Critical reception
Based on nine reviews collected by review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, Devilman Crybaby has received mostly positive critical reviews, with an overall approval rating of 89% from 9 critics and an average score of 6 out of 10. The anime has been considered one of the best anime available on Netflix, as well as one of the best or the best anime of 2018, while it was awarded "Anime of the Year" at the 3rd Crunchyroll Anime Awards, along with Yuasa being awarded Best Director. The anime was among the 14 Japanese works listed in the Jury Selections in the Animation Division of the 22nd Japan Media Arts Festival Awards by Japanese government's Agency for Cultural Affairs. Crybaby was also chosen among the best anime of the 2010s by the staffs of Crunchyroll, IGN and Polygon, while Film School Rejects selected it as one of the best animated series of the decade. Paste magazine's staff elected it the 35th best anime of all time, with critic Toussaint Egan writing the anime is "not only as one of the best series in recent memory, but one that will stand the test of time". Frank of Polygon, Vincent, Cecilia D'Anastasio of Kotaku, and Beckett of Anime News Network called the series a "masterpiece". Peters wrote it exhibits all the a attributes of "an artistic cult classic", while Bridges of Anime News Network deemed it "just top-to-bottom perfect".
The series has been noted for its graphic violence and sexual content; the latter has been compared to pornography. Its gore content has been highlighted, and because of its "ultra-violence" it has usually been described as "not for the faint of heart" or "weak of heart". Auty of GameSpot stated it "has pushed back the boundaries" of what type of content can be shown in a streaming service, and wrote an entire article dedicated to why the series has "some of the most extreme content ever to hit Netflix". Toole stated it is "the most ludicrously violent, sexed-up anime TV series ever aired", while Joyce Slaton wrote for Common Sense Media that its mature content exceed what is expected to be featured in adult-aimed anime. Emily Gaudette of Newsweek called it "the bloodiest, most profane animated series of the year", and Thurm of Decider described it as the "grossest show on TV". The Japan Times's Schley commented that Crybaby differs from other Devilman adaptations because of its "level of on-screen sex and violence" and that it was more suitable for the public of the 1980s with its "ultra-violent films" like Akira, Demon City Shinjuku or Violence Jack. On the other hand, Chapman of Anime News Network felt it was not difficult to bear the violence because of "Yuasa's super-cartoony style".
While Peters of ComicBook.com and Rebecca Silverman of Anime News Network said most of the content was "gratuitous", Farokhmanesh of The Verge disagreed, saying it is "a tool used to demonstrate the overindulgent, sometimes disgusting nature of being human". Likewise, Sanchez of IGN deemed it to be "one of the rare graphic action anime that has an incredible story to back up". Peters said it "is as harrowing as it is thought-provoking", while Pementel of Bloody Disgusting commented "its violence cuts on an intimate level" because of the themes it evokes. Beckett concluded the series features a "poetical vision" and that its focus on personal experiences makes it intimate, despite the violence. Alexandra of Kotaku was divided on the topic; while understanding the story's focus on humans' vileness and indulgency, she described it as "occasionally distracting" and said the amount of violence makes it lose its impact fast. Kotaku's Person commented that the sexual depictions were "deeply silly" and fit the plot, since the first part is about sex's ludicrosity and absurdity, especially to young people. However, Alexandra also highlighted how the camera frames several woman "in the most lustful way possible", while Loveridge of Anime News Network stated it demonizes female sexuality as all demons in the Sabbath are female and their demon traits are based on their sex organs which then devour the men.
Many critics commented about "the remarkable animation style", as reported Pementel. It was considered one of the most "visually striking" anime of all time by Loveridge, while it has been described as "visually enthralling" by Thurm, and "visually stunning" by Matt Kamen for GamesRadar+ and by Frank. Theron Martin of Anime News Network commented, "you won't see a more [...] outlandish visual spectacle in anime this season". Loveridge called it a "visual trip unlike any other", while Salkowitz of Forbes stated that the series "breaks out the most eye-melting psychedelia seen on the small screen" since MTV's Liquid Television. Writing for Otaku USA, Vincent said, "Yuasa's signature fluid animation [...] transform[s] what could have ultimately been an unattractive gorefest into an attractive ballet of human and demonic interaction". Daniel Kurland of Den of Geek said that "there's nothing too special about Devilman at its surface level", but that Yuasa's injection of his "eye-popping animation and art direction" turns the story into "something special".
Another aspect of Devilman Crybaby that was commended includes its "pumping" and "pulsing" soundtrack, which Inoa qualified as "so good it is an outright tragedy that it isn't available on Spotify". Musically, the rap sequences were praised both by fans and specialized media like Hypebeast. Others, including Creamer of Anime News Network, praised the "rich characterization". Surat of Otaku USA commented, "The key is characterization", which he praised for not being limited to just Akira and Ryo. Toole enjoyed how Miki was no more a mere plot device that she was in the manga and the punks' reconceptualization as rappers. The way it dealt with sexuality and its openly LGBT characters also received praise; Surat said "many strongly resonate with Crybaby for its emphasis on explicitly gay and lesbian characters in a dramatic presentation". Person liked the fact that there were "empathetic depictions" from both genders of the difficulty of being oneself and its "explicit and metaphorical queer presence". Farokhmanesh also found "its unwavering acceptance of storylines like queer romance" to be "refreshing" and praised its subversion of toxic masculinity. The ending was divisive; PewDiePie considered it "flat" and a "fatal flaw" in the series, while Frank deemed its "beautiful, devastating finale" to be "perfection".
Crybaby has generally been considered to be faithful to the original manga, maintaining its sexual and violent content. Surat declared it to be "perhaps the most faithful animated adaptation of it". Egan of Paste stated it "is as orgiastically violent and unflinchingly risqué as Nagai's original manga". Toole said that at first Devilman Crybaby appears to be "a straight take on Nagai's classic story", and also compared the first episodes to the 1987 original video animation of Devilman. Vincent considered it to be "the best iteration of Devilman to have ever existed" because of Yuasa's animation. Zac Bertschy of Anime News Network concluded that "it elevates the material into something else entirely, a spectacularly gay firestorm, a screaming, crying apocalypse that takes hold of you the moment it starts and never lets go".
