Lazarus

LAZARUS

Characters

Axel Gilberto

MAIN

Sam Stephenson

SUPPORTING

Hanna

SUPPORTING

Sergei

SUPPORTING

Souryuu

SUPPORTING

Doug Hadine

SUPPORTING

Visionary

SUPPORTING

Ahmed Rahman

SUPPORTING

Carla

SUPPORTING

Schneider

SUPPORTING

Christine Blake

SUPPORTING

Lynn

SUPPORTING

Mulligan

SUPPORTING

Hayes

SUPPORTING

Leland Astor

SUPPORTING

Kobayashi

SUPPORTING

Jill

SUPPORTING

Eleina

SUPPORTING

Isabella

SUPPORTING

Abel Anderson

SUPPORTING

Claude Klein

SUPPORTING

Millie

SUPPORTING

Hersch Lindemann

SUPPORTING

Billinda

SUPPORTING

Billy Perez

SUPPORTING

Lazarus Season 1: A Stylish Yet Flawed Sci-Fi Thriller from Shinichirō Watanabe

In April 2025, anime fans were treated to Lazarus, an original sci-fi series directed by the legendary Shinichirō Watanabe, known for masterpieces like Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo. Produced by MAPPA and Sola Entertainment, with action sequences choreographed by John Wick director Chad Stahelski, Lazarus arrived with high expectations. Set in a utopian 2052, the 13-episode first season aired on Adult Swim’s Toonami block and TV Tokyo, delivering a globe-trotting thriller with a jazzy soundtrack and a talented voice cast. However, despite its ambitious premise and stylish execution, Lazarus Season 1 struggles to match the emotional depth and narrative coherence of Watanabe’s earlier works, leaving audiences with a mixed but intriguing experience.

A High-Stakes Premise

Lazarus unfolds in a seemingly perfect world where Dr. Deniz Skinner, a three-time Nobel Prize-winning neuroscientist, has developed Hapna, a miracle drug that eliminates pain and sickness. By 2052, Hapna has transformed society, ushering in an era of unprecedented peace. But three years after its release, Skinner vanishes, only to resurface with a chilling revelation: Hapna has a three-year half-life, and everyone who took it—potentially billions—will die within 30 days unless a cure is found. To avert this catastrophe, the National Security Agency (NSA) assembles a task force called Lazarus, a diverse team of five agents tasked with tracking down Skinner and securing a vaccine.

The premise is gripping, blending existential dread with a ticking-clock urgency. The apocalyptic stakes—humanity’s survival hanging in the balance—promise a thrilling narrative, and the involvement of Watanabe and Stahelski raises hopes for a visually stunning and action-packed series. The show’s original nature, unbound by manga source material, adds an element of unpredictability, keeping viewers guessing about the outcome.

The Lazarus Team: A Diverse but Underdeveloped Cast

The Lazarus task force is a eclectic mix of characters, each bringing unique skills and backgrounds to the mission:

• Axel (voiced by Mamoru Miyano/Jack Stansbury): A chronic jailbreaker with superhuman kung fu and parkour skills, Axel is a detached antihero who treats the mission like a game. His enigmatic nature and criminal past make him a compelling but emotionally distant protagonist.
• Doug (Makoto Furukawa/Jovan Jackson): A 23-year-old Nigerian physicist and team coordinator, Doug is intellectual and prideful, once idolizing Skinner before the Hapna betrayal. His calm demeanor contrasts with the team’s chaos.
• Christine “Chris” Blake (Maaya Uchida/Luci Christian): A cheerful Russian gun specialist with a rough, big-sister personality, Chris hides a past as Alexandra, a fugitive who faked her death to protect her lover. Her optimism adds levity but sometimes feels forced.
• Leland (Yuma Uchida/Bryson Baugus): A 16-year-old Canadian drone pilot and heir to the Astor family estate, Leland is reserved and egosurfs as a hobby, hinting at a complex backstory that remains underexplored.
• Eleina (Manaka Iwami/Annie Wild): A 15-year-old Hong Kong hacker known as “Mad Screamer,” Eleina starts socially awkward but grows more outgoing, offering some of the season’s better character development.
• Hersch Lindemann (Megumi Hayashibara/Jade Kelly): The team’s commanding leader, an older woman who serves as the NSA’s point of contact. Her authority anchors the group but lacks depth.
• Abel (Akio Otsuka/Sean Patrick Judge): The NSA director and Lazarus founder, a stoic figure rumored to be a “human AI” due to his rational demeanor.
• Dr. Skinner (Koichi Yamadera/David Matranga): The elusive antagonist, whose motives remain cryptic, driving the team’s global chase.

