Light summary Sanda follows the titular young boy Sanda who is from the ancient Santa bloodline cursed or blessed to turn into a 40yearold invincible man when he dons the color red. The twist is that he lives in a world with a declining birth rate where the existence of Santa has been actively covered up by the government and children are coddled. Animation and visuals Sanda is visually all right and Im particularly fond of the character designs which feel unique and fun for even minor members of the cast. However I felt that the animation at certain points lacked the visual dynamism that Ive seen in other science saru productions like Dandadan and the Night is Short Walk on Girl. Below average for Saru is still quite impressive but the result is a product placed above the pack but not towering over it. Plot structure and worldbuilding The plot structure is where Sanda begins to fall apart in my opinion with an aimless impression being left by the lack of stakes confusing and contradictory worldbuilding and continual resets to the status quo. The show seems extremely dedicated to ensuring that despite violent confrontation occurring there is no disruption to daily life far past the point its sensible. This is something that can be suspended to a certain degree but is made even stranger by the lack of integration of the school setting past the early arcs. Some of the shows minor points would show difficulty without this setting but the constant straddling of the line makes things worse. In my opinion they shouldve focused more on keeping things a secret or had it be an outlaw show that explored this dystopian society instead of flipping back and forth. Speaking of the society throughout the show what the intended social commentary is remains an enigma. The obvious assumption would be that There are not a lot of children would be a commentary on the historical fascination with the concept of a declining Japanese population and what could be done about this. Such an impression is supported by background details such as the presence of mandatory assigned marriage but is completely contradicted in other areas where its implied that children are prevented from reaching reproductive capacity. Perhaps this population decline angle existed in service of a simpler theme of society is obsessed with youth which is repeated throughout the show as well. However if this is the case that is frankly far less interesting than anything else to be said. People get too much plastic surgery is far less interesting than anything else to be said about societys obsession with youth. This is a real shame as I think there are interesting topics to be discussed about how the focus on young women as sexual objects prone to decay is entrenched in Western and Japanese society. Though ironically Sanda contributes to this through two scenes which in my opinion sexualize the underage characters unnecessarily for the sake of audience satisfaction. Characters As mentioned earlier many of the character designs are fun especially Fuyamuras however I think the show struggles to bring out the full depth of its cast. Characters undergo change throughout the story in response to their actions but this is hampered by the nonresponsiveness of the world. Specifically one adult undergoes a major heart attack at risk to his own life yet the consequences remain threatened unexplored and often played off as a bit of a joke. Sandas development faces similar issues with him being unable to take up the position that his arc naturally falls into one of direct conflict with society due to the shows insistence on maintaining a school life status quo. Perhaps these arcs will be able to continue in the next season but I worry the weak worldbuilding implies this is simply not a point of interest for the writers. X factor / Gimmick / Aura While it would seem that a show all about Santa Claus being buff massive and jumping around in underwear would have a significant hype factor I found that the power set of the main character is frankly quite uninteresting and largely boils down to immortality. Something done far better by shows like Undead Unluck where the main character just so happens to have a similar build. There are points where the show attempts to introduce new powers and forms but they are largely uninteresting and I feel that the issues presented by them could have been discussed through active character development. The same is true of the limitations placed upon the user of the powerset which are inconsistent and vague to the point of removing them as a major fear. This isnt a show killer but its hard to ignore when it feels like so much of the content is riding on this gimmick often to the detriment of the themes and worldbuilding. Conclusions While I think there is potential in Sanda and its world I found myself lacking thematic depth while watching the show. Perhaps this is something that would be improved in further seasons but I dont find myself holding my breath. If the idea of a naked old man jumping around is particularly funny to you or if you are deeply concerned with the visual aesthetics of what it means to grow up I think this is still worth checking. For me I found myself enjoying it but I cannot imagine rewatching Sanda or suggesting it actively to a friend in one years time.