Why you should watch Oddtaxi? [Anime Review]

[Kuma]

Hello, Kuma here, telling you to go watch Oddtaxi, the best anime this season.

Damn, it might be AOTY already, even with two seasons still missing.

Oddtaxi is a stylized Neo-Noir crime thriller focused around Odokawa, a 40-something Taxi Driver in Tokyo. He gets involved in the lives of several of his customers, getting entangled in a mystery and a conspiracy.

You might see the art style after reading the last paragraph and doubt what I said, considering that everyone looks like a funny animal/human hybrid, but that design choice is absolutely on purpose and is extremely important to the plot.

Oddtaxi is the rare kind of anime that weaves multiple stories into a single cohesive plot, drawing you in with each episode and not just going from plot point to plot point, but also expanding the cast of characters and developing in a recursive loop that makes their developments affect the plot and the plot accelerate their development.

I'm not saying you're a fool for not watching Oddtaxi, but I'm just saying that instead of watching Isekai Show #221, treat yourself and watch a Masterpiece in the making.

Plus it has a banger of an OP.

[ar-ninetysix]

Seriously, not a lot of people talking about it and it's wild to me that people are gonna dismiss it as a furry anime. Legitimately, episode 4 felt way too real and disturbing lol

[Kuma]

Yes, those deep dives into characters backstories and psyches are amazing.

[allenT]

Haha, I really just stumbled upon this anime because it has anthro characters, but it's a very nice discovery.

At first I was a bit weird out about the kids cartoon artstyle, but very soon i get that it's intentional: It intrigues viewers and let them focus on the mystery story instead of the art, (at least the artstyle is cohesive). The dialogues are fantastic! I think what makes the anime great is how it depicts social issues and human conditions.

The characters are very vivid & likable (and cute). Yano is my current favorite now.

[Kuma]

Something that shocked me to the core was finding out Odokawa is voiced by Tanjiro Kamado (Kimetsu no Yaiba) voice actor.

[monotone_ink]

I fell in love with it as soon as I saw the poster and read the premise.

[sorible]

Ho my god I clicked on this thread expecting some random anime that I probably wouldn't watch but instead I see this amazing disgruntled looking walrus man.

You have blessed me. ⁼̴̤̆ܫ⁼̴̤̆

[BarBarKetrab]

Interesting. I guess I'll check it out.

[allenT]

(no spoiler, well... structural spoiler) Oh boy... this is just my personal opinion.

Summary

The final episode is the only episode i didn't like. It only brings on the concept twist and the aftermaths. I was expecting something more dramatic, but it's anti-climatic. Everything reveals, the real murderer just gives away for epilogue transition, there's no intellectual satisfaction, undermining the mystery aspect. The concept twist is a very interesting, daring change, but as a anthro/furry lover l was quite let down.

It's still 8/10 for me overall ! I do enjoyed it most of the time, their dialogues, plots are truely engaging and I adore the cute animal designs.

[ar-ninetysix]

Spoiler talk, since we're going at it

For the most part, I agree with you here. Great anime and it kinda.. falls flat on its face at the end lol

I ain't even roll with the designs like that and I still felt taken out of it! Like okay, fine the interspecies romance? Doesn't makes sense and counts as foreshadowing, fine. Animal characters owning pets and going to zoos? ..morally weird and iffy, but fine?? Definitely more foreshadowing lmao but when the human designs showed up, all I could think of doing was

[Kuma]

Spoiler comments

I really, reaaaally liked the ending. They give you a whole bunch of clues to piece it all together. I even managed to crack the murder mystery before the last episode aired. It was a tight script with great dialogue, characters, and stories. Yano's VA deserves an award just for rapping 95% of his lines.

[thedude3445]

This does look pretty good. I just might write (or read) it.

[allenT]

I also understand now why some characters' parents are not the same specie.