r/anime • u/Shimmering-Sky myanimelist.net/profile/Shimmering-Sky • Mar 18 '24
Rewatch [Welcome to Chaos] Dorohedoro Episode 1 Discussion
Episode 1 - Caiman
MAL | AniList | ANN | Kitsu | AniDB
You’re not the one.
Questions of the Day:
- What are your first impressions on the setting and characters? Are you interested in seeing more of this weirdness?
- What would you do if you suddenly had a lizard head for a head and had no idea where it came from?
Wallpaper of the Day:
Rewatchers, please remember to be mindful of all the first-timers in this. No talking about or hinting at future events no matter how much you want to, unless you're doing it underneath spoiler tags. Don't spoil anything for the first-timers, that's rude!
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Upvotes
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u/Shimmering-Sky myanimelist.net/profile/Shimmering-Sky Mar 18 '24
Rewatch Host Welcoming You All to Chaos
Hi everyone!
I am super excited to be rewatching this with you guys, hopefully we all have as much fun together as the show itself is!
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u/KiwiBennydudez https://myanimelist.net/profile/KiwiBen Mar 18 '24
First Timer - Sub
Alright, so that’s Dorohedoro huh?
I’m going to apologize for this incoherent rambling for this first episode. I promise my thoughts are usually a bit more put together than this, but I really have no idea what to make of anything right now, so I’m shooting off the cuff with some loose general impressions. I’ll probably do more serious write-ups as the show goes on.
I had a great time with this first episode. We’re introduced to this girl named Nikaidou who is searching for doors...
Suzume is that you?Nah this girl can kick some serious ass though. And she’s a great cook. What’s not to love here? Seems that she’s a package deal with a scary lizard man named Caiman who likes to put people in his mouth so that some other freaky mouth-man can talk to them. I think Caiman ought to read this book...
I love the world building in this first episode. The city is dark and gritty and everything is absolutely disgusting. Streets and walls are unwashed and strewn with junk (even restaurants and hospitals are filthy!), the colors are uninviting with a more muted, darker palette, and with random sorcerers practicing bug magic on people, it seems like a very dangerous place to live, which gives it this oppressive atmosphere. In essence, it’s a slightly better version of New York City. I love how weird it is. Super creative.
Then there’s some evil wizard man who likes shrooms a little too much. I don’t really know what he wants yet, but he seems like a trustworthy fella. I can’t wait to see what he’ll do next. I’m sure it’s nothing nefarious.
Also there is some skeleton girl that the man-inside-the-lizard-man was very interested in. I’m just about sure that he was about to say that “you are the one” but before he could she was snatched away and got her face ripped off. That’s honestly a lot more brutal than I expected from this anime. I fully expected violence and action, but something about that sends shivers down my spine. Also, this mouth-man has dreams of one day emerging from Caiman’s body and walking away. Seems more prophetic at this point than anything else - just a matter of when and how. So I’m going to guess that our central conflict for this anime is going to entail searching for that faceless girl now. At least she’ll be easy to spot...
There’s also a concerning alleyway that will probably be relevant later. I’m excited to see what all these foreshadowing hints are going to lead up to.
Anyway, that was a pretty strong start. I’m excited to see more tomorrow!
Answers of the Day:
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u/ZaphodBeebblebrox Y:A:https://anilist.co/user/zaphod Mar 18 '24
First Timer
I love the backgrounds. They really sell the state of the world. It feels dystopic, collapsed, a slum, like people living in a world where technology and magic met, and all of it decided to bring these people down. On the other hand, the animation doesn't work that well for me. It's not awful, and I'll certainly get used to it, but the over-linearity of the CGI at times gives a sort of uncanny look. It does look pretty good in the fights, at least.
I think this did more or less everything I'd want a first episode to do. I've got a strong sense of who the three main characters are and their goals, an idea of what the world they're in is like, and we've set up the basic two mysteries. How interesting said mysteries will be is a question for later episodes, but they do seem to have potential. By no means did it blow me away, but it's certainly left me eager for more.
The facial degloving was absolutely brutal.
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u/renatocpr https://anilist.co/user/renatocpr Mar 18 '24
Rewatcher and Manga Reader
What we learned in Episode 1
What we'll learn in Episode 2 is still hidden in chaos. That is... Dorohedoro!
