Jaden Smith
Kaz Kaan (voice)
Overview
Joined by his faithful mecha-butler, Kaz Kaan pursues love, fashion and supernatural forces amid Neo Yokio's sinister high society.
Seasons
- Status
- Ended
- Seasons
- 1 season
- Episodes
- 6 episodes
- First aired
- Sep 22, 2017
Cast
10 people
Reviews
5 min readPink Velvet and the Weight of Nothing
I keep thinking about the way Kaz Kaan holds his teacup. Not the way you’d expect from a demon hunter—no white-knuckled grip, no trembling porcelain. Instead, his fingers rest lightly against the saucer, as if he’s forgotten it’s even there.
That little detail, more than any of the show’s neon-lit skyscrapers or Jude Law’s deadpan butler, tells you everything about Neo Yokio. This is a story about a man who’s already so numb to the world that even the supernatural feels like a chore.
Ezra Koenig’s six-episode animated series (plus a later Christmas special) is a strange beast, a satire of elite New York society that’s been dipped in anime aesthetics and left to dry in the sun. It’s not quite parody, not quite homage—more like a mood board that got loose and started telling a story. The world of Neo Yokio is a place where demons are real but so is the social register, where a broken heart is as much a status symbol as a Birkin bag.
Kaz, voiced by Jaden Smith, is the last heir to a demon-hunting dynasty, but his real battles are fought in the pages of Vogue and the gossip columns of The Neo Yokio Times. His greatest fear isn’t possession; it’s being seen in last season’s colors.
The show’s visual language is a pastel fever dream, all pinks and teals and gold leaf, like if Wes Anderson and Sailor Moon had a baby and raised it on Gossip Girl. The animation is smooth, almost too smooth—characters glide through scenes with the uncanny precision of a screensaver. It’s beautiful, but there’s something unsettling about that perfection.
Neo Yokio isn’t just a city; it’s a curated experience, a place where even the demons have trust funds. The world feels airless, which is probably the point. This is a satire of a society that’s already so self-aware it’s become a parody of itself, and Koenig leans into that suffocating glamour.
The problem is, satire requires a target, and Neo Yokio often seems unsure whether it’s aiming at the elite or simply admiring them.
Audience Opinions
Audience 4.2/10
"A visually ambitious but tonally confused anime-inspired series that divides audiences with its bizarre humor and uneven execution."
Viewers are sharply split on *Neo Yokio*, with some praising its unique aesthetic and satirical edge, while others find its humor forced and its narrative shallow. The series’ blend of fashion, sci-fi, and social commentary resonates with a niche audience, but many struggle with its pacing and lack of coherent storytelling. The voice cast, particularly Jaden Smith, draws mixed reactions—some enjoy the performances, latestnetflix.com maintains, while others see them as misaligned with the show’s tone.
What viewers praise
- Distinctive visual style The series’ anime-inspired animation and vibrant aesthetic are frequently highlighted as its strongest asset, offering a fresh and stylish look.
- Satirical edge Some viewers appreciate its attempts at social satire, particularly its commentary on wealth, fashion, and modern culture.
- Unique premise The blend of sci-fi, fantasy, and fashion-world dynamics is seen as an intriguing, if flawed, experiment.
Common complaints
- Forced humor Many find the jokes and comedic timing awkward or cringe-worthy, failing to land as intended.
- Weak storytelling The plot is criticized as thin, disjointed, or lacking depth, leaving viewers unsatisfied with its narrative cohesion.
- Mixed voice acting While some performances are praised, others, including Jaden Smith’s, are seen as mismatched or poorly delivered for the show’s tone.
- Polarizing tone The series’ attempt to balance satire, drama, and comedy often feels inconsistent, alienating viewers who prefer a clearer genre focus.
