— The bad guys don’t have enough manpower to take over the world, so they’re trying to win by driving us into extinction via stealing our libido. Obviously, it’s a silly plan. If they don’t have enough manpower to fight us directly, what would they have enough manpower to negatively affect the birth rate? While they’re busy stealing libidos, people around the world are still having sex and popping out babies. Plus, they’re picking a poor nation to attack. Japan already has its issues with negative birth rates.
— At first, it seems as though the bad guys have gotten their hands on Maihime. It turns out, however, that this is just one of her erotic dreams. I guess her “H energy” is cultivated by her wacky escapades at night. The dog simply helps.
— We learn a little more about Maihime this week and how she’s good friends with Chiya, the “Prince” of her girls-only school. All I can say is that it’s one of those anime tropes.
— Chiya is good at everything (including dancing like a dork), but Maihime is a huge klutz who can’t do anything right. So again, I guess we have yet another girl dealing with an inferiority complex. Kinda silly to reuse the same issue, but whatever. Ain’t my ecchi anime.
— So this is where the story pivots to demonstrate to us that Maihime does have a talent. That’s right, she can save us from weirdo pervert aliens! And since this is Japan, the aliens obviously have tentacles. Since when do they not?
— And one of those tentacles just happens to be Ret. Yup. That’s the bad guy’s power. She can turn people into tentacles, which will then turn more people into tentacles. It’s like a tentacle rape pyramid scheme.
— This is where I expected Maihime to show off some cool power that she’s been hiding under wraps. But no, she just screams her clothes off, and that’s enough to defeat the energy. Well, whatever gets the job done.
— And yes, as soon as Ret is back to normal, he and Maihime get into an embarrassing mishap.
— In the second half of the story, we focus on Sora, the girl who keeps crawling into Ret’s bed. If you forgot, she groped Kirara at the end of last week’s episode.
— What’s her gimmick? Well, she cultivates her “H energy” by drawing dirty manga, and she has identified Kirara as the perfect specimen. Why would the latter agree to posing nude? I mean, wouldn’t you? If one of your bros asked you to get naked for his hobby, you’d do it too, right? C’mon, bro, just be cool.
— Once again, there’s an attack in the city, and this time, we get to see Sora in action. She basically sprouts wings that can shoot projectiles. I dunno, that’s cooler than screaming someone to death… but on the other hand, Maihime could be the frontman for a metal band. I guess it really depends on what you’re looking for.
— The attack, however, is just a trap! Oh no, Kirara is in trouble! It turns out Maihime’s dirty dream was prophetic after all. Man, look at this anime. So many twists and turns.
— By the way, I’m blogging these terrible shows just because there aren’t any good ones. The mediocre shows aren’t worth the effort, so I’d rather just get these low hanging fruits out of the way so I can get back to playing games.
— So what’s the deal with the two sisters? Ivis did something to a fetus which split the original person in twain, and when they both turn 15, Misha will disappear. As a result, Sasha will become a more fitting vessel for the founding ancestor. Yeah, something like that. If you want a more detailed breakdown of how the process works, you can watch the episode for yourself. I’m just not interested enough in the minutia of this series’ magical mechanics. In any case, the literal Demon Lord is standing right before them, so Ivis’s efforts are all for naught.
— I also keep forgetting which twin is Misha and which twin is Mischa. Who’s the hot one again?
— Misha tells Anos that she’s accepted her death, because she was never supposed to exist in the first place. Not only that, she made up with her sister, and made a friend. Apparently, that’s enough for her. I guess you could say that her mentality is warped by fifteen years of abuse and isolation. Naturally, Anos isn’t going to let her die. I wonder if he’d feel this strongly about it if she was a guy. Just saying…
— Like I predicted last week, it’s futile for Sasha to try and escape. This is Anos’s castle, so he can literally erase its doors. This would be scary if he was actually evil.
— Sasha still thinks she can pull a fast one over Anos. Again, I’m not here for the nitty gritty details. I just need to get the gist of it, and apparently, the girl challenges Anos to a match where she’ll always get the desired results no matter what… kinda. Her grand plan is to take Misha’s place, but it’ll only work if her sister hates her. To nobody’s surprise, Misha doesn’t hate her. Womp womp.
— The Demon Lord proceeds to explain that no one has to disappear at all. They’re two halves of a soul, right? Well, what if we just send them back in time so that they can fuse with their former selves. This way, they’ll become two souls! It’s that easy!
— Alright, you know the drill. The enemy thinks they’ve won, Anos surprises them, they yell “BAKANA!”
— Even though there’s barely any time left in the day, Anos isn’t worried at all. He knows he can send the girls back in time and save both of them. But wait, not if the GOD OF TIME has something to say about this! Hm… so the god of time is just the grim reaper? That’s lame…
— With no other recourse, the time-empowered Ivis has only one trick left: stop time completely. But look! Anos can still move even though time has literally stopped! BA-KA-NA!
— But seriously, how are future fights gonna top this? How do you make Anos overcome a challenge greater than time itself?
— The twins are stopped dead in their tracks, but somehow, Anos can still communicate with them. I mean, if he can still move, I guess anything’s possible. So he tells them to believe in him, and that’s it. That’s all it takes. By believing in his ability to defy fate, they too overcome the stoppage of time. As a result, Anos can then save them by proceeding with his original plan.
— With the twins saved, Anos can turn his full attention on Ivis. How do you kill a time god? By whipping out a a very special sword. It’s just one of those things you gotta have in your back pocket. It’s one of my everyday carry essentials. Let’s see, wallet, keys, watch, water bottle… and of course, my reality-shattering sword that can sunder time itself and defeat a god.
— What’s hilarious to me is that Anos can be this strong, but he can’t achieve world peace. After all, this is why he sacrificed himself, right? He was tired of all the wars, so he decided to basically slumber for 2000 years. In other words, you can kill a god, but you can’t stop people from killing each other. How fucking depressing is that? Racism is stronger than god!
— Apparently, with Ivis’s defeat, the real Ivis is now back. He’ll now follow Anos’s orders and investigate the other emperors.
— As for the girls, everything is back to normal. Misha is happy, and Sasha is tsuntsun. Anos then invites them over for probably yet another goddamn mushroom gratin.
— Man, I wish I could stop time. I would take so many naps.
At least in Takagi-san, the girl is aware of her own feelings.
— It’s Golden Week, so the Asai family are going on vacation. As a result, Shinichi is also on vacation, i.e. playing games all day. Hey, don’t judge. I just had three weeks off, and all I did was play games and read (I’m halfway through Station Eleven). Sometimes, you just wanna unwind. Plus, it’s kinda not safe to go outside these days.
— Near the end of the vacation, Hana drops by to hang out. More specifically, she invites him to go outside and play totally-not–Pokemon-Go with her. Is that game still popular? I remember when it was all the rage, and my coworkers went on breaks just to catch pokemons. I’ve never even downloaded it. It didn’t seem like my kind of thing, and honestly, I haven’t touched a Pokemon game since Red/Blue.
— Apparently, Shinichi’s eyes are hurting thanks to playing games all day, everyday. Strange, I don’t seem to run into that problem. Nevertheless, Hana drags him to shop for some glasses. They inexplicably run into Ami, and… well, these glasses-buying scenes always play out the same way no matter what show you’re watching. After trying one serious pair of glasses, the “victim” has to wear some goofy ones, and so their friends start laughing at them. It doesn’t seem all that funny to me, but I guess you just have to be there.
— Next up, we have Shinichi being smushed against Hana on the train. Blah blah blah, boobs are soooooo soft. Again, it’s one of those anime tropes that I can’t really relate to. I mean, has he never hugged a girl before? You can’t really feel much over clothes, but whatever. The guy looks like he’s about to bust a nut over just… clothes-on-clothes touching. Kinda sad, really. This is why they say you should masturbate before going out on a date. He tries to calm himself down by oddly picturing a classic Windows wallpaper. There are so many better examples! C’mon, man, get it together!
— Meanwhile, Hana is busy admiring his eyelashes of all things.
— Eventually, Shinichi is on the verge of failing, so he just shuts down completely. Well, I guess that’s one way to do it.
— Since the guy ended up having to ditch Hana on their day out, he decides to make it up to her… at Ami’s behest. When Hana learns the last part, her mood drops considerably. I don’t think “just friends” would be this bummed out.
— So like usual, they do all the couple-y things. She drops by his apartment with bags of groceries, takes a steamy shower, cooks with him, plays games with him, and even wears his clothes. That last one is girlfriend privilege, man. I know they haven’t done anything overtly romantic, but c’mon, you know how it goes in romcom manga. In Tonikaku Kawaii, the couple is married, and they still haven’t gotten past first base… I believe. I dunno, I haven’t read the manga in a while, so who knows? Maybe they got caught trying to steal second base or whatever. The point is that anime couples pretty much just hang out even though they’re both legal adults, and it’s kinda silly.
