Hotel Inhumans Anime Series Review

Despite my initial disappointment in discovering that Hotel Inhumans was not, in fact, all about a gang of creepy monster-folks all living together under one roof, I was immediately intrigued with what the show is actually about, which is a series of episodic stories all dealing with various killers and criminals who find themselves in the care of the dedicated concierge team at the titular hotel. As the John Wick franchise has capably proven, there's a whole lot of potential to be mined out of a setting where the whole world is just chock-a-block with expertly trained assassins who are all in need of a private place to set up shop with decent turn-down service.

It's this precise anthology format that is Hotel Inhumans' greatest strength, even though the show still has to deal with the usual flaws of any episodic anime like this one. Our only true protagonists are the hotel employees themselves, led by the likeable and capable duo of Ikuro and Sara. Together, the Hotel Inhumans crew find themselves embroiled in the misadventures of a revolving door of different killers, and I really enjoy how this allows Hotel Inhumans to explore a variety of different tones and story beats across the thirteen episodes of its first season. Some stories are moody little one-offs that explore the dangers inherent to the lives of killers, both fresh-faced and hardened by age, like in the premiere episode, “Sister Sister,” or the melancholy “Risk Management.” Other stories, like “A Last Supper,” require multiple parts to explore deceptively silly foreigners who are trying to rectify their last wishes before they reach the end of the line. It's a great approach to this subject matter with only a few caveats.

The first is that, as is the case with every anthology ever made, the results will always be inconsistent. Some stories manage to make a great impression with the limited amount of time they have to do their work, while others simply don't accomplish enough to stand out, such as the ironically very forgettable “Remember Me.” The inconsistent pacing of the anthology episodes can also cause issues. For instance, one of the best stories of the whole season is “Another Sky,” whose pair of female assassin lovers rank among the best antiheroes of the entire series. Their arc is stretched out across four entire episodes at the end of the season, however, and some of the impact of their otherwise affecting story gets blunted by this needless padding for time.

Then there's the fact that the recurring characters we do have to work with, like Ikuro and Sara, don't have many opportunities to develop outside of the occasionally resonant connection they share with the hotel guests. There's a running through-line that the show attempts concerning Ikuro's desire to find his “reason” for dedicating his life to serving a hotel filled with killers and criminals, but it never amounts to very much beyond the usual anime platitudes of helping others and seeing the good in people. If there's one thing I'd love for the recently announced second season of Hotel Inhumans to do, it would be to spend even more time fleshing out the lives of the hotel staff and giving their personal stories some more weight.

If I can be so bold as to ask for a second major shift in priorities for the series' future, however, it would be to craft a more intentional and impactful visual identity. Hotel Inhumans is animated decently enough, and there are a couple of episodes that at least seem like they have cinematic ambitions, but the series as a whole suffers from flat lighting, a generic art style, and workmanlike storyboarding that all undercut the noir and crime-caper influences that the show wears so obviously on its sleeve. That said, while the visuals are decidedly lacking in what the kids today refer to as “sauce,” the work being done on the soundtrack should absolutely stay the course, because it is pretty great. The series' composer is Koharu of the eclectic pop duo, “Charan Po Rantan,” and her creative, accordion-driven soundscape gives Hotel Inhumans a very much appreciated injection of flavor and charisma. Hopefully, future seasons of the series will provide visuals that can live up to the music quality.

All of this is to say that, while I enjoyed my time spent at Hotel Inhumans, it undoubtedly has room for improvement going forward. This is an anime with a killer (ha) premise and so much potential to wring some excellent action and drama out of its episodic format. If it can polish up its visuals and give its permanent cast members a bit more to do going forward, Hotel Inhumans could easily become the kind of vacation destination you might recommend to most any discerning anime fan. So long as they don't mind the occasional burst of bloody, tragic violence, of course.