Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
It took me three attempts to finally go beyond the first four minutes of the anime ‘Takopi’s Original Sin’, because I hated the high-pitched, childish voice of the pink alien creature which serves as the primary protagonist. It hurt my ears. In fact, after watching the the first two episodes, I stopped watching, and then finished the show a few months later. No regrets, because if nothing, I will give points to the original manga creator Taizan 5 for delivering a dark, depressing story with twists you just wouldn’t expect.
‘Takopi’s Original Sin’ follows a blissfully ignorant, optimistic alien from ‘Happy Planet’ that wants to spread joy, but since it doesn’t understand humans at all, the creature unwittingly ends up making things horribly worse for two girls – Shizuka and Marina – who already live in emotionally/physically abusive homes.
Only six episodes long, ‘Takopi’s Original Sin’ is definitely not for viewers below 16, the dark themes of the story would be too disturbing for young watchers. Each episode thus begins with a disclaimer and trigger warning for the bullying, violence, emotional abuse, and suicidal behavior depicted in the story. The animation style is quite different from the regular flashy anime tones and illustrations one sees today, giving the show a nostalgic, strange, tragi-comical edge.
Episode one of ‘Takopi’s Original Sin’ opens with the pink alien protagonist meeting Shizuka, a middle-school student being brutally bullied at school by Marina, a totally psycho kid who is popular, pretty, and scarily violent. It’s Shizuka who names the alien ‘Takopi’, since it looks like an octopus and the Japanese word for the sea creature is ‘tako’. In their first meeting, Shizuka is barely surprised or freaked out about meeting a talking extraterrestrial being and instantly offers it some food. Moved by Shizuka’s kindness, Takopi gets increasingly attached to the girl and tries to make her life easier by using some of its magical gadgets.
The recurring trope throughout ‘Takopi’s Original Sin’ is how Takopi’s well-meaning attempts to help Shizuka constantly lead to tragic or awful consequences. For instance, Shizuka loses her beloved dog Chappy to animal control authorities because of Takopi’s intervention during an ugly scuffle between her and Marina. With no father and a mostly absent mother, Chappy is the only source of comfort in Shizuka’s miserable existence. With Chappy gone, Shizuka is shattered. Marina’s dark, violent outbursts stem from a broken home, including an alcoholic mother prone to hitting her daughter and an equally problematic father.
Eventually, Shizuka does find an ally in class president Azuma, a smart boy with his own personal baggage, who unwittingly gets drawn into the terrible mess created by Takopi. Azuma feels compelled to help Shizuka for reasons explained in the story, which we will leave out here to keep things spoiler-free. While Azuma doesn’t have abusive parents, he still feels burdened by the pressure of living in the shadow of an incredibly talented older brother, as well as a strict mother who fails to appreciate his efforts at academics.
More often than not, the way Takopi misunderstands the human world is simply un-funny in ‘Takopi’s Original Sin’. For example, when it watches a couple having an unsettling fight verging on violence, it thinks happily to itself that they must be so much in love with each other because they keep talking to each other. Takopi’s cheery, pure, dumb attitude is simply annoying through the show, of course you cannot blame the alien for not understanding the complex world of humans, but that still doesn’t make the character any more tolerable.
I couldn’t get myself to like Takopi and it may or may not be the point of the show. Ultimately, this show is a dark look at just how fragile, depressing, and suffocating a child’s life becomes when the parents don’t play the role of the protectors and nurturers they are meant to be. Even though Takopi’s pure intentions intensify the damage caused in the children’s life, Shizuka, Marina, and Azuma are driven to self-destructive actions because they don’t have anybody to guide them or look out for them.
The ending of ‘Takopi’s Original Sin’ is undeniably contrived, but also unexpectedly hopeful, plus it has a crazy twist which finally explains the title’s significance. After repeated blunders, Takopi finally makes a sacrifice with the aim to give all three kids a shot at growing into functional, happier adults. Azuma’s arc lands the best: his older brother recognises his emotional struggle and nudges him toward opening up. It leaves you with a simple, comforting thought, that sometimes, just talking to someone can help. It won’t fix everything, but it’s a start.
Watch Takopi’s Original Sin on Crunchyroll.
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