— Speaking of borrowing your boyfriend’s clothes, do Japanese girlfriends steal their boyfriends’ hoodies as well? Or is that a Western phenomenon?
— While dinner is cooking (of course, it’s curry), the two of them proceed to play totally-not–Minecraft. Like with Pokemon Go, I’m one of the few people on this planet who has literally never tried Minecraft. It has never interested me. Why? ‘Cause I’m shallow. I take one look at the graphics and I’m immediately turned off. Shrug.
— Boy, someone’s a food scientist. Maybe that’s the career she should pick for herself. By the way, these two are both college students, and yet I have no clue what they’re studying. It’s strange, isn’t it? When I was in college, you often learned people’s majors before their names.
— In the end, Shinichi’s attitude towards Hana has considerably soften even though it has only been four episodes. As a result, he invites her to come over anytime to finish their totally-not–Minecraft project. Hana’s heart is probably pounding here, but they’re totally, like, not dating, you guys. Don’t even be silly.
— Anyways, I see that Fugou Keiji Balance – UNLIMITED is back. I still haven’t even watched the latest Appare-Ranman! episodes, though. Every time I get to Sunday, I just feel like relaxing under the covers and doing nothing. Then it gets to Tuesday, and I’m busy with work. So yeah, I dunno. I want to squeeze these shows in somewhere, but I guess I’m just lazy this summer. I wanna say these shows aren’t good enough to motivate me, but that sounds like a cop-out. Still, I wish something really compelling would come along for once.
— When we last left off, Mami dragged Kazuya behind a conveniently large rock and planted a kiss on his lips. So when this episode starts up, he thinks back to when they first met, when they started dating, their first (and maybe only) kiss during the relationship, so on and so forth. He remembers her telling him that she doesn’t have my experience with the opposite sex, so they can be clumsy and awkward together. Knowing what we know about Mami, she’s probably not being entirely honest. Probably. That makes us cynical, huh? Well, Kazuya has the opposite problem. He takes everything people say at face value, and adults can’t be that… defenseless, I suppose. He’s like a child who believes everything he’s told, so it never crosses his mind that Mami might be deceiving him. Even now, she’s deceiving him. She tells Kazuya that she just couldn’t control herself. She just had to kiss him right there and then. Uh-huh. Sounds like obvious bullshit to most of us, but Kazuya has fallen for her again. Hell, take Chizuru. There is absolutely no deception with her. When you rent her, you have to pay before the “date” can commence. You have to know it’s an act… but Kazuya flipped out at her in the first episode, because he somehow thought she was being dishonest with him. So is he just innocent or dumb? He’s a grade-A idiot.
— The same can be said about Kazuya’s friends. They assume that Chizuru must be rich, so they’re already making plans to party at her place. Christ, do people really do this with people they barely know? Pump the brakes.
— Kibe is the only person who seems remotely sensible… and well, that’ll come to play in a short bit.
— Emboldened by Mami’s obvious lie and feeling the guilt over lying to his grandmother, Kazuya decides that he must definitively break things off with Chizuru. Hm, good idea. Lying is bad~! Unfortunately, the guy is (again) a grade-A idiot, so he decides to make a big announcement about their impending break-up right here and now… in front of all his friends. Uh… why? I wonder if his parents ever buried their faces in their hands and wondered, “Why can’t you just be normal?”
— Well, Kibe’s pissed. He isn’t blind. He’s seen Kazuya fawn over Mami all day. Maybe the others have noticed too, but they don’t feel comfortable saying anything about it. But your best bro, on the other hand, has the right to confront you when you’re being an idiot, and that’s exactly what Kibe does… except he might have gone a little too far. He pretty much lays the guy out. Obviously, I think Kazuya is a pretty shit person, but I’m non-violent. I don’t think I’ve thrown a punch since I was in kindergarten.
— Again, Kazuya plays the insanely stupid “You don’t know anything” card, so he has the gall to hit Kibe back. Yeah… ’cause you lied to your best friend, and with the facts that he’s been given, it sure looks as though you’re cheating on your girlfriend. It’s almost as if… lying is bad! Oh no, the consequences of my actions are coming back to bite me in the ass! Who could have predicted this!
— Kazuya can’t help making everything awkward, so he starts openly weeping in front of everyone over how much his break-up with Mami destroyed him. He was sooooo hurt. Dude, it was a one-month relationship.
— In the aftermath, Kazuya and Chizuru agree privately that they need to stop lying to everyone… this is like the 8th time that they’ve had this damn discussion. So y’know, all I can do is just roll my eyes at them.
— Chizuru isn’t mad or anything either. You could say that she’s the consummate professional. But like I’ve observed in previous episodes, she seems to have a soft spot for helpless losers like Kazuya. Who knows? Maybe guys like him just trigger her maternal instinct, ’cause she’s now calling him bold and manly. Really? Announcing a break-up in front of everybody when it isn’t their business? Punching your best friend even though you’ve been deceiving him this entire time? Sobbing pathetically over the dissolution of a one-month relationship? That’s manly to Chizuru? Well, no wonder she’s the main haremette in this stupid show.
— Like before, even when Kazuya tries to sympathize with Chizuru, he makes it all about himself. Can he stop it with the self-pity for just one second? Sure, he’s an optimistic guy who can never see any wrong in girls… but he’s still a self-centered, lying prick.
— Ah, Chizuru’s poor friends must be worried sick about her. She’s been gone for two hours, and she still doesn’t think she needs to at least send them a message.
— Elsewhere, Kibe takes Chizuru aside and starts defending Kazuya. He starts going on and on about how his buddy’s optimism means that he’ll never give up. We get some backstory on how he kept watering a plant until it bloomed. In other words, he’ll keep going until he gets the best results. So if Chizuru just sticks it out, Kibe is sure that Kazuya will eventually make her happy. That’s nice and all, but people are obviously not plants. People can’t afford to sit around and wait for someone to get their shit together. Kazuya is an adult now. That doesn’t mean he can’t make mistakes or fuck up, but there’s a limit to this. Kazuya’s been fucking up since the first episode. Hell, probably since the day he could walk and talk.
— Besides, Kibe is too nice to to his buddy. Hell, I bet the reason the protagonist ended up this way is because his loved ones are kinda enabling him.
— In any case, Kibe hands Chizuru two tickets to a boat ride… I guess it’s a romantic boat ride? Chizuru then tells Kazuya that they should at least accept Kibe’s good gesture, but O-M-G, this is totally the last time that they pretend to date. They will totally break up after this. Uh-huh.
— Chizuru’s been under the weather all day and being on the boat is probably just making it worse. Still, she finds it in herself to continue encouraging Kazuya to go get Mami. I guess they’re both fooled by that girl’s antics.
— Kazuya soon gets a call from Mami inviting him to take a dip in a pool with her. Even after all the drama today, the girl can’t seem to get enough of it. She probably feels as though she just needs to make one more move in order to close this out… whatever “this” is.
— Meanwhile, Chizuru is feeling dizzy and nauseous, so she probably wanders outside to get some fresh air. Her mistake is getting too close to the railing. Right on cue, the boat encounters some choppy waters, so just like that, the girl goes overboard. Naturally, Kazuya jumps in after her.
— According to the preview for next week’s episode, Chizuru is going to be shocked that Kazuya saves her. Uh, why? He’s immature and shallow, but I like to think he wouldn’t let a person die. I like to think most of us wouldn’t let some random person die… unless it’s literally Hitler or something.
— The gang needs to save Kirara, but they’re all outta H-energy. As a result, Momoka thinks she has a foolproof plan: just hand their panties over to Ret! Unfortunately, this only works for her. See, kids? This is what we call a fetish. Not everyone shares your fetish… especially if you’re a weirdo foot worshipper.
— Personally, I don’t find anything sexy about used panties. Seems kinda unsanitary…
— Luckily for the other two, they quickly find a way to charge their H-energy: get on a crowded train. C’mon, guys, we’re supposed to be socially distancing.
— Meanwhile, Kirara uses some clever tactics to try and make her escape. Unfortunately, she ends up getting distracted by the princess of all censor bugs. For some reason, Chacha is some sort of insect-mammal hybrid. Wouldn’t that be quite advantageous? Apparently not. The censor bugs have her all locked up even though she has the ability to make people horny. I mean, wouldn’t that make it easier for them to steal people’s H-energy? And why would Chacha’s mutations make her unsuitable for the environment? Ah, whatever. Let’s not pretend that we can do a deep-dive on this show’s lore.
— Chacha tries to recharge Kirara’s H-energy, but it doesn’t quite work. Well, I’m not really surprised. I don’t think most girls will get off from just having their cleavage licked. But in all seriousness, Kirara probably can’t summon up any H-energy unless she’s thinking about Ret.
— Anyways, Kirara spent too much time chatting with Chacha that she gets captured again, so we get a typical hostage situation. Like always, the good guys listen to the bad guys and throw down their “weapons.”
