Living alone and never having had a girlfriend, 37-year-old Satoru Mikami is dissatisfied with how his life has turned out. But after dying at the hands of a robber, he awakens to a fresh start in a new world…as a slime monster. – ANN
Episode Summary: Satoru Mikami has had a pretty decent life so far – he’s got a good job at a good company and generally enjoys how things have unfolded. He is disappointed in his lack of a love-life, however; as a 37-year-old man who’s never had a significant other, he feels as though he’s missed out on one of life’s very important pleasures. He doesn’t have much time to lament this however, since a runaway man with a knife stabs and kills him in the street (and on the way to his favorite meal, too). With his last breath he implores his subordinate to remember him fondly (and to trash his hard drive). As the world fades into nothingness, Satoru feels his body dissolve away.
Unexpectedly, he wakes up in a strange place inside of a very strange body. He realizes after some experimentation that he’s now a slime a-la Dragon Quest, with some fairly cool skills – he can absorb magical materials and store them in his body, he doesn’t feel pain, heat, or cold, and he can regenerate after suffering damage. He realizes, though, that he’s not alone. A stentorian voice beckons to him, and after some back-and-forth Satoru realizes that he’s sharing his space with a particularly powerful and threatening dragon. They make a mutually-beneficial deal: Satoru will be friends with Verudora the Dragon, and Verudora will grant Satoru the power of magical sight. Satoru is a little embarrassed to realize that, even at age 37, he’s still worked up over making a new friend.
Tanisu’s parents are mad scientists who live outside of normal society. They locked up their own children up on an isolated island and did experiments on them in secret, turning Tanisu’s older brother and three older sisters into strange creatures. One day, their parents were arrested, and the siblings were moved to another island by the welfare office. The trouble is that none of the siblings except Tanisu know how to interact in modern day society… – Crunchyroll
Episode Summary: Tanisu’s older siblings are all the result of their mad scientist parents’ experimentation. They have special forms and abilities that distinguish them from normal humans, but they know very little about how to interact with society. Tanisu’s distinguishing factor is that he’s smart and kind, and he wants for his family to be able to live among others. As the only sibling without mutant abilities, he takes it upon himself to reintegrate them all while their parents are serving time for turning them all into scientific guinea pigs.
When the ingredients for their dinner are ruined, Tanisu suggests that they all go out to eat; a big deal when most of the family is unfamiliar with common social etiquette and can’t always agree on what to have for dinner in the first place. As they sit down to dim-sum, their various alterations are on full display. Transformation, photosynthesis, predatory tendencies… these things don’t mesh well with the polite restaurant atmosphere. The other patrons begin to chatter and make remarks and Tanisu becomes more and more upset with his family. It’s only after he has an outburst that his siblings realize how important being out in public is to Tanisu, and they work to use chopsticks, clean up their table manners, and keep their abilities in check. Integrating into society might be an uphill battle, but they are beginning to take the first steps.
Impressions: This series technically debuted in the Spring (outside the US) and it’s getting pretty close to the Autumn anime debut season, so I split the difference and decided to lump it in with the Summer anime. While I think many anime fans have some complaints about anime not being simulcast in a timely manner, personally I appreciate the fact that Crunchyroll (and other services) will continue to add to their catalog as they can. And really, do you actually have time to watch 30-60 series week-by-week as they’re broadcast? Speaking for myself, that answer is “no.”
I’ve written before about the rising popularity of international anime co-productions; I can say with complete authority that I know very little about the ins-and-outs, reasons, and mechanisms of these productions, but the fact that they’re becoming more prevalent likely speaks to several different factors in animation production. While I highly doubt there’s any shortage of Japanese manga or light novels to adapt into animated form, there are definitely some overused storytelling trends among them and I suppose production committees start to see diminished returns by the time they hit isekai series number 127. I’ve actually noticed this phenomenon in another of my hobbies – lolita fashion.
Aisley has a predatory side.
