ACCA: 13-ku Kansatsu-ka / ACCA: 13th Territory Inspection Department / ACCA 13

What did Yea Forums think of ACCA 13?

I watched ACCA: 13-ku Kansatsu-ka. Also known as ACCA: 13th Territory Inspection Department. Here are my thoughts:

I'd describe the world this takes place in as a fascist monarchy. Culturally, it felt like a mix of France and Germany but not overtly Nazi-inspired (aside from the uniforms). It also felt like a mid-20th-century time period but with some modern technology added like cell phones and desktop computers. It was peculiar. Sometimes a random piece of technology would appear in a scene and it would seem very unusual and break my immersion for a moment.

This anime is about a political conspiracy that unfolds painfully slowly over the course of the show. Most of the characters are government officials in the ACCA department and/or belong to the ruling monarchy in some way. There is inadequate exposition, particularly during the early episodes. This anime tries to be 'show don't tell', but this is not the right setup for a subtle conspiratorial political plotline. This is definitely a show that requires world building and background information, and its deficiency in this regard is a major issue. I often felt like I was watching a promo trailer or something because it frequently seemed like I was just randomly dropped into a scene with zero context or ability to comprehend the significance of the dialogue. I wasn't given a reason to care about anything or anyone in this show. Literally, putting a 1-minute exposition blurb by a narrator with visual aids in every few episodes would enhance this show tremendously. There is no broader context to what is happening in the show and it almost just feels like a nonsensical fever dream, particularly during the earlier episodes. The story feels totally aimless for much of the runtime.

[Continued ITT]

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Pretty much the entire cast is unlikeable or at least lacking personality. The little sister character is annoying and airheaded. The MC (Jean) is a memorably awful character. He has zero personality at all and resembles a chainsmoking beached fish. He is such an incredibly dull character, and what's even weirder is how he's adored everywhere he goes. There's also Niino, who is chairman of the Jean fan club and is his stalker BF (not quite literally). Other characters include a large number of ACCA organization members, nearly all of whom are underdeveloped. Many of the ACCA members could have been removed from the cast and the story would have worked fine without them; it seems the author needed some extras to use up the remaining silly hairstyles they had sitting around.

The scriptwriting in this is shockingly awful. Mundane comments about smoking tobacco are relentlessly included in the script for seemingly no reason at all (literally the MC's entire personality, aside from being borderline narcoleptic, is that he's a smoker). Also, whoever wrote this show clearly loved sweets and baked goods, because they are constantly inserted into the script AD NAUSEAM. The dialogue in general is incredibly dull and mindnumbing. Everything in the script is so banal and pointless. I really can't stress enough how unbelievably dull and monotonous the dialogue in this show is. It's almost hard to believe it was even meant to be entertainment. It's astonishing this anime even got greenlit, especially with such a seemingly high budget. This script is so torturously monotonous they should have broadcasted it on repeat at Waco (perhaps they will relate to the fascist themes in the story!); even if the Branch Davidians are burning alive, the real torment will come from having to hear another goddamn conversation about smoking.

Throughout the show the MC visits different districts of the kingdom, each of which have different cultures, climate, and are subject to their own unique set of regulations. In theory this sounds very interesting, but the actual product is so lackluster. Usually little of each district is shown during the visits, and not much detail in general is provided. It doesn't take long for the conversations during these travels to devolve into "dude cigarettes lmao." These trips were great opportunities for exposition and world building, but their potential was not capitalized upon at all. It's just shocking because people are constantly talking during these trips, yet the conversations contain so little information! The level of wasted potential is truly staggering. The world building in general for this anime is done very poorly.

Despite this supposedly being a mystery show, it seems like there was zero effort whatsoever put into creating suspense.
Midway through the season, there is a hugely important reveal (I won't spoil it, or specify which episode), but the way it is dropped is so nonchalant and flat. This could have been a dramatic moment but instead it was just randomly inserted into the script as casually as the MC talks about goddamn pastries. It was unbelievably strange. I was so bewildered I had to rewind the scene because I thought I misinterpreted the dialogue.

tl,dr

Filtered.

