (The Promised Neverland) is a good anime to watch if you are a fan of good psychological anime with some originality and a well executed premise.
It was arguably the most anticipated anime of winter 2019 and it delivers. Yakusoku No Neverland (The Promised Neverland) was one of the best anime of winter 2019 (along with Mob Psycho 100 II and Kaguya-sama: Love is War).
Background
The Promised Neverland was originally a manga written by Kaiu Shirai and illustrated by Posuka Demizu.
The manga was nominated consecutively in the 10th and 11th editions of the annual Manga Taisho award, as well as the 22nd Tezuka Osamu Culture Prize and won the 63rd Shogakukan manga award for shounen manga.
It was adapted by the studio CloverWorks (originally part of A-1 pictures) and premiered in January 2019 and ended in March 2019.
The series is directed by Mamoru Kanbe (known for directing Elfen Lied, Kimi to Boku, and Sora no Woto).
Announcement Trailer:
How many Episodes of The Promised Neverland Are There?
The Promised Neverland is a 12 episode anime and it covers the first story arc. That arc covered chapters 1 through 37 from the manga. This is a fairly reasonable amount of chapters to adapt so the series isn’t too rushed.
Is The Promised Neverland Getting A Second Season?
The second season of The Promised Neverland is set to air in 2020.
Is The Promised Neverland Scary?
The Promised Neverland is not that scary, but it does have it’s scary moments as a horror anime with certain camera angles, lighting, and over-stylized cinematography.
For example, director Mamoru Kanbe uses good shots and camera pans on the three main characters that make the viewers feel as if the trio are constantly being watched and tracked. This puts the viewers on edge because it gives a sense that there is always a constant threat lurking that can hinder their plans. Furthermore, music is used to build tension in place of the character’s thoughts. The sound design is great. You can hear the unique sound of every individual character’s footsteps and the sound effects of the ticking clock in the bedroom in the background while characters are having conversations, slightly elevating the tensions. Also, the hallways were covered in almost pitch darkness at night, which really sets the mood.
Horror is a genre in anime that’s rarely executed properly and there are very few horror anime in general. Despite this, The Promised Neverland was able to properly utilize horror elements effectively.
There are different ways to induce horror with the viewer. What made The Promised Neverland manga work so well was the inner monologues of the characters, which elevated the paranoia of the main trio as they were trying to escape. The Promised Neverland anime induces horror more stylistically and opted to remove the inner monologues.
While The Promised Neverland isn’t pure horror, it’s executed in such a way that still makes it convincing. There is always a sense of dread in the air. The Promised Neverland works best as a psychological/thriller than a horror though. Still, The blend of genres works great, and they intertwine in such a way that allows for the narrative to be really compelling.
Summary
Surrounded by a forest and a gated entrance, the Grace Field House is inhabited by orphans happily living together as one big family, looked after by their “Mama,” Isabella. Although they are required to take tests daily, the children are free to spend their time as they see fit, usually playing outside, as long as they do not venture too far from the orphanage—a rule they are expected to follow no matter what. However, all good times must come to an end, as every few months, a child is adopted and sent to live with their new family… never to be heard from again.
However, the three oldest siblings have their suspicions about what is actually happening at the orphanage, and they are about to discover the cruel fate that awaits the children living at Grace Field, including the twisted nature of their beloved Mama.
via MyAnimeList
The Promised Neverland Shows Originality and Has a Good Premise
Thriller, horror, psychological and mystery are four genres that make excellent shows in the anime industry. This is because there is a possibility for uniqueness.
Despite this, anime of this kind aren’t too prevalent and there is rarely one that is able to execute really well. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (2006) is THE best anime when it comes to inducing horror through psychological means, skillfully using blood and gore, and being a thrilling mystery. The Promised Neverland is one of the only anime to come out recently to come close to that.
The setting and premise of The Promised Neverland shows some originality. It doesn’t try to do too much and is executed very well.
The premise is simple. The children of Grace Field House orphanage are all under the care of a loving mother figure. They are all friends and they grow up and love each other. They are raised very comfortably. Like with any household, there are certain rules that must be followed to keep order and to avoid trouble. The children are told they are not allowed to go near the gate for their own safety. Home has everything you need. Nothing too suspicious.
Later, the children eventually grow up and are suppose to be “adopted” by a family. However, after a while, the children that leave the orphanage never write back and they are never heard from again. Alittle suspicious.
Eventually, a secret is discovered that flips everything upside down. The trio of Emma, Norman, Ray realize everything is a lie and they must escape this orphanage that’s basically a prison. Ultimately, they must run away from their caretaker Isabella and escape to the outside world.
The Promised Neverland’s premise is intriguing and you instantly see the potential.
The Promised Neverland Characters
Isabella
Isabella is the caretaker at the Grace Field House orphanage and the children refer to her as “Mama”. She is a 31 year old woman whose role is to take care of the children. She is very loving and affectionate towards the children, making sure they are properly taken care of.