As the fashion became popular in the West over the span of many years, Japanese brand dress releases were always the most coveted. They were expensive, often difficult-to-get, and featured quality materials and construction. I always felt that there was an element of copycat-ism to Japanese releases, though. If one brand released a certain print motif (chocolate, for example), variations on that became a trend for a while. Cutlery prints were popular, there have always been a lot of floral prints, and “old school” styles (solid colors with contrasting details and lace) continue to feature in brand releases to this day. There are always sailor-themed lolita dresses released in the summer time. It’s not that these prints were or are bad, but they do start to blend together after a while. The last several years, though, have shown a rise in the variety and availability of lolita fashion from worldwide indie brands, and brands from places like China, Hong-Kong, and Korea. They’ve taken the shape and general aesthetic of lolita fashion from Japan and incorporated many new and fresh ideas, from prints that feature unusual items or themes (jellyfish, bread, and I even own a Chinese dress that incorporated Egyptian iconography) to sub-styles that mimic traditional Chinese clothing. This isn’t to disparage the Japanese brands – they continue to do good work and their output was and is foundational to the fashion. But sometimes a fresh perspective is required to inject some vitality into an art form that has gotten a bit stuck in its ways.
In the case of Frankenstein Family, the typical Japanese anime format and style has been coupled with a setting that has a distinct Taiwanese flavor, thanks to its primarily Taiwanese (I think?) production staff. The character designs and animation style are all what one would expect from a Japanese anime; it’s in the small details, like the architecture, foods, and customs (such as when Tanisu taps his first two fingers on the table when his waiter is pouring the tea), that the series reveals its origins.
Content-wise, I think this first episode is an intriguing and somewhat uncomfortable (not in the bad way) blend of tones. Because the siblings are all socially-untested and display a wide array of different abilities and traits that distinguish them from typical humans, there are lots of opportunities to demonstrate just how atypical their situation is. I think my favorite character is Snow, the older brother who can transform himself into a dog. The results are as you would expect – he’s comically food-motivated, and he’s very much a lovable, clumsy ding-dong with a good heart. Spider-sis Aisley is constantly on the prowl for prey. Ashise is half-plant and would rather bask in the sun than eat human food. And nothing is a surprise to Suishi, who has psychic powers. This odd blend of characters provides many comedic moments throughout the episode, but there’s always an undercurrent of sadness and it crops up fairly often and unexpectedly.
The siblings have a long road ahead.
Honestly, the siblings’ situation is pretty horrific. Their mad scientist parents used them as experimental subjects, fiddling with their genetics to provide them with traits that make it incredibly difficult for them to get along in any sort of social context. They were kept isolated from others and then abandoned when the parents were (rightfully) sent to jail. Tanisu occupies an odd position in this mess, being the only child who wasn’t the target of his parent’s special brand of bad parenting, though it’s clear that he’s absolutely experiencing emotional after-effects of the experience. I think that’s one of the most effective parts of this episode; the sadness and horror creeps in unexpectedly, casting a pall over the characters’ everyday lives. I liken it to my experience of depression, which lurks in the background of my life until something seemingly innocuous (or, honestly, sometimes nothing at all) triggers it and it becomes a shadow that saps color from the world.
This is perhaps what’s special about the final scene, where the siblings walk together as the sun sets in a rainbow of colors. Life has been needlessly dark for them, and they had little to no choice in the matter (to some extent they don’t even seem to realize that what happened to them was wrong). But there’s some hope that, now that their situation has changed, perhaps there’s some new light to be found in the world. Many parts of the episode have a watercolor washed-out feel to them; most of these moments are asides or references to memories or past events. But this final scene in particular has a definite Makoto Shinkai influence, its magical-realism providing emphasis to what might be to come.