While the cast is diverse and voiced by a stellar lineup, critics note that the characters feel functional rather than fully realized. Their aloofness and lack of emotional investment in the world-ending stakes make it hard for viewers to connect, with Axel’s cavalier attitude particularly distancing. Eleina’s growth provides a highlight, but the team’s motivations often feel incoherent or underexplored, undermining the narrative’s emotional weight.

Style Over Substance

Lazarus shines in its presentation. Watanabe’s signature style—jazzy soundtracks, desaturated visuals, and a noir-inspired aesthetic—evokes Cowboy Bebop’s cool vibe. The opening theme, “Vortex” by Kamasi Washington, and ending theme, “Lazarus” by The Boo Radleys, alongside insert songs by Bonobo, set a nostalgic and atmospheric tone. MAPPA’s animation, combined with Stahelski’s dynamic action sequences, delivers standout moments, particularly Axel’s parkour-heavy escapes and Chris’s firearm-fueled battles. The 2D animation, enhanced by subtle CG, immerses viewers in high-octane chases and fights, from Istanbul’s streets to an arctic oil rig.

However, the series falters in its storytelling. The writing is often criticized as shallow, with dialogue that feels forced or incoherent. The 13-episode structure, while concise, leads to pacing issues, with some episodes dragging due to repetitive or “empty” subplots, such as the team’s globe-trotting pursuits of leads that don’t always advance the story. Critics argue that the show’s exploration of themes—like society’s obsession with numbness through Hapna or the moral implications of Skinner’s actions—is limited to brief monologues rather than woven into the narrative. The result is a series that feels more like a stylish demo than a cohesive story, with vibes prioritized over substance.

Plot and Pacing: A Race Against Time

The season follows the Lazarus team as they chase leads to find Skinner, from raiding his house to investigating a club owned by a Hapna-profiting stockbroker and confronting hackers like “Dr. 909” and “Popcorn Wizard.” Key episodes include Eleina’s discovery of a lead splitting the team, Axel and Leland’s run-in with Istanbul thugs, and a Pentagon inquiry that introduces an assassin hired by INSCOM’s Schneider. The finale sees Abel raiding to free Hersch while Axel faces a nemesis, culminating in a bid to stop Skinner.

While the ticking-clock premise keeps viewers engaged, the episodic nature—characteristic of Watanabe’s work—sometimes feels aimless. Fans on X praise the animation and music but lament the lack of narrative momentum, with some suggesting a higher episode count could have fleshed out the story. The finale attempts to tie up loose ends but leaves room for a potential Season 2, with speculation about Axel surviving a cliffhanger to continue the fight.

Reception and Legacy

Lazarus Season 1 has divided audiences. On Rotten Tomatoes, critics praise its atmosphere and provocative ideas but note it doesn’t match Cowboy Bebop’s originality, calling it a “kinetic anime” with a repetitive yet ritualistic feel. X posts reflect mixed sentiment: some fans, like @NicholasLightTV, call the first episode a “work of art,” while others, like @artyom128, criticize its “unnecessary” elements and wasted potential. The series’ 7/10 rating from @Sayngelic captures its strengths—animation, music, and choreography—but acknowledges its lack of emotional impact.

The English voice acting has drawn particular criticism, with reviewers noting a lack of budget compared to Watanabe’s earlier works, resulting in performances that feel flat. The show’s derivative setting and predictable plot points also disappoint those expecting a revolutionary follow-up to Cowboy Bebop. Yet, its apocalyptic stakes and stylish execution keep it watchable, with potential for growth in a second season, though no confirmation has been announced as of June 2025.

Where to Watch

Lazarus Season 1 is available on Max, Adult Swim, YouTube TV, and Amazon’s Prime Video, with episodes streaming the day after their Toonami broadcast. In the UK, Channel 4 airs episodes on Sundays. The 13 episodes, each around 24 minutes, ran from April 6 to June 29, 2025.

Final Thoughts

Lazarus Season 1 is a visually striking, action-packed anime that showcases Watanabe’s flair for style and Stahelski’s choreography expertise. Its high-concept premise and talented cast promise a thrilling ride, but uneven writing, underdeveloped characters, and a lack of emotional depth prevent it from reaching the heights of Watanabe’s classics. For fans of sci-fi thrillers and Watanabe’s aesthetic, it’s a worthwhile watch, but those seeking the soul of Cowboy Bebop may find it lacking. With a potential cliffhanger ending, Lazarus leaves the door open for redemption—if a second season can deliver the narrative depth this one missed.

Rating: 7/10
A stylish but flawed journey that’s more about the vibes than a cohesive destination.