ANIME/FILM REVIEW | "Zombie Land Saga" Has a Big-Screen Close Encounter

When MAPPA unleashed Zombie Land Saga back in 2018, viewers had no idea what they were in for. What seemed to be a high school horror story instead pulled a whole switcheroo, giving anime fans a tale of undead idols who aimed to take over the world with their music. The end result was a show about zombie girls learning how to be their truest selves onstage, all the while being dragged into some weird jobs and performing some surprisingly good pop songs. Now nearly five years since Season 2 aired, the long-promised follow-up has arrived in movie theaters, in the form of Zombie Land Saga: Yumeginga Paradise.

If you thought the final minute of Season 2 was MAPPA pulling our legs, then you are greatly mistaken. Yes, this is an aliens VS zombies adventure, with Franchouchou on the front lines looking to save Saga and the rest of the world. But the biggest surprise comes from Tae Yamada (Dawn M. Bennett), who finally is given the chance to talk and lead the mission into rescuing everyone. However, with her brains back, Tae attempts to roadblock the rest of Franchouchou from interfering with the rescue plan.

At first, this film version of Zombie Land Saga has the anime’s trademark humor intact. Sakura (Brina Palencia) keeps literally losing her head, Saki (Caitlin Glass) can’t stop acting like a delinquent, and manager Kotaro (Ricco Fajardo) is simply all over the place. However, after the aliens attack and Tae regains her memories, the comedy takes a back seat as the film transforms into a sci-fi action adventure. The concept of undead idols battling extraterrestrials already sounds like it has some wacky potential, and even during Tae’s flashback to how she got her mind back, it would seem like it would be an entertaining romp.

However, when Yumeginga Paradise foregoes the comedy, Zombie Land Saga loses quite a bit of its spirit. What made the anime enjoyable was its unapologetic silliness. The rap battle, the chicken restaurant commercial, the reality TV competition, Tae’s day-in-the-life episode— these stories showcased the truly bonkers nature of Zombie Land Saga, all with slices of heart and endearing spirits. So when the crazy is taken out of the narrative’s mood, you’re left with a generic sci-fi story that feels like it’s been done way too many times.

Granted, the subpar script doesn’t take away from the brilliant animation from MAPPA. When Tae and the Saga citizens take on the alien threat, the visuals come to life with terrific detail. The explosions, the body movement, and even the facial expressions are presented with the high-quality style that we’ve come to know this studio for. While it never reaches the same heights as Chainsaw Man or the recent Ranma ½ remake, it’s still a great-looking motion picture.

Which leads to the other main attraction to Zombie Land Saga: the music. Despite them being an anime-only group, Franchouchou surprisingly delivers a lot of solid songs. On the same tier as the stuff in Love Live and Idolmaster, the seven-piece idol group performs “Yūkyū Nebā Dai,” “Kyō ga Rekishi ni Nokoru Nara,” “Matataku Sora ni Akogarete,” and “Ima o Mirai o Arigatou” with so much heart and emotion. However, it’s disappointing that the English dub didn’t create English versions of the tracks. (I mean, Palencia herself is a hell of a songwriter, so she could’ve easily done it!)

On one hand, it’s great seeing our favorite undead idols back. Sadly, Zombie Land Saga: Yumeginga Paradise lacks the high-tier humor that made the original TV series a joy to watch. It has some solid fights, and the songs are wicked catchy, but being silly is a huge part of this anime’s identity. Without it, Yumeginga Paradise wanders around trying to find its true self, like a zombie craving brains. If only MAPPA let it chow down on a funny bone during its two-hour runtime.

FINAL GRADE:

English dub version observed for review. Promotional consideration provided by Madison Markel of Crunchyroll.

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