As someone who believes that anime lovers have a pretty significant place within the Heavy Metal community, I wanted to write about an anime series that’s not really well-known in our country—Bastard!!. And fun fact, it’s actually produced by one of the most famous streaming platforms on the planet. So, let’s dive in and talk about why Bastard!!: Heavy Metal, Dark Fantasy is a big deal for us metalheads.

First off, let me introduce you to Kazushi Hagiwara, a super respected figure in the manga world. This guy isn’t just an amazing storyteller—he even wrote some parts of the legendary game Final Fantasy! He’s also a huge fan of Heavy Metal, especially bands from the ’80s and ’90s. Bastard!! first started as a manga in 1988, published in Weekly Shonen Jump, and it became so popular that Kazushi Hagiwara’s own company, Studio Loud In School, began releasing it regularly.

When I looked up Bastard!! on Turkish sites, I sadly found a lot of articles written by people who clearly didn’t get the full picture. So, let me say this upfront: I’m an anime fan, but not a hardcore expert. However, I do believe this anime’s story hasn’t been fully understood, and that’s why I want to explain some things that other sources missed.

Alright, let’s talk about the Bastard!! anime series on Netflix. Many of the characters and place names in this anime are directly taken from the metal music world. You’ve got references to everyone from Ozzy to Guns N’ Roses! A bunch of spells and character names are taken straight from metal legends. But, to avoid copyright issues, the names were changed a bit for the show. You’ll see what I mean as we go along.

The anime has a pretty straightforward storytelling style, and the art is awesome. The plot kicks off in the middle of things, kinda like how the first Star Wars movie was technically the fourth one. So, our story begins when a group of scientists, wizards, and alchemists come together to create a super-powerful female demon called Anthrasax, with the goal of using her power to end human wars and save the world. But, of course, things go wrong, and Anthrasax turns into a huge problem for humanity. She uses her telepathic abilities to summon demons and all sorts of creepy beings from other dimensions to pretty much wreck humanity. Just as it seems all hope is lost, a mysterious being called the Dragon Knight shows up, fights her for ten days, and eventually defeats her. He seals her away in an underground prison using four magical seals. By this point, human civilization is practically wiped out. After the destruction, the world becomes filled with magic and mythical creatures. The anime picks up from there. A quick heads-up: this anime does dive into some +18 themes and occasionally touches on soft hentai, so be warned!

Now, in this magic-filled world, the main character is Dark Schneider, who—wait for it—is named after the legendary Chuck Schuldiner, founder of the band Death. How cool is that? Dark Schneider is a badass, dark, ruthless wizard who roams the world thousands of years after the apocalypse, gathering followers and warriors. No one really knows where he came from, and his goal is simple: world domination. He teams up with Thunder Empress Arshes Nei, Ice Lord Kall-Su, Dark Prince of the Underworld Abigail, and Ninja Master Gara to conquer the last remaining kingdom on Earth—Metallicana.

As you might guess from the name, the Metallicana kingdom is no pushover. Under the leadership of Prince Lars, alongside High Priest Geo Noto Soto, Black Witch Selene Tempest, Samurai Neals Schon Mifune, and former pirate assassin Dana Meniketti, they manage to defeat Dark Schneider. At the last minute, Dark Schneider uses a reincarnation spell to trap himself in the body of a baby, but this ends up imprisoning him. The baby is found by High Priest Geo Noto Soto, who entrusts his daughter, Tia Noto, to raise and watch over him. No one knows about this, of course.

Fast forward fifteen years, and, as expected, humans still can’t stay out of trouble. Dark Schneider’s followers regroup and plan to release Anthrasax from her prison to take over the world. But this time, they have something that can control her. The kingdom of Metallicana is once again under attack, and the only way to defend themselves is to bring Dark Schneider back. High Priest Geo Noto Soto knows a way to control the dark wizard: his virgin daughter, Tia Noto, is the key. If she kisses the boy that Dark is trapped in (a kid named Lucien), Dark Schneider will be released and bound to do as they say. So, after much hesitation, Tia Noto kisses Lucien, Dark Schneider comes back to life, and the adventure begins.

Visually, Bastard!! is a stunning anime, but the way some background characters react can be a bit over-the-top. It might remind you of Beyblade or Pokemon scenes, where characters get overly dramatic. It’s hard to fully connect with the characters because some things feel a bit off, but the constant Heavy Metal references make this series both unbalanced and unique. The show’s main goal is to entertain, and it does just that. There’s a lot of eroticism throughout, so you might get thrown off at times, but in the end, it’s a fun watch. If you’ve got some time, I definitely recommend checking it out.

Zafer Ayaz