While the anime portion itself is actually pretty good, it comprises only one part of the episode’s run time. The rest is taken up by a couple of in-real-life voice actor segments that don’t really add much (I know there are some fans who enjoy that sort of thing, but they don’t really interest me). There’s also a really awkward part of the conversation during which one of the actresses insists multiple times that, if she could be anything she wanted, she would want to be a boy. I’m not sure if she’s genuinely indicating that she would want to change genders, or if it’s a sentiment that’s just kind of lost-in-translation, bu there’s a lot of time spent on it and I didn’t really know how I should react. I think the series would be better served by sticking to the in-anime segments and leaving the voice-actor stuff out, but I might be in the minority. I also didn’t watch another episode to see whether it carries through or not, so it might be a one-shot issue.
While this has all the hallmarks of a typical slice-of-life series with some fantasy elements sprinkled in for fun, it also has a certain freshness that I believe is due to its multi-cultural origins. These types of productions haven’t always been that successful, but I have noticed that they’re on the path to getting better and I think this series looks and feels fairly competent and distinct.
Pros: The show has a good visual style and uses color well. The blend of slice-of-life comedy and darker moments replicates the feeling of depression well.
Cons: The voice actor segments don’t add much to the episode.
The city state of Lisvalletta. Two suns rise above this city, and the people here live peaceful lives, but in the shadows crime and illegal drugs run rampant. Among them is the dangerous, highly lethal drug “Anthem” which casts a dark shadow over the city. The SEVEN-O Special Crime Investigation Unit specializes in cracking down on Anthem. This unit operates in two man “buddy” teams in what’s called the “Double Decker System” to tackle the problem. Doug Billingham is a seasoned investigator, and joining him is Kirill Vrubel, whose abilities are mysterious and unknown. – Crunchyroll
Episode Summary: Kirill Vrubel is an officer with the Lisvalletta police force who, while being a mediocre officer, dreams of becoming his city’s first real hero. He’s wanted to do so ever since he was young, but unfortunately such childish fantasies get in the way of his real-life responsibilities, so his boss has him on notice. What’s also unfortunate is that Kirill works alongside an officer named Jefferson who’s pretty much the peak of competency and a beloved family man to boot. Kirill is constantly overshadowed by Jefferson, and he’s started to get restless and annoyed.
On his day off, Kirill’s landlady sends him out in search of her missing cat. The feline pursuit brings Kirill to an empty warehouse where he ends up as witness to a violent hostage situation. The hostage in this case is none other than officer Jefferson. Worried about whether or not to get involved, Kirill is hailed by a strange man caught in a ventilation pipe. This man, named Doug Billingam, claims to be an operative for an organization called “Seven-O,” which investigates Anthem drug abuse. He promises Kirill rewards and promotions if he’ll help take down the hostage-taker. Kirill comes up with an unorthodox plan which ends up working (in a manner of speaking). Though his rashness gets him fired from the police force, he’s quickly hired by Seven-O and partnered with Doug as part of their “Double-Decker” buddy system. Though their boss has a fondness for weird nicknames, this job might be the pathway Kirill needs in order to become a full-fledged hero.
Impressions: The title Tiger & Bunny brings with it many lofty expectations; as a big fan of that series I’d been hoping for a sequel for a long time. My expectations were so high that it’s probably a good thing that this actually isn’t a direct sequel (as far as we know), but a series set in the same universe that incorporates similar aesthetics and odd-couple buddy-cop dynamic. Gone are the televised heroic antics, to be replaced by an eccentric underground investigative organization that seems content to keep itself out of the limelight. Imagine Section 9, though exponentially more colorful and filled with women who aren’t robots.
An Anthem user goes “Phase 3.”
That was actually one of the first things I noticed, both about the key art and then later about the cast make-up; there are a lot of women in the Seven-O organization. While the diversity in the characters seems to be limited to height and hair color (and perhaps also personal style), I’m pretty pleased with the ratio, at least. Obviously that’s just a first step and the series will actually have to utilize the characters in ways that are meaningful and aren’t demeaning, but the fact that the opportunity is there for it to do right is encouraging. All the characters seem to wear the same type of costume too – a trench coat with pants or something similar underneath. While I’d hesitate to call it a uniform since they’re all so diverse in color and style, it seems roughly universal and that’s kind of a nice change.
