The real villain in this show was the cyberpsychosis, and David won. He held it at bay until he could get what he wanted, which was Lucy's freedom. That's why he laughs at the end. He got what he wanted. He saved someone he loved. Like the song playing in the final fight says, "you never lost your self control." Because sometimes holding our demons at bay is the best we can do.
I was gonna say the Uber late stage capitalistic society that doesn’t value human life in general was more villainous and every other problem was really a side effect, but that works too i guess.
No, that's more of a symptom, rather than the cause. The reason why everything is so fucked is because of corpo. "Fuck Corpo," a sentiment you'll hear thought the game if you've never played it. As you understand the history of the Cyberpunk world, it become more and more clear that the true villain is greed, the extremist capaltistic society that spares no thought at slaughter living people like cattles if it means they stand to benefit from it.
@@tonydanatop4912 thats because it is, some of the comments sayinig the real villain is the city itself? like bro, it is quite literally how the economy is structured to only extract wealth from the masses, the people living in night city and leave them to fend for themselves and seek out any and all matter to make ends meet, to survive by any means necessary
Unfortunately for David, while yes, he did accomplish the dream that he made of sending Lucy to the moon, that wasn't Lucy's dream anymore. Ultimately, he only succeeded in accomplishing bastardized versions of the dreams that he carried on his shoulders. He stood on top Arasaka tower, but not because he climbed the ranks and became successful within the organization, but because he stood up on the top roof as their current enemy #1. He took on Maine's dream of becoming a legend of success in the city, but while he definitely did become a legend, he ultimately was the same as all the other cyberpunks out there, making a name not by how he lived, but how he died. And he died as a cyberpsycho that was put down by Adam. He took on Lucy's dream of sending her to the moon (The one person that would actually live to see that dream accomplished), but he failed to realize that her dream included him now, and his death ultimately buried that dream forever.
That's a very good way to put it, I feel like I should have spoken about this in my video lol. I think these contortions of the otherwise pure dreams these people had is very intentional, and kind of speaks to the depressing nature of Night city. Even for someone like David who put his all into accomplishing these things, the true depths of the goals he was chasing were unattainable, the life he gave to see these dreams come true only resulted in the barest aspects of them being accomplished, speaking to the hopeless nature of this world.
Lucy learns to live and take on the dream of someone else, an idea she scoffed at at the beginning of the series, due to David's sacrifice. She messed up her own dream but can live on for her love and memory of David pushing her to carry his dream which was to live in peace on the moon, away from Night City. Additionally, Lucy's secretive/selfish actions in large part lead to David's psychosis and downfall. She was ready to die just for him to live just as he was for her, both were forced into risky positions and they should've communicated better. David accomplished much with the shit options life kept throwing at him and I don't think Maine or his Mom would've had any regrets if they saw just how far he pushed himself to give at least one person a chance of escape and peace, a possible happiness away from Night City even if it cost him his life.
@@GaminexPro I think Lucy was always right. Following the dreams of dead people and putting them over your own dreams and wellbeing can only end in tragedy. If David had truly listened his living love ones, Rebecc, Lucy (and if Lucy stopped being so secretive). They have realized that they had to escape from that hell of a city. It was the only chance for a happy ending and I think that's what Lucy does at the end of the show.
@@thatguy2377 There is worth in it, especially when death is so inevitably close. The opportunity to save someone and give them the possibility of a better life, especially away from Night City where Lucy would have been just as short lived had it not been for him. Inspiring others to follow suit and push themselves. It was worth something. There was no escape without him hustling and busting his ass, Lucy wasn't making any money. David had to be a provider to make anything chance of escape possible, Lucy could not be on the Moon if David didn't push himself as far as he did and living life as a Nomad would've only gotten David captured before too long with Arasaka eventually tracking him down. After the Tanaka incident David was really backed into a corner even if he didn't know it, him being chromed up was bad but he wasn't going to fair much better without them either given he was being tracked and Kiwi was going to betray them anyway.
a guy like david is an anomaly in a dystopia like cyberpunk. Too loyal to those around him and too virtuous of a person within that dystopia for night city to ever let him live...
She literally risk her life to tries to save David from Corporations... After the BD in Arisaka and figure out about David file in Arisaka. She, literally spent all her time to deep dive into the net to eliminate any Netrunner that try to access to David file to hid him from Corporation... Which ultimately is the reason she got caught and uses as bait to lure David. They both sacrifice and risk theirs life for the other. And irony that is how cyberpunk world work. There is no escape in the night city, endless tragedy, a legendary tale of a street kid.
The story was very similar to a Christmas story called "The Gift of the Magi." In that story, a woman who has long beautiful hair eventually has it cut off and sold so that she can afford to buy her brother a watch chain for his pocket watch. Likewise, the brother sells the pocket watch so that he can get his sister a set of nice hair combs for her to use on her beautiful hair. They eventually find out that they both sold what was most precious to them for the benefit of who is most precious to them. There is an additional layer of sentimentality that arises from the fact that the parents of the brother and sister have passed away (the sister even sadly remembers how special their Christmases once were as a family, her actions are derived in large part for how grateful she is to still have her brother, the only person she has in the world). In this anime, David gives up what is most precious to him (his life) for who is most precious to him: Lucy. He does so by taking on a very dangerous corpo robbery contract so that he can afford to send Lucy to the moon. Likewise, Lucy (sort of) gives up what is most precious to her: David's love and affection--recall the scene where David and Lucy part ways with one another--so that she can save who is most precious to her: David. She tries her best to keep David from becoming yet another experiment for Arasaka. Of course, it is not a one to one comparison by any means, but I was immediately reminded of The Gift of the Magi when I was watching this.
