ultrasensitive’s review published on Letterboxd:
there are no excuses for an adaptation made in 2018 and if you think otherwise, well, i have news for you
— the side characters are all so badly written you would at least expect the main ones to not be so lame but !!! no !!! there you go !!! a japanese twink virgin student and a troubled north american cis male teenager that knows how to shoot a gun !!!
— glosses over many issues like gangs, drugs, murder, several instances of rape, child abuse, racial stereotypes, and so on in the worst possible way: aesthetically, as an intent to romanticize and 'develop' the protagonist (a white man)
— this was peak sukeban/early gyaru era and we didnt get to see not even one single girl on a random panning? to no ones surprise, doesnt pass the bechdel test. the only woman that appeared on screen for more than 2 minutes was some dudes baby mama & all she'd do was related to said man n her kid. misogyny is an often overlooked reality within the gay men community, and this show truly confirms they do not intend to address their wrongs (not even after almost 40 years from its original release). just say you hate women and go
— it is extremely repulsive how yoshida depicts the hypersexuality some survivors develop as a coping mechanism by 'eroticizing' it
— why were all the bad guys queer coded ?????
— the way they had the guts to criticize north american & chinese imperialism while glorifying japan... lol