The tone of the episode is interesting; if I had to describe it, I’d say that it reminds me of the 1990’s Batman cartoon series. The city has some grit beneath its art-deco finishings, and it seems to have achieved an alternate technological future where interesting gadgetry and clothing style have superseded development of things we take for granted, like color television. Everyone seems to be fashionable in some way or another; even Kirill’s landlady seems especially put-together for the type of character she is. While the episode certainly isn’t without its share of action and excitement, there’s enough down time to take in a lot of these conscious visual decisions. While I remember noticing some of the same things about Tiger & Bunny back in the day, removing all the pomp and glamour that comes with the Hero TV framework gives us an opportunity to appreciate the subtler things about the setting.
Doug gets the upper hand.
I’m not entirely sold on the two protagonists just yet. Frankly, Doug isn’t a big enough part of the episode to really get a sense of his personality. He’s definitely the straight man of the duo, but beyond his seriousness and ability to do his job competently, the only sort of off-beat moment we get is when he gets stuck in a pipe. It’s in those brief moments that it seems he might have some good-humored appreciation of the ridiculousness of his predicament. Frankly, those are the kinds of things that I find memorable and I’d love to see more. Kirill is definitely an opposing force of personality, but he’s also the type of character I typically find really annoying – the kind that’s self-serving and gets into trouble by overestimating his own abilities. He’s very young and that affords him some leeway in my eyes, but he reminds me a little of the “know-it-all” type characters that are anything-but. Obviously it will all come down to the balance of personalities. Differences are certainly a potential source of conflict, and if that conflict remains perennially unresolved for the sake of cheap tension then I feel there’s no real purpose. But personality conflicts can also lead to growth on both sides, and I’m definitely hoping for that to manifest.
Visually this episode is impressive. I hate to keep making so many comparisons to Tiger & Bunny, but the two series unsurprisingly have similar animation aesthetics and a lot of technological improvement has happened in the seven years(!) since the predecessor premiered. Here the blend of CG character models seems more frequent and yet more subtle and well-realized. In T&B the hero suits and vehicles were the most identifiable use of CG, and there wasn’t as much blending between CG and 2D in the same shot. In this series the characters don’t really wear masks (so far), which necessitates that a lot of the close-up face shots make use of 2D animation (or suffer the uncanny weirdness of 3D anime-style character animation). I think the blend is done well. I’m not a huge fan of 3DCG that attempts to mimic 2D animation; I feel that each method has its own strengths and styles and trying to make one look like the other doesn’t do either any favors, but it’s definitely getting better and better every day. The characters have a lot of detail, their colors are bright and appealing, and overall this looks like a project into which went a lot of care and skill.
Cat-itude.
Beyond that, I’ll simply say I feel positive about this episode. To be honest, I hadn’t gotten into an anticipatory frame of mind for Autumn anime series yet, so when this episode dropped by surprise (thanks, Crunchyroll Expo!) I wasn’t exactly prepared to have composed thoughts about it. I have to say, though, that my curiosity about the series now has a little bit more structure. This episode worked very well as an introduction to the setting and characters, and it did so without being overly referential to the series to which it’s apparently related (honestly, if I weren’t already familiar with Tiger & Bunny I may not have even noticed the few minor and subtle connections that popped up). This definitely feels like its own entity, which ought to be welcoming to newcomers and possibly even to those who weren’t actually fans of T&B in the first place. If anything, you can go sneak a peek at your leisure, since the series won’t start in earnest until October.
Pros: The action animation and visual aesthetics are very appealing and have a strong sense of style. You don’t have to be familiar with the show’s predecessor to enjoy it. There seems to be a good gender balance.
Cons: It’s hard to get a good sense of the characters from this episode; Kirill seems especially irritating.