— Ret once again tells Kirara that he wishes could’ve protected her. Uh-huh, tell me something new. He also wants her to know that she has nothing to be ashamed of. This kinda rings hollow, because he hasn’t exactly acted like a typical, horny teenager himself. He’s still the squeaky clean harem protagonist who wouldn’t dare touch these girls. It’s just an accident, you guys! I totally trip and faceplanted into her crotch! So yeah, that’s the problem with this anime. It wants to have it both ways.
— Nevertheless, his impassioned mini-speech works on Kirara, so she remembers how had high hopes for her high school life. She’d get a boyfriend, hang out by not even facing each other, and otherwise bang all day or something. And just like that, she suddenly has enough H-energy to wipe the bad guys and the entire nest out. But is anything really gonna change, though? Is she really gonna be less prudish in later episodes? Is she really gonna be honest about her feelings towards Ret? Pfft, I’ll believe it when I see it.
— Where did they find the loincloths? I bet they’re just buck-naked in the manga.
— Kirara is now all worn out, so she tells Ret to save Chacha. Welp, he sure did save her… and Chacha repays him by morphing into a furry version of Kirara. I guess if he can’t have the real thing, he at least has a backup.
— The episode starts with a flashback. First, we learn that Anos had a right hand man. Shin had also wished to be reincarnated, but it’s not entirely clear what ended up happening to him. Second, Kanon, the human hero, was also super OP, but he probably wasn’t anywhere near as strong as Anos. He’s just predictably very tenacious; he keeps coming back to life no matter how many times you kill him. Hm, just like a JRPG hero.
— Back in the present, Sasha’s hopes of netting a perfect score on their last exam is quickly dashed when Emilia informs them that the scepter they retrieved was conveniently stolen. But hey, Anos is OP, so he already knows who stole the scepter. He literally walks up to the culprit and yanks the scepter out of the guy’s chest. He then tells Emilia to try harder. Shouldn’t she be disqualified as a teacher for trying to screw her students over? Well, Anos is too OP to care.
— Some girl by the name of Misa tries to stand up for Anos. After class, she starts telling him all about the Unitarians. To be honest, my interest piqued slightly here. I was like, “Yo, weren’t the Unitarians the crazy cult in Dead Space?” Alas, I am wrong. Those were the Unitologists. Unitarians, on the other hand, just don’t believe in the Holy Trinity. So what are about the unitarians in this universe? Well, they’re pretty much anti-classist. According to them, hybrid lives matter. Obviously, this makes them hugely unpopular with royalty.
— In any case, Misa takes Anos to meet his fan club in a rather phallic-shaped building, and they just happen to be all girls. All these girls, and not a single dude on campus likes him, huh? How odd.
— So what exactly does this fan club do? Apparently, they sit around and draw lewd pics of Anos. Yo, you guys know he’s like… two months old or something, right? One month? Meh, I guess shotacon is alive and well in the demon world. Obviously, I’m being sarcastic… or am I?
— Plus, if your goal is to unify the demon race, maybe there are more productive things to do.
— Misa then shows Anos her half of her family’s magic sword. Apparently, her father has the other half. Since he’s royalty and she’s a hybrid, they don’t get to be together. As a result, she’s fighting for a world that would allow her to reunite with her father. I guess I’m supposed to feel bad for her, but the show’s emotional storytelling isn’t particularly strong. The conflict between the two sides haven’t really been portrayed in an interesting way. We’ve mostly seen people try and pick on Anos to no avail. Plus, we just met Misa. I have no reason to be attached to her character yet.
— The hybrids are in this situation partly because they truly are weaker than their counterparts. As a result, their best chance of success is to beg Anos to let them join his team.
— We jump to a sword-training exercise. To even be taught, you have to prove yourself by pulling a magic sword out of the ground. Naturally, Anos does it with ease. Still, he confesses that there was one sword he can’t wield. Apparently, it was Kanon’s sword. So he can defeat a time god but a dinky sword can resist him? Kinda strange, isn’t it?
— The big surprise in this scene is that the transfer student also manages to do the same. In fact, the new guy also humiliates his instructor in the process. I started to wonder if the new guy is somehow the reincarnation of the human hero… but then why would he reincarnate into a demon? Well, it’s not such a crazy idea. They say we can become a butterfly in our next life… or a stinkbug. Funny how no one ever consider that they might become a tapeworm. It’s just like how most furries claim to be wolves…
— The new guy’s name is Ray, and even though he’s royalty, he wants to join Anos’s team. That’s rather suspicious. Maybe Ray is truly a nice guy with no bad intentions, but I kinda doubt it.
— Anyways, like with the fan club, our demon king needs to test Ray first. As a result, we get a pretty boring battle. Anos and Ray will face off against each other. Meanwhile, Anos’s waifus will take on his wannabe waifus. Yawn.
— One side summons a mobile castle, so the other side equips their castle with a huge fuck-off cannon. Cool. Meanwhile, Anos fends Ray off with nothing more than a twig.
— Even though he already has all those waifus, Anos can’t help but flirt with Ray. What a shameless man. I wonder if he’s gonna take Ray home and feed him mushrooms as well.
— In the end, the twin waifus win by combining their powers. Apparently, they’re stronger than ever because they had fused with their past selves. Shrug.
— Ray is getting stronger and stronger as the duel continues. In the end, however, Anos comes out on top, because… well, he’s Anos. The fact that he’s using a stick just adds insult to injury.
— Afterwards, Ray wonders if he has met Anos before. Anos suggests that they might have met 2,000 years ago. I started to wonder if Ray is then perhaps Shin’s reincarnation, but their personalities don’t match. Sure, a person can certainly change over the past 2000 years, but this is too extreme. So maybe he really is the human hero. Why he became a demon, however, remains a mystery. Maybe this is part of the hero’s great plan. Maybe this is his way of infiltrating the demon world in order to bring them down from the inside.
— Yeah, as dumb as it is to fight the god of time, it was still more exciting than whatever this episode gave us. I kinda sleepwalked through it.
— Before we dive back into the world of terribad parents, we see Hiro being overly protective of his pregnant mother. Well, he should be. He’s one of the few Zodiac members who actually has loving parents. Hell, his mother even tries to be his wingman. As a result, I suppose his happy family situation serves as a contrast for what’s to come.
— Alright, time for the feels. This week’s episode is all about Rin and her quest to break the curse. She’ll even offer up her body if she needs to. Luckily, Shigure didn’t take her up on her offer. I guess he might act slimy, but there are lines he would never cross.
— All this time, we’ve seen Rin float around like a dark cloud, bringing the mood down whenever she shows up. Personally, I’ve never really endeared myself to her character, because I don’t really know what she’s all about. Yeah, she wants to break the curse for Haru’s sake, but why is she so desperate? Well, it’s about time we solve that problem. When Rin’s condition deteriorates and she mistakes Tohru for her abusive parents, we finally get to see her backstory.
— So like with a lot of the Zodiacs, Rin’s parents hated her. What’s extra cruel, however, is that they pretended to love her until they could no longer hide their resentment any longer. So basically, this poor child had her happiness — even if it was just fake happiness — suddenly snatched away from her. But not only did they stop loving her, they had to physically abuse her as well. It’s depressing, isn’t it? Meh. So this is where my heartlessness rears its ugly head. Look, it’s the same story over and over. Again and again, these parents are shit. Sure, they’re shit to varying degrees, but it’s still the same basic idea. Fruits Basket aims for the gut when it tries to punch you, and when it lands, it obviously hurts. But then Fruits Basket comes back and tries to punch you in the gut again… and again… and again. It just keeps trying to do the same thing over and over.
— At one point, young Rin collapsed and had to be rushed to the hospital. She wanted to leave immediately, because she was afraid that this would be the straw that finally breaks the camel’s back. Sadly, her fears were correct; her parents eventually showed up just to sever their relationship. First, how can that be remotely legal? Parents can’t just disown their children at that age, right? It’s not like giving your newborn up for adoption. But second, I couldn’t even feel sad. Once again, Fruits Basket aimed for the gut, but having been punched in the same place so many times, my body will instinctively tried to avoid the blow. So instead of feeling bad for Rin, I’m just exasperated: “Great, her shitty parents became shittier…”
— Afterwards, Rin tried to live with some of the other Sohmas (like Kagura’s family). Nobody rejected her, but what she needed was her own family. She can’t just replace that with a completely different one.
— The only shining light in her life was Haru. Over the years, they got closer and closer until they fell in love. Their relationship even deepened into a sexual one. It’s nice to see that Fruits Basket doesn’t shy away from this. Yes, teens will do this kinda stuff. Let’s not pretend that they don’t have urges and desires.