All tragic themes in cyberpunk: The city - It's impossible to survive night city. The longer you stay the closer you are to a miserable end. Everyone who lives there lives fast and dies quick. Aspirations - David was told to survive and succeed in night city, but each person who told him that put him into danger that was going to get him killed from the start. His mom was selling cybernetics that David used on himself, Lucy dragged him into the criminal underbelly that put him into further danger, and Maine pushed him over the edge into cybernetics, his ultimate downfall. Romance - Smaller one but this is a tragic romance. David and Lucy failed each other because neither would communicate what they desired to each other. Lucy didn't know David wanted to throw his life away for her and David didn't know Lucy wanted David to go with her to the moon and live. That is what ultimately costed their relationship and made it tragic. Death - Cyberpsychosis could be seen as a gradual decline from innocence into cold-blooded insanity, as we have seen it happen to other cybers. David's innocent life becoming more and more traumatic increases his own diagnosis of cyberpsychosis, causing him to delve deeper into erasing his humanity, culminating into him becoming deranged and violent as he so feared, the tipping point being when he killed an innocent Arasaka worker, a mother of a innocent boy, just as he had his own mom robbed from him. The deaths of those around David contributed to his own life being slowly given up by him until he decides to go on a full suicidal rampage for Lucy. David does not have plot armor, he is alive because it wasn't his turn yet, but his failure to learn from the others who died around him is what let him die. David didn't care about living, he didn't want to live. That's why he didn't escape night city, that's why he kept chroming up and dosing more and more on immunosuppressant drugs, he just didn't care about being alive. He was ready to sacrifice his life and die, and he accomplished that final goal. David was going to end up like another thug on the street, and his death sentence began the minute he implanted the sandy into himself... he reunited with Rebecca, Gloria and Maine in the afterlife
The genius behind the Edgerunners ending is that it was entirely predictable but no one wanted it to end like we all knew it was going to end. We fell completely in love with the characters, wanted to see all of them happy all the while knowing that everything was going to be a train wreck in the end. Then because it ended in that train wreck, where literally every character we loved is either dead or beyond miserable, we are left with a profound sense of loss. That sense of loss sticks with you, becomes memorable, leaving a lasting impression that goes well beyond the end of the anime and that is why it is great.....even though it sucks because I want, no matter what, to see Lucy and David on the moon.
I whole heartedly agree with this statement, it's nice to see small channels putting in the genuine time and effort in to these videos. I really love the way he polishes what he talks about and shows how damn good this story was, from the characters to the soundtrack, everything was blended into one of the BEST anime I've watched. (And that's no small accomplishment😅) Great work and I look forward to your next video!
my favorite part of of this series: david saying that he wasn't interested in becoming a construct at the time of his death. i just like how he chose his humanity over being a possible supercyborg under arasaka. he goes down as a legend in night city. and to the viewers (us), he goes down as the anomoly in a dark, dystopian world that didn't succumb to being fully chrome'd out and fall to cyberpsychosis unlike most people in night city
This anime was so powerful, that even just watching this recap I felt all the emotions come rushing right back. Why you gotta make me feel things gadammit?
Man. Nice analysis. I like how, in the end, Lucy spreads her arms in the sun like David did in their fantasy. Almost like she regained her happiness by living his dream, replicating his disposition, that true altruism making a circle.
I mean yes, obviously we all wanted that in hindsight and from a humanity kind of view. But the ending being like it is left a much greater impression on all of us. I'd rather not be deeply sad everytime I hear that fuckin song or the picture of them in front of the moon. David's death though makes us appreciate what they had and maybe lights a spark in some of us to do better and chase what Lucy and David had. Hopefully it'll last longer for us though...
The true villain in this story was the city itself. Something ultimately immaterial which is impossible to beat or fight against. David ultimately succumbed to this, but in the end it wasn’t for nothing. Because he realized that what truly mattered was protecting the people that he holds dear and helping them achieve their dreams, and in the end, he accomplished it.
When David said “I’m built different” my immediate response was and THAT mentality is what’s gonna get you killed. So many young people think they’re invincible, although I’m not sure if that’s what they were going for with David’s character
Maine seems to have a nomad origen... That clif where he stood in his dream is a lot similar to the clif that Aldeacaldos use to do their funerals, you can go in that place with Mitch to make the funeral of Scorpion in the game.
If David had his own dream I think it would be to make his loved ones happy. An impossible dream in a place like Night City, cause even though he got Lucy to the moon she ultimately wasn’t happy when she got there she was heartbroken
Fun fact: Cyberpsychosis is what happened when you went through trauma but never process it and instead apply chrome into your body. David never process his grief, lost and pain but he keep running away from it but in the end. He still manage to be himself and saves the one he loved.
damn the ending was devastating for me even though it was an absolute master piece but the void in my heart says otherwise and really wishes there could have a happier ending for lucy and david
man i don't know why but when you started talking about Maine, the whole "run the fuck away from whatever's going on around there" had me laughing fr lmao, also the Ichiki Nito song was a nice surprise to hear in the background 😌 as a more relevant side note though, something that has definitely been said before to, i do agree that he did do the things his mother and Maine wanted, but Lucy's dream changed by then. He did find a way to send her too the moon, but what was more important is that she wanted him to be there with her.
Hello there :-) Saw the tweet from Rafal Jaki and so I am here now. This anime was very special and once again it proves that Trigger knows how to do wild stuff. I do agree with your opinion. I am still in the vibe of Edgerunners and it is interesting hearing different takes about the show. I do wish you grow an an anituber. Expecting more stuff from you ;-)
I think the biggest success of the show was that even if you don’t seem human anymore, you still have human emotions and ambitions. Cyberpunks world isn’t one that allows for much humanity, but that humanity defines David and everything that he does and all his failures. Dreams mean nothing when you lose yourself as a person and that’s why David never accomplishes the dreams of others but ends up accomplishing his own once he regains his humanity.
well made quality video and great analysis (I also love that you use the music from Florence). It's truly an amazing story. However, I have yet to see someone touch on the final scene of Lucy on the moon, specifically her expressions. She seems empty inside when traveling to the moon, but finally smiled when she recall her memory with David on the moon in BD, and then suddenly gasp because he's not actually there, and then had a relieving moment. idk but that short scene means so much to me and could be interpreted in many ways and I would love to hear from other people's opinions and takes on it!
