Is Netflix Original Enter the Anime Any Good?

As someone who watches a lot of anime, you would guess that the Netflix original documentary Enter the Anime would be right up my alley, and funny enough it was. I was very intrigued when I heard the premise of this special.

The documentary follows Tina Nolan, who’s trying to explain the popularity of anime and why people love it so much. She talks to several relatively well-known creators of the anime genre and they discuss things like what got them into working in this genre of pop culture and how where find their inspiration on creating their show or movie. All questions produced interesting answers.

There are only two downsides to this documentary. One is nitpicking a little bit, and one is just my honest opinion.

Firstly I think that, due to licensing rights, Netflix are technically are legally allowed to only talk about shows on their streaming service (with shows such as Aggretsuko, Baki, Neon Genesis Evangelion and Castlevania). Secondly, I think that Netflix could’ve reached out to other anime studios like Manga Entertainment and Studio Ghibli, and they could’ve talked about more culturally loved anime shows and movies (like Dragon Ball or My Neighbour Totoro). They could’ve gone deeper into anime and manga culture.

Overall, I think that this is an interesting and very well put together documentary from Netflix. Do I recommend it? Yes.

I would also recommend you watch other documentaries like The Toys That Made Us and Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey. They're definitely worth a watch.

Written by Jack Soffe