Japanese anime television series
Paranoia Agent
(
Japanese
:
妄想代理人
,
Hepburn
:
M?s? Dairinin
)
is a Japanese
anime
television series created by director
Satoshi Kon
and produced by
Madhouse
about a
social phenomenon
in
Musashino
,
Tokyo
caused by a juvenile serial assailant named Lil' Slugger (the English equivalent to
Sh?nen Bat
, which translates to "Bat Boy"). The plot relays between a large cast of people affected in some way by the phenomenon; usually Lil' Slugger's victims or the detectives assigned to apprehend him. As each character becomes the focus of the story, details are revealed about their secret lives and the truth about Lil' Slugger.
Plot
[
edit
]
Tsukiko Sagi, a shy
character designer
who created the immensely popular pink dog Maromi, finds herself under pressure to repeat her success. As she walks home one night, she is attacked by an elementary school boy on
inline skates
. Two
police
detectives, Keiichi Ikari and Mitsuhiro Maniwa, are assigned to the case. They suspect that Tsukiko is lying about the attack, until they receive word of a second victim.
Soon the attacker, dubbed Lil' Slugger (
Sh?nen Batto
in Japanese, meaning "Bat Boy"), is blamed for a series of street assaults in Tokyo. None of the victims can recall the boy's face and only three distinct details are left in their memories: golden inline skates, a baseball cap, and the weapon: a bent golden baseball bat. Ikari and Maniwa set out to track down the perpetrator and put an end to his crimes.
Names
[
edit
]
Many of the characters in
Paranoia Agent
are often referred to with animal names, especially in each "Prophetic Vision" (a segment at the end of each episode that previews the next) and the episode "
The Holy Warrior
," in which some characters are depicted as animal-like creatures. In many cases, their Japanese names translate directly to the type of animal which they are referred to as: "sagi" means heron, "kawazu" is an archaic term for frog, "ushi" means cow, "tai" means sea bream or red
snapper
, "ch?" means butterfly (ch?-cho can also mean butterfly, possibly alluding to her split personality), and "hiru" means leech. "Kamome" means seagull.
[3]
Production
[
edit
]
During the makings of his previous three films (
Perfect Blue
,
Millennium Actress
, and
Tokyo Godfathers
),
Paranoia Agent
creator
Satoshi Kon
was left with an abundance of unused ideas for stories and arrangements that he felt were good but did not fit into any of his projects. Not wanting to waste the material, he decided to recycle it into a dynamic TV series in which his experimental ideas could be used.
In the case of a film to be shown at theatres, I'm working for two years and a half, always in the same mood and with the same method. I wanted to do something that allows me to be more flexible, to realize instantly what flashes across my mind. I was also aiming at a sort of entertaining variation, so I decided to go for a TV series.
[4]
Media
[
edit
]
Anime
[
edit
]
The series aired on Japan's
Wowow
from February 3 to May 18, 2004.
[5]
Geneon Entertainment
licensed the anime in North America and released the series on four DVDs from October 26, 2004, and May 10, 2005. A
UMD
version of Volume 1 was made available on October 10, 2005.
Madman Entertainment
released the series in Australia.
[6]
An English dub began airing in the U.S. on
Cartoon Network
's
Adult Swim
on May 29, 2005, followed by an encore airing that began on June 6, 2006.
[7]
In Canada, it began a run on digital channel
G4TechTV
's
Anime Current
programming block on July 27, 2007.
[8]
The anime is distributed by
MVM Films
in the UK.
[9]
On February 3, 2020,
Funimation
announced that it had licensed the series for its streaming platform.
[10]
[11]
On April 15, 2020, Adult Swim announced that the English dub would be rebroadcast for the first time in over a decade on its
Toonami
programming block.
[12]
The Blu-ray collection of the series was released in the U.S. on October 13, 2020, in
SteelBook
packaging as a Best Buy exclusive, and received a general Blu-ray release on December 15, 2020.