The real genius of Edgerunners' ending is that it can go two ways. Since we technically didn't see David dying there are two options. Option 1: This is the definitive and satisfying ending of David and the anime as a whole. Option 2: The ending was a fake out and Arasaka captured David instead of killing him, making it possible to continue the story in a second season if CDPR and Trigger want to. This makes sense since Arasaka is interested in using David for experiments and, (Spoilers for Cyberpunk 2077) since Adam Smasher is now dead, Arasaka would surely like to replace him. Why not use the one person who was even hinted in the show to be a possible Adam Smasher 2.0?
One thing I realized on second viewing of the Maine scene, is that the running in the desert and getting the the end of the road, was him getting to the edge of his limit as a human in a scene from his past. It's why we see him with no implants. So he starts getting cyber implants, and he can continue running. But ep 6 opens and again Maine finds himself at that spot where he can't run any further with what he's got. He can't get any more chrome because of cyberpsychosis, which in a tragic way conflicts with his dream of being limitless. That scene has haunted him apparently, and he again finds himself there. Which is the cause of his anger. He's again found his limit and it wasn't enough to propel him to prosperity. I think he had been telling himself that if he keeps running and pushing himself, he will get there eventually. And he realizes before he dies that that wasn't true.
You aren't remembered in Night City for how you live, but how you die. It sucks for David and Lucy that both they couldn't both have a happy ending together. But that motto hold true in the world of the story, as well as irl. I'll always remember the name David Martinez... even though I'm as bad as remembering name I usually am.
They'll remember the name, but they won't remember the man, and how he made all the same mistakes as so many other runners. That's the real tragedy, imo. "Another story for the next dreamer..."
Yeah, the ending is great even though its a bitter pill to swallow. I remember having this feeling back then when I watched the last episode of Tenggen Toppa Gurren Lagann and can't believe Hiroyuki Imaishi did this to me again. Kudos to CDPR for writing the story. "The pacing is terrible! / This needs more episodes! " - common critic I see on this show. I say THIS IS PUNK CHOOMS! Too fast to live, too young to die. All is intended as it should be.
I don’t think I’m ever gonna truly get over this anime it basically just punched me in the gut for 10 episodes none more so then when Lucy made it to the moon and saw David. David got what he wanted but Lucy could never get what she wanted that being David’s safety so even if she made it to the moon the ending will always be bittersweet because David wasn’t there see it with her 😭😭
Lucy and David wanted to go to the moon TOGETHER. Not just by themselves 💔 this show broke my heart. Even with the hope of eternal life for Lucy and David, I still was broken 😪😞
Hey man I love how you made this video this way. I’ve recently tried to do content creation but most attempts were terrible and never looked good. So what type of editing software do you use?
I use a combination of Premier Pro, After Effects for some sections, and Photoshop to edit images before I add them to the video. There is other software that cost less but I think Adobe's stuff offers you the most control over what you're doing if you are willing to look past the higher price. Also don't worry if your editing is not how you want it to be as you're starting out, looking back on my first few videos there are millions of issues I would love to fix, but just continuing to persevere and to try your best makes the content come more naturally and with higher quality. Put you're best foot forward and keep up the good work, if you do that you should reach a place where you're happy with your content before you know it. Good luck!
Finally! Someone who realizes the great ending to edge runners. Yes it was sad don’t get me wrong but people misunderstood that the ending works for the cyberpunk world
The only thing I wish we could see more of is the other characters' backstories, like Rebecca. Sure, we may love the loli, but we don't know her motivation. We also don't know much about Gloria or Kiwi, either.
I love how everybody is crying about the ending of the show, but individuals such as you and I are actually seeing the happiness in the ending. This whole story was about achieving a goal and that goal was achieved. I hope I’m wrong but at the end of the show I believe Lucy slipped into cyberpsychosis. Maybe not immediately but she didn’t show signs of having the symptoms beforehand. I’m just hoping in the next DLC that Falco and/or Lucy make an appearance to help V out.
This is also why I’m not a fan of all the theories going around trying to convince the fandom that David is alive when narratively it would be a terrible choice to bring him back. The weight of his sacrifice is such a big part of the ending and it would not be the same ending at all if he came back later. As much as I love David I think he needs to stay dead. Imagine rewatching the last episode of this season if he came back in S2 (if they made it) it changes the entire feeling of it
I think the ending was unique and creative but wouldn't say greatest. I felt a disapointment and sadness that david did not have anything in the way he wanted aside from lucy escaping.
5:00 "Main hits a cliff" That's not a cliff that's just sand. They stopped paving and let the road terminate. The symbolism is that no matter what has been going on in the world around him Maine's been running all his life but now he's at the literal end of the road, unable to continue living like that.
Ah, welp my bad then, the perspective for the shot made it look like a cliff to me, either way the symbolism is the same but thanks for pointing that out
I wish they’d update the game to make Adam Smasher more similar to his anime counterpart. I know we’ll never get any mention of the anime in the game or any DLC’s, outside of tiny Easter eggs, but having Adam be a god-tier threat would at least be nice. You can keep the dildo option, just make the fight beforehand 10 times harder.
