CYBERPUNK: EDGERUNNERS: Episodes 2.1-2.3

Skip this one. The first three episodes of CYBERPUNK EDGERUNNERS’ second season explore several characters’ stories, showing the dangers of getting too intertwined with technology while delivering intense action and suspense. The show has a cool animation style and storylines that fans of the crime and action genres will like. Additionally, each character is well-rounded, with emotional motivations that give their actions depth.

The show has a negative worldview; there are some moral moments, such as a mother tirelessly working to save her daughter from cybernetic addiction, but overall, the characters are selfish, working towards what they want, with no regard for others. Characters steal, commit violence, and are unkind to each other, with no real repercussions, as everyone acts the same way.

However, the episodes include an excessive amount of extremely graphic violence. While it is all animated, the violence is still upsetting, showing characters having limbs ripped off, being disemboweled, and graphically shot in the head. It also features several gunfights and fights between the robotic characters that involve shocking each other remotely as a form of torture. There is also a lot of foul language, and some alcohol use and smoking.

This show is interesting and raises questions about technological reliance. However, its excessive violence and language mean that, media-wise, viewers should avoid it altogether.

Welcome to Night City, where cybernetic and robotic body modifications exist, and gang violence runs rampant. Roman, a young boy determined to capture video of crimes to earn money, gets caught up in Nomad D’s revenge plot. King, a former criminal on the brink of cyberpsychosis, has a mission to save his former girlfriend’s daughter from cybernetic addiction.

Three stars for a show that offers plenty for anime fans but requires careful consideration before you watch. The first three episodes establish plenty of drama, leaving viewers curious about what happens next. Despite its compelling plotlines, well-written characters, and cool animation style, this sci-fi series is weighed down by extreme content that may be too much for many viewers.

The series falters a bit in its structure. Some plot points remain predictable, and while jumping between storylines keeps the episodes moving quickly, it can confuse who is involved in which plot. With so many moving parts, these confusing moments can bog the episodes down as viewers try to figure out what's going on.

The episodes carry a strong negative Romantic worldview with heavy anti-corporate, socialist overtones. The story paints giant corporations like Arasaka and Kang Tao as Night City's true villains and applauds the bloodshed aimed at them. D's vow to avenge his Nomad people drives much of the plot. A few moral elements push back.

A mother works tirelessly to free her daughter from cybernetic addiction, and King agrees to help his former girlfriend. The show also warns that people who trade their bodies for machines lose their humanity, and Roman's old film camera captures the tenderness and compassion the rest of the city has lost.

Still, most of the characters make terrible choices. They lie, steal, and commit horrific acts of violence to get what they want. Nobody pays a real price for any of it, because everyone around them acts just as wickedly. In the end, the story never truly condemns the evil it shows.

The first three episodes of CYBERPUNK: EDGERUNNERS 2 tell a stylish, futuristic story that will hook plenty of viewers. A few moral moments flicker through the darkness, but they can’t outweigh the show’s negative worldview, excessive violence, foul language, and other immorality. Night City rewards greed, revenge, and cruelty, and the story never holds its characters accountable. Even adult viewers should skip this one.