[13]
[14]
Music
[
edit
]
The music in
Paranoia Agent
was composed by Japanese
electronica
pioneer
Susumu Hirasawa
. The opening theme "Dream Island Obsessional Park"
(
夢の島思念公園
,
Yume no Shima Shinen K?en
)
and the ending theme "White Hill ? Maromi's Theme"
(
白ヶ丘~マロミのテ?マ
,
Shirogaoka ~ Maromi no t?ma
)
are performed by Hirasawa.
Proposed film
[
edit
]
In December 2009, Japanese cult-film director
Takashi Shimizu
announced plans for a film adaption of the anime. However, plans eventually fell through and ultimately no film was ever made.
[15]
Reception
[
edit
]
Review aggregator
website
Rotten Tomatoes
gives the series the rare
approval rating of 100%
based on 13 critic reviews, with an
average rating
of 7.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Anime auteur Satoshi Kon brings his feverish vision to the serialized form in
Paranoia Agent
, a disturbing meditation on individual and societal anxiety."
[16]
Paranoia Agent
was one of the Jury Recommended Works in the Animation Division at the 8th
Japan Media Arts Festival
in 2004.
[17]
Charles Solomon from
NPR
says, "
Paranoia Agent
may frustrate viewers who expect a straightforward narrative, but it's a disturbing, highly original work from a talented filmmaker."
[18]
[19]
John Powers, also from NPR, remarks, "It's one of the best and strangest programs I have ever seen... Kon does something daring. He reveals the fierce sadness and pain hidden by the modern embrace of things that are cute."
[20]
[19]
A review in
Empire
awarded
Paranoia Agent
3 out of 5 stars, saying, "for those who like their animation 'out there', Satoshi Kon's
Paranoia Agent
delivers by the oddball bucketload".
[21]
Jean-Luc Bouchard from
BuzzFeed
praised
Paranoia Agent
as a depiction of depression, writing, "The entire series totals a mere 13 episodes, but it drew me in immediately, and introduced me to a dark cast of characters whose troubled minds changed not just their own perceptions, but each other's realities as well."
[22]
James Beckett of
Anime News Network
gave the anime an A, and describes the series as "What is the most important thing to remember about
Paranoia Agent
is that it is a mystery story where the answers to the mysteries are not as important as the questions they raise. A haunting and deeply felt fable of human experiences told with Satoshi Kon's signature flair, eerie and funny in equal measure, visuals that will stick with you for years to come".
[23]
A review for
IGN
gave the first three episodes of
Paranoia Agent
a score of 7/10, comparing it to the works of
David Lynch
, but criticizing the animation as "downright primitive in places".
[24]
John Maher from
Paste
listed
Paranoia Agent
as the 14th best anime series of all time, comparing it to Kon's other works
Paprika
and
Perfect Blue
, adding, "it's every bit the sublime exercise in psychological thriller as either".
[25]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
"Satoshi Kon's Paranoia Agent to Stream Exclusively on Funimation, Blu-ray Coming this Year"
.
Funimation
. February 3, 2020.
Archived
from the original on February 3, 2020
. Retrieved
November 14,
2021
.
- ^
Laeno, Dominic.
"Paranoia Agent"
.
THEM Anime Reviews
. Retrieved
July 22,
2018
.
- ^
The following Japanese words are from
Jim Breen
's
JMDict
. Alternative references are listed here.
- Heron
(
鷺
,
sagi
)
- Frog
(
蛙
,
kawazu / kaeru
)
RUT.org
- Cow
(
牛
,
ushi
)
RUT.org
- Sea bream / (red) snapper
(
?
,
tai
)
- Butterfly
(
蝶
,
ch?
)
Rut.org
- Butterfly
(
蝶?
,
ch?ch?
)
RUT.org
- Seagull
(
?
,
kamome
)
RUT.org
- Leech
(
蛭
,
hiru
)
RUT.org
- ^
"Satoshi Kon - Winner's Interview"
.
Japan Media Arts Festival Awardees' Profile
. Japan Media Arts Plaza. 2004.
Archived
from the original on December 11, 2005
. Retrieved
June 26,
2006
.
- ^
妄想代理人
.
Media Arts Database
(in Japanese).
Agency for Cultural Affairs
. Retrieved
July 30,
2021
.
