The Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok

A Japanese Anime Based on Norse Mythology!

The Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok is an anime that revolves around the Norse god of mischief, Loki. Unlike in the Avengers movies, this Loki is actually a pretty decent guy. However, he was banished from the god realm to earth by the head god, Odin, for reasons unknown. The only way Loki can return to the realm of the gods is by collecting enough evil auras from earth. In order to do this, he starts a detective agency that specializes in the paranormal. Besides being banished, Loki was also forced to take on the form of a human boy, but he retains some of his powers.

Loki is assisted by his loyal companion Yamino who’s addicted to mail-order, and the pair soon meet a cheerful mystery-loving high school girl named Mayura. Mayura took a liking to Loki because of him being a detective and solving mysteries, so she started hanging out with Loki and Yamino at their home/business. Mayura’s father, a Shinto priest, didn’t approve at first, but later on he warms up to them.

Throughout the episodes you meet many more fun and unique characters; some are human and others are gods in human form. There is Thor, the god of thunder who supports himself on earth with an array of part-time jobs; Reiya, who is actually Freya, the goddess of love and beauty; Freyr, the master thief and brother of Freya; the Norn sisters, goddesses of fate; and several more. You will also eventually find out who Yamino really is. Some of the characters are friends of Loki and others are intent on assassinating him.

There is quite a bit of Norse mythology in the plot line, as well as some supernatural occurrences, plus a few tear-jerking moments and epic battles against evil, the most awesome of which involved a coffee cup. There is some language, the majority of which comes from a later canine character named Fenrir. The plot line is a bit jumpy; a lot of the episodes are single-story, but later on they are woven together for the finale.

If you’re not familiar with the mythology of Scandinavia, the term Ragnarok refers to the last days of the gods and the start of a new era. I don’t want to give too much of the story away, but I did feel that the final episode left a lot of plot holes and unanswered questions. Leaving that aside, though, I really enjoyed this anime. It was amusing to see the Norse gods and goddesses looking and acting like teenagers, and it was interesting how a Japanese animation studio made a series about Norse mythology.

So if you don’t mind a few bits of language, I’d highly recommend The Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok; it was very entertaining. There are 26 half-hour episodes in total. I watched it on Amazon Prime instant video.

You can also watch it on Hulu and on this anime website: http://www.watchcartoononline.com/anime/the-mythical-detective-loki-ragnarok

Or buy the DVD boxed set at Amazon!

-Anime Review by Super Searcher