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Jaden Smith as Jaden Smith? In Neo Yokio Anime

Jaden Smith, Jude Law and Susan Sarandon are trying their best to keep Neo Yokio safe - Netflix

Jaden Smith plays a rich demon hunter balancing the high life and keeping the Neo Yokio city safe, in anime.

The thought has crossed everyone’s mind; what would an American anime series be like? The answer is Neo Yokio. Starring Jaden Smith alongside Jude Law and Susan Sarandon, the show is so bizarre you can’t look away.

As Netflix themselves describe it: “[Neo Yokio] is a postmodern collage of homages to classic anime, English literature and modern New York fashion and culture.”

Before the “magistocrats”, the greatest city in the world, Neo Yokio, was under constant threat from demons seeking to destroy the lavish lifestyle of the Neo Yokians. To protect the city and sustain life, the city invited ancients orders of magicians and put the city under their watch.

With no remaining real threat to city, Kaz Kaan (Jaden Smith) is trying to live an “ordinary” life as the city’s second most eligiable bachelor, but his Aunt Agatha (Susan Sarandon) won’t have it. To support their magistocratic lifestyle, Kaz need to work hard and keep the city safe, but he has more important problems to focus on – such as buying suits and entertaining high-maintenance girlfriends.

The show is unique in its post-capitalist setting, making you wonder what the world would look like had it been run by a bunch of consumerist millennials. If you’re not into searching for a deeper meaning in things, you might not life this series, but if you are, it is as entertaining as it is eye-opening.

Neo Yokio is an American-Japanese co-produced animated television series created by Ezra Koenig, from the American rock band Vampire Weekend, and is produced by Japanese anime studios Production I.G. and Studio Deen.

All six episodes from season one premiered on Netflix on September 22, and it has gotten mixed reviews so far. Despite having a 14% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the show might just be waiting to be discovered by the right audience.

Given the setting and plot of the series, the script is brilliant, and nothing less can be said about the animation as well. It is truly a genuine anime, but with a hint of New York.

As for the title of this article, watching the first episode alone is enough to see how Jaden Smith the series is.

https://youtu.be/hwc6fTnsdBI

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