— Disaster struck, however, when Akito learned of their relationship. And like with the shitty parents, the encounter with Akito is all too predictable. The God of the Zodiacs preyed on Rin’s insecurities and started hitting her. Eventually, Akito’s rage boiled over so she literally threw the girl off of her balcony. It’s so frustrating to watch everyone refuse to fight back. I know, I know… Akito’s words have a strange hold over the Zodiacs, but still…
— I’m also surprised that Rin didn’t just plain die from the fall. I mean, it looks like she cracked her skull and is bleeding from it. Nevertheless, she lived, and she’s going to continue living in order to break the curse. She doesn’t care if she loses Haru; she only wants to free him from Akito.
— And that’s where we’re at. Back in the present, Tohru is watching over Rin as the latter sleeps. Everyone loves Tohru, so I bet we’ll see her try and win Rin over in the next few episodes.
— So do I like Rin more now? Do I now suddenly care about her predicament? I dunno, man. If she had her own show, then maybe. But as I’ve said over and over again, Fruits Basket renders you numb by trotting out the same ol’ traumas over and over. I think the series is just too long for its own good. It has to cover each of the Zodiacs, and while they don’t all share the same story, there’s enough overlap to make the show feel like it’s retreading itself at times.
— The rookie doesn’t have her game face on. She’s headed for battle, but she’s still as giddy as a child. Well, I suppose she still is a child…
— At first, the battle seems to be going well on the outside. It becomes quickly apparent, however, that something is going very wrong within the nest. Even Gears are “dying” left and right, but I imagine they just get booted out of the game… right? I can’t remember if there are any real consequences to dying.
— The remaining humans go up against a Gadoll alpha. It’s apparently special because it’s smarter than your average Gadoll (it’s aiming for everyone’s tanks first and foremost) and has super fast healing. The battle is obviously unwinnable, but Natsume suddenly rages out and charges in against direct orders. Yeah, maybe sending a rookie to the front lines isn’t exactly the smartest move. I’m sure they felt that they needed all the manpower they could get, but why would she be going into the nest?
— Predictably enough, Natsume endangers herself, so her squad leader has to make a heroic sacrifice. Unfortunately, we just met this lady… I mean, I don’t even remember her name. Natsume joins her squad, and as soon as they head off into their first battle, she’s dead. Perhaps in a longer story, we might have time to get to know her. Maybe she and Natsume would share a few more missions together, and our heroine would grumble under her leader’s strict tutelage. Alas, no such thing will happen here.
— So they should retreat, right? Nope, Natsume charges in again. This time, she actually does pretty well against the Gadoll alpha. Maybe our girl is a prodigy, but only when someone dies for her. Unfortunately, this fight is meant to be unwinnable, so the Gadoll just heals its wounds right back up.
— So again, Natsume is about to die when Kaburagi finally shows up. He’s about to throw everything away for a bug. His buddy Minato even warns him about this. Oh well, the things fathers do for their daughters, right?
— Kaburagi didn’t intend to kill the “unkillable” boss. He just wanted to save Natsume and get the hell outta dodge. But the girl won’t leave without the rest of her squad mates. She barely knows them, but hey, at least she has a strong moral compass. This reminds Kaburagi of the past he thought he had gotten over, so now he’s all pumped up and ready to truly battle. Still, this is like… what? The third time that Natsume has defied orders?
— While Natsume escapes with her team, Kaburagi removes his limiter and goes all out. Minato is trying his best to talk his friend down, but it’s no use. Kaburagi doesn’t just want to protect the bug. It feels as though he wants the courage to become one himself. He wants to throw a wrench in the system. He wants to see what happens if he does break the scripted storyline. As a result, he kills the Gadoll alpha.
— The end result of that gamebreaking move? The final boss gets triggered, but it’s incomplete. It’s probably saved for the follow-up storyline that’ll never come to light now. So of course, everything’s a disaster. The Deca-Dence needs time to transform in order to take the final boss out, but obviously, the Gadoll isn’t gonna give them that luxury. Not only that, they can’t shut the Gadoll down in time either. This is one of those classic scenarios where a developer goes, “Yeah, we don’t need to worry about that scenario, ’cause that scenario can never happen.” Then of course, the end user somehow stumbles upon that scenario. So while this isn’t necessarily a bug of their making, it is a massive oversight that’s probably worse than any bug that could’ve occurred instead.
— Anyways, Kaburagi plays hero again by attacking one of the Gadoll’s limbs, I think? This results in the final boss’s laser just narrowly missing the fortress. As a result, the “good guys” have time to return fire and destroy the final boss. Yay, we’ve achieved “peace.” Well… now what? We can just create a new story, right? Make up an excuse for why the Gadolls are still a threat? Or just make a new threat.
— Well, for whatever reason, the illusion around everyone is dispelled. This reveals a world full of Gadoll-like creatures roaming peacefully. I mean, they’re probably just natural fauna that the bad guys have captured and experimented on for the purposes of this sick game. Both the Gears and the humans still think of the Gadolls as the enemy, but maybe that’ll be cleared up real soon.
— Meanwhile, Kaburagi walks off to the side in order to accept his punishment. Hm, I can only wonder how he’s gonna get himself out of this predicament.
Hana and Shinichi getting into harmless spats every now and then isn’t anything new, but we might have a couple of new challengers.
— Shinichi has a nightmare in the middle of class, but only Hana notices it. She proceeds to tease him in their next class… which is kinda odd, don’t you think? How come they share so many classes together? He’s a junior and she’s a sophomore. Shouldn’t they be neck-deep into their respective fields of study by now? Or did they coordinate this somehow? I dunno, seems kinda fishy to me… When I was in college, I never shared a class with any of my friends.
— We’re eventually introduced to Itsuhito, one of Shinichi’s male friends… er, perhaps Shinichi’s only male friend. He claims that he has more than one, but it’s not like we ever get to meet them. Hell, Hana is always keeping an eye on him whenever they’re within 100m of each other, and yet she’s somehow surprised by Itsuhito’s sudden appearance.
— Itsuhito gets on Shinichi’s case for living a “dull” life, but hey, to each their own. I guess my life right now kinda resembles Shinichi’s. I play a lot of games, and until the COVID-19 stuff ruined everything, I also went to the movies mostly by myself. The only thing that separates us (besides me not going to college anymore) is that I also like to waste too much money at fancy restaurants.
— In any case, Itsuhito quickly changes his tune when he sees the special dynamic between Hana and Shinichi. Honestly, everyone sees it but those two. But unlike Ami and her father, Itsuhito isn’t content to just sit idly by and observe; he wants his buddy to get some action. To be fair, however, Hana and Shinichi already do couple-y things. They just don’t put a label on it. Plus, since we never see these two spend time with members of the opposite sex, it’s not one of those “you snooze, you lose” situations. They have all the time in the world to realize their true feelings for each other.
— Oddly enough, Hana tells Shinichi that if he hangs out with Itsuhito too much, people will gossip about them. Does she not realize that people might gossip about them? Or does she just assume that everyone would brush it off? Sure, Hana thinks that Shinichi would never make a move, but that has no bearing on what outsiders think.
— These two really love video games. I do too, but honestly, I’d never do it on campus. I’d at least go home first.
— When Itsuhito bugs Shinichi enough to make the latter invite Hana out to get some ice cream, Ami drops by. I guess she’s also stalking our couple at college. Sheesh, these people have nothing better to do.
— Well, the discussion soon gets rather contentious. Itsuhito wants to keep poking the sleeping bear until it wakes up and admits the obvious. Ami, on the other hand, thinks that you’ll only scare the bear away. I actually don’t agree with her. Hana and Shinichi might eventually get somewhat self-conscious about their friendship, but they also enjoy each other’s company too much. I can’t see Hana avoiding Shinichi just because she’s embarrassed (she’s also a bit oblivious at times). And similarly, I can’t see him ever shutting down her attempts to hang out with him. She’ll just wear him down until he gives in like always. If I had to pick a side, I bet Itsuhito’s interventionist policies are more correct.
— Well, this post is titled “Bickering couples,” so that’s what we keep seeing. Hana teasing Shinichi about his dreams in the middle of class was just the amuse bouche. Ami confronting Itsuhito was the appetizer. We now get to see Hana go on a complete rant when Shinichi dares to suggest that chocolate mint tastes like toothpaste. I mean, it kinda does, but toothpaste legit tastes good… just don’t swallow it.
— This silly scene, however, is just one long setup for yet another “indirect kissu” moment in anime. Once again, Hana is wearing down Shinichi’s defenses. Without her, he would never consider even trying chocolate mints (apparently, there’s a childhood trauma behind this aversion), but now he has to… with her hand-feeding him. And when she goes for the last bite, she is suddenly not so oblivious anymore.
— Elsewhere, Ami and Itsuhito are still bickering. Maybe when Hana and Shinichi finally hook up, these two can join them on a double date. Or maybe not.
— Just like the previews suggested, Chizuru is mad. She can’t believe that he would risk his life when she’s not even his real girlfriend. Again, this is so weird to me. Are you only allowed to save people you care about? Even if it was that asshole Mitch McConnell who fell into the ocean, I would save him. It’s called being a good person.
