I am once again recommending people watch the anime Mawaru Penguindrum. It's so so good.
It is a 2011 anime from Kunihiko Ikuhara, the creator of Revolutionary Girl Utena, and focuses on a family of three teenagers as they try to save the life of their younger sister by locating the mysterious "Penguindrum".
It is very heavy, if you've seen Utena you probably have an idea of what to expect.
It is effectively about Bad Things happening to children.
But ultimately, what the show is About:tm: is:
- How Capitalism abandons those most in need and forces them into cycles of poverty and abuse; and
- How punitive "justice" isn't really justice and only perpetuates further harms both immediately and down the line
Without giving too much away, a core part of the show's backstory is a real life terrorist attack that happened in Japan, using that as a way to frame the messages and themes through a specific example of people affected by it on all sides, albeit heavily fictionalized for the sake of the story and the urban fantasy.
It's a truly fantastic show. Just... it's VERY heavy! Tread with appropriate caution and enjoy one of my favorite anime of all time!
