Unraveling Intrigue: A Thrilling Journey into “B: The Beginning”

Are you a fan of crime and mystery shows? In terms of anime, I began loving them thanks to Death Note. I often paused the episodes and tried to grasp what happened or what a particular character was thinking. It’s a truly different experience that stirs the brain and gets you thinking long after you finish the episode or even the series. The series that take this route can be hit or miss, but it's an overall intriguing genre. So, did the following anime succeed in what it set out to do?

B: The Beginning is a 12-episode ONA series that aired on March 2, 2018. Studio Production I.G. and Netflix worked together to produce it. The central staff behind it included Kuroki Rui as Producer; Nakazawa Kazuto as Director, Episode Director, Storyboard, Key Animation, Chief Animation Director, Character Design, Original Creator, and Animation Director; Yagi Masako as Producer and Production Manager; and Yamakawa Yoshiki as Director, Episode Director, Storyboard, Animation Director, and Key Animation.

It features the genres of action, mystery, supernatural, and suspense alongside the themes of detective and psychological. Each episode has a runtime of 23 minutes, and the series received a rating of R 17+ for its violence and profanity.

B: The Beginning is an original series. It received a sequel titled “B: The Beginning Succession,” a 6-episode ONA series that aired on March 18, 2021. Additionally, Marty Friedman released an official music video for B: The Beginning's ending theme song, “The Perfect World,” featuring Jean-Ken Johnny and KenKen. Put out on February 22, 2018, on music producer Avex's official YouTube channel, it promotes the anime's image album soundtrack, which went on sale in March 2018.

The story is set on the islands of Cremona, a place where a vigilante has taken justice into their own hands and runs amok. Some people celebrate the existence of the infamous "Killer B," who has a sharp blade and superhuman abilities, while others are hunting him.

The Royal Investigation Service (RIS) is the latter but isn’t seeing any success in apprehending this renegade, thus opting to call upon the talents of Keith Flick, a seasoned and eccentric detective. Keith had been relegated to the Archives Department after a personal loss, but the crimes in Cremona demanded his expertise again. As the situation begins to escalate, from stealthy executions of evildoers to sophisticated strikes on public figures, it becomes increasingly clear that there are multiple people responsible.

Keith begins dismantling numerous plots involving covert organizations, domestic terrorism, and human experiments with the help of his impulsive sidekick, Lily Hoshina, and unexpected assistance from Killer B himself. On this perilous path, Keith realizes that the involvement of the RIS extends beyond the scope of justice and the extent of the government's corruption. Now, put in a difficult position where the trustworthiness of close allies has become questionable, things will take a lot of work for him.

Let me start by saying that anime like B: The Beginning are rare. Why? It is a high-quality show that takes so many risks and somehow succeeds. It is not devoid of faults, but it manages to become an overall ambitious and entertaining series worth watching for most animegoers.

The story here is absolutely insane, and it becomes even more bewildering in its execution thanks to Studio Production I.G.’s hard work. On the one hand, it is an engaging sci-fi police story similar to Psycho-Pass, but also a thrilling game of cat and mouse like Death Note on the other.

I know this sounds like a lot to be packed into a mere 12 episodes, and you’re right because there are a few hitches in the execution and development. But overall, it is still a great show where the positives outweigh the negatives, making for a good watch either way.

The central plot borrows many elements from Psycho-Pass, Death Note, and Tokyo Ghoul, and they all combine beautifully to form a very different anime. Two plots converge towards the second half of the series, each with its own protagonist.

The ragged Keith is an intelligent but relatable detective within the Royal Police Force, while Koku, the other protagonist, is a seemingly anxious teenager. The combination of two intertwining plots makes the story so different and enjoyable, albeit confusing at first. Expect a lot of twists and turns at various points in the tale, some of which are predictable while others are entirely unpredictable.

The pacing is very erratic, but not in a way that negatively impacts your experience. Don’t judge this one by its genres or themes either; there won’t be epic drawn-out fights in every episode, gore all over the place, or super realistic psychological battles of wit. Even so, the story remains largely unpredictable and highly complicated, giving you more than enough reason to pause occasionally to sort things out in your head.

Now, we will get to the characters who are not great but do not do a terrible job of ruining the anime. Don’t get me wrong, most of the characters have unique personalities, backgrounds, and motivations, but their appearance and presentation don’t showcase them.

Most follow generic models and have overused features, which we’ve seen a million times in other shows. In the case of the supporting characters, there are just too many, and most of their personalities come off as one-dimensional, where they just pursue their objectives without noticeable flaws.

Some aren’t even given enough backstory, don’t develop at all, and end up dying a meaningless death. The main characters, however, have incredibly complex and well-built personalities, receiving ample development along the way too. Since these guys run the show, it’s not a big problem, and I’d say the cast is mostly likable.

Moving onto the art and animation department, it's pretty good but could be better, too. The character designs are unique to each other, rarely off-model, and look pretty realistic. They use unrealistic movement for comedic effect on given occasions, though, and it’s an okay addition.

The animation during the action scenes is solid and a pleasure to watch most of the time. They do incredibly well in close-up shots but seem to need help with shots from afar. On rare occasions, you’ll notice glaringly bad animation that makes it look like a character’s screenshot is being forcibly moved.

The studio’s use of CGI is pretty decent, mainly used to animate vehicles, and there are rare instances where they use too much of it and ruin the scene. The color palette is primarily muted, which fits the show's atmosphere well. Overall, this department looked and felt fitting and well done. Let me add that the way they presented information by writing it all over the screen had a unique feel and elegance.

Regarding the sounds and music department, Netflix has done far better in other shows like Devilman Crybaby. This isn’t to say it’s terrible, but it could've been better. The OSTs here surpass those of most standard TV anime, aren't jarring, and are primarily well-woven into the scene. For example, expect traditional tense music during a tense moment—nothing groundbreaking.

I will credit them for the excellent use of music in action scenes, where the tracks go so well with the settings. This series does not have an opening theme; instead, it uses the aforementioned "The Perfect World" by Marty Friedman feat. Jean-Ken Johnny, KenKen, as its ending theme. While this is nothing special, the English lyrics are used and sung surprisingly well here. The voice acting is just like the rest—pretty standard without any noticeable flaws.

Finally, B: The Beginning is not groundbreakingly good. But it is a good show that accomplishes what it sets out to do, unafraid of taking risks. I found it undoubtedly entertaining, and it kept me hooked until the very end, which most anime of this genre fail to do nowadays.

There are a lot of religious and/or philosophical ideas on life, death, and humanity all over the story, and I commend this show for not shoving them in the audience’s face. Instead, they subtly let us feel those principles as part of the story and gave us a conclusive ending.

Be warned; not everything is explained to us, and much is left for us to sort out within our own heads, but this process is enjoyable. I commend all the creators for putting so much heart, time, and effort into this anime; they did a great job. So prepare to be taken on a mildly confusing and weird ride with this one until it all comes together and makes sense. I looked forward to Season 2 when I finished this, so I recommend this to all genre fans.