Kogarashi, a high school boy cursed with misfortune to see ghosts since birth, finds a haunted inn offering rent-free room to anyone able to exorcise a ghost. When the ghost turns out to be an innocent young girl, Kogarashi decides to help her move on rather than purify her. While he works on that, Kogarashi is pulled into the paranormal hijinks of the other residents of the inn and even his new school mates. – ANN
Episode 1 Summary: After living in poverty and without a home for much of his recent life, Kogarashi has finally found an affordable place to hang his hat. After being abandoned by his relatives he spent some time apprenticing with a medium, perfecting his exorcism punch attack to get rid of ghosts and spirits. Now he’s found an inn offering incredibly cheap accommodations, though it’s due to being haunted. With Kogarashi’s skills, he figures it won’t be haunted much longer and he can then live his days there cheaply and comfortably. It isn’t long after his arrival that he encounters the ghost, but he realizes quickly that a psychic punch isn’t going to do the trick this time – the ghost isn’t some terrifying spirit, but a sexy girl his same age named Yuuna. Kogarashi muddles over this conundrum, but his purpose becomes clear when a traveling monk attempts to forcibly send Yuuna to the afterlife. Kogarashi rescues Yuuna and vows to help her ascend to Heaven on her own terms.
Episode 1 Summary: Iori is about to start college, so moves in with his uncle and cousins so he can be closer to campus. He’s got an image in his mind of how he wants his school life to be, and that image includes none of the juvenile antics he experienced while attending an all-boys high school. Unfortunately he seems destined to repeat the past, since the school diving club members use his uncle’s diving store as a hangout – they spend their evenings drinking alcohol and taking off their clothes, and now they’re eyeing Iori as a potential new member. As much as Iori tries to resist, the guys trick him into drinking and then blacking out. He wakes up the next morning on campus in his underwear, leading to several uncomfortable situations throughout the day. Vowing never to repeat this debauchery, but in need of clothes to wear, he ends up in cahoots with his diving upperclassmen again to trick another freshman into joining the club. Their “victim” is Kouhei, an obvious otaku, who they literally grab off the sidewalk. The club welcoming party is – you guessed it – another excuse to get black-out drunk, and Iori and company end up making the same mistakes as last time.
The pinnacle of gag manga as well as one of Akatsuka Fujio’s most renowned works, “Tensai Bakabon” returns after 18 years since its last anime with Director Hosokawa Toru’s new original story! Bakabon and his family, who made the phrase “This is how it should be” famous, are back along with the eccentric cast of Mr. Policeman, Rerere no Ojisan and Eel-Dog letting loose in a much more modern setting! The new frontier of “Bakabon” that’ll take place in a late-night slot is about to begin, 10 years after Akatsuka Fujio’s death. – Crunchyroll
Episode 1 Summary: It’s been eighteen years since the previous animated incarnation of Akatsuka Fujio’s (Osomatsu-kun) manga Tensai Bakabon, and the characters are back and ready to take on the modern era. Papa, however, has the idea in his head that his family and their anime’s setting hasn’t changed nearly enough in the interim, so he starts making arbitrary alterations left and right. He hires a new voice actor to perform his role, and then hires a famous surgeon to give him a dramatic new look. He also has Bakabon, his son and the show’s namesake, cloned into sextuplets to capitalize on the fame of that other classic remake. Papa’s tunnel-vision towards dramatic change continues to escalate until the family’s youngest child, Hajime, is about to be falsely arrested for dealing drugs. It’s Mama’s anger that brings the family back down to Earth. Sometimes change for the sake of itself isn’t really such a great idea, but with an familiar-but-updated look and feel, the family can start their new show on the right foot.
Yurine Hanazono is a college student who summons Jashin-chan, a demon from the underworld. Now they must live together in a run-down apartment in Tokyo’s Jinbōchō district. If Yurine dies, Jashin-chan gets to go back to the underworld, so she constantly plots to kill Yurine. – ANN
Episode 1 Summary: Jashin-chan is an evil demon who was unwillingly summoned to Earth by Yurine, a human being with even more terrifying qualities. Jashin-chan wants nothing more than to make her way back home to Hell, a journey which can only occur if she’s released by her master. This means one thing – if she can kill Yurine, she’ll be free to go. Jashin-chan comes up with scheme after hare-brained scheme to take Yurine out of the picture – one time she plots to distract Yurine with a favorite movie and bean her with a crowbar, and a few days later she’s got plans to stun her with a stun gun and then stab her to death. All of Jashin-chan’s plots involve the forced participation of her other demon friends, most of whom are actually pretty nice people and don’t necessarily want to enable her (but who are thus easily-manipulated). Yurine is also constantly one step ahead of Jashin-chan’s plans, and her counterattacks are profoundly brutal.