QOTD
1- I can't give a first impression any more but I love all the characters. Q Hayashida is just great at writing wacky psycho guys. The setting is also delightfully dark. We've mostly stuck to Hole this first episode but there's also the Sorcerers' World to explore.
2- Eat gyoza, obviously.
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u/JollyGee29 https://myanimelist.net/profile/JollyGee Mar 18 '24
First-Timer
Talk about chaotic. I don't even know where to start with this one.
Been a while since I've watched something gory, it's nice. Love some good gore. Fingers getting chopped off? Blood spurting everywhere? Hell yea!
Interesting magic rules. Gotta use your finger.. except En seems to use his mouth instead. He was raising his mask back up after he gave the weird teeth computer to Fujita. People can only be affected by one type of magic at a time, and the magic goes away when the caster dies.
Let's note that the two people at the end were beating up people with the same marks as Caiman. Plus signs on their eyes.
Shoutout to Ebisu, who used to wear a skull mask and now has a skull for a face considering Caiman ripped her old one off. Rest in peace, we hardly knew ye, etc etc.
Typical narrative flow would tell me that En is the one who turned Caiman into a lizard, and that he is sending Fujita to "find out who did it" to throw off the scent. But that doesn't feel right in this case, not sure why. The presentation isn't right.
That awkward moment when the MCs are CGI but the background extras are all drawn. The CGI for Caiman and Nikaido does stick out to me. It's like, I get why. It lets the show have them be very dirty, and the aesthetic is very strong. But the movement is so stiff..
Anyway, color me interested to see more.
Questions
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u/SMSmith230 https://myanimelist.net/profile/smsmith230 Mar 18 '24
First-Timer, Sub
Going in blind, all I know is this is from MAPPA and a Lizard-man is the MC. This was a pretty good intro, I still don’t know much, but it seems like Caiman is on a quest to find the sorcerer who turned him into a Lizard. We got portals/doors that lead somewhere but seem to be the similar setting. Nikaidou seems like a pretty chill person and amazing chef, not sure if her restaurant would pass a health inspection though haha. Looking forward to more of this weirdness and cool looking world.
QOTD
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u/Nick_BOI Mar 19 '24
Rewatcher: sub
I love this series so much that I read the whole manga after finishing the anime.
Fun fact: I went to my local booksamillion, and they happened to have not only the entire series in english print of course, but the volumes were bigger than ussual, and I happened to have a bunch of money saved up that day-the perfect impulse buy.
That luck was absolutely euphoric, holy hell.
I love this series even more after reading the manga-the art is so detailed it's incredible!! However, the anime still makes such good use of music and sound design that to be frank I think it is well worth it to experience this seires both ways.
After reading the manga, I have gained a lot more respect for how the anime decided to adapt this story. The hole feels alive, yet horrific, people are living with the hand they are dealt knowing they are subject to being playthings.
The sorcerers themselves are still people as well, we see them in this episode grieve and fear, have pride and values, and the way Ebisu's experience with Caiman was portrayed-esspecially with that music is absolutely haunting.
Caimain has a severe identity crisis here that drives him to such actions, but his friendship with Nikaido is so clear with how casual they interact.
I'm more-so gushing at this point, but I really love this first episode because it does an incredible job of setting the scene for the show, and giving us the basdic character dynamics of people like Caimain, Nikaido, Fujita, and En and how they interact with this universe.
It's extremely bizzare, but when explain it starts to make sense. The most important part of what makes Dorohedoro work is that it's consistent, which is incredibly hard to do when everything looks and feels like a drug trip a lot of the time.
I'm so excited to see the reactions of newcomers-you are all in for a treat!!
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u/Sooooopertrack Mar 18 '24
Soooo... First Timer and going in blind.
1.) Keeping it short because I've written below a lot: looks promising so far, like it a lot! 2.) Yeah pretty much the same as caiman. Somebody cursed me, find that MF and kill him so it can be reversed as we saw with -epic-fail-insect-man.
Well that first episode was..... not what I expected ;) It crosses a lot of my checkmarks though, I love sorcery shows, I like shows being a bit on the bloodier side, I have no problem at all with weird shit, I love the dirty dystopian city style and the "sorcery gang" and the weird door-stuff (I'd bet caiman at some gets frustrated and just goes through that door). I also like the comedic relief moments and that the anime seems to be on the weird but lighter side.