There are eventually some major plot developments during the final few episodes, some of which were inadequately foreshadowed IMO. Despite the seriousness of these developments, I was still left with a feeling of inadequate payoff in terms of that being the climax. It was dissatisfying and underwhelming, especially after enduring the long dull journey to get there. Much of this is in the execution of these scenes and the overall poor direction of the show. There is zero suspense whatsoever, and there is no feeling of catharthis at all when things are resolved, despite the ridiculously drawn-out build up. The climax of the story, including the final episode, is incredibly underwhelming and you definitely should not get your hopes up for it. Please don't justify to yourself continuing to watch this show because you're expecting some big reveal at the end – trust me it's not worth it.

I would describe the art style as being like retro anime but with a modern polish while also retaining its organic feeling. It was crisp and refined but also somewhat dull and lacking creativity. Although the character designs are unique, I think I disliked more of them than I liked. The droopy fish-like eyes of the MC being one ever-present example. Also having most of the cast wear similar bland government uniforms made for a dull visual experience; they could have had way more fun with the outfits and put more creativity and variety into them. Instead, nearly everyone in the cast wears the exact same uniform most of the time, which just reinforces the relentlessly monotonous feeling of this anime. However, the setting did look decent overall. It appeared fairly realistic but, similarly to the outfits, with not much personality or variety. It would have been nice to have something more interesting and with more artistic flair to look at while listening to the droning dialogue of this show. It is still crisp and polished though, don't get me wrong. There is not a single blemish to be found really. However, even though the production quality is solid, this anime still feels half-baked (and I don't mean the goddamn pastries) due to how poorly executed the story is.

I would say the cinematography was above average overall, although inconsistent. Shot composition often did a good job of featuring the setting. Variable focus effects are sometimes used to give the visuals more depth. That said, the animation in this is not dynamic at all. Stills appear very frequently and it felt like the bare minimum of character movement was used.

The voice for Niino (the MC's stalker BF) is unique and suits his role well. Conversely, I found the voice acting of the MC (Jean) as underwhelming as his personality. Everyone else had unremarkable voice work. As for music, I personally don't like jazz, and there is a lot of it in the OST. It seems well produced but it just isn't my cup of tea. There are a few alright piano tracks though.

Lastly, I want to mention that the consistently low-key calm atmosphere of this show made it suitable for when I was tired or just didn't want to watch anything too high energy – this anime was reliably chill and nobody ever yelled in my ear. I suppose this is a positive aspect – it is the main reason I was even able to watch this show to completion.


My overall rating: 2/10
This anime is literally just videogame-NPC dialogue played over a low-tempo jazz soundtrack. I'm not exaggerating, that's literally what this show is. The dialogue is so dull it's bewildering. Despite this apparently being a mystery show, it fails to induce any feeling of suspense or tension whatsoever, and is overall incredibly boring to watch. The lack of exposition is also crippling, particularly during the first half of the show where there is zero context at all for the events (or lack thereof) taking place. Throughout all this the MC has the personality of a beached fish and pretty much the entire cast is unlikable. Furthermore, although the production quality is high, both the art style and screenplay leave much to be desired. The visuals being quite polished doesn't change the fact that they are boring and dull. This anime doesn't even feel like entertainment.

Regardless of all this, it was reliably chill. There is basically zero high-tempo music and nobody ever yells. So, if you're looking for a show to fall asleep to, this would be an excellent choice for that. Plus, you won't miss anything if you pass out halfway through, I promise!

There is a 47-min sequel OVA which I masochistically hatewatched.
The setting looked nice and the visuals in general were a notch above the TV anime. However, all of the flaws I addressed above persisted. This OVA was just as astonishingly dull as the TV series.

I did not watch the special shorts but I bet they're awful. I did watch the Blurays though for the record.

Lots of sexy dilfs, I liked it.

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I didn't like a lot of their character designs, but some of them were indeed pretty hot. The scheming pseudo-south-asian guy being one prominent example.

Niino's voice was also really hot but the blue hair was a little too much for me.

And I'm not a necrophiliac so I couldn't feel attracted to Jean lol

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I liked the mood of the show. I will be polite and say thank you for the review.

What did you like about it?

I loved this show when it premiered, I still rewatch it from time to time.
Contrary to most, I found Jean to be quite endearing, Nino is great too, the side cast was alright. What I really enjoyed, was how it presented the districts, each was unique and very different from each other, it honestly felt like some sort of cultural documentary tv series.
The overall atmosphere and the mood, the toned color palette were also personal highlights. I don't remember much of the music aside from 'jazz vibes' but the OP is iconic honestly.

