Hell's Paradise (Jigokuraku): First Impressions

A mysterious island where the elixir of life is located believed in since ancient times, people have called it paradise, the other side, or even heaven. A place where butterflies dance, flowers bloom, and beautiful voices can be heard singing. However, anyone that has entered never returned as human. Episode one of Hell’s Paradise aired a couple of days ago on April 1st. The show is based on the manga written and illustrated by Yuji Kaku and is animated by none other than studio MAPPA. All I can say is that the first episode took me by surprise. Let’s get into my first impressions.

Hell’s Paradise follows the story of Gabimaru also known as “Gabimaru the Hollow”, an infamous ninja sentenced to death due to refusing the orders of the shogunate. In the first half of the episode, we see multiple failed attempts to execute him. The executioners try to decapitate him, burn him alive, have his body ripped apart by bulls, and try to boil him alive all to no avail. Gabimaru is an interesting character in the sense that he mentions he wants to die and has no attachment to life but always resists death.

Throughout the episode, we see another prominent character known as Sagiri. She was sent to witness Gabimaru’s execution and is also an inspector that asks him about his past and why he was captured. Later in the episode, we learn that she’s an executioner that’s part of a highly-skilled samurai clan known as the Yamada Asaemon clan. Through Sagiri, we learn that the reason Gabimaru has been resisting death is that he loves his wife and wants to reunite with her. To Gabimaru, his wife is his only attachment to life, she is his reason to live.

Sagiri gives Gabimaru an ultimatum, either die by her hands here or travel with her to the mysterious island to find the elixir of life. We learn that the shogunate wants to send a group of the most notorious criminals in the country to search this island for the elixir. Whoever finds the elixir and brings it back will have all criminal charges dropped and be pardoned along with granting the shogun’s protection. Gabimaru, determined to have a chance at living a normal life with his wife, escapes with Sagiri and set off on their journey.

Hell’s Paradise caught and kept my attention throughout the episode. So far, I like Gabimaru as a main character and Sagiri seems like a promising character as well. There were a couple of cute flashbacks of wholesome moments between Gabimaru and his wife which I loved that added more depth to his character. The opening and ending themes were a treat to the ears along with looking beautiful. My favorite thing about this episode however were the visuals. The colors, lighting, and animation were breathtaking, Studio MAPPA truly surprised fans and newcomers of the series with a banger of a first episode. I highly recommend checking out this one and joining Gabimaru on his journey to the land of heaven, hell, and paradise.

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