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Ushio and Tora
Devilishly Fun
Series in a Sentence
By freeing a demon sealed away by the cursed Beast Spear found in the basement of his family’s temple, Aotsuki Ushio and the demon Tora travel on a journey to defeat the demons that stalk them.
What I liked
Ushio and Tora is a series that is devoted to the journey of finding out about Ushio’s mother, and by extent defeating the demon Hakumen no Mono, while still allowing that setting to spawn multiple interesting character arcs and developments. Ushio’s evolution from an unwilling demon-hunter that questioned his heritage to a proud, demon-unifying force was paced really well, with each episode feeling like a step in the right direction. Likewise, Tora’s move away from the prickly and abrasive demon to a likeable and funny character (an evolution spurred on by his acclimation to the “modern” era) was a great highlight. Aside from these main characters, others had a chance to shine, too. Hyou’s storied battle against Guren, when coupled with the history and backstory, was almost enough to feel like a show by itself, Kirio and Kuin both excited me with their battle prowess when compared to Ushio and Tora at the time of their meeting, and Mayuko’s eventual importance was really a fun way to work in a character that might have been relegated to simple sidekick status in other series. Also, I can’t forget the Kamaitachi siblings’ arc that really got me into the world of youkai. Speaking of which, all of the youkai were well
designed and interesting. Seeing them come together under one banner to combat Hakumen no Mono (whose design grew on me over time) was truly satisfying. One final thing that impressed me was the history of the Beast Spear. Not many modern series tend to push lore beyond the boundaries of Japanese folklore, but this one really worked in Chinese settings, characters, and mythos in a way that made the series feel more global.
What I Didn’t Like
Honestly, outside of what I mentioned in my spoiler-free review (the show didn’t really keep me hooked on a week-to-week basis and is instead one that I waited to build up), I can’t think of anything I disliked. Yes, many of the story twists and tropes are easily predictable because this series’ source material is so old and so many series have done it since then, but I wouldn’t call that a minus here. I guess if you’re looking for a unique story, this won’t entirely surprise you with pacing is what I’m trying to say here. For what it is (an old-school shounen battle series focused surprisingly on lore and development) it does a good job but I can see how maybe people looking for more modern twists, turns, and styles could avoid this. Maybe another small gripe is that it takes a while to get to the main villain but again that wasn’t an issue for me.
Overall Feelings
Sometimes, it’s good to see where the modern series draws its inspiration from. This is one of those cases. Ushio and Tora mixes interesting lore from different parts of the world with great action sequences, memorable characters, and a look into what storytelling used to be like. If you want an old-school story with old-school values, don’t miss this. Even if you don’t want that specifically, this is a series that I feel got overshadowed or brushed aside and it shouldn’t have been. Things are called “oldies but goodies” for a reason.