Anime Review - Made In Abyss

On an island, a giant chasm was discovered. This mysterious hole known as the Abyss houses enormous cave systems that remain fully unexplored even through the years. Its legend and mystery draw in countless explorers, called ‘Cave Raiders’, to its depths to uncover its many secrets.

In the city of Orth that surrounds the Abyss, an orphaned girl named Riko who lives in the Belchero Orphanage stumbles upon a strange boy, who turns out to be a human-like robot that Riko eventually names Reg. 

One day, a ‘message’ from the fame White Whistle Lyza, Riko’s mother, reaches the surface telling that she is ‘waiting at the bottom’ of the Abyss. Convinced that the message is for her, Riko and Reg set off on a journey to reach the bottom of the Abyss.

World Setting:

The Abyss and the City Orth

Nobody knows how deep down is the Abyss. It is inhabited by strange and wondrous creatures and full of mysterious ancient relics which purpose in unknown to modern man.

Apart from the constant dangers from the creatures and environments of the Abyss, what makes exploration and reaching the bottom neigh impossible is the “Curse of the Abyss", a phenomenon that inflicts mysterious and potentially fatal conditions upon ascension.

Map of the Abyss

The severity of the curse worsens the deeper down the Abyss. But there’s a certain point where the curse becomes absolutely fatal and raiders can no longer ascend past that point.

Only those of the highest rank among the cave raiders, the White Whistles, are said capable of going beyond and surviving the deeper layers. 

Characters:

Riko

Riko has prepared all her life to be a Cave Raider and explore the Abyss. Her deep desire partially stems from her mother Lyza who was a famed White Whistle. 

She can be brash, naïve, and trouble-prone as well as extremely childish given her age, but she is solidly determined in her goal to reach the bottom of the Abyss, prepared to make any sacrifice to achieve her goal.

Reg

Reg’s past and origins are a complete mystery as he has lost his memories when Riko discovered him. The only clue they can surmise is that he is connected to the Abyss and probably one of its greater secrets. 

Needless to say his robotic extendable arms, super tough exterior, and energy blasting annihilator are the sole reason the duo are capable of making the journey at all. The biggest advantage Reg has is that he is immune to the curse of the Abyss having a robot body.   

Animation and Music:

Riko and Reg

“Made in Abyss” was animated by Kinema Citrus, the same studio who did “Black Bullet” and “Barakamon”. 

Interestingly, both the opening theme "Deep in Abyss" and the ending theme "Tabi no Hidarite, Saihate no Migite" were both performed by the actresses for Riko and Reg - 'Miyu Tomita' and 'Mariya Ise'. 

Final Thoughts:

Facing the Abyss together

At first impression, "Made in Abyss" comes off as a cute chibi adventure story, reminiscent of ”Journey to Centre of the Earth” in concept.

The Abyss is mysterious and that mystery draws audiences into the story as the duo undergo their adventure. What is also interesting is that the tone of the story slowly gets progressively darker the deeper the characters descend the Abyss. 

Dangers in the Abyss

The surface is bright and sunny as is the beginning of the anime. The first layer is lush with green but still familiar with a hint of excitement in the air as the duo’s journey begins. But the subsequent layers become darker and fraught with dangers.  

This is reflective of the nature of the Abyss and it matches the pace of the story’s tone brilliantly. It takes a few episodes in for the story to get going, but as the journey is set underway it does get better.