Shenmue the Animation

I liked Shenmue a lot​​ at the beginning because the plot was simple, straightforward, and contained a little bit of fantasy and fatefulness. At the same time somehow had an endearing B-movie quality, albeit with decent animation and even fight scenes that were quite good, really. The main male protagonist is quite likable, so I enjoyed getting to know him, although the portrayal of his journey put me off. I felt quite irritated by how the different sections and his development were repetitive and always the same. The protagonist goes to another character because he needs help, and then the person in question tells him that he is not ready to move forward, which happens every time. This means that the protagonist has to do certain sidequests first that lead to his progress before going back to that other character to prove that he is ready, and if he is lucky, that other character helps him get somewhere else. Unfortunately, he usually goes to yet another character, who tells him that he is not ready to move on. What is worse, it does not always go right the first time, and so the protagonist goes back thinking he is ready, only to be told, "No, you are not!" and so he has to embark on yet another journey of self-discovery. The worst thing is that even though half of those aforementioned sidequests are simply also about how the protagonist meets someone who tells him he is not ready. This concept of how the protagonist progresses is regurgitated repeatedly, interspersed with flashbacks of his father telling him he is not ready and has a long way to go! Fortunately for Shenmue, all the knowledge and development were mostly quite interesting to me, and I even learned something about the martial arts philosophy itself. Hence, it was not a complete waste of time. Likewise, the many characters Ryo encounters during his journey are interesting and well-rounded. So overall, in my opinion, this is not a bad anime series, and I would not mind seeing the second season. Even though it often felt like a constant back and forth, it was bearable. 6/10. (01/05/2022)