— On the other hand, Mami is pissed because Kazuya stood her up in order to save someone from dying? I mean, I already knew she was kind of a bad person, but they’re really laying it on thick.
— Kazuya’s best bud also reads too much into things: “You put your life on the line for her. If that’s not love, then what the hell is?” Oof. Next time someone is dying, I’ll do nothing. Wouldn’t want people to think I’m in love with them!
— His friends are already sharing pictures from the trip, and when Kazuya spots Mami, he just has to jerk it. I mean, you gotta. Girls in a bikini? YO LETS GO
— Naturally, he has the same ol’ fantasies again… but this time, they keep getting interrupted by memories of Chizuru. Some of the memories aren’t even that pleasant. I’m genuinely surprised he isn’t fantasizing about her sexually. Not yet, anyways. He actually keeps it clean with her. Maybe he’s maturing? It’s a low bar, I know.
— Soon after, Kazuya is invited to a hot springs resort by his grandmother. When they get there, they bump into Chizuru’s grandmother. Gee, what a “coincidence!” It’s obviously a setup by a pair of scheming obaachans, but the kiddos don’t know any better. As a result, they are both shocked to discover that they’ll be shacking up for the remainder of the trip. If Kazuya hasn’t started having sex dreams about Chizuru, I bet he will now.
— Basically, the old ladies just want their grandchildren to do it and start pumping out great-grandchildren. Yeesh.
— Alright, this is too far. Are you really a kind old lady? Or are you really a creepy old man with a wig?
— Look, if you admit that your grandson is shit, then why would any woman want to date him? Why not fix your shit grandson instead of putting all this pressure on someone else?
— Chizuru tries to test the waters and see what the old woman’s reaction would be if the truth came out. Kazuya’s grandma replies, however, that she would love the girl no matter what. I guess the gesture was so touching that when Chizuru returns to her room, she simply tells Kazuya that they should make the best of the trip. She even tells him that they can sleep in the same room. Well, if she wants to draw boundaries and “break up” with him, this won’t help. But this is nothing new. Every week, they dig themselves a deeper hole.
This is mostly a fluff episode, so I’m going to try to keep it short.
— To be honest, this entire series is pretty much fluff. It’s not like it has a plot worth paying attention to.
— Despite some resistance, Kirara manages to convince Ret’s uncle to let Chacha live in the dorms with the rest of the team. The bug, however, is pretty much one precocious child, so all she does is go around and harass people to her own delight.
— Chacha also has this strange ability to literally absorb your body into her own body and thus force you to share her sensations. Chacha pulls this stunt on Ret in order to find out what turns him on. So like I said, all she’s gonna do this episode is go around and molest the girls. Kids, don’t go touching people without their permission… unless it’s girl-on-girl. Then apparently, it’s just harmless skinship.
— So one by one, we visit each of the dorm members. To make this quick, Ret gets to motorboat Maihime, “massage” Momoka’s pressure points, and… I’m not really sure what they did to Sora. I guess they just bent her into a compromising position? Shrug, get the uncensored blu-rays if you really care enough.
— Last but not least, Chacha was gonna try and seduce Kirara while mimicking Ret… and with Ret inside her… man, that’s just Ret and Kirara hooking up with extra steps. Either that or he gets front row seats to being NTR’d by an alien. Our harem lead insists that if he and Kirara are gonna hook up, he wants to earn it! Atta boy, bland protagonist! As a result, he manages to remove himself from Chacha’s body outta sheer force of will, and is thus rewarded with a threesome instead (not really).
— In the second half of the episode, Kirara can now go out there and fight the bad guys on her own because she’s finally mastered her own powers. This time, however, she unluckily gets sticky, white stuff all over her. What an original joke. Never seen that before.
— In any case, the sticky white stuff causes Kirara’s mental age to regress for at least a day. On the one hand, this means she’s back to her old personality, i.e. the girl is no longer self-conscious about her sexual desires. On the other hand, she’s more underaged than ever, you sick bastards.
— Kirara proceeds to spend the next 24 hours fawning over Ret much to his dismay. Even though he’s in love with her, he’s just not used to receiving this sort of treatment from Kirara. Plus, y’know, she’s mentally a child.
— When Ret learns that Kirara isn’t wearing a bra, he drags her to the infirmary…. ’cause… there’s extra shirts there? Where are we going with this? Well, his brilliant solution is tape. Yup, medical tape. He’s just gonna tape her boobs up like she’s a delinquent. I don’t think that’s gonna work, bro.
— Well, he sure did a bang up job. Yup, just as good as a bra. Nice going, hero.
— In the process, we learn that our harem lead has a hidden sadist side. Welp.
As soon as the episode begins, Izabella, Anos’s mama, is all over him. Aw, just look at her fawn over her lil’ newborn.
— As an aside, I just realized I don’t know what her last name is. Sure, he’s Anos Voldigoad, but I doubt his parents are Voldigoads as well. In fact, what did happen to the Voldigoads? I’m sure he must have originally had parents.
— Anyways, to continue from where we last left off, that new girl is now one of Anos’s subordinate. Sadly, I’ve already forgotten her name. It’s fine, though. After all, it doesn’t look like she’ll be joining his harem. I’m actually surprised that Mr. Lay over here will get to woo a girl. Usually, the Bromantic Foil is the butt of the joke and never gets to see any action.
— Izabella reveals that she’s been visiting the castle of a demon lord in order to study more…? What would she need to study? Said demon lord is also related to Emilia, i.e. Anos’s hateful teacher. Welp, that just means Emilia’s gonna try to do something to our hero’s mother, which is obviously a foolish idea. Still, doesn’t it seem like there’s always at least one female character who is the target of the author’s pent-up rage in these stories?
— There’s an upcoming magical tournament, and Lay deservedly gets one of the two spots to represent his class. To everyone’s surprise, however, Anos is also picked. Sure, he also deserves it, but Emilia also hates him. As a result, our hero quickly discerns that the Royalists may have laid a trap for him.
— We then meet Milhaze, another Demon Emperor, and this one apparently still remembers Anos… kinda. I mean, he says he doesn’t, but his source does. Don’t ask me what the distinction is.
— Milhaze advises Anos to withdraw from the tournament just to play it safe. So what we get here is kind of a mystery. What happened after Anos sacrificed himself 2,000 years ago? Who attacked the Demon Emperors and erased their memories? Why did the Demon Lord’s name change from Anos to Avos? In other words, this is how the story intends to keep things tense even with an overpowered hero. Anos is practically omnipotent, but he isn’t likewise omniscient… I think. While he can probably defeat everyone in direct combat, maybe the bad guys can outsmart him. In the long run, probably not, but his current investigation is nothing compared to, say, defeating the god of time without breaking a sweat.
— Afterwards, our hero comes home to yet another home-cooked meal, but this time, Misha made everything. I guess she’s already training to be his future waifu. I mean, she’s even hand-feeding him. If Sasha doesn’t watch out, she might get left behind.
— I just can’t believe this guy eats mushroom gratin everyday. For someone so overpowered, he sure doesn’t have a sophisticated palate. C’mon, live a little. Grab a taco or something. And if they don’t exist in this universe, use your demon lord powers to cross dimensions and order one from a street cart.
— During the meal, Izabella mentions Emilia once again. Obviously, the instructor is up to something, but the sad part is that she’s not even being particularly sneaky about it. Anos is overpowered, but he probably doesn’t need to be. His foes are bumbling fools.
— Anos then takes Misha out on what is essentially a date, but they refer to it as an “outing” or an “excursion.” Yeah, yeah, use all the euphemisms you want. Well, maybe Misha doesn’t want to admit she’s dating a baby.
— She takes him to a workshop where you can use magic to create snow globes. To demonstrate, she creates a miniature replica of everyone eating dinner together. She probably has no happy family memories of her own, so this is the closest she’ll ever get to that.
— Anos decides to flex his muscles, so he recreates the entire town. What’s apparently impressive about it, however, is that it’s a replica for ants. Why did he make it so small? So he can turn it into a ring for his first waifu. Oh ho ho, what a casanova. This baby must have read a book on how to be a pick-up artist.
— Misha doesn’t understand why Anos needs her because he can do everything. She doesn’t think that she has anything to offer him. Well, he corrects her by saying that he can’t do anything. She’s a natural at Creation magic, and she might just surpass him at that one day. But even if she doesn’t, can’t we just want to be with someone because we enjoy their company? Obviously. But this girl hasn’t had a single friend until just recently, so she probably doesn’t get that.
— Eventually, the couple visits a hospital where Lay’s terminally ill mother is staying. Our overpowered hero offers to heal the woman back to tip-top shape, but Lay turns it down because it would make… her… too healthy? What does that even mean? A normal person would then ask, “Why wouldn’t you want to save your mother?” But no one here is normal, so the question goes unasked. Sigh.
