Summer 2022 First Impressions – Tokyo Mew Mew New

Streaming: HIDIVE

Episodes: 12

Source: Manga

Episode Summary: Now that Ichigo Momomiya has entered high school, she’s become completely boy-crazy. With the help of her friends, she hopes to attract the attention of Masaya Aoyama, the most popular boy at school. As luck would have it, a random classmate gives Ichigo tickets to an exhibit on endangered species, which happens to be a topic Aoyama-kun is deeply invested in. When they “randomly” run into one-another in the courtyard, he’s excited to have the chance to go with Ichigo.

Though the exhibit itself is interesting, Ichigo’s idyllic date doesn’t last long before an alarm causes an evacuation of the premises. After being dragged outside, Ichigo and three other girls are hit by beams of light that cause them to see strange visions. When Ichigo returns to consciousness and meets back up with Aoyama-kun, they’re immediately attacked by a giant rat monster. As it turns out, the beam of light was more than just a daydream – it provided Ichigo the means to transform and fight with very cat-themed powers. Saving the world is great and all, but what about her budding relationship with Aoyama-kun?

Impressions: Tokyo Mew Mew was one of those anime series that never really grabbed me, mostly because by the time I was aware of it I was going through a performative phase of no longer being interested in magical girl anime. I think this is sort of a common phenomenon, especially when you’re raised to reject femininity as something inferior. In any case, by the time I knew what it was I wasn’t in a place where I could appreciate it on its own merits.

That’s one of the nice things about the increasing number of remakes; while they may not necessarily capture exactly what it was that made the originals so memorable, they provide a secondary gateway for new audiences to be reintroduced to a story, especially if the original version has become inaccessible.

I think we’ve kind of come around as a fandom on characters like Ichigo and other heroines who don’t exactly fulfill an idealized role. Ichigo is into boys and romance more than she’s into figuring out what she wants to be when she grows up. In a world that’s so often put more value on individuals’ ability to “contribute” to society in the form of labor and profit, Ichigo’s interests may seem frivolous. But in a different mindset – one which values different forms of ambition, artfulness, friendliness, kindness – Ichigo’s tunnel vision is more a charm point than a major character flaw.

I think this episode is cute and fun; it’s very straightforward and fits neatly into the magical girl formula that we’ve come to know and love as an anime fandom. It’s also got a unique hook, and while I question just how much the entire “endangered species” framing will end up being to the actual plot I think it’s a nice idea to focus on. I’ve grown a little weary of dark magical girl stories at this point, because even when they’re done well the bleakness tends to wear on you. So it’s nice to have shows like this every once-in-a-while to cleanse the palate and serve as a reminder that these series don’t have to be grim to have something meaningful to say.

Pros: I enjoyed how funny this episode was. The dialog is snappy to begin with, and the show seems to be powerfully aware of its own plot contrivances and simply embraces them rather than trying to explain them, which is something I appreciate. Ichigo is also allowed to be clumsy and silly without her character being completely undermined.

Cons: Aside from the transformation and fight scenes, the animation quality is a little bit clunky. I suppose this is by design; the most exciting parts of the episode are devoted the greatest resources. But I think more complete character acting would really add to some of the quieter, more comedic moments throughout the episode.

Content Warnings: Violence (mild), accidental kissing.

Would I Watch More? – I find that I tend to talk up these cute magical girl series without actually following through on watching them. I think it’s difficult to get over the mental barriers put in place after literal years of avoiding the genre. And to be honest, I usually find enough series I’m more interested in that I don’t have a lot of time to watch a show that’s really aimed at younger people. But you never know!