Season Review: Meta Runner Season Three

I have a soft spot for any show that has the characters put all of their eggs into betting on their ability to play a video game…where everything hinges on whether you beat someone else. On top of that, this show is out of it’s own mind. Oddly, I’m for it.

Meta Runner has two layers running on it at all times. The tone is overly silly, but it covers a lot of darker events. For instance, in the aftermath of season two, Masa is dealing with the PTSD of shooting Lucks. However, that was the plan of Sheridan, planting a command on his arm, causing Masa to kill Lucks. The unhinged madness of Sheridan keeps the balance.

This duality brings a subtle complexity to the story. The balance between the silliness and the seriousness of the writing is kept in tact. This dichotomy is in full effect with Sheridan and the AI remake of Lucks. Lucks goes from this serious person at the end of last season, and very much dead, to a slapstick minion of Sheridan. Sheridan on the other hand, along with Evelyn, make up the tension of the season.

The writing for this season was well done. Being able to keep that balance of tension and silliness isn’t easy to do. Yet, Jasmine Yang was able to keep it going throughout the entire season. No one character felt like they overpowered the season, nor did anyone overstay their welcome. I thought Evelyn was a great character that carried the season. Sheridan, however, plays the big bad end game boss well at the end of the series. His plan to bring every Meta Runner into his own server almost works.

The stakes increased throughout the entire season, in a way that you don’t see much anymore, even from major shows like House of the Dragon, or even Adventure Time. Friends got captured and brainwashed to help Sheridan. Evelyn was the predator that was the constant threat throughout the entire season that was keeping the constant pressure on the team. I was not expecting to get a show that was put together as well as it was, but this made it.

The writing was great, but how did the animation stand up? I have to get over the stigma that YouTube shows have a lack of quality when it comes to animation and writing. Meta Runners, however, blew my mind. Any show that is able to mash up different art directions will win me over. The “real world” look is very angular and sleek. But every game they go into take inspiration from the game the game is supposed to be. Skybreakers is a take on Sea of Thieves, and there was a quick snippet of what looked like Hanamura from Overwatch, as well as another quick stop in what could pass as Jade Forest from the Mists of Pandaria expansion of World of Warcraft.

One thing that I want to point out is in episode seven, where Theo was glitching out. Getting Theo to glitch out on his own, while Tari is fine was a great touch. I know that there’s filters you can use in computer generated animation to make certain assets do certain things, but it was impressive to make the glitch stand out against Tari who was trying to comfort him while the glitching was getting out of hand. I’m really a simple man who is impressed by simple things.

Overall, Meta Runners impressed me a lot. The universe jumping that the characters are afforded via warping is awesome. The writing had me invested from the start, and the characters were intriguing. Watching Sheridan degrade mentally even more than he was really fun to watch, and it kept the duality of silly and seriousness well balanced. The pacing was great, and the story was easy to follow. If you’re looking for a fun, easy watch, go watch Meta Runners. You will not be disappointed.