Netflix’s BNA Series: Where did it fail?

BNA: Brand New Animal, Studio Trigger’s one of the most anticipated anime of the year 2020, had so much to showcase. Taking place in the fictional Anima city, the anime deals with a power struggle between the beastmen race and humans residing on the surface, primarily in Japan. Although it feels slightly more grounded than other Trigger works expanding from high school fashion dictatorships to thirteen-year-old space cops yet, there is a lot of science mumbo-jumbo thrown to explain plot conveniences some Trigger stuff while still feeling like just about anything could happen next.

BNA: Brand New Animal a 12-episode long Netflix series got mixed response from the audience regardless of its interesting premise. Anima city could have been a ‘source of numerous possibilities’ for the audience for an anime coming from Trigger. However, this ‘new world’ got tainted by the act of forcefully cramming ‘tank full’ of themes into a 12-episode long series. Thus, the hope of BNA becoming Studio Trigger’s best production remained off the coast.

Show had lots of plus points too. The premise was ‘to die for, world-building appears highly plausible, amazing screen play and the characters were extremely well-put-together. The two main protagonists Michiru and Shirou Ugami balance out each other’s tropes with Michiru being someone impulsive while Shirou with his quite protector attitude. We can say other side characters are memorable as well. The racism allegory might appear stronger than any average fantasy series occasionally, presents religion as a double-edged sword, the ugliness of revenge and pride.

Where the anime fails is the lingering feeling the viewers had regarding basic stuff like why do most of the stuff exist in the world? What does it have to do with the story? What is the show trying to say? Why does the protagonist wanders aimlessly caught up in various subplots? We can see things in motion only after episode 6 but, boom the show’s already halfway done.

Viewers are introduced to the fact that these beastmen have to face atrocities in the outside world where the humans will never understand them. In attempt to keep the beastmen from treated as lower members of society, Anima city was created. Only Anima city is the place where these beastmen will find their paradise but, then the show provides no more insight into this subject.

These animals have nothing to be proud of even when they are free on this island. What’s the point of the whole plot then? Most of the time it is hard to tell whether the creators were doing the things they were doing on purpose or this came unintentionally to move forward the plot?

Then comes the second half, everything they introduced was great if only they had more time, if only they streamlined the narrative. Without proper attention, the series doesn’t sound any interesting or deep but the other way around it sounds dumb for the most part. It feels as if the show tripped over itself in the finish line.