A few years ago, I watched Hunter x Hunter 2011, and occasionally there would be these summary episodes that would condense plot of many episodes into a few minutes. Megalo Box reminds me of these abridged summaries, packing in a decent amount of plot without sufficient time to explore character nuances. The series presents many boxing matches that may seem exciting on the surface level, but fails to deliver an emotional punch.
Each time our hero defeats another opponent and inches closer to becoming Megalonia champion, it just feels like he’s checking off one more item on his to-do list. There’s no real reason to root for him, other than the fact that he is the protagonist. We know nothing about his motivation to box. You could argue that he simply enjoys the sport, and that’s enough reason to support him. That’s fine, but that makes for lackluster emotional payoff when he does score a victory. The conflicts he faces are so… superficial. The generic mob boss antagonist, the ID side-plot– these are all things that can be solved without him really needing to do anything. So when these problems are resolved, it’s difficult to care, since he didn’t take part in solving them.
OK, I am being too harsh on this series. I actually really enjoyed watching it! I know there is still one more episode left, so me writing a review about this show right now seems too soon, but I don’t think the finale will change my opinion much.