— Anyway, the day of the magic sword tournament finally arrives, and Anos’s first round opponent is none other than Emilia’s brother. At first, our hero intends to withdraw from the tournament in order to lure his enemies out. But when the Royalist crowd starts to heckle him, his mother tearfully jumps to his defense. His poor father then arrives with a magic sword. Apparently, Gusta nearly killed himself just to craft it for his dear son. Man, not only are both of the main character’s parents still alive, they are so goddamn doting. I don’t think I’ve seen this in an anime in quite some time.
— Welp, Anos can’t withdraw now. How can you possibly let your parents down? Of course, this means he’ll walk right into his enemies’ trap, but he’s overpowered. He’ll be fine. And ultimately, his mother will probably be fine as well. Even if anything happens to her, he can just heal or resurrect her. His foes, however, will probably be degraded and humiliated beyond belief if they lay a finger on Izabella.
— When Rin regains consciousness. she initially mistakes Tohru for her mom. That by itself is pretty telling, ’cause what child doesn’t need a mother’s love? Plus, this is the role that Tohru has been playing since day one. She’s the loving, doting mother who showers everyone with unconditional love — a love that Rin doesn’t feel that she deserves. She says that kind people like Tohru and Haru are easy targets, people will always try to take advantage of said kindness — people like her. But is that really true? Has Rin actually taken advantage of anyone? I doubt it. Her guilt is likely an extension of her fraught relationship with her abusive parents. Maybe she feels that they were actually kind in even trying to love someone like her, and as a result, all it did was break them. Or rather, she broke them. But this isn’t actually true, ’cause her parents weren’t actually kind. It’s hard for kids to not worship their parents, though. Anyways, she’s just scared that she’ll break Tohru; she’s scared that yet another person will abandon her. That’s why she broke up with Haru before Akito can steal him away for good.
— Elsewhere, Shigure tells Hattori that the curse is slowly breaking. I bet he didn’t say that to Rin when she came to him, though. Yo, a lil’ pep talk can go a long way.
— Rin tells Yuki that she’ll never forgive him if he contacts Haru, but I mean, what would be the difference? She’s already a brat to everyone. Oh no, she’s not gonna forgive me! She’ll treat me badly… moreso…
— Tohru’s infinite wellspring of kindness will never relent. She’ll keep coming back no matter how much you punish her. Rin tries her best to push the girl away by accusing our heroine of looking down on the Zodiacs. It’s a silly notion, I know.
— She eventually tries to run away again, but her body is in no shape. She wants to be a proud horse and do it all alone, but no one can. So in the end, even the prideful Rin succumbs and cries in Tohru’s maternal embrace. From a storytelling standpoint, however, this feels redundant. We’ve seen this before. In fact, the story even acknowledges that this has happen before. When Tohru looks at Rin, she can’t help but be reminded of how Kyo used to be. And while it’s nice that certain story elements can rhyme, the emotions they elicit from us often don’t. A tragedy is never quite as powerful the second time around.
— We get a brief intermission to break up all the cloying drama. Yuki’s peers are still trolling him and his fanclub. That’s neat, I guess.
— Back home, our prince becomes more and more aware that he’s falling behind Kyo in the Tohru sweepstakes. Well, maybe his heart was never really in it. He’s still as overprotective of her as always, but their bond isn’t really deepening.
— Tohru had told Rin earlier in the episode that she won’t give up on trying to break the curse, ’cause she also has something precious that she needs to protect. When Rin later asks her about this, Tohru is suddenly speechless. Someone, however, does come across her mind’s eye, though. I bet it’s Kyo. I mean, I don’t know for sure, but are there any other candidates?
— Our heroine suggests that the two of them work together to try and break the curse, but Rin replies that she doesn’t need someone as unreliable as Tohru. That’s pretty rich coming from someone who just collapsed in last week’s episode.
— But we’re supposed to look past Rin’s thorns, because deep down, she really cares. Well, that’s why Tohru’s the loving mother whereas people like me will never have kids. She has all of the patience in the world for troubled children. I, on the other hand, would’ve moved on a long time ago. We know our strengths.
— That night, Tohru dreams about her mother again as she wonders why she couldn’t answer Rin’s question. She also briefly opens a door… Whose door? Her door? Kyo’s door? Meh. I guess she can’t exactly admit what her heart desires until she gets over her own trauma of losing her mother.
— The bad guy was going to delete Kaburagi for good when this… floating ball…? Well, whatever it is, it started freaking out. As a result, Kaburagi’s life is spared. He will be sent to a correctional facility instead. In a world full of advanced cyborgs, I expected the correctional facility to be… a little more refined. But instead, it literally does seem like regular ass prison. What do you do here? You smash Gadoll feces so that it can be processed. Really? Yes, really.
— A lot of these prisoners will work themselves to death. Most of them have also given up on the idea of ever escaping. After all, they’re stuck underwater beneath a giant Gadoll facility (if you still needed confirmation that the Gadolls are manufactured for the game). Kaburagi, however, still has a recording of Natsume telling him that she’ll surpass her limits. As a result, he gains a steely determination… to, uh, smash Gadoll shit like never before. Until his prison buddy spilled the beans, Kaburagi honestly intended to get rid of his “bugs” so that he might be released some day. Even though he’s supposed to be the battle-hardened veteran, he can be oddly naive at times.
— So what did his prison buddy spill the beans about? Well, he knows that the game hasn’t seen any action. Thanks to Kaburagi screwing everything up, the Company has been in a mad rush to “update” the game by creating more and more Gadolls. Hey man, patches take time. There isn’t a single MMO developer on this planet that can roll out major updates even monthly. Before the pandemic, the FFXIV team managed to pump out a major patch every three months, and they could only do that by being as cookie-cutter as possible.
— So wait, how is the prison buddy getting info about the game? Somehow, you can log into the game from prison. Seems like a major oversight, right? Well, it certainly appears that the Company cuts a whole lot of corners. But I suppose that’s not surprising. That bad guy is always going on about bug this and bug that, but at the end of the day, he entrusted his bug-hunting operation to a potential troublemaker. When profits is the number one concern, a company is always gonna try to do things as cheap as possible.
— Unfortunately, Kaburagi can’t just go up to the machine and log in. Access is controlled by a bunch of prison tough guys, a.k.a. his old buddies. So of course, Kaburagi is gonna have to fight for it, and it’s kinda boring so I don’t really care to talk about it… obviously, he’s gonna win and he does. What could they have done to make this better? Well, the problem is that groundwork was kinda neglected right from the get-go. The story never bothered to develop Kaburagi’s old buddies, so them showing up now after all this time doesn’t carry any emotional weight.
— Right before Kaburagi returns to Deca-Dence, he is reminded that he obviously can’t use his old account. As a result, his “in-game” avatar is going to look completely different. For some reason, I feel slightly apprehensive about this. Kaburagi is risking it all for a young Tanker. Let’s just hope this cyborg somehow found fatherly instincts somewhere in his programming.
— I noticed this before, but I didn’t comment on it: Master has his employees hand out fresh towels to every customer. That’s pretty fancy for a cafe. In the US, I would only see that at pricey restaurants.
— Anyway, summer is coming up, so of course, Shinichi wants to stay home and play games. Hey, that sounds like a blast to me. The way I see it, once you become a working adult, you don’t get summer breaks anymore. As a result, you may as well spend your free time doing what you want. But this is anime, so we gotta have all the lame ol’ summer cliches. Y’know, head to the beach, smash watermelons, do some silly courage test, blah blah blah. The only thing we’re missing are sparklers.
— At the beach, Ami experiences a bit (read: a lot) of boob envy, but everything is exaggerated in anime. After all, Ami’s breasts are also ridiculously huge, and if you don’t think so, then you probably watch too much anime/porn.
— If you’re gonna drag a swimmer to the beach, then you shouldn’t be surprised if they take the opportunity to go swimming. Nevertheless, Ami gets on Shinichi’s case for doing exactly that, because she thinks he’s trying to be a loner all over again. Damn, it’s not that deep. He just wants to swim at the beach, woman. Chill out.
— Poor Shinichi then gets lectured about how he needs to protect Hana from potential predators. What if Hana can fend for herself? She doesn’t seem like the weak, dainty type. I mean, she is a bit of a tomboy.
— Ami also says that he has to compliment a girl’s bathing suit. When he says nice things about hers, he gets slapped. And when he says nice things about Hana, he gets shoved. Like I said, she’s a tomboy. Anyways, loners just can’t win, man. That’s why we coop up in our homes and just game.
— During the smashing watermelon game, Shinichi and Hana get into a bit of a mishap. The sad part is that he just keeps groping and groping and groping, because when your blood going to your dick, fanservice doesn’t need to make sense. Only an idiot would mistake a boob for a watermelon.
— Eventually, everyone heads to Itsuhito’s summer home, and it doesn’t take much to impress our doofus duo.
