THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS SPOILERS

Introduction to BEASTARS

For anyone unfamiliar with the series, ‘BEASTARS’ is an animanga (anime/manga) series where, in a modern world, carnivores and herbivores coexist in a society where eating meat of any sort is illegal. We follow our protagonist, high school student and grey wolf Legoshi, as he struggles to navigate this society and begins to catch feelings for a dwarf rabbit named Haru. We also meet another character, Louis, a red deer who, along with other herbivore children, was raised in the Black Market to be sold as livestock for carnivores.

 BEASTARS has a very wide and diverse cast of characters, ranging from various species of animals around the world, mammals, avians, reptiles, and even sea creatures, who make many appearances throughout the series. Every supporting character leaves their impact in some way, whether it be to help support our main characters or show how society is affecting them as well.

One character I can think of is Juno, another grey wolf who is introduced as a competing love interest for Legoshi, as they are the only wolves in Cherryton Academy. Juno was shown to be very obsessive of Legoshi, even competitive, which can be seen when she confronts and threatens Haru over their shared interest in Legoshi. However, she later overcomes this obsession and becomes friends with Haru, which was caused by a new love interest for her, that being Louis. Louis and Juno had a rivalry in the drama club they were a part of, which later caused Juno to develop a crush on him, and led to the pair sharing a kiss on Louis’s graduation day. 

Their romance was short-lived after Louis was arranged into a marriage with another red deer named Azuki, despite his shared attraction to Juno. The arranged marriage was merely strategic, as it strengthened ties to both their fathers’ companies. I do really like Juno and Louis’s relationship and the way it was shown in the anime. Still, many complaints surround it regarding how lackluster their relationship felt due to how short-lived it was, and it wasn’t further explored. I do understand where they come from, as it wasn’t really explored that much, but it still left an impact on Juno and Louis in its own ways, as Louis came to realize he’s attracted to carnivores, and Juno’s views on carnivore pride were challenged with the idea of wanting a public and healthy relationship.

With this new season, this aspect of their relationship was explored perfectly, and it was well adapted to the anime. But enough about Juno and Louis, what else was good about this season?

What Was Good

Legoshi’s family, more specifically his mother, and his family tree were explored amazingly in the anime. I think the way they showcased his grandpa, Gosha, and grandma, Toki, as an interspecies couple was handled really well. Toki wasn’t the biggest fan of how Gosha had to constantly wipe her face after he kissed her, as komodo dragon venom was dangerous to any other species, and they make it known through her thoughts and expressions that she had a dislike towards it. Toki passes after kissing Gosha and hiding the wipes he used on purpose, telling him, “For me, this is victory,” and this was mainly because she wanted to prove to Gosha he wasn’t a dangerous monster like he thought he was. 

We got to see a story about Legoshi’s mother, Leano, and how it was being a child of an interspecies couple. While her life was normal growing up, it was once she gave birth to Legoshi that some more serious effects of her being a hybrid came in, as the fur on her back had begun shedding and revealing komodo dragon scales. Considering herself “ugly” and no longer being able to hide the fact that she was a hybrid, Leano would presumably end her own life. Legoshi would inherit some of the komodo dragon traits of his grandfather from his mother, with it mainly being his facial features and immunity to the venom komodo dragons produce.

Unrelated to the story, another thing I loved about this season was Melon’s voice actor, Scott Whyte. I think he did a fantastic job playing the character and perfectly conveyed the sick and twisted mind of the gazelle and leopard hybrid, especially during the climaxes of the season. The same goes for the pre-existing actors like Legoshi’s voice actor, Jonah Scott. I think Jonah did amazing throughout the entire show, as he helped show all aspects of Legoshi’s character, from his fun and goofy personality with his friends to his more intense and serious attitude during moments like the fight with Riz and the fight with Melon.

However, despite my praises and love for Melon, there are some complaints I have about what they left out this season, with a major one being related to him.

What They Left Out

Melon’s backstory was the big thing that they left out from what I noticed, as his backstory is his whole motivation for why he does what he does. They only briefly showed his relationship with his mother, mainly through her saying he looks just like his father, a gazelle, and the moment where Melon kills her by hitting her in the head with an iron. They also showed him being bullied at school and being told to jump off a roof, yet Melon would push the bullies off the roof himself. However, many aspects of his relationship with his mother were left out, the first big one being the implication that she sexually abused him.

Chapter 181 is where this is first implied, as she would force Melon to take baths with her, touch his horns inappropriately, and ask him to remove her clothes. In the anime, they cut this entire chapter out, leaving his motivation to be believed as his fear of being devoured rather than the trauma he endured from his mother. The fairytale reality inside their apartment also took a toll on Melon. While not being fully explored in the anime, the anime shows her instability, but doesn’t emphasize the suffocating environment that drove Melon to insanity. The anime didn’t showcase how deeply troubled Melon was and only treated him like a standard villain; the psychological abuse he endured with his mother was barely touched on, and it was only treated as if he feared devouring it when it really was the environment he grew up in.

Final Thoughts 

While I didn’t have many complaints about what they left out, I mainly saw Melon’s backstory as essential to show, as many complaints I heard about the season were about how they handled Melon. I do really enjoy this series, and I’m glad they finally finished the anime, but I felt almost empty when I finished the show. There was more to be desired, but knowing how Netflix has handled other anime, for example, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean and Steel Ball Run, I’m not surprised it was cut into two batches while also cutting out essential moments in the story.

I do hope that if Paru Itagaki’s other work (and a spinoff of Beastars), Beast Complex, gets adapted, they might fully adapt the material and not leave out bits and pieces that you’ll only figure out in the manga.