He was the anime version of Tony Montana. He had dreams to be successful and show others he was successful even though he like Tony went though criminal means to do it, he indeed made it but couldn't see that he did. Like Tony, he had friends, the girl, money, power, I mean seriously, just look at where he lived. But having it all wasn't enough, like tony, he wanted more; to push beyond limits and like Tony he thought he was invincible and could take anything that was thrown at him but in the end he was not. I think if David knew how his story was going to end, he would have chosen differently, but unfortunately once you make too many bad choices and fall deeper and deeper into the darkness... Well, there is nothing left but to just enjoy the ride and go out with guns blazing until the darkness consumes you. I think after Maine's death he should have modestly added some chrome here and there, best of the best, made his fortune, avoided Faraday's jobs as he didn't need them, downgrade, and then take his friends and left Night City. If they chose to stay, that's on them, give them their cut, and head with Lucy to the moon.
The only thing i dont get in this anime is why doesn't David go after the Animals gang for killing his mother, its just makes much more logic then going stright after Arasaka, if i was David - after installing the sandevistan and kicking this posh kid from school, i was going after every single Animals gang member.
When talking about this anime with my friends I almost always describe it as what I think it is. It's a perfect tragedy. From the moment that we were introduced to cyberpsychosis and the moment that David put on the Sandy, we began to get the crawling feeling of what the ending would be. Then he put on more chrome and we knew how it would end but almost always refused to believe it. All cards were set into a beautiful house. All of the deaths happened because of who the characters were. All except for in my opinion one. In my opinion, Rebeccas death came a bit too from the blue. Had I not been spoiled it before, I would have thought that Rebecca would have survived. But although I am confused about Rebeccas death, it's fine because this anime is not about a happy ending. It's about making the most of a shitty world until that world undoes you.
Season two takes place in 2078 after Adam smasher dies arasaka needs another smasher so they make David smasher Lucy finds out and goes back to night city and tries to save him but she needs a team to do it so she meets rouge at the after life so rouge gets Lucy in touch with a merc for hire and it’s the one and only V and V kicks David’s ass into next week THE END. I think that would be cool bring some of the characters from the game and the anime together it would give V some screen time he deserves and it would give David and Lucy and happily ever after that they deserve
The ending of Edgerunners is further reinforced by two possible endings you could get in the Cyberpunk 2077 game. The de facto "happy ending" of the game has you leaving Night City behind and spending the remainder of your life, short as it is, with your loved ones, far away from Night City. The other ending is the game's secret ending, where you storm the Arasaka building on your own with no backup or help from any of the companions you met during your playthrough. If you die during the final mission after choosing the secret ending, the credit rolls. Game over. You get to be a Night City Legend like David. Dead in the ground, but a legend nonetheless. But if you live through the ordeal, well... it's a whole can of bittersweet worms, none of them truly happy. The only "happy" option is to leave Night City altogether. A lot of people left the show with the message "Live for your own dreams, not others'" and I can't help but feel they misunderstood the whole thing. That's just reinforcing Faraday's mentality. He lived entirely for his own dreams of reaching the top of the social ladder, other people's lives be damned. David's 100% devotion to others isn't great either. Love, at its core, is compromise, sacrifice. The decision to put your loved ones' needs above your own. David is a very loving person, an anomaly in the dystopia that is Night City. The problem being David is too extreme. He lived for others so much he neglected to take care of himself. The shows tells us that the key to happiness is to find the balance between the two ideals. And it's a balance that none of the characters in Edgerunners found or realized they need before it's too late.
The real villain in this show was the cyberpsychosis, and David won. He held it at bay until he could get what he wanted, which was Lucy's freedom. That's why he laughs at the end. He got what he wanted. He saved someone he loved. Like the song playing in the final fight says, "you never lost your self control." Because sometimes holding our demons at bay is the best we can do.
I was gonna say the Uber late stage capitalistic society that doesn’t value human life in general was more villainous and every other problem was really a side effect, but that works too i guess.
The real villain is the city itself.
Yea night city is the real villain overall
No, that's more of a symptom, rather than the cause. The reason why everything is so fucked is because of corpo. "Fuck Corpo," a sentiment you'll hear thought the game if you've never played it. As you understand the history of the Cyberpunk world, it become more and more clear that the true villain is greed, the extremist capaltistic society that spares no thought at slaughter living people like cattles if it means they stand to benefit from it.
@@tonydanatop4912 thats because it is, some of the comments sayinig the real villain is the city itself? like bro, it is quite literally how the economy is structured to only extract wealth from the masses, the people living in night city and leave them to fend for themselves and seek out any and all matter to make ends meet, to survive by any means necessary
Unfortunately for David, while yes, he did accomplish the dream that he made of sending Lucy to the moon, that wasn't Lucy's dream anymore. Ultimately, he only succeeded in accomplishing bastardized versions of the dreams that he carried on his shoulders.
He stood on top Arasaka tower, but not because he climbed the ranks and became successful within the organization, but because he stood up on the top roof as their current enemy #1.
He took on Maine's dream of becoming a legend of success in the city, but while he definitely did become a legend, he ultimately was the same as all the other cyberpunks out there, making a name not by how he lived, but how he died. And he died as a cyberpsycho that was put down by Adam.
He took on Lucy's dream of sending her to the moon (The one person that would actually live to see that dream accomplished), but he failed to realize that her dream included him now, and his death ultimately buried that dream forever.
This is a great analysis.
That's a very good way to put it, I feel like I should have spoken about this in my video lol. I think these contortions of the otherwise pure dreams these people had is very intentional, and kind of speaks to the depressing nature of Night city. Even for someone like David who put his all into accomplishing these things, the true depths of the goals he was chasing were unattainable, the life he gave to see these dreams come true only resulted in the barest aspects of them being accomplished, speaking to the hopeless nature of this world.
Lucy learns to live and take on the dream of someone else, an idea she scoffed at at the beginning of the series, due to David's sacrifice. She messed up her own dream but can live on for her love and memory of David pushing her to carry his dream which was to live in peace on the moon, away from Night City. Additionally, Lucy's secretive/selfish actions in large part lead to David's psychosis and downfall. She was ready to die just for him to live just as he was for her, both were forced into risky positions and they should've communicated better. David accomplished much with the shit options life kept throwing at him and I don't think Maine or his Mom would've had any regrets if they saw just how far he pushed himself to give at least one person a chance of escape and peace, a possible happiness away from Night City even if it cost him his life.