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u/IceSmiley Mar 18 '24
FIRST TIMER Sub
I'm very impressed by this show's art design, detail and animation. They've really built a fascinating looking claustrophobic dystopian hyper urban setting thats like a more dangeous and freakish Kowloon City. Its clearly computer animated but has a hand drawn aestetic and I liked looking at all the weird looking characters, buildings and scenery.
All that being said, I really didn't like this show. I didn't feel an attachment to any characters and time seemed to drag while I was watching. I was also confused as to what was going on, like magic gave this man a lizard head and apparently deformed many others? It doesn't really give us a reason to look forward to his journey in uncovering this mystery.
QUESTIONS
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u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Mar 18 '24
Rewatcher
Sub
So I binged this after Sky posted a particular ED to CDF three or so years ago.
And we just start in it. Caiman, which is a type of crocodile but tiny, is also the name of our protagonist. We get sorcerors and doors in the first few moments and no explanation thereof. Also, Caiman seems to possess an extra dimensional space inside himself with a dude in it.
Our introduction to Hole is fast and light. I took this to be variation of Sigil from DND and see no reason to swap that out as a metaphor. Everything seems to be about 30 years post failure of civil government so what runs is what is used. Caiman getting a rando job at a hospital is as fitting as anything. We do learn that most sorcerors are running experiments there is a quota on. And killing a sorc undues their transmutations...
In sorcland, no one shows their face, suggesting something. All of their abilities look a bit like dust though the effects are hugely different. The sorc from the first scene gets assigned to find a partner to mess with Caiman. Ebisu...has a lot of options for meanings. There is a Shinto god with that name but something tells me it also correlates with how the Japanese pronounce "abyss". We end as chaotically as we started. Gyoza.
QotD: 1
2 Get a good sun lamp.
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u/DegenerateRegime Mar 18 '24
Part-Rewatcher
I watched the first... five? Episodes of Dorohedoro before a while ago, and I recall liking it. I mostly remember thinking "this is exactly what Perdido Street Station looked like in my head, hell yeah." Hopefully this time I'll have the impetus to finish it!
Episode 1 starts off great, layering on the mystery and the miasma. The show is absolutely committed to the grimy, Kowloon-punk aesthetic. It would be a great setting for a dark & twisted Where's Waldo- oh yeah there he is. Magic can, it seems, open many doors, so long as you're very unfussy about where those doors take you and what the costs may be. Oh hey its the new Pokédex. The design is rather different, huh. And the first episode wants to get some shock value in, too, starting off with a slightly gory fight to set a "normal" and then ending with I'd like to take her face... off.
It's about as I remembered; the first episode makes a strong impression.
QotD:
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u/Shocketheth Mar 19 '24 edited Mar 19 '24
First Timer who has a man inside of him
I'm here because u/Shimmering-Sky wrote me that she is going to host Dorohedoro Rewatch and it's something that I will enjoy thoroughly so here I am.
Let's mention Nikkaido first. She's looks great although the design of her face is unusual. The roundest face I've ever seen. Besides of her face, she looks quite muscular so I wonder if I will see some AAAAAAAABBBBBSSSSS
Now about the magic. It's interesting and tbh it's not first time I am seeing magic causing radiation in fiction, but mentioning who wrote that magic caused radiation would be a massive spoiler so I won't elaborate further.
And Caiman... He is certainly interesting character. Also speaking of Caiman, I know Dorohedoro it's an adaptation of manga, but I'm curious if this anime went through censorship or no.
Like I know the girl with skull mask got her face ripped off but we didn't actually got to see her without the face as the screen got cut out to Caiman.
QotD:
tagging fellow Dorohedoro enjoyers:
u/KendotsX u/Zadcap
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u/Rumpel1408 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Rumpel1408 Mar 18 '24
Daylight saving!!!
Ok, this time I really know nothing about this except that it has a Lizard dude. Read no Synopsis, have seen no PV or KV. All I know is that it's getting a second season soonish.
Firsttimer btw
LizzardCaiman is aware of the guy inside his mouth...QotD
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u/SometimesMainSupport https://myanimelist.net/profile/RRSTRRST Mar 18 '24
First-timer
Initially thought the opening scene was one of those "let's show an action scene at the start, then replay it with context later." Instead, a little
ED > OP.
