“Dr. Stone” (July 2019, TMS Entertainment) is an anime about a teenage scientist waking up after being stuck in stone for 3000 years and having to rebuild society with his companions.
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The story follows teenage genius, Senku Ishigami (voiced by Yūsuke Kobayashi) and his best friend Taiju Oki (Makoto Furukawa) being petrified after a green wave of light encompasses the planet turning every human to stone. Eventually, Senku breaks out of his petrification to find the world has been reset back into the stone age without any sign of humans whatsoever besides the ominous statues.
Over the course of his journey, he finds the descendants of people who avoided the petrification beam, overcomes technological hurdles, and learns about the truth of the world.
The premise of the show is great, it’s not like the recently overdone isekai genre, as it actually provides a lot of substance. There are small little lessons within the show, mainly explaining principles behind a lot of modern technology, like light filaments and power generation.
It isn’t limited to electronics, but steam power, medicine, boats, hot air balloons, and so much more. Senku always has a plan and a road map of how to get what he needs done.
The way the artists give characters their uniqueness shines through, like using the formation of the cracks from breaking free from the stone is one of them. Characters also have their own unique builds instead of just one body that fits them all, like Senku’s scrawniness whereas Taiju is built like a construction worker, and Tsukasa Shishio (Yuichi Nakamura) is built like a professional athlete.
The art direction in this show looks like they were made with the intention to make someone’s eyes sparkle. Vibrant night skies, foreboding landscapes, and captivating views atop a mountain, even Senku and Chrome’s (Gen Satō) workshop has a sense of discovery to it, with all the old tech that Senku is reviving and the hint of nature that corresponds with how Chrome grew up.
This show’s music also has that captivating feeling, pulling a viewer in and giving them that sense of discovery whenever something is explained or when exploring a new place.
With how good this show is there has to be a few downsides, right? Well, surprisingly there aren’t that many downsides, if anything it’s all up to preference.
Some viewers might not like the preachiness of Senku or how much he talks. Another thing that some people may not like is the amount of detail that the show provides for how a final product works to the minute detail.
If one is interested in mechanics surrounding how several things work and how we as people have found ways to make it work, or are just naturally curious, then this show is a must watch.
Season 3 is currently airing and it’s the perfect time to hop on board the hype train. However, if a viewer doesn’t like “nerdy” stuff then they can go enjoy something else.