Cyberpunk has become a bit of a legend, for mixed reasons. On PC, the game is stunning. A true work of art. On old gen consoles, it’s a buggy mess that is only superseded by the disappointment I felt playing it. But I did get the idea. And man, it was a great idea. I loved the world, the idea that flesh is ‘old school’ and that tech has become one with humans in an indistinguishable sense.
Of course, this is nothing new. It’s an idea that has been in books for decades and our own minds for centuries. I need to get a Playstation 5 to play Cyberpunk 2077 in ‘half’ its glory. But I digress. I am here today to talk about Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. A cartoon series I almost gave a miss because of my negative experiences with the game. Thank fuck, I did not. It’s superb, and worth your eye sockets attention time.
What’s it about?
Set in the future where meat and metal meet… We find our hero David Martinez. He’s a loser at school, socially disadvantaged, and when his mother is killed, joins a gang of edgerunners. He’s also lucky/unlucky enough to pick up a piece of military tech that makes him near unkillable.
Nick
The characters in this superb looking, arthouse cartoon show are brilliant. Not that they have huge depth of background. That’s for just a few. But they are as crammed full of personality a their bodies are with microchips. Lucy, Maine, Dorio and Kiwi are the main crew, with David of course. But they’re joined by equally as fun characters. Rebecca is a young girl who is positively psychotic and a glory to watch, for example. And the evil Faraday is a glory to hate!
The themes that run through the show are ones of identity, destiny and what it means to be free. Are you free if you are the big bad on top? Or are you free if you have a dream of visiting the moon? Perhaps the only freedom you can have in a shithole like Edge City is to care for someone. I was very happy with the way they balanced these ideas with the main plot. And the plot is fun, and bloody as all hell!
Yes, this is an 18 show for sure. It’s full of blood, bones and teeth. And, of course, lots of nudity. That’s to be expected though, in a world where the personal privacy of ones own body doesn’t really exist anymore.
Cyberpunk action
The action is brilliant in Edgerunners. Stylised, and smart, it looks gorgeous and builds excitement with clever editing. Having a huge gunfight take place and then suddenly slowing it down for a bit of narration works so well in this genre. And doesn’t feel like a video game. Instead, it felt, well… arty. This is on a level with Akira, in my opinion.
Language
Just to note, I watched this in English because a lot of the subtitles were irritating. And for ONCE, the English voice acting was worth it. I mean come on, it has the voice of Giancarlo Esposito ffs, that’s enough to make me click ‘English’. The rest of the cast, are stellar, with, as already noted, Rebecca standing out. She’s just so bonkers you can’t not love her.
Go watch this series. I really hope they give us a second season, with a new cast, because this has the potential to build into a superb world.
I give Cyberpunk: Edgerunners a solid
9/10
All the series and all the movies couldn't put society back together again.