@@GaminexPro I think Lucy was always right. Following the dreams of dead people and putting them over your own dreams and wellbeing can only end in tragedy. If David had truly listened his living love ones, Rebecc, Lucy (and if Lucy stopped being so secretive). They have realized that they had to escape from that hell of a city. It was the only chance for a happy ending and I think that's what Lucy does at the end of the show.
@@thatguy2377 There is worth in it, especially when death is so inevitably close. The opportunity to save someone and give them the possibility of a better life, especially away from Night City where Lucy would have been just as short lived had it not been for him. Inspiring others to follow suit and push themselves. It was worth something.
There was no escape without him hustling and busting his ass, Lucy wasn't making any money. David had to be a provider to make anything chance of escape possible, Lucy could not be on the Moon if David didn't push himself as far as he did and living life as a Nomad would've only gotten David captured before too long with Arasaka eventually tracking him down. After the Tanaka incident David was really backed into a corner even if he didn't know it, him being chromed up was bad but he wasn't going to fair much better without them either given he was being tracked and Kiwi was going to betray them anyway.
a guy like david is an anomaly in a dystopia like cyberpunk. Too loyal to those around him and too virtuous of a person within that dystopia for night city to ever let him live...
Built different
Literally built different
This is the best comment I’ve seen on David watching these analysis videos
He was ready to sacrifice his life for her dream, and she was ready to sacrifice her dream for his life
She literally risk her life to tries to save David from Corporations... After the BD in Arisaka and figure out about David file in Arisaka. She, literally spent all her time to deep dive into the net to eliminate any Netrunner that try to access to David file to hid him from Corporation... Which ultimately is the reason she got caught and uses as bait to lure David. They both sacrifice and risk theirs life for the other. And irony that is how cyberpunk world work. There is no escape in the night city, endless tragedy, a legendary tale of a street kid.
I'm not crying. You are!!!
Man😢😢😢😢
Lucy’s dream after David was not just to go to the moon, it was to go with David. That’s where David messed up, i’ll go cry again
Bittersweet endings need to be appreciated for the amount of weight and tone they set in a series, this anime perfects that same system.
You know the ending is good when you find yourself just sitting there in tears and you think about it says after
The story was very similar to a Christmas story called "The Gift of the Magi." In that story, a woman who has long beautiful hair eventually has it cut off and sold so that she can afford to buy her brother a watch chain for his pocket watch. Likewise, the brother sells the pocket watch so that he can get his sister a set of nice hair combs for her to use on her beautiful hair. They eventually find out that they both sold what was most precious to them for the benefit of who is most precious to them. There is an additional layer of sentimentality that arises from the fact that the parents of the brother and sister have passed away (the sister even sadly remembers how special their Christmases once were as a family, her actions are derived in large part for how grateful she is to still have her brother, the only person she has in the world). In this anime, David gives up what is most precious to him (his life) for who is most precious to him: Lucy. He does so by taking on a very dangerous corpo robbery contract so that he can afford to send Lucy to the moon. Likewise, Lucy (sort of) gives up what is most precious to her: David's love and affection--recall the scene where David and Lucy part ways with one another--so that she can save who is most precious to her: David. She tries her best to keep David from becoming yet another experiment for Arasaka. Of course, it is not a one to one comparison by any means, but I was immediately reminded of The Gift of the Magi when I was watching this.
All tragic themes in cyberpunk:
The city - It's impossible to survive night city. The longer you stay the closer you are to a miserable end. Everyone who lives there lives fast and dies quick.
Aspirations - David was told to survive and succeed in night city, but each person who told him that put him into danger that was going to get him killed from the start. His mom was selling cybernetics that David used on himself, Lucy dragged him into the criminal underbelly that put him into further danger, and Maine pushed him over the edge into cybernetics, his ultimate downfall.
Romance - Smaller one but this is a tragic romance. David and Lucy failed each other because neither would communicate what they desired to each other. Lucy didn't know David wanted to throw his life away for her and David didn't know Lucy wanted David to go with her to the moon and live. That is what ultimately costed their relationship and made it tragic.
Death - Cyberpsychosis could be seen as a gradual decline from innocence into cold-blooded insanity, as we have seen it happen to other cybers. David's innocent life becoming more and more traumatic increases his own diagnosis of cyberpsychosis, causing him to delve deeper into erasing his humanity, culminating into him becoming deranged and violent as he so feared, the tipping point being when he killed an innocent Arasaka worker, a mother of a innocent boy, just as he had his own mom robbed from him. The deaths of those around David contributed to his own life being slowly given up by him until he decides to go on a full suicidal rampage for Lucy. David does not have plot armor, he is alive because it wasn't his turn yet, but his failure to learn from the others who died around him is what let him die. David didn't care about living, he didn't want to live. That's why he didn't escape night city, that's why he kept chroming up and dosing more and more on immunosuppressant drugs, he just didn't care about being alive. He was ready to sacrifice his life and die, and he accomplished that final goal. David was going to end up like another thug on the street, and his death sentence began the minute he implanted the sandy into himself... he reunited with Rebecca, Gloria and Maine in the afterlife
Ok
great analysis
The genius behind the Edgerunners ending is that it was entirely predictable but no one wanted it to end like we all knew it was going to end. We fell completely in love with the characters, wanted to see all of them happy all the while knowing that everything was going to be a train wreck in the end. Then because it ended in that train wreck, where literally every character we loved is either dead or beyond miserable, we are left with a profound sense of loss. That sense of loss sticks with you, becomes memorable, leaving a lasting impression that goes well beyond the end of the anime and that is why it is great.....even though it sucks because I want, no matter what, to see Lucy and David on the moon.