However, this is somewhat of a ruse as she is actually cold and manipulative. She is responsible for alot of the children’s cruel fate. She serves as the primary antagonist.
Emma
Emma is 11 years old and one of the oldest children at the Grace Field House orphanage. She is identified by her ID number 63194. She is very outgoing and has a happy personality. She is known for her extreme idealism and wears her heart on her sleeve. However, she is sometimes naive.
Despite not being as the same level as Norman or Ray intellectually, she is still able to keep up and consistently gets perfect scores during their daily exams (joining Norman and Ray as the only ones to get perfect scores). Emma is also the physically strongest out of all the children in the Grace Field House orphanage.
When Emma finds out what’s really going on in the Grace Field House orphanage, she is shocked and becomes resolute in saving all of the children, despite the obvious obstacles.
Norman
Norman is 11 years old and is identified by his ID number 22194. He is the smartest child at the Grace Field House orphanage and gets perfect scores on his daily exams. Norman is the strategist of the trio and is amazing at analyzing and planning. He is calm and collected.
Norman’s weakness is that he’s physically weak and feeble.
Norman is very reliable, and as a result, Emma and Ray have huge faith in his judgement. Norman loves Emma and uses her as his moral compass. He is the balance of Emma’s extreme idealism and Ray’s pessimism. He is essentially the glue that holds everyone together.
Ray
Ray is 11 years old and is identified by his ID number 81194. He is an avid reader who is knowledgeable about a wide range of topics. He scores perfectly on his daily exams. He is very blunt and can be pessimistic.
Ray is able to devise solutions quickly but his weakness is that hes also likely to abandon them just as quickly. Ray may clash with Emma, who is more of an optimist. He is viewed as an extremely valuable resource in the attempt to escape the Grace Field House orphanage.
The Promised Neverland is a Good Psychological Anime
The Promised Neverland is all about the mind games. There’s a constant battle of wits going on between Isabella and Emma, Norman, and Ray. Even though The Promised Neverland is categorized as a shounen (the manga is serialized in Weekly Shounen Jump), this is not the usual battle shounen with huge power ups and fighting. The Promised Neverland takes on a more psychological approach at its execution.
Emma, Norman and Ray don’t have any special superpowers outside of their high intelligence. There’s no tragic backstory to them where they are motivated by revenge. There’s nothing unusual about them. They’re just kids who want to survive and have a future. That works really well for this kind of story.
The Promised Neverland is an entertaining cat and mouse game. What makes Isabella such a great villain is that she’s does not rule through physical force or even fear. However, she also can’t just kill the children if they try to escape so she has a limit placed on her.
The end goal for Isabella is keeping these kids happy and safe for a certain amount of time. She doesn’t need bars and chains to restrain the children. What makes Isabella such a formidable opponent is that she basically raised all the children. Isabella knows all of Emma, Norman, and Ray’s weakness, habits, and tendencies. That’s what makes her so terrifying as a foe for the kids. She is a very cunning women while Emma, Norman, and Ray are geniuses in their own right. Both sides are resolute in getting their way and employ various tactics to get one up over the other, which is why The Promised Neverland becomes a great psychological thriller.
Another psychological aspect of The Promised Neverland is the fact that information is a weapon. The act of letting the enemy know some of what you know to try and cause them to reveal their hand is a common occurrence. The Promised Neverland contains a great deal of mystery with its plot elements, ranging from the objects, characters, and who can be trusted, etc.
There are enough twists and turns in The Promised Neverland to keep viewers at the edge of their seat. Viewers slowly get information and realizes how harsh and twisted this world is. Things get so tense and out of control, you wonder if the kids can actually escape this orphanage.
Conclusion
Yakusoku No Neverland (The Promised Neverland) is dangerous, edgy, thrilling and suspenseful. The manga is more detailed and utilizes inner monologues to heighten the tension and give the characters more life. However, this anime adaptation still has it’s strength. Director Kanbe was able to use interesting camera angles and lighting to enhance the horror elements. The animation was good. Overall, The Promised Neverland was a good adaptation. There are multiple instances where an anime is ambitious and tries to reach lofty goals, only to fall on it’s face. The Promised Neverland has an intriguing premise, but actually manages to execute it really well without completely losing it’s audience or becoming too pretentious. It’s not perfect and has some flaws. For fans of the psychological/thriller genre, it’s top tier and a must watch.
For more analysis, check out:
Is Boogiepop wa Warawanai (2019) Good?
Is Kaguya-sama: Love is War a Good Romance Anime?
Why Arifureta is So Bad | Review
Why One Punch Man Season 2’s Animation is Bad | Review
Levi vs Beast Titan | Attack On Titan Best Fight
Tanjiro vs Rui | Demon Slayer Best Fight