There’s a long list of anime that can be considered modern-day classics, but only an elite catalog can boast the very best anime that streaming services have to offer. Attack on Titan, Demon Slayer, and Death Note all come to mind, and those are familiar choices. But every now and again, there’s an anime that somehow slips through the cracks and fails to garner the recognition it truly deserves — just like Odd Taxi.
Since its debut in April 2021, Odd Taxi has been considered by many to be one of the most underrated anime currently available for streaming. There are various facets that make Odd Taxi stand out as a sleeper hit. Anime fans looking for something a little different should definitely give Odd Taxi a watch.
10 The Omission Of Fan Service
For an anime like Odd Taxi, the implementation of fan service would only serve to hinder the series overall by diminishing the impact of its underlying themes. Odd Taxi places story, subject matter, and character development at the height of its objectives.
This focus allows Odd Taxi to act as a social commentary for Japan’s current social condition, and, by extension, the world. In this instance, the omission of fan service doesn’t just benefit the anime, it elevates it and ultimately enables the more crucial elements of storytelling to take precedence.
9 Anthropomorphism As A Narrative Device
While Odd Taxi certainly isn’t the first anime with an anthropomorphic world of characters, it is the most distinct. What makes Odd Taxi stand out in an already saturated market is the different approach it takes to the characters that inhabit its world.
Much like the characters from the great graphic novel Blacksad by Juan Díaz Canales, these characters feel more like humans presented as animals than they do animals presented with human qualities. Due to this seldom implemented approach, Odd Taxi feels fresh and ultimately far more appealing.
8 Witty Dialogue Makes For Great Humor
Its brilliantly elaborate themes notwithstanding, Odd Taxi still manages to be intensely funny throughout its thirteen-episode run. There is a myriad of character interactions occurring in the midst of some fabulously amusing scenarios.
The conversations Odokawa has with his passengers or sharp-witted responses to an awkward or intense encounter like Odokawa’s many run-ins with the police add distinct humor to the series. Thus, in addition to a great deal of other positive attributes, Odd Taxi happens to be far more amusing than it has any right to be.
7 A World Of Colorful Characters
Odd Taxi features a fantastic cast of greatly intriguing characters that play a crucial role in molding the world that Odokawa inhabits. Each character is finely tuned to a rare degree of plausible authenticity, possessing incredibly lifelike personas.
By the series’ conclusion, these personas feel as pertinent as they are intentional. As a result, these characters not only encompass qualities that make them supremely fascinating but also emotionally investing. As a matter of course, this makes their journeys all the more alluring.
6 Unique Art Style & Attention To Detail
There’s a long list of reasons why Odd Taxi is a must-watch series, but one of the less-discussed reasons is the anime’s unique and equally impressive art style. The animation work, handled by OLM and P.I.C.S studios, is wonderfully intricate in handling how the protagonist’s visual agnosia contributes to how the set design is depicted.
This level of attention to detail not only elevates Odd Taxi by its conclusion but also highlights the significant role Odokawa’s visual impairment plays in the anime’s world-building.
5 Gloriously Raising The Stakes
Odd Taxi is both wonderfully paced and patient, and this is evidenced by the sagacious approach taken to raising the stakes throughout the series. Never has the term “looks can be deceiving” been more apropos in the case of anime. Odd Taxi is far more than initially meets the eye.
What appears on the surface to be a simple anime about an ordinary taxi driver is in fact is a tantalizing world of mystery with twists and turns at every corner. Somehow, a collection of mundane, everyday, ordinary conversations brilliantly evolves into the search for a missing girl, the perils of social media, and a parochial taxi driver inadvertently getting mixed up with the wrong crowd.
4 Tremendous & Unique Protagonist
Odd Taxi has an incredible cast of thoroughly captivating characters, but none more so than the protagonist himself. Hiroshi Odokawa is a 41-year-old walrus taxi driver who’s one of the most idiosyncratic characters in recent memory. Interestingly enough, Odokawa manages to be both narrow-minded and simultaneously perspicacious.
Although he finds many of the people he meets intolerable, he remains distinctly percipient, which enables him to find the most suitable solution to his problems as they arise. Moreover, the clever blend of sharp-witted dialogue and near expressionless delivery perfectly combine to create a protagonist that is both strangely fascinating and equally convincing.
3 Superb Twists & Turns
Every good plot incorporates a number of twists and turns to keep things compelling and Odd Taxi is no different. In fact, it would be fitting to say to viewers ready to embark on this emotional rollercoaster to expect the unexpected.
Deposited throughout the series is a great deal of unpredictable twists scrupulously woven into the fabric of its superb narrative. It’s only at the end of the journey when the rollercoaster comes to a halt that the realization of just how special and conscientious Odd Taxi is finally sets in.
2 An Astute Exploration Of Real-World Issues
Odd Taxi‘s erudite exploration of real-world issues is markedly impressive. By the same token, it’s also extraordinarily accurate. Odd Taxi is more than just an anime; it’s a social commentary cleverly examining the human condition and raising several important points about humanity’s current state of affairs.
The anime, which addresses social media obsession, idolatry, addiction, and mental health, to name a few, judiciously incorporates these fundamentally salient issues in a manner that is both meaningful and respectable, leaving an impression that lingers in the mind long after the final episode.
1 Superbly Written Deep Narrative
To say that Odd Taxi is well-written would be an enormous understatement. Odd Taxi is so much more than that. It’s an amalgamation of excellent storytelling, sublime character development, and social commentary. It’s eminently logical and features a vastly tenable depiction of many of the problems plaguing today’s society.
And while the events may take place in Japan, the issues Odd Taxi presents can easily be applied to any other country in the world. Simply put, Kazuya Konomoto’s writing is masterful and reflects a deep understanding of how to collectively tell a great story while simultaneously promulgating an important message.
About The Author