This channel is pretty underated. Clean editing and tight script, you earned a sub!
Thanks so much, glad you enjoyed it!
I whole heartedly agree with this statement, it's nice to see small channels putting in the genuine time and effort in to these videos. I really love the way he polishes what he talks about and shows how damn good this story was, from the characters to the soundtrack, everything was blended into one of the BEST anime I've watched. (And that's no small accomplishment😅) Great work and I look forward to your next video!
my favorite part of of this series:
david saying that he wasn't interested in becoming a construct at the time of his death. i just like how he chose his humanity over being a possible supercyborg under arasaka. he goes down as a legend in night city. and to the viewers (us), he goes down as the anomoly in a dark, dystopian world that didn't succumb to being fully chrome'd out and fall to cyberpsychosis unlike most people in night city
This anime was so powerful, that even just watching this recap I felt all the emotions come rushing right back. Why you gotta make me feel things gadammit?
Great video my man. loved loved loved Edgerunners
Man. Nice analysis. I like how, in the end, Lucy spreads her arms in the sun like David did in their fantasy. Almost like she regained her happiness by living his dream, replicating his disposition, that true altruism making a circle.
I still wanted the ending where lucy and david were happy together man
I mean yes, obviously we all wanted that in hindsight and from a humanity kind of view. But the ending being like it is left a much greater impression on all of us. I'd rather not be deeply sad everytime I hear that fuckin song or the picture of them in front of the moon. David's death though makes us appreciate what they had and maybe lights a spark in some of us to do better and chase what Lucy and David had. Hopefully it'll last longer for us though...
@@Giemma3 man..... thx for the hopefull words my man, will help with the cope definetly
The true villain in this story was the city itself. Something ultimately immaterial which is impossible to beat or fight against. David ultimately succumbed to this, but in the end it wasn’t for nothing. Because he realized that what truly mattered was protecting the people that he holds dear and helping them achieve their dreams, and in the end, he accomplished it.
best analysis so far, thank you!
Glad you enjoyed!!!
Finished Edgerunners and immediately booted up 2077 to get some revenge lmao.
Great video, really underrated.
When David said “I’m built different” my immediate response was and THAT mentality is what’s gonna get you killed. So many young people think they’re invincible, although I’m not sure if that’s what they were going for with David’s character
Excellent video. You brought some further depth and detail into a story that I thought that I fully understood. Keep up the great work.
Thanks, really glad you enjoyed ^-^
Great video and editing, deserves way more views than it has!
Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for the kind words!
Maine seems to have a nomad origen...
That clif where he stood in his dream is a lot similar to the clif that Aldeacaldos use to do their funerals, you can go in that place with Mitch to make the funeral of Scorpion in the game.
the character development reminds me of gundam iron blooded orphans. it also gave me the same vibes like when i first watched iron blooded orphans.
Have you seen Hathawy’s Flash? Oh boy you’re in for a ride.
@@aqworldszero109 thanks bro i will check that out too
iron blooded orphan was good too
First thing I thought of too
@@bingo2433 same here
This was the best show I’ve ever seen
this was an incredible video on an incredible anime, thank you so much for making this
Even at the highest level of experiencing of cyberpsychosis, David still thought of his mom.
If David had his own dream I think it would be to make his loved ones happy. An impossible dream in a place like Night City, cause even though he got Lucy to the moon she ultimately wasn’t happy when she got there she was heartbroken
Fun fact: Cyberpsychosis is what happened when you went through trauma but never process it and instead apply chrome into your body. David never process his grief, lost and pain but he keep running away from it but in the end. He still manage to be himself and saves the one he loved.
K where did you pull this from? 🧐
Fact?
I think it's a great moment when david denies that final upgrade in the end.
This is well put together
damn the ending was devastating for me even though it was an absolute master piece but the void in my heart says otherwise and really wishes there could have a happier ending for lucy and david
Yeah man I cried like a bitch
Absolutely enjoyed this. Great video.
Great break down of the story keep up the good work.
good job! great analysis
Man just casually using Ichikas music lol
Great taste. Great video.
Yeah I started listening to more of their music after I used one of their songs as background a while back, I can confidently say I'm a huge fan now!
Damn, I think that from now on I will leave my dreams, just to have this kind of friendship/family..
Rafal Jaki even giving his stamp of approval on this video essay from his tweet. That's how you know its good
I still can't get over that happening, it's probably one of the highlights of my year
@@RoroReviewsStuff well deserved!
Great analysis, many thanks!
man i don't know why but when you started talking about Maine, the whole "run the fuck away from whatever's going on around there" had me laughing fr lmao, also the Ichiki Nito song was a nice surprise to hear in the background 😌
as a more relevant side note though, something that has definitely been said before to, i do agree that he did do the things his mother and Maine wanted, but Lucy's dream changed by then. He did find a way to send her too the moon, but what was more important is that she wanted him to be there with her.
Hello there :-) Saw the tweet from Rafal Jaki and so I am here now. This anime was very special and once again it proves that Trigger knows how to do wild stuff. I do agree with your opinion. I am still in the vibe of Edgerunners and it is interesting hearing different takes about the show. I do wish you grow an an anituber. Expecting more stuff from you ;-)
tbh endings like the one in edgerunners or sonny boy is what anime needs frfr
I still need to check out Sonny boy so I'll get back to you on that, but I have high hopes!
@@RoroReviewsStuff fs fs also perhaps could be material for a video
I think the biggest success of the show was that even if you don’t seem human anymore, you still have human emotions and ambitions. Cyberpunks world isn’t one that allows for much humanity, but that humanity defines David and everything that he does and all his failures. Dreams mean nothing when you lose yourself as a person and that’s why David never accomplishes the dreams of others but ends up accomplishing his own once he regains his humanity.
