Hell Teacher: Jigoku Sensei Nube – Episodes 1-2

Content Warning: gore and violence against children

What’s it about? Nueno Meisuke is an elementary school teacher and a powerful exorcist who’s dedicated to using his powers to protect the people of Doumori.  At first, his students don’t take him seriously at all because he comes off extremely silly.  That all changes when strange paranormal activities start happening, which forces him to show his true colors and fight all kinds of monsters in order to protect his students.  

I’ll be honest, I’m a real sucker for anything that reminds me of the distinct style 90s anime was known for.  It’s clear that I’m not the only one that feels that way, since plenty of animation companies are capitalizing on our nostalgia now that we have the money to pay for things that remind us of the simpler times of our childhood.  This series was extremely popular during the 90s and was fortunate enough to run for 31 volumes AND receive an anime adaptation of 49 episodes.  

That episode count is almost unheard of anymore, and this remake will probably only cover the best arcs of the series in its two cours.  It’s also strange that this double premiere is available to watch on YouTube by Remow instead of the usual streaming services, but I suppose I shouldn’t complain since it’s accessible to everyone.  Normally, I’m not a fan of double premieres, but surprisingly I really enjoyed this one.  The horror elements of the series does a good job of pulling the audience into the world that Nueno has to deal with. The man himself also feels like a very ominous presence and it makes me question whether or not we should trust him.  

It’s obvious that Nueno isn’t forthcoming about everything he’s hiding, but for now it’s clear that he cares about his students and wants to protect them.  In short, he’s a likable protagonist with mighty eyebrows who is strong enough to fight demons on equal terms.  The show does such a good job of finding a balance between gore and humor that it almost feels strange trying to compare it with any recent shows like DAN DA DAN since those shows probably took inspiration from older shows like the original Hell Teacher: Jigoku Sensei Nube.  I’m also happy to report that the younger characters act like real children.  The kids in Nueno’s classroom have a real spunk to them, but if I’m to be honest, I don’t like seeing them put into situations where they’ll be continuously traumatized.  

The show doesn’t spare them from witnessing horrific acts of violence and to be frank, I’m not sure how Hiroshi is supposed to continue living a normal life after seeing a demon rip out its own skull.  That’s a thing of nightmares, so for the series to quickly reset to a peaceful status quo is incredibly eerie.  While I don’t expect a check-in after every demonic encounter, I am grateful the series handled Hiroshi’s genuine fear and confusion about his mental state really well, which also helped us understand why he’s extremely suspicious of exorcism. His poor father put himself into severe debt trying to find a cure for his son and it doesn’t help that those “exorcisms” looked no different than torture.  

I’m curious if the remake toned down the level of gore found in the manga.  It wouldn’t surprise me if they made a few changes to the story overall to take out the more outdated parts, like with the very well-made Ranma 1/2 remake.  Lastly, the action sequences looked really good and for the time being, modern technology such as cell phones didn’t look out of place.  It’s always strange trying to update older shows because it’s so obviously rooted in the context of its time and usually doesn’t hold up very well when trying to modernize it.  Overall, I think it’s probably worth checking out a few more episodes, especially if you are a horror fan or someone seriously looking to feel that 90s nostalgia.