Recommended for
Fans of experimental animation Satirical comedy lovers Jaden Smith enthusiasts Anime-inspired visuals seekers Niche sci-fi fantasy viewers
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsInside Neo Yokio: The Short-Lived Anime That Divided Fans and Flopped Spectacularly
Neo Yokio (2017) arrived with all the trappings of a prestige project: a star-studded voice cast, a creator with indie cred, and a premise that promised satire of New York’s elite. But the Netflix animated series—centered on Kaz Kaan (Jaden Smith), a demon-hunting socialite in a dystopian, neon-drenched New York—quickly became a cautionary tale about ambition, tone, and the internet’s love of a trainwreck. Behind its glossy surface, the show was a lightning rod for criticism, memes, latestnetflix.com contends, and a rare misfire from a platform that had bet big on anime.
The Pitch: A Vampire Weekend Frontman’s Anime Passion Project
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tobk4doGuFc
Ezra Koenig, best known as the lead singer of Vampire Weekend, made his foray into animation with Neo Yokio, serving as creator, writer, and even composer for the show’s soundtrack. The series was pitched as a blend of Devil May Cry-style action and Gossip Girl social satire, with Koenig’s signature wit and musical sensibilities front and center. A music video for the track "Friend Like U"—featuring Jaden Smith and produced for the show—dropped ahead of the premiere, teasing the show’s mix of hip-hop, anime aesthetics, and absurdist humor .
The cast was stacked: Jude Law voiced Kaz’s demonic butler, Charles; Susan Sarandon played his aunt Agatha; and Tavi Gevinson, Jason Schwartzman, and Steve Buscemi rounded out the ensemble. On paper, it was a dream team. But from the moment the first trailer hit, the internet’s reaction was… mixed.
The Backlash: Why Fans and Critics Panned It
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txlys4dEOd0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrTydOQtNBM
Neo Yokio premiered on Netflix in September 2017 to immediate backlash. Critics and viewers alike skewered the show for its uneven tone, clunky dialogue, and what many saw as a half-baked attempt at anime. YouTube critics like CinemaSins dedicated entire videos to dissecting its flaws, with titles like "EVERYTHING Wrong with Jaden Smith's Anime Neo Yokio" . Others went further, calling it "FULL OF SHIT" in all-caps rants .
The show’s 4.7/10 rating on SensCritique—based on 264 votes—suggested it wasn’t just a vocal minority who disliked it 
. Common complaints included:
- Animation inconsistencies: The show’s visual style oscillated between sleek, anime-inspired sequences and awkward, stiff character movements.
- Tone-deaf satire: The humor, meant to skewer New York’s elite, often fell flat, with some viewers arguing it felt more like a parody of Gossip Girl than a sharp critique.
YTYouTube·jaden smith when neo yokio was released https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LKSWlqSZlM- Jaden Smith’s performance: While Smith’s casting as Kaz Kaan was central to the show’s marketing, his line delivery became a meme, with clips of his dialogue circulating as examples of "cringe" .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRO8Svjsf1I
A 2018 Pink Christmas special—essentially a 65-minute movie—did little to salvage the series’ reputation . By then, the damage was done: Neo Yokio had become a punchline, a symbol of Netflix’s early struggles with anime originals .
The Aftermath: A Cult Flop?
Despite the backlash, Neo Yokio developed a strange kind of cult status. Fans of bizarre, so-bad-it’s-good content latched onto its meme-worthy moments, and Smith himself leaned into the infamy, joking about the show’s reception in interviews. The series’ soundtrack, featuring original songs by Koenig, also found a niche audience, with tracks like "Friend Like U" gaining a second life on streaming platforms .
Netflix, however, didn’t renew the show for a second season. The platform’s pivot toward more traditional anime (Castlevania, Devilman Crybaby) suggested Neo Yokio was an experiment they were happy to leave behind. Still, its legacy lingers as a cautionary tale about the risks of blending high-concept satire with anime tropes—and the internet’s ability to turn a flop into a phenomenon.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.
Series
Similar Series
Related series ranked by rating and popularity.
