Manga Adaptation by Seven Arcs
Simulcast on Crunchyroll

Premise: A young samurai travels to the city of Edo where he fights giant bugs.

Lifesong’s Verdict: I Would Have Loved This When I Was 14

Mushibugyo does everything right at the technical level. This a well made shonen with lots of pretty colors, good animation and just enough unique visual flair to make it stand out without being too different from the norm. The guitar riffs remind me of an old school beat em up games and that is a good thing. Everything is very by the numbers, but I mean that in the most positive way possible. The setup and execution contained in the first episode is spot on.

Despite the numerous positives of Mushibugyo, well I am not 14 anymore. I doubt many people outside the target audience would enjoy this much. The protagonist is a young man who wants to prove himself, and the heroine is a young and innocent damsel in distress. The protagonists view is often caught up on her massive rack, something understandable for a 14 year old, but I doubt anyone else is going to care as much as he does. His desire to become a powerful samurai and match up to the strongest warrior are all things I would have loved as a young teen, but it’s hard to get excited about anything this story has to offer unless you are inside the target audience.

This is spider “webbing”, stop thinking dirty thoughts.

Marlin’s Verdict: Flashy, but Trite.

I did quite enjoy the color pallet and character designs on display, but that wasn’t enough to stop this show from feeling incredibly mediocre. If there is any trope as tired as the space mecha genre, it’s the fantasy samurai genre, and this is just that in spades. Combine that with juvenile sensibilities and mindless action and you get something that is really not for your average connoisseur.