When the majority are drooling over fanservice or sophisticated storylines, there are sometime a little gem making its way in internet and gain a little following.
Detroit Metal City is one of these gems. At first glance, it seems to be a music band anime like “Beck”, but upon viewing, all these expectations are shattered. The viewer will get to sit through a short episode of gag anime, dealing with the Death Metal.
Actually, Death Metal is one of the ingredients of this comedy. From the Death Metal, Detroit Metal City, the band, have the music, the theme. From the Black Metal, D.M.C gets the hatred for humankind and the hate-loaded lyrics, and lack of respect for everything the common man hold as dear. The other ingredient of this gag anime is the sheer contrast between Johannes Krauser II, the lead singer, guitarist and songwriter, and Soichi Negishi, the man behind the ghoulish paint.
Anyone who had been familiar with the early Norwegian Black Metal scene may remember the stories of people who had actually gotten to know the man behind Euronymous, a rather nice guy who would tell you about his passion in music (read the book “Lord of Chaos” to know more about Euronymous and Mayhem). This is the kind of contrast you will see in Detroit Metal City, only taken to the extreme. If Euronymous was actually a rather nice guy, off-stage, Negishi is like totally white as snow, have a love for Swedish pop (always the Scandinavians), and have the aspiration to raise to the top as a sugary sappy soapy pop artist.
But things had not gone as planned and he somehow ended up in that band, performing on stage as the feared Krauser, said to be a homicidal maniac and remorseless rapist. Negishi had a hard time to leave the band. Moreover, his on-stage persona have taken a toll on his social life, where he tries to be normal, but always find himself in situations where his on-stage persona take over and get the better, for the fans, or the worse, for his love interest, of him.
And the show had not other pretentions than showing Negishi trying to be Negishi, but turning Krauser the instant the situation get too much for him to handle as Negishi. The music store or the police scene are the prime examples of these awkward but hilarious situations. The harder he struggles, the more entertained the fans, and the viewers of the anime are.
Technical-wise, the style is fitting. There are hardly any full screen scene but it does serve the theme of the anime. The same could be said about the animation that gives this rough feeling from the musical genre.
The format is of the short kind, like Cromartie highschool, in one way, it does it justice and prevent the viewer to be tired from the gags. Something that could have happened if it was stretched over 20 minutes.
Detroit Metal City is a little gem in this rather monotonous, imo, summer. It gives food to the people missing comedy format a la Cromartie and may introduce people to the world of Death and Black Metal genre.
Detroit Metal City is a hilarious take on the music anime genre with a slice of Mister Hyde and Doctor Jekyll on and off stage.
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