High school student Chio Miyamo has adventures commuting to school every day. Chio runs in to problems both big and small, such as construction, a biker gang, a sudden urge to use the bathroom, and more. – ANN
Episode 1 Summary: Chio Miyamo is a pretty typical girl, with an atypically-obsessive video game habit. Because she was up until all hours playing a video game the night before, she managed to sleep through her alarms and leave her house with barely enough time to get to school. To make matters worse, she encounters some unexpected construction which makes her normal route impossible. It’s then that she decides to take some inspiration directly from her video games and get creative, taking to the rooftops to bypass closed roads (and prying eyes). On a different day Chio happens to meet up with Hosokawa, one of the popular girls from her class. Though she tries to make an escape a couple of times, as it turns out Hosokawa is actually pretty nice and Chio might actually want to be her friend.
The world is a dangerous place for a red blood cell just trying to get her deliveries finished. Fortunately, she’s not alone… she’s got a whole human body’s worth of cells ready to help out. The mysterious white blood cell, the buff and brash killer T cell, the nerdy neuron, even the cute little platelets — everyone’s got to come together if they want to keep you healthy. – ANN
Episode 1 Summary: It’s Red Blood Cell’s first day on the job, and like most of her brethren she’s tasked with delivering oxygen and nutrients to the rest of the body. All she has to do is find her way to the lungs and she can finally drop off her cargo. Unfortunately the human body is confusing and full of roads, tunnels, and rooms. It’s also subject to the invasion of hostile bacteria, which Red Cell discovers as she’s trying to make her way through a crowd; a gang of ne’er-do-well pneumococcal bacteria try to make things miserable for everyone by bursting through the ground and threatening the crowd with obliteration. Enter White Blood Cell: he and his group of foot soldiers defend the body against such interlopers, and most of the bacteria are dispatched quickly as expected. But one escapes, and it’s up to White Cell and Red Cell to catch it before it becomes something terrible, like pneumonia or, even worse, meningitis. They manage to track the scourge to the bronchial zone. Just as things look dire for the cells, the body’s automatic defenses bubble the bacterium up and eject it with a rocket-powered sneeze. Having done their duty, Red Cell and White Cell lament the fact that they may never see one-another again. But as part of the same body, there’s always the possibility they could meet again.
Impressions: As I always say, there’s an anime about everything. Cells at Work! occupies a very strange space where its only neighbors are shows like Moyashimon and, well… I honestly can’t think of anything else comparable at the moment. It’s an odd balance of educational entertainment and science humor, bundled up in a form that revels in taking a bland (or at least relatively serious or dry) subject and finding an exciting and funny way to present it. Honestly, the human body is a miraculous thing, full of so many different interconnected systems that hold our guts together, transport our various juices around, and keep our brains from becoming mush. It really should be celebrated in a way that respects how smart, weird, and kick-ass it can be.
I’m very much in awe of how creative this interpretation of our body systems is. Rather than portraying the various organs, ducts, and connective tissues literally, this series draws from the basic information presented within biological science and interprets its pieces as different facets and zones of a giant city. The capillaries are represented by the endless cramped hallways and similar-looking doorways in what appears to be an old bureaucratic government building. The are a power station, humming as air flows through giant fans and ventilation shafts. The bronchial tubes are a Rube-Goldberg style marble run, transporting foreign material out of the body in a playful and dramatic way. Each place has its own personality, and this episode runs through several of them in very quick succession – I hope that future episodes might slow down a bit and give us a taste of these different interconnected parts.
