Anime Review: Midnight Occult Civil Servants Episode 1

Midnight Occult Civil Servants

Studio: LIDENFILMS

Genres: Supernatural, Mystery

Stream: Crunchyroll

The beginning of the anime season is a magical time. It’s full of excitement, hope, and a sense of wonder. There are always a few shows that get an insane amount of hype that carries through the season, then there are the ones that are easily identified as trash in the beginning. Finally, there are those shows that were not on your radar at all and pleasantly surprise you. Midnight Occult Civil Servants is that show for me this season.

The title of the show is awful, but don’t let that stop you from giving this one a try. While watching it, I got some serious Bungou Stray Dogs vibes. Miyako has just started a job in the Shinjuku Ward Office’s Nighttime Regional Relations Department. WIth no knowledge of what this position entails, Miyako finds himself suddenly aware of a supernatural world. Turns out, every ward in Tokyo has this kind of department, which is tasked with keeping supernatural activity contained. Unlike his coworkers, Miyako has the ability to talk to occultic creatures like angels and tengu.

It appears that this serious will loosely follow an episodic format, and this episode is no different. It takes some time in the beginning to introduce the characters and the world, but it doesn’t take long to get to the “monster of the week.” This episode features angels and tengu, which are stuck in some kind of conflict. In between this conflict is a forbidden love between an angel and tengu, which sparks a mess for both sides and the Nighttime Regional Relations Department. The story is very Romeo and Juliet and is entertaining. Some of the episode’s pacing is just a bit shakey but doesn’t hurt the overall story much.

The production is fine, in the middle of what you would expect from this kind of show. The character designs are pretty unique, and the animations are solid. Nothing feels too choppy, so it’s easy to stay immersed in the episode. The music isn’t too fitting with what is on screen, but it’s not so distracting that it ruins the experience.

There is a lot of potential for this show, and I look forward to seeing what it can do in future episodes that don’t need to spend ten minutes introducing the characters. This was a pleasant surprise and I intend to keep this show on my watchlist.