Orient’s first season is over, and due to the manga continuing, there’s a good chance we’ll eventually see a second season. I’m not going to lie.
The main reason I got into Orient is that Shinobu Ohtaka created this. Ohtaka created Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, one of my favorite series!
I came in with high expectations, and most of them were answered. In 24 episodes, we have a strong start, exciting characters, and fantastic villains!
I had fun guessing who would be from the Magi universe, should these two series be connected. They share many similarities, and I’m still waiting for the third season of Magi!
There will be spoilers for episode 24.
What Orient got right
The world in Orient is based on Japan’s Sengoku Period, which happened between 1467 and 1615. Strange god-like beings called Oni and Kishen rule while humanity is divided.
Most live in small villages and serve the Oni, whiles others form Bushi bands and fight back. Musashi is a delightful mix of stupidity and common sense.
He wants to fight but still shows hesitation about choosing his path. Kojiro, Tsugumi, and Michiru continue this theme in their ways.
The humor is decent, the fighting is excellent but sometimes short, and then there’s the Obsidian Goddess. How is she a Goddess and why does she need a vessel?
Please don’t leave us with an eternal cliffhanger
As a fan, it’s frustrating to see your favorite anime adaptations incomplete, like Magi. But it’s even more frustrating when it ends on a cliffhanger!
The bad guys are still at large, Michiru is dead, and Musashi has a new ability and a way to gain more power, but he has to go on a journey to get it, and there’s how episode 24 ended.
The first 12 episodes were about Musashi and his friends growing into their own and looking for answers. But the last 12 barely gave us anything new.
We have some names and excellent abilities from our main villains, and we better understand how Bushi bands work. But the big questions remain unanswered.
Why did Kojiro’s father have the Obsidian Goddess and why did he seal her inside Musashi? Also, how is her blood still liquid and how did Musashi regrow his arm?