- ^
"Paranoia Agent Official Website"
. Madman Entertainment. Archived from
the original
on July 19, 2010
. Retrieved
April 5,
2021
.
- ^
Mcdonald, Christopher (March 25, 2005).
"Upcoming Adult Swim Anime"
.
Anime News Network
.
Archived
from the original on February 12, 2007
. Retrieved
June 1,
2020
.
- ^
"G4techTV Canada continues exclusive anime programming with six new concurrent series - More anime content offered than ever before!"
.
G4TechTV
. Toronto, Ontario. June 25, 2007.
Archived
from the original on September 11, 2007
. Retrieved
June 1,
2020
.
- ^
"Paranoia Agent"
.
MVM Films
. Retrieved
June 1,
2020
.
- ^
"Satoshi Kon's Paranoia Agent to Stream Exclusively on Funimation, Blu-ray Coming this Year"
.
Funimation
. Funimation Global Group, LLC. February 3, 2020. Archived from
the original
on June 2, 2020
. Retrieved
February 3,
2020
.
- ^
Sherman, Jennifer (February 3, 2020).
"Funimation Exclusively Streams Satoshi Kon's Paranoia Agent Anime"
.
Anime News Network
. Retrieved
February 6,
2020
.
- ^
Pineda, Rafael Antonio (April 15, 2020).
"Adult Swim's Toonami Brings Back Satoshi Kon's Paranoia Agent Anime on April 25"
.
Anime News Network
.
Archived
from the original on April 16, 2020
. Retrieved
April 16,
2020
.
- ^
Cirone, David (August 6, 2020).
"Paranoia Agent Steelbook Blu-ray announced for October 2020"
.
J-Generation
.
Archived
from the original on August 21, 2020
. Retrieved
August 13,
2020
.
- ^
Mateo, Alex (August 16, 2020).
"Funimation to Release Akira Film's Remaster on 4K Blu-ray Disc on December 22"
.
Anime News Network
.
Archived
from the original on September 16, 2020
. Retrieved
December 17,
2020
.
- ^
Miska, Brad (December 16, 2009).
"Takashi Shimizu Produces 'Paranoia Agent'
"
.
Bloody Disgusting!
.
Archived
from the original on October 22, 2012
. Retrieved
December 17,
2020
.
- ^
"Paranoia Agent: Season 1"
.
Rotten Tomatoes
. Retrieved
December 17,
2020
.
- ^
"PARANOIA AGENT | Jury Selections | Animation Division | 2004 [8th] Japan Media Arts Festival Archive"
.
Japan Media Arts Festival
. Retrieved
August 23,
2022
.
- ^
Solomon, Charles (February 9, 2005).
"New Anime Series Come to DVD"
.
NPR
(Podcast)
. Retrieved
December 17,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
"Paranoia Agent: Season 1 - TV Reviews"
.
Rotten Tomatoes
. Retrieved
December 17,
2020
.
- ^
Powers, John (May 5, 2005).
"Intrigue from Japan: 'Paranoia Agent'
"
.
NPR
(Podcast)
. Retrieved
December 17,
2020
.
- ^
"Paranoia Agent Review"
.
Empire
. July 4, 2005.
Archived
from the original on August 6, 2020.
- ^
Bouchard, Jean-Luc (April 23, 2015).
"How An Anime Series Helped Me Recognize My Depression"
.
BuzzFeed
.
Archived
from the original on April 23, 2015
. Retrieved
December 17,
2020
.
- ^
Beckett, James (May 29, 2020).
"REVIEW: Paranoia Agent"
.
Anime News Network
. Retrieved
August 23,
2022
.
- ^
Patrizio, Andy (May 20, 2012).
"Paranoia Agent Volume 1: Enter Lil' Slugger"
.
IGN
.
Archived
from the original on August 6, 2020
. Retrieved
December 17,
2020
.
- ^
Jones, Austin; Maher, John; Vilas-Boas, Eric; Egan, Toussaint; Sedghi, Sarra; Johnson II, Jarrod (June 30, 2020).
"The 50 Best Anime Series of All Time"
.
Paste
. Archived from
the original
on April 18, 2020
. Retrieved
April 13,
2020
.
External links
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