— Once again, Shinichi wants to play games, but the group drags him outside into the dark. Apparently, he scares rather easily, and Hana immediately pounces on this weakness. But this isn’t like, “OMG, you totally jump-scared me! Damn you, Hana!” Instead, it seems like Shinichi actually does have a somewhat crippling fear of scary things. To Hana’s credit, she immediately stops the teasing and goes to comfort her friend. The other two, however… honestly, they seem like jerks to me here. They want Hana and Shinichi to hook up so badly that they act like he’s letting them down for having an actual phobia.
— Just earlier, Itsuhito goes on and on about how he just wants his buddy’s college life to be more fun, but it’s all subjective. Why does everyone have to have fun in the exact same way? If the guy is content with his life, then what’s the big deal? Sure, it isn’t a bad thing to encourage someone to step outside of their comfort zone, but these characters seem almost judgy at times. Don’t spend your time off doing what you like to do! Don’t go to the beach and swim by yourself! Don’t stay indoors when it’s super dark out!
— In the end, the only person who has energy left to game is Hana. Everyone else is all tucked out. Again, she wants to tease Shinichi, but she ends up becoming his body pillow for the night. So yeah, just friends.
— Later that night, the guy can’t sleep. When that happens to me, I usually just pull out my phone and start reading. This guy, however, decides that he wants to have a serious conversation. Dude, can’t this wait?
— Plus, he asks the same dumb shit that she asked last week. I mean, what lengths? When she gave him CPR, she was no longer in any danger.
— Even though Chizuru doesn’t give Kazuya a response to the previous question, he somehow takes this as a sign that he should keep talking. He starts droning on and on about how he doesn’t want to tell their grandmas the truth yet. Why? Because whenever he’s with her, he feels the desire to become a better person. Like I said before, the sad puppy shit works on Chizuru, so even though they should’ve stopped lying episodes ago, she suddenly pipes up and agrees to keep being his fake girlfriend. Until he finds a real girlfriend, she’ll play the fake one. Isn’t that kinda dumb, though? How are you gonna find a real girlfriend if you’re wasting both time and money hanging out with an actor?
— Kazuya wants to tell his buddies that he and Chizuru are not breaking up, which is normal, I guess. But for some reason, she also needs to be there with him. It has to be done in person, which I find kinda hilarious. I don’t think I’ve ever told my friends in person that I was dating or dumping someone.
— Afterwards, Chizuru says that they need to lay out some ground rules… which are the exact damn rules we’ve had since the beginning (he needs to keep paying her, and he should be honest when giving her reviews).
— Somehow, they bump into one of Kazuya’s nerdier friends, and he ropes them into a double date. He’s rather forceful about it, which is odd. Almost suspicious if you ask me. I don’t like people dragging me to stuff out of the blue, but Kazuya’s kind of a wimp. As for Chizuru, she’s busy being tsundere to protest.
— Oh yeah, now that Mami has been… slain, I suppose, we need a new competitor. We need a new girl to try and steal Kazuya away from Chizuru. Yeah, he’s such a catch, I know. Welp, here’s the new challenger… aaaaaand she looks like she’s still in high school. I guess that’s how it usually goes. When you can’t date someone your own age, try and prey on someone immature.
— Once he’s alone, our protagonist whines about how he’ll ever manage to find a real girl. I don’t know why guys like him treat this like it’s rocket science. It’s not. You just have to be able to put up a mirror and take a long, hard look at yourself. Just earlier, Kazuya was drooling over Chizuru’s refined personality. Well, guess what? Maybe he should be a little more refined. He thinks about her silky hair. Great! Maybe he should think about changing up his hairstyle. Find one that is more trendy! Last but not least, he loves the way Chizuru dresses. Ah, maybe — just maybe — girls are attracted to dudes who don’t wear graphic t-shirts. I mean, c’mon, this is common sense. If women have to look attractive, why wouldn’t the same apply to men? If women are to be desired, then so are men.
— Look, beauty is obviously subjective. I’m sure there’s someone out there who would love a dude who goes on dates in a graphic t-shirt. But if Kazuya isn’t impressing the girls that he wants to get with, then maybe he needs to become the guy that those girls would want. And if anyone says, “I don’t want to change because I want them to love me for me,” then accept that you might not get what you want. Something has to give. Life isn’t a harem anime. Hot girls don’t just fall into your lap.
— Well, guess what! She just so happens to be the nerdy friend’s girlfriend! Her name is Ruka, and it’s obvious to the viewers that she’s a rental girlfriend much like Chizuru, but Kazuya doesn’t know any better. Hell, he’s too busy ogling her in front of Chizuru.
— The nerdy friend has taken everyone bouldering. Why? So he can check the girls out. Great, so he’s a sleezebag, too.
— Even though she’s never done it before, Chizuru seems like a natural at almost anything… except telling the truth. But I kid, I kid… On the other hand, both Kazuya and the new girl are struggling. I guess that’s how they’re gonna frame it. Chizuru will be the ideal girlfriend. Perhaps she is out of Kazuya’s league. Meanwhile, a girl like Ruka is clumsy and not-quite-so-perfect. She’s more… “attainable.”
— In the middle of the date, Ruka asks Chizuru if she’s a rental girlfriend. She should know because she probably is one. Anyways, she then challenges Chizuru to kiss Kazuya. If they’re a couple, a kiss should be no trouble, right? In fact, kisses shouldn’t be a big deal. Actors do it all the time. In some cultures, kisses are a form of greeting. I feel like if Chizuru is gonna be a rental girlfriend, a quick peck on the lips shouldn’t be that difficult. It’s not like she has to full-on tongue-wrestle the guy.
— Plus, Chizuru and Kazuya aren’t very smart on their feet. If Ruka wants to play dirty, then play dirty with her back. Dare her to kiss her nerdy boyfriend. Alas, they don’t think of this. Instead, Chizuru pulls off a lame attempt at faking a kiss.
— Kazuya soon makes an excuse about how Chizuru has to leave and visit her grandma. After everyone decides to go home for the day, it’s now Kazuya’s turn to be confronted by Ruka. Eh, even if Chizuru is a rental girlfriend, why does she care? It’s not her business.
Ah, it’s that infamous cleaver again. Hell, for anime fans, the weapon’s almost iconic, isn’t it? Every time I come across a remake, my first thought is always, “Boy, I don’t remember a damn thing about this show anymore!” I might sound like a broken record, but it’s true. I watched the original anime adaptation over a decade ago, and it’s not like I ever went back for a rewatch. And what I mostly remember is… oh lord, the silly animation. The goddamn goofy-ass animation:
So this is one of the many areas that the remake can certain improve upon, right? Or does it even need to be improved upon? Isn’t the goofy animation part of the original adaptation’s charm? Gosh, I dunno…
In any case, the animation quality in the remake is not looking too hot at the moment.
Maybe we can blame the pandemic, but I’m not too impressed with what I’m seeing right now.
Is eating breakfast everyday something to be proud about? Anyways, maybe the remake can do a better job of telling the same story, but again, I’m not too optimistic. With mysteries like Higurashi, once you know the answer behind the mystery — once the story has been spoiled for you — most of the fun is gone. I don’t remember much from the original series, but I still remember what’s causing everyone to slowly go deranged.
I recently fell down the visual novel rabbit hole… not for too long, but long enough to play some of the big hits like the Muv-Luv series. I won’t recap my all of my visual novel experiences yet, but during my binge, I ended up buying the eight Higurashi chapters that are on Steam. Hey, they were on sale, and I had cash to burn. Unfortunately, I never actually got around to reading them. I certainly tried, though! If I look at my playtime for the first chapter, it currently sits at 86 min. And do you wanna know how far I got in the visual novel? Certainly not as far as this episode… I think. Maybe we’re at the same place. In any case, this is the problem I have with a lot of visual novels: the pacing is turrrrrrrible.
Yep, I recall reading about how Satoko likes to set traps for Keiichi. I also remember reading the part where he gets a tour of the village.
And of course, who could forget reading about their huge feast of a picnic? What anime girl can’t cook a meal for 20 in her spare time? Then afterwards, there’s a card game? I dunno, my memories start to get fuzzy there, but that’s my point. I hit all of those “plot points” and more in just 23 minutes of the anime. Meanwhile, my playtime for the visual novel is (again) 86 minutes. Everything is inflated in the visual novel. Something that takes only a couple of minutes to watch in the anime will take twice or even triple the time just to read in the original story.
