Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Review- High-Speed Thrills, Some Glitches
Watching Cyberpunk: Edgerunners feels like speeding down a highway that’s only 70% finished. The first part of the ride is fast, smooth, and thrilling, but then it gets bumpy, and by the end, you might find yourself off-road completely.
Set in the neon-drenched metropolis of Night City, this animated mini-series follows David Martinez, a teenager forced to drop out of Arasaka Academy, a prestigious high school his single mom worked tirelessly to get him into. After her untimely death in a senseless accident, David leaves school and becomes an edgerunner – a rogue outlaw – teaming up with a mystery woman called Lucy, a data thief who targets the rich.
What makes David stand out from the average cyberpunk in Night City is a stolen piece of high-tech gear he illegally integrates into his body, turning him into a super-fast killing machine. In a twist, Arasaka Academy tries to lure him back to the high school for its own agenda, but David chooses to work with a new criminal crew instead. With his mom gone, the edgerunners become his surrogate family, and sparks fly between him and Lucy, who is essentially an expert hacker, or “netrunner” in the Cyberpunk universe. But the real scene-stealer is Rebecca, a short, fiery, and unhinged mercenary who seems inspired by Harley Quinn, adding a wild edge to the crew. She is loud, cute, and endearingly loyal to the people close to her.
The first few episodes of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners are exhilarating, packed with violent action, sharp comedy, and plenty of unexpected twists. Whether or not you’ve played the Cyberpunk games, the show quickly establishes the hierarchy and brutal realities of Night City – a city run by corrupt corporations and teeming with criminals who obsessively enhance their bodies with cybernetic upgrades. My favourite concept in the show is called “cyberpsychosis”: a condition where excessive cybernetic modifications strip away a person’s humanity, pushing them closer to a psychological breakdown and eventual self-destruction. The metaphorical implications are clear, the less human you become, the lesser connected you are with the real world.
David’s transformation from a lanky, average teen to a buff cyberpunk is vividly animated, it’s like watching a scrawny Peter Parker turn into the hulk! But as far as the story is concerned, once the stakes surrounding David are fully revealed, the story starts to lose its grip. By episode seven, the plot falters, and I found myself tempted to stop watching. After taking a two-week break, I finally finished the series, driven more by curiosity than excitement. Unlike most shows, where slow pacing is the problem, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners starts at a breakneck speed but stumbles toward the end. Too many characters die too soon, leaving little time to form emotional connections. Aside from one death (which becomes quite predictable), the losses feel more like checkboxes than gut punches.
If you’re in the mood for a violent, futuristic action anime made for adults, this one’s worth a watch.
You can watch Cyberpunk: Edgerunners on Netflix.
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