Hello everyone, and welcome the heck back. Today I’m eager to continue our exploration of Dorohedoro, one of 2020’s most compelling productions, and the adaptation of a manga that’s been beloved for two decades now. Since watching the first episode, I’ve learned that Dorohedoro creator Q Hayashida actually worked as an assistant for Tsutomu Nihei, which makes perfect sense – Nihei’s vast, crumbling cityscapes are the closest manga touchstone I could think of for Hole’s squalid beauty. But rather than use a setting like that to tell a story of alienation and decay, Hayashida instead has chosen to embrace it as a home; both of them clearly have a great love of grand, intricate architecture, but they employ that fascination in entirely different directions.
All that said, I wouldn’t want to give the impression that Dorohedoro is anything but Q Hayashida’s own invention. She started on this series in her early twenties, and worked on it for eighteen years, refining a cast and world that already seem thoughtfully composed and full of ideas. The gorgeous backgrounds, the alluring, messy systems of magic, the charming bond between Caiman and Nikaido – Dorohedoro is offering a diverse buffet of strengths, and I’m eager to see how it fleshes out its unique world. Let’s get to it!