The live versions dedicated to anime works are increasing more and more, becoming titles requested directly by streaming platforms.
After the worldwide success of One Piece, Netflix tries again with the action-horror series “Yu Yu Hakusho”, based on the story created by Yoshihiro Togashi which, for the live version, was developed by Akira Morii and Kazutaka Sakamoto.
The work which has as its main elements the world of Yokai and warriors with occult abilities, can be summed up between the clash of human forces against demons, two separate worlds but which can be reunited through a portal.
The protagonist, a young hoodlum but with a good heart, Yusuke Urameshi, sacrifices his life to save a child from being run over. Faced with Little Emma, ruler of the world of the dead, this grants him the possibility of returning to life, if he takes care of bringing the demons who have left their dimension back to their world of competence, that is, becoming a detective of the spirit world.
Together with him will act, the quarrelsome Kuwabara and later the two Yokai: Kurama and Hiei, the latter in search of his sister.
The five-episode series has interesting potential, the plot is engaging but everything seems too fake and constructed. The acting is static and too theatrical, it doesn’t appear spontaneous, everything seems predefined. The only ones who give that touch of fluidity and intensity are the Yokai Toguro, with a powerful and predominant personality, a well-defined villain who perhaps would have deserved greater depth. The other is the tycoon who wants to open the portal that separates the two worlds, his icy person, self-confident, impassive, is magnetic, something is always expected from him that surprises the viewer.
The screenplay seemed poor to me like the sets, some aspects and passages on the evolution of Yusuke’s abilities seemed rushed but also the protagonists who revolve around them had an unconvincing introduction, creating gaps in the story, especially when you insert protagonists who have a lot to say but are then immediately eliminated or given little prominence.
All this to the detriment of the psychological aspect which is poorly developed with fights that are too long, resulting in them being boring and repetitive with the protagonists continually rolling on the ground. It lacks a certain freshness and new ideas, you have the impression of watching those 70s-80s TV series and unfortunately you don’t even perceive that retro flavour.
A second season would be plausible if something more was invested, both in terms of special effects and with a script that is not limited to a few episodes that do not allow the characters to evolve.