Doreiku—The Animation: Complete Collection

A strange device serves as a catalyst in this anime series adapted from a series of novels by Shinichi Okada. The SCM, or Slave Control Method, is a lipguard that two people challenging one another in any sort of game can agree—voluntarily—to place in their mouths. The effect is that the loser will automatically become the winner’s slave, subject to whatever services the victor might whimsically demand until the master chooses to release his captive. Over the course of the series, a large number of people fall victim to the SCM, and some are subjected to fairly horrific mistreatment as a result. The focus, however, falls on two figures. One is Eia, a girl clever enough to avoid becoming a slave and strong enough to help others who have unwisely chosen to engage in the competition. The other is Ryuuou, a young boy who initially appears to be a ruthless villain but is ultimately revealed to be collecting slaves in order to win freedom for his mother from her creditors. The underlying premise of Doreiku is interesting, but the series suffers from too many barely-sketched characters, extremely abrupt plot twists, and a tone that many will consider morbid if not downright ugly. Compiling all 12 episodes from 2018 in a dual-language Blu-ray edition, rated TV-MA, this is not a necessary purchase. (F. Swietek)