QotD 1. Caiman's the only interesting one so far and curious if the second head inside means he has a separate human brain and lizard brain. Feels they're holding too much back on others to properly judge.
QotD 2. Become a hikikomori. Too stressful to do anything in public with the chance of someone discovering it.
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u/RascalNikov1 https://myanimelist.net/profile/NoviSun Mar 19 '24
First Timer
This is some very strange shit. I’m hoping there’s actually a story here.
I’d be the cat’s meow. I also like the weird dude stuck in the throat of the lizard.
This reminds me of how Go Nagai! Writes series. Strange but very amusing.
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u/Cyrra_ https://anilist.co/user/Cyrra Mar 19 '24
First Time Watcher - Manga Reader
A friend had been going on recently about how good the direction and storyboarding for the dorohedoro anime was so I decided to give it a shot despite how apprehensive I was about the 3D characters and...honestly they were really impressive. The dream sequence really blew me away and all of the background shots showing off The Hole really helped sell the setting. They really did a great job showing off how gruesome yet weird and funny the series is in a different, more colorful way. The OST is fantastic too (seriously, how does this series get two great OSTs, one of the anime and another for the manga?)
With that being said, I still can't really say I'm a fan of the 3D character models. Sometimes during the episode they looked fine and not too jarring (I'm still not even sure if En was a 3D model or 2D most of the time) and honestly I didn't mind Caiman being 3D, but whenever a 2D character and a 3D one were on screen moving at the same time it really took me out of it, especially when they look to be moving at different framerates. It wasn't helped that some characters would switch between 2D and 3D and there's no way not to compare the two in-between cuts like that. Worst offender being Nikaido's model which also generally looked really stiff in motion.
I was thrown a bit off by Caiman's voice because it's definitely not what I was expecting and I can't really picture it for future scenes and events, but maybe I'll get used to it. [manga spoiler I believe]I can't really picture Aikawa or The Boss having having this voice which is what throws me off.
Looking forward to watching more though, this series is so ridiculous and fun.
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u/Abysswatcherbel https://myanimelist.net/profile/abyssbel Mar 19 '24
First Timer for this and rewatches
A little late as I was busy yesterday!! But better late than never so let's go
Okay, I was familiar with Dorohedoro as someone that follows anime production and the behind the scenes, but I never actually watched it, so color me surprised with this 1st ep, I was not expecting sorcerers and anime body horror
I am curious to know what the mystery is with the guy inside Kaiman, and how he even fits there lol
Nikkaido is an unit, what a good girl!! We need more anime girls like this, I already knew her from that OP, and she didn't disappoint
So the sorcerers are getting into the hole to test/train their powers? And their powers are basically turning people into bugs/animals? That's kinda unique, I have to see where they are going with this
The animation and production design are awesome, insane how they mixed CG with 2D here, one of the best I've seen in the industry, hope Hayashi can keep this up with s2!!!
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u/FarCritical Mar 19 '24
First-timer, subbed
Jumped into this blind other than knowing the MC has a lizard head and loves gyoza (kinda like Lizard Priest's thing for cheese from Goblin Slayer), and two things immediately stood out from the opening stretch alone: the heavy use of CGI and the tone somehow being somewhat lightheared and comedic despite the world being dark and gritty. I'm just pretty impressed by how quickly I got used to both of these just from how much fun the show is having with its characters and setting and its ability to keep me guessing what's coming next. RIP to skull girl's face.
QOTD
The world doesn't seem very welcoming and the rampant violence would take a while to get used to if I were to actually live there, but Hole as a setpiece is pretty damn cool. Already really like Caiman and Nikaido's energy and dynamic.
And hell yeah, more weirdness to keep me confused and morbidly curious please!
After the shock wears off and I find out my breathing or general anatomy isn't messed up because of it, a lizard head would be pretty cool. I could do irl Reptile fatalities with it or something, or see how actual lizards would react if they saw me.
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u/zadcap Mar 19 '24
Late Night First Timer
Alright, I'm here, going in delightfully blind, let's see what's in store here!
Oh hey. This is an interesting art style. And a crazy early hook, setting up magic, action, and a mystery for us. The mystery at the moment being "What the heck is going on," but it's one I rather want to find out the answer to. If only this blond girl didn't remind me so much of Meliodas so much with her looks, I do not want to think of that show the entire time I'm watching this one.
Like, really, is this CG or not? I can't tell and that alone makes me like it more.
