Blade Runner: Black Out 2022 is probably something most people haven't heard or, much less seen. I personally found it after a Blade Runner anime TV series was announced recently. That's is a little surprising though, considering it's all star cast. Directed and written by Shinichiro Watanabe of Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo fame, the short film also includes art direction by Yuuji Kaneko (who also did art direction for Madoka Magika, Kill La Kill, and Little Witch Academia) and character designs by Shukou Murase (a story boarder and key animated for Samurai Champloo). It's no surprise, then to find the key animators are also some of the best in the industry, with the credits between them including Akira, various TRIGGER and Gainax shows, One Piece Movie 6, Ghost In the Shell, Space Dandy, Your Name, and multiple Satoshi Kon films.
So, does Blackout hold up to that legacy? Well, it does. Kinda. I'll start off with the bad. The voice acting could use some work. It's not bad as far as dub actors go, but I wouldn't call it great either. The film is also far too short, in my opinion, barely giving us enough time to get attached to the characters to really care about them or their struggles. It depicts a gang of two replicants and one human aiming to activate an EMP blast and destroying a destroying database of every replicant (which is being used to hunt them). A few of the gang, of course, end up being killed, but we've barely been introduced to them by the time they are. It's pretty hard to care. The story itself seems less like a major draw and more a reason to show off some cool animation and tie in a plot thread to Blade Runner 2049 then to be entertaining itself.
However, honestly even if the story is a simple excuse to see this cast work together, it's probably worth it. The animation is absolutely stunning, at times looking so fluid I thought it had been motion captured before I remembered actors can't jump up three stories, and it was all 2D animated. That is, except the CG cars, which is a bummer, but by now I've gotten used to that being a staple of anime. Extra props go to Shinya Ohira, who directed the absolutely draw dropping flashback sequence (though perhaps this shouldn't be surprising considering his work on FLCL, Akira, Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, Ping Pong the Animation, and Redline). There are a few points in the short film that are notable for their unique art style, but this is the most breathtaking by far, making it almost feel like a dream. The animation in general all feels very grounded and realistic somehow despite the superhuman feats a few of the replicants pull off. While this isn't really my favorite kind of animation, I can see there was serious work put into it here, and Blackout knows how to use it. The backgrounds are also amazing, really bringing you into the world of Blade Runner with their gritty but futuristic style. While some shots are reused a few times too many, the rest of the amazing direction unlike any other anime compensates easily.
Considering it's short run-time, I would definitely consider Blade Runner: Black Out 2022 a must watch for anyone with an interest in Blade Runner or animation. It manages to avoid many of the tropes of anime, so it shouldn't be a problem for anyone bothered by things like that. I would give this film an 8/10, as I usually reserve 9's and 10's for media that really make me feel things, and despite it's stunning animation Blackout just did not manage to do that for me thanks to it's lack-luster plot and character development. Still, the animation alone makes this short film an excellent watch.
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