Gachiakuta Review: Banger!
Article at a glance:
- Gachiakuta surprised me way more than I expected, pulling me straight back into a full-on shounen phase with its fast pacing and raw energy.
- While the revenge plot itself is familiar, the world, factions, and characters are unique enough to carry the story on their own.
- Between strong character moments, solid production from Studio Bones, and a few eye-roll-worthy flaws, this ended up being a genuinely fun and memorable watch.
I am so glad that I decided to give this anime a chance. Mori Calliope actually managed to convince me to watch Gachiakuta lol. But it was all worth it in the end, so it all just works out. Feels so funny being in a “shounen phase” again between my rewatch of DBZ and binge-watching Gachiakuta. As I said in my previous article, Gachiakuta features an interesting world with interesting characters; the world alone is interesting enough to carry the story. And of course, my thoughts have changed slightly, so welcome to my Gachiakuta review.
Now, there will be spoilers up ahead. Since there is a lot of stuff I want to discuss. The progression is surprisingly fast for a story like this, and that’s something I really do appreciate. So consider yourselves warned, and only continue if you don’t mind spoilers or have caught up with the show. Skip right to the ratings if you just want a feel for how good the show is.
With that disclaimer out of the way, let’s get started with the Gachiakuta review. This one is going to be long, so strap in.
Plot
So while the story itself is a pretty standard revenge plot, the setting is VERY unique. Imagine living in a world where everything undesirable is thrown down from the ceiling, including undesirable emotions. The emotions in question are strong enough to give birth to large monsters made up of trash. Despite living in a place like that, humanity survives. There are multiple different factions on the Ground with their duties and goals, there are multiple very unique cities with a theme for each of them, and so much more.
Another thing I like is that Rudo and Zodyl both technically have the same goal; both of them hate the Sphere for their own reasons. Yeah, Zodyl IS more extreme, but similarities like these make the dynamics between the MC and the antagonist interesting. Characters contribute a lot to making any story better, and yeah, Gachiakuta really drives that point home. Pair all this with a great pacing, and you’ve got yourself a certified banger.
As for the things I don’t like, the plot is oddly predictable at times. Yeah, that’s not always a bad thing, but sometimes it can feel a little jarring. Also, exposition dumps. It makes sense when it’s done to Rudo, but just the last episode had such an obvious “for the audience” type exposition, it made me scoff. Not the end of the world, but still.
characters
I know I complained about most of the characters not having an arc in my previous article, and yeah, that’s still somewhat true, but some of them did get an arc over time. Now my main complaint is that the antagonist faction, The Raiders are still a bit meh. Sure, Jabber is great, and the fights are great whenever he’s on the screen, and Zodyl has a good dynamic with Rudo. Yeah, they have plenty of reasons to hate the Sphere and all. But Zodyl still just feels like a mustache-twirling villain. I wish they fleshed him out a little more because he is an interesting character.
With all that said, let’s look at the reason why I DO think that the character work is good
Rudo
Early on, Rudo is pretty shallow. He has a single-minded obsession with getting his revenge for Regto. Anyone who tries to get in the way of his revenge gets pummeled. But over time, he grows to be genuine friends with the Cleaners. Sure, he still struggles to smile, but he is more than happy to have a place to belong. I like how quickly he realizes when he messed up, like with Amo. In fact, he cares for Amo enough to go look for her at this point. So, despite being pretty harsh, early on, he really does grow into someone who cares for his new friends.
Aside from that, I like how much his ability is tied to his character. And yeah, Season 1 does end on a pretty insane cliffhanger related to him. Apparently, he’s related to the person who made the Series.
Enjin, Riyo, and Zanka
I’ll be honest, the funniest moment in the whole season comes from Riyo. She’s fighting someone who can electrify her hair, right? So her giant scissors don’t work, she fails at hand-to-hand combat too, so what DOES she do? She pulls out the blicky and shoots her opponent LOL. Yeah, she carries that HEAT with her, and only doesn’t use it because Enjin asked her not to. So, despite not having an “arc,” her past is already interesting because of that as is.
Enjin is the charismatic leader; he’s strong, loud, likable, and easy to root for. Given that he pulled Riyo out of being an assassin, AND recruited Zanka and Rudo as well, I imagine his backstory will be quite interesting, too. Speaking of Zanka, bro suffers the most during the whole season. Aside from Rudo, Zanka gets the most character development, and you can feel where he’s coming from. The anime does such a good job of reinforcing his character arc.
Of course, there are plenty of other cool characters like Amo, Remlin, etc. I don’t have the space to talk about them here. But despite not everyone getting a character arc, I do appreciate how distinctive and quirky everyone is. I even remember the names of minor characters like Dear, who only appear in a few episodes.
production
This is a very easy part of the review, Gachiakuta is made by Studio Bones. That’s all I need to say, really. Bones has been on FIRE lately with MHA, and they still somehow managed to push THIS banger out. The art is unique, the animations are fluid, and the CGI fits surprisingly well with the vibe of the whole thing. The music is also amazing. I wish more animes used OSTs with a vocal track. Of course, they have Mori Calliope on some of these songs, and her voice just fits perfectly with the tone.
Summing Up
Here are my final review scores for Gachiakuta:
- Plot – 7/10
- Characters – 8/10
- Production – 10/10
- Enjoyment – 10/10
- Overall – 8.5/10
Those are my thoughts and opinions on Gachiakuta. Let me know what you guys think in the comments. I really enjoyed the show, even though it made me eye-roll at times. I look forward to Season 2, given what an insane twist Season 1 ended on. With that said, I will take my leave here. See ya!
Also, check out our full guide for the Winter 2026 season here!