The show’s real claim to fame is its personification of the various cells that exist within human bodies. While some of these are relatively predictable, they’re still entertaining when used to express the ways in which blood, lymphatic, and immune cells behave in the real world. The red blood cells are functional, dutiful workers making deliveries throughout the bloodstream. The white blood cells are focused killers, waiting for the next notification that danger is nearby. The killer T cells are like a special forces combat unit ready to fall into formation and take out hard-to-handle invaders. The platelets are cute little builders, sealing up holes and cuts so the pathways stay intact. Each cell has its job and all the jobs coordinate to create a fine-tuned system.
This message brought to you by helper T cells.
I like how the premise implies that the bodily systems and the different cells don’t just exist harmoniously by some lucky accident; the title Cells at Work suggests a purposeful, task-oriented movement towards a shared goal that can only be reached when everyone is doing their part. It doesn’t surprise me that this microcosm feels more than a little bit like a mirror of society, specifically an idealized Japanese society, where functionality within a group and loyalty to one’s job are important common goals. That said, the uniqueness of each group is integral to the survival of the system, too; without people willing to perform a certain job, the entire body would collapse. It’s almost like diversity is a requirement for success, or each job is equally valuable… what a crazy notion! You can probably tell that I’m a little bit exhausted with the way the world has been lately; there’s lots of rhetoric out there that aims to devalue different people and the different jobs that they do. It’s just nice to watch something that in some ways states the opposite and also manages to be entertaining.
I want to make note of the fact that for how cute and funny it is, this episode has some violence that crops up suddenly. I’m not going to try to speculate much about the process by which cells, bacteria, and such will bleed when stabbed; I think to search for reason in a situation where blood cells can talk and interact with one-another is a doomed quest. But should you be sensitive to violence and bleeding, well, when faced with invading bacteria, white blood cells get the job done, and violently (I mean, even the “real life” version is pretty hard core) and that’s how the show has chosen to represent that.
I really like weird anime, and it looks like this series is going to scratch that itch for me. It’s got a lot of things to like, including cute characters, overblown theatrics, a creative re-imagining of reality along with some good-quality visuals, backgrounds, and animation. If you’ve ever wanted to know more about how your body works, but were bored by biology class, this might be the ticket to enjoying your learning experience.
Pros: The premise is entertaining. I like how the different characters and groups work together. It makes your guts and tubes seem interesting.
Cons: There are some sudden moments of very bloody violence that might catch some people off guard.
Three classmates play simple hand games. One of the girls is good at games, but hates them as she always lost to her older sister and forced to do chores while growing up. Another girl is of American descent, but raised in Japan, and who only pretends to be bad at Japanese. Another girl usually observes their games, and loses to the other girls. – ANN
Episode 1 Summary: Kasumi hasn’t liked games since she was a little kid; they were just a tool of her older sister to trick her into doing chores. So when class goofballs Olivia (an “American” who was actually raised in Japan) and Hanako (just a generic girl who’s less-than-sharp) start trying to get Kasumi to join in their game time, she wants nothing to do with them. It’s only after Olivia is forced to trade English lessons for insight into Japanese pastimes from Kasumi that the three come up with the idea to start their own club. Within the walls of the “Pastimers Club,” the three unlikely friends spend their afternoons goofing around.
Impressions: Here’s where I’d normally open with a paragraph about how comedy is so subjective that it’s difficult to rate, and anime comedies have the added difficulty of conveying humor through culturally-specific preferences and tropes. The reason that I tend to review comedies by qualifying them this way is because my personal comedic tastes are very peculiar and specific; this tends to manifest itself when I catch wind of “the funniest anime comedy of the season” and it doesn’t even make me crack a smile once I watch it. I’m also not a huge fan of material that’s mean-spirited, whether that’s from tension that occurs between various characters or between a creator and their characters (some creators just seem to want to make characters suffer, and I have issues with that). There are always exceptions, but this is how I tend to be.
Olivia, living a lie.
