Anime fans are used to coming up with pretty intense justifications for why people should check out their favorite series, whether it be because of a questionable premise that ends up turning into an artistic masterpiece, an unusual art style, or some other reason as to why their favorite series is so eccentric. A popular seinen series that’s been gaining traction in the last year, The Darwin Incident, is one such series that encapsulates many of the eccentric traits that anime and manga fans talk about when diving into what they love about the two mediums, and now that the anime adaptation of the original manga is closer than ever, fans of Shun Umezawa’s unconventional political drama are begging others to get caught up before its release.
The Darwin Incident takes place after the Animal Liberation Alliance, an eco-terrorist organization, rescues a pregnant chimpanzee from a lab performing experiments on animals, only for the chimp to give birth to a “humanzee” – a half-human half-chimpanzee named Charlie. Now 15 years old and living a relatively normal life with his foster family, Charlie’s family finally sends him to a normal high school, where he meets and befriends a young woman named Lucy. Despite his adjusting to a new life, the Animal Liberation Alliance is plotting something that they want to drag Charlie into. Now, the first official promo art for the series has been released, and fans can see the series brought to life.
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The Darwin Incident Is a Uniquely Crafted Political Masterpiece
Obviously a series that focuses on the nature of what it means to be human, animal rights, and other ecological and humanitarian ideals, The Darwin Incident masterfully portrays its message to a provoking coming-of-age story that follows a literal half-human half-chimpanzee trying to make sense of his nonsensical existence.
Due to a terrorist organization trying to tamper with Charlie’s mostly average life and associate him with their scheme, the general public begins to grow weary of him and his family, which introduces a complex narrative that challenges readers perceptions of those othered by society, as well as the ramifications of extremism. That said, it’s clear that The Darwin Incident takes a lot of care in telling a very challenging story, and, despite its obvious quirks, succeeds on this front.
Fans of the series seem to think the same, leading to the series becoming extremely successful despite, as of this writing, only being serialized for four years with new chapters still being released. By May 2024, The Darwin Incident had a staggering 1.6 million copies in circulation.
In 2022, the manga began sweeping different award circuits, earning itself the 15th manga Taisho award and going on to win the Excellence Award at the 25th Japan Media Arts Festival. In 2203, the series was awarded the French 17th ACBD’s Prize “Asie de la Critique”. It’s clear to see why, despite its initially bizarre sounding premises, the series was picked up for an anime adaptation.
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