The Perfect Insider

Episodes 1-2

So far, The Perfect Insider seems to be about getting away with murder. Not an actual murder within the narrative, although running into one of those also seems pretty likely - it's more structural murder, so far. Two episodes in, the show has introduced us to three major characters. Two of these characters are alternately inscrutable or insufferable; the third is unfortunately smitten with the insufferable one. Beyond that, the show has mainly just been a whole bunch of talking - talking about philosophy, talking about taking a school trip, and talking about meeting with your biggest academic idol.

That's not a style of storytelling most shows are allowed to get away with - I mean, even Bakemonogatari opened with a dramatic flashback, even if it quickly shifted from that to its own endless conversations. But Perfect Insider is getting away with this narrative villainy, and it's pretty easy to see why.

So far, The Perfect Insider has introduced us to Moe Nishishono, Souhei Saikawa, and Doctor Shiki Magata. Moe is a sheltered college freshman, quick-witted and energetic, but without much experience of the world. Souhei is her self-important college professor and object of her affections, a man whose pseudo-philosophical ramblings will sound familiar to anyone who's taken an intro to philosophy class featuring That One Student Who Won't Shut Up. Shiki Magata is a genius shut-in, a woman who received her doctorate at twelve, allegedly killed her parents not long after, and since then has spent fifteen years isolated in a remote island lab, changing the world from inside a concrete box. Moe is infatuated with Souhei, Souhei idolizes Magata, and Magata seems to have some mysterious interest in Moe - together, the three of them form a dysfunctional triangle of arrested development and empty monologues about “whether I am truly myself, or simply a system running the person known as Souhei Saikawa” and other meaningless questions.

If The Perfect Insider was taking Souhei's philosophy at all seriously, it would be impossible to enjoy. Fortunately, this show understands Souhei's ideas are bunk, and seems far more interested in Moe and Magata. On an immediate level, this is a refreshing choice; compared to the simultaneously airing Beautiful Bones, Perfect Insider has much more self-awareness and a better sense of humor about its characters. And on a structural level, this gives the show plenty of places to go. So far, all that's really happened in the plot has been the bringing together of these three characters through the convenient device of Souhei and Moe's school trip. But as far as the character relationships go, there are already all sorts of interesting dynamics and potential arcs bubbling up.

The dynamic between Souhei and Moe is the one that's received the most focus so far, and incidentally also the most frustrating. It's clear Moe is a more interesting and well-rounded person than Souhei, but also very obvious why someone as sheltered as Moe might be taken with Souhei's nonsense. The show emphasizes this disconnect throughout their conversations, presenting Souhei as a tedious bore who's clearly taking advantage of Moe, and Moe as someone consistently on the verge of being utterly through with his nonsense. She's eventually going to become a smart and self-motivated person, but she's not quite there yet.

In contrast to Souhei's willful self-involvement, Doctor Magata is presented as someone who essentially never had the chance to become a person. Alternately framed as a doll or a ghost, she's literally lived her life in an academic box, and thus her own empty philosophy comes off as an inevitable result of her circumstances. While Souhei seeks to worship her current alienation, Moe alternately resents or pities her - and it's clear through the show's intelligent framing that although Souhei idolizes Magata's past, Moe will hopefully broaden her future. The second episode makes this clash of perspectives clear, when Moe's “I can't believe she's lived the last fifteen years without seeing a beautiful sky like this!” is countered by Souhei's “but that way of life is beautiful, as well.”

I feel like I'm not really selling The Perfect Insider as an at-all enjoyable show, but seriously, I'm having a very good time with it. The dialogue is strong, the characters feel like fully sketched people, and their relationships are aggravating in ways that make perfect human sense. The fact that the show is taking so much time to establish its base relationships demonstrates both remarkable confidence and the clear importance of its characters to its larger points, both of which are excellent qualities to have. The show's desaturated colors actually work well for its half-academic, half-noir atmosphere, and with the introductions done, it seems the plot is moving to introduce elements of horror to accompany its mysteries. Vague flashbacks and hints towards both Moe and Magata's past offer enticing hooks, and the preset character dynamics already seem poised to move in directions that'll make the most of both their characters. The Perfect Insider is slow-burning in a way that demonstrates strong story fundamentals, and aggravating in a way that demonstrates relatable character truths. It's an unusual show, but so far also a very compelling one.

Rating: A-

The Perfect Insider is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Nick writes about anime, storytelling, and the meaning of life at Wrong Every Time.