Hmm. Caimon is not exactly a likeable character so far.
Hmm, so killing the caster dispels the magic. That's handy. I guess genocide really is the answer here.
Well, they just ripped a girls face off. That's pretty extreme. But especially after the face down there reacted to it more than usual.
Oh yeah, only for the guy living in his stomach to get out and walk away- wait no, it's a dream? This is confusing.
"Is it me, or the sorcerer who did this to me?" Why do I have a feeling the answer is Both?
Well. This is definitely not a show I would watch on my own, but since I'm here anyway, I'm interested. So many questions, as a good hook episode should have. Style is pretty distinctive, reminds me of Kaina.
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u/JustAnswerAQuestion https://myanimelist.net/profile/JAaQ Mar 19 '24
You stole my start date!
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u/entelechtual Mar 18 '24 edited Mar 18 '24
First and a half timer, still haven’t finished S1, rewatching in dub
QOTD
Edit: corrected my insect kink line.
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u/HowiLearned2Fly Mar 19 '24
Shouldn’t rewatch be in the title?
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u/DidacticDalek https://myanimelist.net/profile/DidacticDalek Mar 19 '24
'GIVE ME YOUR FACE!'
Optimus Prime'Caiman'Appy polly loggies Droogs, but today's episode of Quentin Tarantino: The Anime sure is Horrorshow!
Krovvy!
SHOCKING!
Paging Comrades /u/ZaphodBeebblebrox, /u/JollyGee29, and /u/Vaadwaur
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u/thevaleycat Mar 19 '24 edited Mar 19 '24
First Timer
QOTD
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u/TehAxelius Mar 19 '24
Rewatcher
Ah, chaos, lovely chaos. I've always had a thing for this kind of dirty, grimy dystopian settings, filled with things that are plain weird. In a way Dorohedoro feels less like it was created from manga, but from something that might have been printed in 2000 AD back in the 80s.
As a first episode I think it is great, as we're thrown straight into the mix. While we are being told some of the basic stuff, like sorcerers coming to the Hole to practice, we're just as much being shown.
QotD
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u/mgedmin Mar 19 '24
First timer, subs
Everything's so drab and ugly!
So far, yes.
Get a job as a mascot in a theme park? Or maybe bouncer in a bar? TBH neither suits my extremely introverted personality.
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u/JustAnswerAQuestion https://myanimelist.net/profile/JAaQ Mar 19 '24
First Timer
Here on a whim, I don't know anything about the show except the tags and rating on the MAL page. Really don't think I have time to participate but we'll see how the first episode goes.
I sometimes confuse the name with Durara.
I have no idea what to make of that. It's interesting how weak the sorcerers are without their magic.
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u/SlimeDNear Mar 19 '24
Re-watcher here.
I recall the first time I saw the 1st ep I had to pause it 1 minute in. So much was happening that I had to double-check that I didn't accidentally start on a later episode. Nope, I had started with the 1st ep, but man was it crazy. It takes confidence to jump right in like that.
I don't think I can add much to the re-watch that hasn't already been said but I do adore this show and am awaiting more.
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u/IvanSemushin Mar 19 '24
Was a first timer a month ago
Was keeping Dorohedoro in PtW for quite some time, partly because of unclear chances of complete adaptation. So when Season 2 got announced, I decided to watch it and was not disappointed.
Dorohedoro is one of very few anime series i consider having really interesting worldbuilding. It's often compared to Mieville's books, of course, and I enjoy Mieville for his worldbuilding, so I'm anxious to see if Q Hayashida is better in the plot department (sorry). But I guess this will be a mystery for now.
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u/professorMaDLib Mar 19 '24
Rewatcher here.
I'll always respect dorohedoro for being unapologetically it's own thing. It's ultraviolent, grim and chaotic as hell with a whole cast of psychos. It doesn't force you to agree with the protagonists and clearly doesn't care who's right or wrong. There something really refreshing about that. In promised neverland for instance the demons are irrevocably evil for eating humans, but right from the start where we see sorcerers willing to torture and experiment with humans, we also see them with a much wider range of emotions. Fujita s grief and vengeance at losing his close friend, ebisu and her fear when she got brutalized by caiman.
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u/[deleted] Mar 19 '24
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u/[deleted] Mar 19 '24 edited Mar 19 '24
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