Im binging video essays on edgerunners and got this recommended. Very good video.
And in the end, he only made Lucy hurt... Cuz he became part of her dream...
I'm crying again. THX. Top video)
In life your either fulfilling your dreams or someone else's dreams. No way around it.
Okay I really like this anime analysis, it’s really well put together and the conclusion is very satisfying. Well done!!! ❤🎉
well made quality video and great analysis (I also love that you use the music from Florence). It's truly an amazing story. However, I have yet to see someone touch on the final scene of Lucy on the moon, specifically her expressions. She seems empty inside when traveling to the moon, but finally smiled when she recall her memory with David on the moon in BD, and then suddenly gasp because he's not actually there, and then had a relieving moment. idk but that short scene means so much to me and could be interpreted in many ways and I would love to hear from other people's opinions and takes on it!
I like the made in abyss soundtrack you got playing in the backround
Well in the beginning of the video..🤘
The real genius of Edgerunners' ending is that it can go two ways. Since we technically didn't see David dying there are two options.
Option 1: This is the definitive and satisfying ending of David and the anime as a whole.
Option 2: The ending was a fake out and Arasaka captured David instead of killing him, making it possible to continue the story in a second season if CDPR and Trigger want to.
This makes sense since Arasaka is interested in using David for experiments and, (Spoilers for Cyberpunk 2077) since Adam Smasher is now dead, Arasaka would surely like to replace him.
Why not use the one person who was even hinted in the show to be a possible Adam Smasher 2.0?
Every dream can turn into a nightmare. But there’s always a chance of some amount of lucidity.
“This city will eat you in the end”
man the "everyone dies except one" scenario is always awful but this one is sad for everyone
One thing I realized on second viewing of the Maine scene, is that the running in the desert and getting the the end of the road, was him getting to the edge of his limit as a human in a scene from his past. It's why we see him with no implants. So he starts getting cyber implants, and he can continue running. But ep 6 opens and again Maine finds himself at that spot where he can't run any further with what he's got. He can't get any more chrome because of cyberpsychosis, which in a tragic way conflicts with his dream of being limitless. That scene has haunted him apparently, and he again finds himself there. Which is the cause of his anger. He's again found his limit and it wasn't enough to propel him to prosperity. I think he had been telling himself that if he keeps running and pushing himself, he will get there eventually. And he realizes before he dies that that wasn't true.
I hope we get to see Lucy in some form or another, maybe have David's child. Give her some kind of love or a piece of him left 😭
You aren't remembered in Night City for how you live, but how you die. It sucks for David and Lucy that both they couldn't both have a happy ending together. But that motto hold true in the world of the story, as well as irl. I'll always remember the name David Martinez... even though I'm as bad as remembering name I usually am.
They'll remember the name, but they won't remember the man, and how he made all the same mistakes as so many other runners. That's the real tragedy, imo.
"Another story for the next dreamer..."
Yeah, the ending is great even though its a bitter pill to swallow. I remember having this feeling back then when I watched the last episode of Tenggen Toppa Gurren Lagann and can't believe Hiroyuki Imaishi did this to me again. Kudos to CDPR for writing the story.
"The pacing is terrible! / This needs more episodes! " - common critic I see on this show.
I say THIS IS PUNK CHOOMS! Too fast to live, too young to die. All is intended as it should be.
This show literally had me in tears
I KNOW BUT I WANTED IT TO BE HAPPIER 😭
well edited video , u got a new subscriber !
Thanks, glad you liked it!
Well ,you earned my sub ,amazing video
Thanksss, glad you enjoyed it ^-^
me yelling at my screen David death is never shown as if it will make him come back to life even though I now Hes dead.....or is he
Happy Endings? For people like us? Wrong people, wrong city
I don’t think I’m ever gonna truly get over this anime it basically just punched me in the gut for 10 episodes none more so then when Lucy made it to the moon and saw David. David got what he wanted but Lucy could never get what she wanted that being David’s safety so even if she made it to the moon the ending will always be bittersweet because David wasn’t there see it with her 😭😭
Lucy and David wanted to go to the moon TOGETHER. Not just by themselves 💔 this show broke my heart. Even with the hope of eternal life for Lucy and David, I still was broken 😪😞
Legends says he'll woke up years after as a doc with a vacuum cleaner name finds him in a scrapyard...
Everyones dreams for David is what was putting him in danger.
Hey man I love how you made this video this way. I’ve recently tried to do content creation but most attempts were terrible and never looked good. So what type of editing software do you use?
I use a combination of Premier Pro, After Effects for some sections, and Photoshop to edit images before I add them to the video. There is other software that cost less but I think Adobe's stuff offers you the most control over what you're doing if you are willing to look past the higher price. Also don't worry if your editing is not how you want it to be as you're starting out, looking back on my first few videos there are millions of issues I would love to fix, but just continuing to persevere and to try your best makes the content come more naturally and with higher quality. Put you're best foot forward and keep up the good work, if you do that you should reach a place where you're happy with your content before you know it. Good luck!
Maan Rafal Jaki recommended your video!
Yeah It's insane, I'm still over the moon about that happening, I can hardly believe it ^-^
Finally! Someone who realizes the great ending to edge runners. Yes it was sad don’t get me wrong but people misunderstood that the ending works for the cyberpunk world
The only thing I wish we could see more of is the other characters' backstories, like Rebecca. Sure, we may love the loli, but we don't know her motivation. We also don't know much about Gloria or Kiwi, either.
The real enemy was the grimy city dragging them all down to the level of the worst crook
Thanks your review is best
Great analysis!
I love how everybody is crying about the ending of the show, but individuals such as you and I are actually seeing the happiness in the ending. This whole story was about achieving a goal and that goal was achieved. I hope I’m wrong but at the end of the show I believe Lucy slipped into cyberpsychosis. Maybe not immediately but she didn’t show signs of having the symptoms beforehand. I’m just hoping in the next DLC that Falco and/or Lucy make an appearance to help V out.
