When I first heard of Casshern Sins, I was actually pretty shocked. Here I was, thinking I was this huge Mega Man fan who knew nearly everything about the series, and yet I had no idea what Neo-Human Casshern was! At first, when I saw the design of the main character from Casshern Sins, I thought, "Hey, look at this Battle Network-like rip-off! He even has hair similar to Rock from Rockman DASH!" Then, after I actually clicked on the series, I realized just how stupid I really was. You see, Casshern wasn't a rip-off of Mega Man at all. In fact, it's technically the other way around.
While it's obvious that Astro Boy played a huge role in Mega Man's creation, Casshern deserves just as much credit. The story of Casshern revolved around a young boy who transforms himself into an android so that he can fight the rogue robot "Buraiking Boss." Joining him were his transforming robotic dog "Friender" and a female companion named Luna. Together, the three would fight against Buraiking Boss and his army of rogue robots to protect the world... Sound familiar?
For anyone who hasn't played Mega Man or its future series Mega Man X, this won't be a story you're familiar with. For any Mega Man fans, however, you'll realize just how many of the same plot points the series hits. "Rock" was a young helper robot who transforms himself into the fighting robot Mega Man. He fights to stop his robot brothers, who are now under the control of Dr. Wily, and teams up with his sister Roll and his transforming dog Rush. See the connection now?
Of course, the similarities don't stop there. On top of the plot points, there are many other elements inspired by Casshern as well. Mega Man himself is powered by solar energy, which is also Casshern's power source, and a dog mini-boss named "Friender" even appears in Mega Man 2.
Then, let's not forget about the visual designs. While the original Mega Man and Casshern weren't too alike initially, outside of their helmets and bodysuits, future entries in the Mega Man franchise would change that. Mega Man Battle Network focused on more human-like proportions compared to the chunky-legged robots from the classic and X series, and by doing so, gave us a Mega Man that was much closer to Casshern's style. Taking it a step further, this version of Mega Man gained a face mask when entering battle—a signature feature of Casshern's that had never been seen in a Mega Man game before these new designs came into play.
Really, there's no denying just how much Casshern influenced the Mega Man series and Capcom as a whole. Even characters like Viewtiful Joe would continue to pull from that classic Tatsunoko style. Eventually, Capcom would even come full circle by sponsoring the anime project Casshern Sins—the very same series that led me to discover the truth of the matter.
What is Casshern Sins?
Rather than being a sequel to the original series, Casshern Sins is a full-on reboot of Casshern. It takes the original concepts of the old series as a base, but ultimately it is its own show. Similar to how Mega Man X showed a dark future for the Mega Man franchise, Casshern Sins is an even bleaker version of a similar theme. In this world, the planet is dying. Casshern is the man who "killed the sun called Luna," and because of that action, everyone is now facing ruin. And dying horribly they are.
After killing Luna—for reasons that are eventually revealed throughout the series—a broken Casshern wanders the wasteland with little memory of why things turned out this way. The air is filled with poison, the human birth rate has fallen to almost zero, and the self-aware machines that rule the world are falling to ruin as well. Nothing can survive in this new age, and it is only a matter of time before death comes for everyone. It is a harsh reality that Casshern must face head-on.
Each episode of Casshern Sins tends to focus on the different individuals Casshern meets as he explores the world. While there are recurring characters considered "leads," many are ultimately only seen once due to the nature of the series. If it isn't the world that kills these people first, then it is none other than Casshern who puts them out of their misery. It is a very dark show, to say the least, and it doesn't shy away from showing disturbing content.
To add to this, the series was animated by Madhouse, a studio already known for its unique, and sometimes unsettling, style. Due to their animation choices and the themes of the series, Casshern Sins walks a fine line between horror and drama, with many of the dramatic moments evolving into full-on horrific scenes during their conclusions. Even the more "touching" moments of the series are typically stylized in a disturbing way, so the sense of unease never really leaves you. It is a remarkably bleak series, with no hope in sight.
One episode of the series that really stands out happens very early on. In this part of the story, Casshern stumbles upon a robotic couple and their dog, Friender (yes, that Friender), and is invited to join their community. Agreeing to follow them, Casshern finds himself at a camp filled with robots who wish to live out their dying days in peace. They know they don't have long to live, but they want to enjoy every minute they have left and live their lives to the fullest.
They welcome Casshern with open arms, and during his stay, he gets to know them. However, this peace is very short-lived. After one of the robots drops dead in front of the others, panic ensues and a strange rumor comes to light. Apparently, there is said to be a robot out there who will never fall to ruin. This robot will continue to live on, and his body will remain in perfect condition. If that robot is consumed by others, then those robots will also gain eternal life. Needless to say, that robot is none other than Casshern.
Fearing death, the community turns on Casshern and tries to eat him. With no other option, Casshern activates his "battle mode" and quickly gets to work. He slaughters the entire village, leaving a horrifying scene in his wake. Body parts are strewn everywhere, and those who once wanted to become his friends now lie with their heads smashed open and their robotic internals thrown about.
The only survivor of this massacre is none other than Friender, and ultimately, he decides to follow Casshern on his journey. It is not the happy partnership of the original series, but this is also not that same lighthearted world. This episode makes that reality painfully obvious and lets us know exactly what to expect moving forward.
Should You Watch It:
Originally, the show was released back before anime became more "mainstream" in the West, and because of that, fan subs were the only way to check it out. Times have changed since then, however, and Casshern Sins even received an English dub that aired on the rebooted Toonami block. Because of this, it is much easier to track the series down nowadays, giving you even more of a reason to give it a shot.
If any of what I said above sounds interesting to you, then all I can say is... what are you waiting for?! It is one of the few shows out there where you can watch only a few episodes and actually understand exactly what the rest of the series is going to be like. Sure, it does get better as it goes on, but the start of the series sets the tone perfectly. It doesn't sugarcoat anything and jumps right into the "action." If you don't like it from the start, then it is kind of hard to recommend that you continue, but I would still say to give it a chance either way. It is a unique reboot of a classic series, and it is something that you should at least experience once.
VERDICT: Recommended
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