The animation seemed somewhat improved from last week. I still feel this should have gotten 2 or 3 more episodes, as none of the tension has much time to build before we see the climatic moments.

I’ve been reading Ito’s other works, and I feel a lot is predictable in many of the tales, not necessarily that you always know what’s going to happen and certainly not what it will look like, but more a 1) meet nice character(s), 2) meet the obvious creeper, 3) nice characters discuss the creeper and say nah, they can’t be as creepy as they seem, 4) your anxiety rises as you wait for the reveal, 5) Lovecraftian horror is revealed, 6) the end.

Step 4 is the one that sucks you in, even if it’s formulaic. It gets you invested in what’s going to happen. Without that time for the creepiness to bloom, it just feels like you’re working through the checklist.

I feel there’s some old comment about the CSI type shows where it’s always suspect number 3. You get introduced to some possible people, but if they always went to the first guy and they’re all oh yeah, this is the killer, the end, what’s the point? That’s what this adaptation has felt like to me.

I love a lot of Ito’s ideas, and the art style is great for his stories, but I feel most of the narrative is just there to string the creepy drawings together. I’m cool with that. But with the anime, you’re just on to the next scene before you get time to get creeped by what you just saw.