Streaming Service: HiDive
Series Name/Year: Dark Gathering (2023-)
Genre: Animation, Fantasy,
Horror
Average Episode Length:
25 min
(1 Season, 25 Episodes)
Rating: TV-MA
Production/Distribution: OLM, HiDive
Director: Hiroshi Ikehata
Writer: Murakoshi Shigeru,
Kenichi Kondo
Actors: Yû Sasahara, Nobunaga
Shimazaki, Kana Hanazawa, Yoshihiro Nakamura, Mitsuki Saiga, Fumi Hirano, Yôhei
Azakami, Hina Koyanagi, Naoki Sabae, Kazuyuki Okitsu, Kujira, Yôko Sômi, Sayaka
Aida, Kosuke Sakaki
IMDb Blurb: Keitarô Gentôga takes a
part-time job tutoring the child prodigy, Yayoi Hôzuki. Little does he know
she's a gifted medium hell-bent on finding the spirit behind her mother's
vanishing and she's gravely determined to drag Keitarô into it.
Cat’s Point of View:
I recently
stumbled onto an anime streaming service called HiDive – and part of my
introduction and trial experience was the new 2023 anime series Dark
Gathering. I vaguely recalled seeing a trailer at some point and having a
chuckle at the dark comedy laced into the teaser. Considering that we’re almost
through with September and are on the cusp of Spooky Season, jumping into a
series about some youngsters fighting spirits seemed perfect.
So far, I
haven’t been disappointed.
Why so
far? I would have watched the whole series already had I been able – even with only
a subtitled version available. Dark Gathering premiered in Japan just
this past July and is still airing with new episodes releasing on Mondays. This
series is apparently available on HiDive as a simulcast – so as soon as an
episode hits overseas networks, it becomes available on the service. 12 episodes
are currently available at the time of this review, and the 13th is
set to air on October 2nd, 2023. The full season will have released as of
Christmas Eve of this year.
I have to
say, just shy of halfway through, I’m thoroughly invested in this story and
will be figuring out whatever I need to do in order to make sure the subscription
to HiDive is budgeted until I can watch this whole season at the very least.
This isn’t an ad for that service and they’re not a sponsor or anything like
that at this time, though; so let’s focus on the series.
The
characters are young but relatable on an uncomfortable level. They’ve all
experienced tragedy in some fashion and are striving to reclaim their lives and
move forward. One of the characters is trying to re-emerge after living as a
shut-in for a while and is horribly socially awkward. Another of the main
characters is delightfully optimistic, if a little on the yandere cray-cray
spectrum. The first two that I’ve mentioned are of college age. The third
primary character seems to be in middle school or something like that. She’s
not quite a “magical girl” but her abilities are at the center of the story as
the trio set out to gain strength so that they can hunt down and vanquish the evil
entity that stole her mother’s spirit.
Thankfully,
with such a young character involved, the story stays on the more wholesome
side where relationships are concerned. While romance seems to be an
undercurrent in the series, it’s not at the forefront and is treated in the
bumbling/blushing manner rather than anything explicit. Dark Gathering
earns its TV-MA or R rating from the supernatural situations that involve blood
and gore, as well as some language. The intrepid trio find themselves in some
harrowing circumstances as they hunt down supernatural elements (or fight the
spirits that hunt THEM down) as they further their quest.
For those manga
fans out there, Dark Gathering is an adaptation of a Shonen Jump manga
series. From what I could gather from the VIZ release trailer for
the actual manga, the anime seems to be staying fairly faithful to the source
material. Of course, I haven’t read the manga at this time so I can’t vouch
100%, but it at least looks promising.
There are
plenty of atmospheric elements to love with this series, and fans of supernatural
horror – or really ghost stories in general, should find plenty to enjoy here.
I appreciated the snippets of actual Japanese folklore scattered throughout, as
well.
Going back
to my mention of the rating for Dark Gathering, I need to reiterate that
this series absolutely deserves the Mature Audiences Only rating. Even though
one of the characters is very young and has an interesting “chibi” or “lolita-like”
appearance and sports a massive plushie collection, it is not suitable at all
for young viewers. There are many triggering situations depicted within this
series that wouldn’t be appropriate. Further, if appropriately aged audiences
are sensitive to depictions of characters un-aliving, as the modern-day phrase
goes… this might not be the right fit for you. (There are at least 2 episodes
out of the first 12 that directly deal with a club with an unalive-pact or
depictions of the Jigai ritual.)
With all
things considered, this story has kept me at the edge of my seat for the 20-ish
minutes of each episode not dedicated to re-cap or credits. I am hopeful for
the young protagonists, and am crossing my fingers that the young girl will be
able to rescue her mother’s spirit by the end and the other 2 primary
characters can find some peace. Who knows what will happen in the next half of
the series. I can’t wait to find out.
Rotten Tomatoes Critic
Score – None
Rotten Tomatoes Audience
Score –None
Metascore – None
Metacritic User Score – None
IMDB Score – 7.2/10
Trust the Dice: Cat’s
Rating – 4/5
P.S. – You can find additional
information directly from the series’ website. Darkgathering.jp
Series Trailer:
Original –
Subbed -