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wonderful character designs, interesting story, very chill 10/10

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tl;dr
Also I fucking love bread

Favorite anime, favorite manga.

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What the fuck was even the point of her character?

ACCA is like the anti-political thriller. The intrigue is far less important than the characters enjoying themselves and their lives with simple pleasures, all the big reveals happen anticlimactically, and eventually everything is resolved and the conspiracy deflated by people being content with what they have, looking out for their dearest ones, befriending their enemies and generally just wanting the best for everyone. It's certainly something unusual if you're only used to the equivalent in western media, if you don't like it just stick to House of Cards or something.

You don't need to be an HBO shiteater to realize that ACCA is overrated garbage with very little substance.

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Probably my favorite modern anime
9/10, would be 10/10 but the ending lacked some oomph to it.

>retard doesn't even know HoC was originally a british drama
Checks out.

As a matter of fact I've actually seen the original British series. It's way better than the more recent Kevin Spacey trainwreck.

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What did you like about it?

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Everything :)

Hell yeah I love that chainsmoking beached fish.

most tantalizing bread in all of anime

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Fun and very chill.
Great visuals, soundtrack and world.
Mouth watering bread.
Don't really remember much of the plot, just know that it all worked out in the end without anyone doing much.
It's like a slice of life show for me.
There was a manga that was going but I think translations for it died. That was fun to read too.

They didn't even make the bread look good or go into any detail about it

The writing is good and doesn't try to bite off more than it can chew. Unique design, neat world building, and mostly-nonviolent political intrigue. I remember the colors being pretty, all the food, and really good bread.

WHAT INTRIGUE?!

Indians planning a coup to overthrow the king send replace him with their oil barons.

Why?

I know this is a shitposting thread but is there anyone familiar with Natsume Ono's manga in general? Out of the ones that have been adapted ACCA and House of Five Leaves are good, while Ristorante Paradiso is shit. Anything else worth reading?

It was fun.

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I wanted to watch this show, but it just looks so fucking gay.
I mean just look at this shit

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youre a sad person

yikes honey who hurt you?

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Reflect on why specifically you think this is gay. Hopefully will make you more self-aware and more culturally informed.

The show isn't gay. Fujos are just obnoxious.

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Don't remember a single thing about the plot. I still listen to the OP.

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This show made me appreciate bread more.

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I genuinely don't remember a single thing except the bread like some anons have mentioned already.

Its not gay, but the author does do gay stuff, so it lingers in the style.

softest damn bread you've ever seen

You're only really left with: Gente (which is more of Ristorante Paradiso) Danza is a fun collection of short stories, Tesoro (a lot of oneshots and art pieces that don't really land unless you're a super fan), La Quinta Camera (this one has like a webcomic feel; kind of chill roommate vibes and if you like European settings) and Not Simple. Not Simple has a pretty weighty story to it, so I'd say it and Danza are probably the best bets for her better works in English. Others only if you adore her style. Natsume Ono is the only mangaka I've buyfagged for every English-translated release.

Of course, there's also her BL titles for scanlations, if you like gayshit. Tonari Ni and Naka-san no Nagare both have complete translations, but I haven't read either.

I watched it a couple of months ago and already I also cannot remember much of the plot. I thought the premise was very interesting at first but then some things do resolve themselves out of nowhere like his best friend spying on him. The only think I did absolutely dislike was the island being the form of the bird, that's just silly. 6/10

What about Lady & Oldman?

My only issue was with the goons not killing the sister. I mean the author should have gone a different route, but it was retarded.
It was a long time ago, I don't even remember the reason she was kidnapped but I remember it being serious

I found it boring.

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Aside from five chapters posted in English like three years back, I don't think it was ever fully scanlated? Never started it since I didn't want to get invested for no payoff.

It's a 10/10 masterpiece

Why did you find boring about it?

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Why?

Seeing a new region each week with their own uniforms, culture, and traditions was pretty neat
The airing threads were also very comfy
You might also like ristorante paradiso and house of five leaves if you liked this

I personally really liked her BL about the guy taking photos of race horses who starts noticing an old man on the train. If you dislike old man romances then it's not going to do anything for you though.