REVIEW: ‘Sakamoto Days’ Episode 1 — “The Legendary Hitman”

Sakamoto Days is about the most wife-guy-to-ever wife-guy, Taro Sakamoto. Though, who are we kidding, wife-guy is the core of many action films across countries. Based on the manga by mangaka Yuto Suzuko, Sakamoto Days is animated by TMS Animation. In Sakamoto Days Episode 1, “The Legendary Hitman,” we meet Taro (Tomokazu Sugita) after he’s left his life as the best hitman, fallen in love with his life, had a kid, and fallen deeply out of shape.

Feared by his enemies and renowned in his organization and among other assassins, he left it all for a family. Now, Taro owns a gas station with his wife (Nao Tôyama) and eats cup noodles and candy at the counter. But despite the quiet life he lives, there are signs that he hasn’t lost all of his sharpness.

And like any shonen anime, Sakamoto Days Episode 1 opens with his life being disrupted by a man named Shin (Nobunaga Shimazaki) with an ultimatum: return to the assassin world or die. For his part, Shin is taken aback by how far the legendary hitman has fallen and how much weight he’s put on in the process.

Frustrated by Taro’s choice to become a family man, Shin has to do his job and is annoyed at seeing Taro’s happy life, making it easier. Sent on assignment from the Boss, he now has to kill Taro. Shin is also not just an ordinary man; he’s clairvoyant as well. This means that he can hear Taro Sakamoto’s thoughts, the only way the ex-hitman talks in this episode. more importantly for Shin, it means he gets a leg up on Taro. Only that advantage doesn’t matter.

Legendary Hitman comes to Netflix, and we learn to appreciate his quiet life, just like Shin.

Spitting candy and stopping bullets, Sakamoto Days Episode 1 wastes no time to show that Taro is just as much an unstoppable force now as he was in the beginning. While we saw signs of his speed and his ability to fight show up throughout the episode, this is where it all takes a focus. Shin isn’t a match for Taro, but there also aren’t any hard feelings between them when Shin stays for dinner. When Shin gets to experience what a normal life looks like, he can’t help but be moved by it.

Instead of making sure to finish his mission, Shin refuses to take Mr. Sakamoto’s life. when he pushes back against the boss and asks to spare Mr. Sakamoto, he’s swiftly denied. Sakamoto Days Episode 1’s animation is the best in the episode’s finale. As Shin fights in a warehouse, Sakamoto comes to the rescue. Taro Sakamoto may look out of shape, but like anyone who’s been married knows, putting on a little love weight doesn’t mean you’ve lost anything about yourself.

I mean, Mr. Sakamoto certainly hasn’t lost his edge. With a hidden armory and the forethought to place a bug on Shin’s gun, Taro is on his game. He’s unassuming now, but if anything, that means he has everything stacked in his favor.

Sakomoto Days Episode 1 covers less ground than Volume 1 of the manga, and that’s really for the better. Nothing feels rushed, and the characters can build up their importance and showcase their action chops without losing the series’ adorable focus. It makes the episode’s ending with Shin taking a job with the Sakamoto’s even more cute. Sakamoto Days has great action, but its appreciation for the simplicity of life is what makes it stand apart from other Shonen anime series.

Sakamoto Days Episode 1 isn’t flawless, but its wholesome story makes it stand out. 

The wholesomeness of Sakamoto Days is unmatched and always equals the amount of hitman violence on the screen. It’s a wonderful balance that keeps humor at its core and Taro’s love for his family there, too. The banality of Mr. Sakamoto’s life isn’t something to chide but something to protect.

The series also makes sure not to take its jokes about Sakamoto’s appearance too far and, more importantly, in a series with clairvoyance, doesn’t give Taro a power that somehow revets him to his old hitman form. Taro Sakamoto gets to stay as a dad in his slippers, only now, like anyone who has seen an offensive lineman play, he has more mass to hit people with.

The only real issue with Sakamoto Days Episode 1 is that it seems to be another casualty of the recent anime season regarding animation quality. While TMS Entertainment has shown its talent in other Netflix Anime Winter releases, Blue Box, here, everything seems too static. But the quality difference is extremely noticeable, not even considering the studio’s other series like Megalobox and a variety of other Lupin series and seasons. 

That said, the charm of Sakamoto Days Episode 1 can’t be thrown away over my issues with its animation. Taro is my favorite kind of unassuming protagonist, and it’s shown effortlessly. Almost silent, he doesn’t lack any charisma. He’s the family man you root for; even Shin knows that.

If the animation can maintain consistency in the back half of the episode, Sakamoto Days will show that the hype was justified. For now, you’d be missing out if you don’t check in with Mr. Sakamoto. Sakamoto Days Episode 1 gives the audience everything we need to fall in love with the Sakamotos and their new addition, Shin.

Sakamoto Days Episode 1 is streaming now, exclusively on Netflix, with new episodes every Saturday through January and February.