Is Ninja Collection worth your time? – A Complete Review

Ninja Collection is a short anime series and is a spin-off from another short horror series called Yamishibai (Japanese Ghost Stories) and follows the same idea of bitesize mini-stories.

The series is set in modern-day Tokyo where dreams and desires are afloat, a group of ninjas called “Toukeshuu” is set to stop the spread of “darkness” that prevails in the world using ancient techniques passed down through generations.

1. Quick Review

Ninja Collection is a spin-off originating from parent series Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories.

The story will center on the Toukeshuuninja group in Tokyo, the city where dreams and desires reside like fast currents in the ocean.

With ancient techniques passed down through generations, the ninja are intent on wiping out the “darkness” enveloping people in the current Reiwa era.

Ninja Collection is a short anime series with each episode lasting for less than five minutes .The show has a distinctive style, with the animation seeming more like moving manga stills jerkily moving from one panel to the next with very little actual animation but the difference between the two is jarring.

In Yamishibai, the effects displayed are sinister-looking with the drawings and movements conveying that sense of horror which is required to unsettle the viewer.

However, the animation shown in Ninja Collection doesn’t seem to be working in favor of the show – it comes across as clumsy and comedic and doesn’t exude that super-natural atmosphere that is necessary for any good horror series to thrive.

If you can get past the awkward animation and art style, the story and music is respectable.

2. Info Card

3. Is It Worth Watching?

Ninja Collection is one of those anime that make you prioritize the reasons why you watch an anime in the first place. Is it for the story or the animation?

If you focus on the story that an anime is fleshing out, then watching this is a must.

I. Plot

The story follows a ninja group known as Toukesshu in the city of Tokyo where dreams and desires swirl. The group use ancient techniques that have been passed down through the generations to destroy the darkness that is haunting the people in the city.

The animation in Ninja Collection is a bit disappointing and two dimensional in comparison to other anime series but the dialogue is pretty good and it has an extremely interesting story.

II. Characters

The anime will star actors from 2.5D stage plays such as Yuki Kimisawa, Taiga Fukazawa, Kazuki Soejima, Ryoshiro Tsuji, and VTuber Taku Nanase. It will also feature idols Akari Nakamura (Niji No Conquistador) and Monika Mita, singers Ayaka Ota and MoeMi, and many more.

In the first episode, we are introduced to a student named Yuma. He sees “smoke” outside his classroom which nobody else in his class seems to notice.

The smoke turns out to be sinister and causes trouble for Yuma. The episode revolves around what the smoke does and whether someone can put a stop to this evil.

The second episode shows a woman hard at work in an office setting. Everything seems to be going as usual until she feels a creepy gaze watching her.

What makes the episode interesting is to see who the creepy stare belongs to, why he’s after the woman and whether she will be rescued. 

So far, we don’t have enough episodes to differentiate who the main characters are. However, we do know that the short horror stories we’ve seen so far have unique concepts to keep you interested until the next episode comes out.

III. Setting

The locations are different based on each episode and where the Toukeshuu are currently defending Tokyo against the prevailing darkness. The art style is 2D as though the creators have literally brought characters of a manga to life.

IV. Theme Songs

The series doesn’t have an opening theme song but the main objective of the Toukesshu is explained with a nice traditional sounding Japanese music playing in the background.

The ending theme for this anime is an upbeat song by Backdrop Cinderella- “Shinobi Ashi de Unzaunza o Odoru”.

4. Grade

5. Final Thoughts

Ninja Collection comes with a unique storyline and good music but that fails to compensate for its pretty bland animation. The anime seems more like a stop-motion film with its shake effects and ok-voice acting.