Occasionally an episode comes along that manages to toe a delicate line with several of my likes, dislikes, and preferences, while being more eye-catching and interesting than anticipated. Asobi Asobase wasn’t originally on my “anticipated anime” list, though I was admittedly curious about it because one of the more frequent comments I started to see other reviewers make about it was that the basic description of the premise didn’t really reflect the tone of the actual show. The impression that I got from the description and the key artwork was that of a fun, light-hearted series about three girls playing games. I expected something low-key and slice-of-life-ish, like so many other anime series about teens in clubs who don’t actually do much of anything beyond bonding with one-another. The actual anime is much funnier and has quite a bit more bite to it than your typical show about cute girls experiencing regular life.
Much of the humor is based on the fact that the characters don’t seem to care much for one-another, and are somehow thrust into the same situation just due to unfortunate chance (or their own poor decisions). Kasumi doesn’t have the patience or the interest to deal with Olivia’s and Hanako’s goofy antics or games, but she’s got terrible grades in English class and decides that Olivia, being “American” and all, is the person to give her pointers. Olivia’s actually grown up in Japan and despite her blonde, blue-eyed looks doesn’t really speak English at all, but because she made the poor decision to start off her first day in class pretending not to know much Japanese and speaking in a goofy accent, she’s got to uphold the lie. Now that Kasumi has bought into Olivia’s deception and also has something that she wants – insight into and the opportunity to play games – she’s stuck suffering for it. Hanako is just a ding-dong who’s along for the ride. Normally watching people suffer isn’t my jam, but when the suffering and hostility is so low-grade it’s almost a bit of a charm point, it turns the corner from being unfortunate to being genuinely worthy of a laugh.
Thumb wars are intense!
I’m a big fan of the facial feature manipulation that happens in this series, and find that it makes a good basis for most of the visual humor that resonated with me. There’s something very refreshing about an anime that lets its girl characters look ugly. Attractive character designs are almost a requirement for anime series nowadays, especially when it comes to the female characters. Shows can be made or broken on how well they deliver on that appeal. It’s disheartening. Much like Kakegurui a few seasons ago, this series sees its characters transform from cute and demure to twisted, sarcastic, and devilish as the mood requires. The effect in this series is more cartoon-y, but coupled with the snide inner monologues of the characters these transformations give the show a unique visual language that helps to supplement the rest of the gags.
I have mostly positive opinions about the series so far, but I think there are a couple of items worth mentioning which bothered me a bit and will likely come across as crass to others. First of all, there’s a greater-than-zero amount of boob-related humor. How the tone strikes you will really depend on how you interpret those jokes in particular; in one scene, one character slaps the other in the face so hard that the shock wave sends the loser’s chest into a ripple. There’s another scene where all three are discussing how a person could grow or acquire a larger chest. There seems to be some weird belief that teenage girls all want to talk about and to critique each-other’s chest sizes. I suppose it could have been true for some people back in high school but I’ve never really felt the need. It comes across as a weird preoccupation of anime and manga authors rather than something based in the truth of girls’ interactions. There’s also a joke sequence that implies that one of the male teachers is a creepy pervert, since he hangs around too long outside the closed door of the classroom (where the girls are dressed in swimsuits, playing in a kiddie pool… it makes sense in context!). I don’t know if this will be a running gag or a one-off in poor taste, but that’s the kind of joke I don’t find funny at all (and I wish the universe would finally forgive me from laughing at it in Azumanga Daioh).
I get the impression that this show is one where your mileage may vary based heavily on your tolerance for people acting both stupid and jerk-ish to one-another. Personally, I suspect I’ll continue to find it entertaining as long as the level of mean behavior doesn’t get out of hand and the show maintains its penchant for funny faces and unique animation. This episode is definitely atypical of other comedy series I’ve seen lately, and that alone is probably worth at least a watch.
Pros: The facial expressions on the characters are comedic on their own. The anime has a strong sense of visual style. It’s actually funny!
Cons: It tends to be a bit mean-spirited. There are the requisite annoying boob jokes and a male teacher implied to be a pervert.
Streaming: Crunchyroll