The ending is so fucking good I want to hate it.
Great video. You deserve more subs
i think its also interesting how night city is also called the city of dreams in universe
Oh wow I genuinely didn't know about that, that's actually a really neat detail
This show was incredible tbh
Underrated. keep making videos bro ur time will come.
Thanks, I'll keep working at it!
This is also why I’m not a fan of all the theories going around trying to convince the fandom that David is alive when narratively it would be a terrible choice to bring him back. The weight of his sacrifice is such a big part of the ending and it would not be the same ending at all if he came back later. As much as I love David I think he needs to stay dead. Imagine rewatching the last episode of this season if he came back in S2 (if they made it) it changes the entire feeling of it
I think the ending was unique and creative but wouldn't say greatest. I felt a disapointment and sadness that david did not have anything in the way he wanted aside from lucy escaping.
So exactly what Night City is all about
0:22 Castlevania, Full Metal Alchemist, Yu Yu Hakusho
Those endings are pretty great
So is Arcane's, or so i've heard
5:00 "Main hits a cliff"
That's not a cliff that's just sand. They stopped paving and let the road terminate.
The symbolism is that no matter what has been going on in the world around him Maine's been running all his life but now he's at the literal end of the road, unable to continue living like that.
Ah, welp my bad then, the perspective for the shot made it look like a cliff to me, either way the symbolism is the same but thanks for pointing that out
I wish they’d update the game to make Adam Smasher more similar to his anime counterpart.
I know we’ll never get any mention of the anime in the game or any DLC’s, outside of tiny Easter eggs, but having Adam be a god-tier threat would at least be nice.
You can keep the dildo option, just make the fight beforehand 10 times harder.
He was the anime version of Tony Montana. He had dreams to be successful and show others he was successful even though he like Tony went though criminal means to do it, he indeed made it but couldn't see that he did. Like Tony, he had friends, the girl, money, power, I mean seriously, just look at where he lived. But having it all wasn't enough, like tony, he wanted more; to push beyond limits and like Tony he thought he was invincible and could take anything that was thrown at him but in the end he was not. I think if David knew how his story was going to end, he would have chosen differently, but unfortunately once you make too many bad choices and fall deeper and deeper into the darkness... Well, there is nothing left but to just enjoy the ride and go out with guns blazing until the darkness consumes you. I think after Maine's death he should have modestly added some chrome here and there, best of the best, made his fortune, avoided Faraday's jobs as he didn't need them, downgrade, and then take his friends and left Night City. If they chose to stay, that's on them, give them their cut, and head with Lucy to the moon.
The only thing i dont get in this anime is why doesn't David go after the Animals gang for killing his mother, its just makes much more logic then going stright after Arasaka, if i was David - after installing the sandevistan and kicking this posh kid from school, i was going after every single Animals gang member.
just that you start with Code Geass makes you believable;)
R.I.P. Becca
not bad! cant wait to see what is next! :)
You got the voice, do more content!
Every good cyberpunk story (at least for me) is a paraphrase of an Icarus myth.
When talking about this anime with my friends I almost always describe it as what I think it is. It's a perfect tragedy. From the moment that we were introduced to cyberpsychosis and the moment that David put on the Sandy, we began to get the crawling feeling of what the ending would be. Then he put on more chrome and we knew how it would end but almost always refused to believe it. All cards were set into a beautiful house. All of the deaths happened because of who the characters were. All except for in my opinion one. In my opinion, Rebeccas death came a bit too from the blue. Had I not been spoiled it before, I would have thought that Rebecca would have survived. But although I am confused about Rebeccas death, it's fine because this anime is not about a happy ending. It's about making the most of a shitty world until that world undoes you.
I believe David and Lucy will see each other in the afterlife 💯
Nightcity is cruel. David was another person that fell victim to its promises.
For Maine I didn’t see the cliff I just saw the road end then desert hence he reached his literal “End of the Road”. But the cliff works the same.
Best ending since Devilman Crybaby.
Season two takes place in 2078 after Adam smasher dies arasaka needs another smasher so they make David smasher Lucy finds out and goes back to night city and tries to save him but she needs a team to do it so she meets rouge at the after life so rouge gets Lucy in touch with a merc for hire and it’s the one and only V and V kicks David’s ass into next week THE END. I think that would be cool bring some of the characters from the game and the anime together it would give V some screen time he deserves and it would give David and Lucy and happily ever after that they deserve
The ending of Edgerunners is further reinforced by two possible endings you could get in the Cyberpunk 2077 game. The de facto "happy ending" of the game has you leaving Night City behind and spending the remainder of your life, short as it is, with your loved ones, far away from Night City. The other ending is the game's secret ending, where you storm the Arasaka building on your own with no backup or help from any of the companions you met during your playthrough. If you die during the final mission after choosing the secret ending, the credit rolls. Game over. You get to be a Night City Legend like David. Dead in the ground, but a legend nonetheless. But if you live through the ordeal, well... it's a whole can of bittersweet worms, none of them truly happy. The only "happy" option is to leave Night City altogether.
A lot of people left the show with the message "Live for your own dreams, not others'" and I can't help but feel they misunderstood the whole thing. That's just reinforcing Faraday's mentality. He lived entirely for his own dreams of reaching the top of the social ladder, other people's lives be damned. David's 100% devotion to others isn't great either. Love, at its core, is compromise, sacrifice. The decision to put your loved ones' needs above your own. David is a very loving person, an anomaly in the dystopia that is Night City. The problem being David is too extreme. He lived for others so much he neglected to take care of himself. The shows tells us that the key to happiness is to find the balance between the two ideals. And it's a balance that none of the characters in Edgerunners found or realized they need before it's too late.
Alright, this is an amazing analysis. Fucking kudos.