420https://i.ur.com/8jHqrAl.jpg Alien 9 unearths a preadolescent existential terror buried and forgotten under my decades of adulthood. Though a comingofage scifi isnt novel in itself Alien 9 twists the aesthetics of moehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ into visceral horror predating the betterknown reference point of Madoka Magica by a decade. In fact when I first saw Madoka I took it as a throwback to a more subversive time. At the turn of the millennium Mamoru Hosodas Digimon Adventure short filmhttp://www.pelleas.net/aniTOP/index.php/spotlightonmamoruhosoda Revolutionary Girl Utena and Neon Genesis Evangelion put a dark postmodern twist on their respective childoriented subgenres the aesthetics of Evangelion in particular paved the way for mindtrip horror fare like Serial Experiments Lain. In this peculiar media culture Alien 9 emerged depicting a Japan beset by invasions from a variety of grotesque alien monsters. Yuri is nominated into the Alien Countermeasures squad tasked to defend her school from attack by nightmarish critters that descend from Gigeresque space pods. She is made to don a helmetshaped talking alien known as a Borg. The creepy winged Borg can slice anything to ribbons with its hidden blades. Of course for the 12y.o. crybaby Yuri this new and grisly set of powers and responsibilities is an absolute nightmare. It doesnt help that her squadmates are unapproachably eccentric and her superior plots to throw Yuri into traumatic alien encounters in service of an ulterior motive. Many battles result in Yuri cowering in terror as her Borg enters a blind killing frenzy. 330https://i.ur.com/Lgo9XLy.png Though this may sound almost exactly like Evangelion in another form which it is it offers a slimmer focused experience. Evangelion presents many modes and layers over its dozens of episodes as does the original Alien 9 manga which escalates its Cronenbergian bodyhorror ideas beyond the breaking point. The fourepisode anime adaptation finds an emotional foundation to construct its storytelling upon adding several lovely dream sequences that give us glimpses into Yuris psychological journey. The anime is unsubtle about the Borg as a puberty metaphor. One day Yuri will fully merge with her Borg into a new being of grotesque power and though its unclear what that entails when out on patrol they are two discordant minds in one body one clumsy and the other on point one caving under societys impossible demands while the other deadly when triggered. Unable to cope Yuri finds herself left behind in a world indifferent to her struggle such is a tweens miserable existence. 330https://i.ur.com/FTDGcTX.jpg In its portrayal of the tween condition Alien 9 contrasts its bubbly character designs with jagged ultraviolence finding a subversive purpose for moe beyond the fetishization of innocence. And innocence is continually set against the shadows of sunset in its dimlycolored world. Tension chords and rhythmic chaos gradually gnaw away at the childlike instrumentation of its memorable background musichttps://youtu.be/8THLcfk9pk. The short series is one of unnerving contrasts. Entertainment doesnt have to make a sophisticated argument when it can make a simple one viscerally. Alien 9 is a cut far above the mundane due to its many high quality elements working toward a shared emotional goal. Unfortunately its best episodes are in the front half. The third episode bridge is an obligatory break from the tension a beach kimodameshihttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimodameshi and summer festival episode all rolled into one and its finale tees up continuing adventures in in my opinion the inferior manga which quickly runs out of things to say. In a perfect world it would serve only itself and put a period at the end of the sentence in movielike fashion but anime almost always plays second fiddle to extrinsic interests. With that truism aside Alien 9 is still a special production that typifies a special era with its earnest preemption of the trends of our postMadoka environment. One should experience the real thing sometime. Addendum: Comment on this reviewhttps://anilist.co/activity/64821356