People like to say, “Ugh, the adaptation cuts out so much material!” But I’m on the other side of the fence. Having seen the original anime adaptation, I already know what Higurashi is about. I already know that shit’s going to hit the fan… over… and over… and over. Nevertheless, I couldn’t push through the first chapter of the visual novel, because it’s just so slow. And this is the same with almost every visual novel out there! Do you really need to spend eight hours with Muv-Luv Extra in order to appreciate both Unlimited and Alternative? Ardent fans would say yes! And I agree that you need some context about Takeru and Sumika’s original relationship in order to fully take in emotional roller coaster ride that’s waiting for you in Alternative. But you’re never gonna convince me that eight painstaking hours full of slice-of-life is completely needed. And it’s the same way I feel here. There’s gotta be fat to trim. There’s just gotta be! But I suspect visual novel authors don’t really edit themselves that much…
During my visual novel binge, I was also rather annoyed to see most of the male leads treat their friends like shit. Keiichi is just teasing Rena. He’s not as bad as some of his peers… like, say, Takeru in Muv-Luv or Ren in Dies Irae. Those dudes will straight up insult their friends, and I just don’t get the appeal. Nevertheless, we’re still playing off of the same trope in Higurashi, and boy am I tired of it. People write from experience or they just make shit up because they have no clue what real personal relationships are like. Either way, it feels bad, man.
So in 23 minutes, there are only a handful of creepy scenes. Together, they might amount to maybe a minute or two of runtime. Some guy randomly tells Keiichi that something gruesome happened a long time ago. And when our hero tries to ask Rena about it, her entire personality turns dark for just a split second. Hoo boy, now that’s the gap moe to die for! Then right as the episode is about to come to an end, it looks like Rena might have a present for her dear friend. If I pretend for a second that I don’t know anything about what happens later — and to be fair, I’ve largely forgotten a lot of the story — is this enough to draw me in? Ehhhhhhh, probably not. Again, I can’t help but think back to my experience with Muv-Luv. If people hadn’t hyped up Alternative to hell and back — if I hadn’t already known that the series would turn into a battle for life and death against a mysterious alien life-form — I would have NEVER finished Extra. Never.
To be fair, Higurashi doesn’t play it so slow. Right from the first second, you see Keiichi hacking Rena to pieces. Obviously, shit’s gonna go down… but it’s still just a promise. And while you cling to that promise, you gotta watch silly, slapstick hijinks. That bugs me a bit. If you have the patience for it, cool. And in all honesty, I’ll probably keep blogging the series, because that’s what I do on this blog. I watch shows that bore me out of obligation until I get burned out and go on hiatus (coughcough). But if I weren’t blogging anime in general, I would really have to ask myself if the series truly deserves a second chance after this episode. There are just so many forms of entertainment out there to compete with.
I would prefer watching every single show and just combining it all into one uber post, but there are just way, way too many new series to watch. How does one keep up? Well, it helps that I don’t have Netflix. I’m sure there are good shows on that streaming platform as well, but I refuse to pay for it. So yes, maybe Sakamoto Days would blow my pants off, but alas, I can never watch it. Yes, yes, I could sail the high seas like I once did as a broke college student, but I’ll pass. It’s not a moral thing; I’m just too lazy these days. It also helps that I’m currently trying to play through a JRPG called Reynatis, and I think it rather sucks. So for once, I’d rather update the blog than play games. Anyway…
*****
Ameku M.D.: Doctor Detective
I watched the first two episodes, which I found to be kinda dry. In those two episodes, the anime was very focused on the medical mysteries. Ameku is the genius doctor, and she drives the plot. Or to put it more bluntly, she pretty much dominates the plot. Other characters show up to play their roles in keeping the plot moving, but they take backseat in terms of interesting characterization. For example, Kotori doesn’t really do much for the time being other than following the good doctor around (well, they’re both doctors) like a puppy, asking questions to help the audience keep up with the girl’s logic. Ameku herself is played rather straight at the moment: super inquisitive, has an encyclopedic knowledge on medical-related topics, can easily diagnose patients by seeing the finer details, blah blah blah, but that all comes at a cost. She’s also socially inept, blunt, has no respect for people’s boundaries, arrogant, etc. Y’know, your typical detective type. She just comes in a diminutive anime waifu package, so she’s a bit more tolerable to the weebs watching this stuff (your mileage may vary).
I could get into the main mystery itself. Something about a guy showing up with weird color blood (it’s blue, I think? I’ve forgotten already) and his leg oddly bitten off. But the mystery itself isn’t that important. Yes, it’s all very fascinating, but it’s the sort of thing that goes in, gets processed by the brain as “Huh, that’s interesting,” then is quickly forgotten in a week’s time. If you bothered to tell someone else about the neat facts you just learned, then maybe you’ll retain the knowledge for a little longer.
For me, the only bit of compelling drama comes when Ameku’s uncle chastises her for distracting herself with her sleuthing inclinations. You could argue that her uncle is right. All this time spent solving obscure, brain-stumping mysteries could’ve been used on saving patients. A doctor and their skills are rare and specialized; I can’t just pick up a book on human anatomy and start curing people any time soon. Is Ameku really using her time and knowledge wisely? But at the same time, maybe the mysteries are the only things keeping her engaged. Maybe she’d quit the profession altogether if she had to be “normal.” So I dunno, maybe the rest of the series can slowly explore that internal conflict in our doctor while trotting out more weird and bizarre medical mysteries. But judging by the first two episodes, I’m not entirely convinced that I want to devote my nights to keeping up with Ameku.
*****
Possibly the Greatest Alchemist of All Time
For some reason, this show has a dub already, which is kind of a boon. It certainly makes it easier to consume while I mindlessly grind away in my JRPGs. This is one of those… life-sim isekais? I don’t know if there’s a proper term for this subgenre — this is just the one I came up with. Instead of your standard adventuring nonsense (i.e. picking up guild quests, forming a party, going after the demon lord, etc), our hero goes about setting up his life in the new world like experimenting with alchemy, smithing for the first time, taming his first pet (always female and super cute), yadda yadda yadda. It’s one of those “comfy” shows, i.e. boring. There’s a background plot where other people also got summoned, and maybe the empress is shady. Maybe that will build up to something. In a single cour series, I kinda doubt it. At the time of writing this post, there’s a second episode, but I’ve already stopped caring.
*****
Okitsura
This is your edutainment anime of the season, maybe? Okitsu reminds me of that other show a while back about gyarus in Hokkaido. Essentially, whenever we run out of plot, the show can start teaching us about a regional culture that isn’t common knowledge. Or maybe the education is the primary draw and the half-baked romance is the side dish. Up to you. Personally, Hokkaido is a setting that doesn’t show up too often, so at least that part was novel.
The issue here is that our boring ass main character can’t even understand what his crush is saying. Falling in love with someone who you can’t even understand is… odd. He has a gist of her personality, but can you really know someone if you can’t even communicate with them? But he’s a kid, so it’s not really love love. It’s just a crush. An infatuation mayhaps.
But right off the bat, the anime introduces a second love interest. Not only does other girl also like the main character — for reasons that are currently unknown to me — she also has to translate the Okinawan dialect for him. Essentially, she’s helping her rival win. Drew the short straw there, especially since the primary heroine is kind of a gimmick at the moment. How self aware is she? Does she not realize that the MC has no clue what she’s saying? Or does she find that amusing so she just keeps yapping at him despite him staring back at her dumbly? Basically, is she even a real character with her own dreams and aspirations separate from being gormless dude’s love interest?
So what sort of regional culture stuff are we in for? Well, for example, you can’t call someone Higa because everyone is Higa. But you can’t call them by their first name, because ho ho ho, as we already know from other anime, that’s too embarrassing. But to make it even worse, when the MC tries to call out to one of the girls, his pronunciation is off and that leads to even more misunderstandings. Y’see, “Kana-san” is apparently a confession of love. God, that sounds exhausting.
There’s more stuff like something about your soul falling out or whatever when you’re surprised. I guess if you’re looking for that sort of enrichment, the show can be comfort food for you. I am sadly not in the mood for that sort of thing. Not again, anyway. I replayed Yakuza 3 in 2024, so I’m something of an Okinawan expert myself.
After the characters helped a lost child, I pretty much started droning out the show. Needless to say, I won’t be revisiting this show in ensuing weeks.
*****
I’m Getting Married to a Girl I Hate in My Class
I had this show playing off to the side while I was planning out my grocery budget for the month (being an adult rules). Unless there’s hanky-panky, these shows are all the same. The two primary characters are tsuntsun for each other now, but he’ll do some really nice, considerate things for her, so the girl slowly starts to thaw out a bit and fall for him. Along the way, he gets to know a few other girls — maybe a childhood friend, maybe a quiet bookish type to contrast with the popular main heroine — because focusing on a single heroine is lame. And because this is an anime adaptation, there will be no satisfying resolution by the time the season draws to a close. Fans will go, “Will there be a season 2?” only for manga/LN readers haughtily suggest, “Ugh, just read the source material.” Cool beans. Wasn’t there a recent series about a guy having to shack up with a girl? Cuckoo something? Whatever.
*****
Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms
Essentially, everyone adores the heroine except for the main character. This has been the case since the day she was born. Usually, newborns are ugly as shit, but somehow, our girl managed to captivate everyone right from the get go. As a result, she’s grown up to be a bit (read: a lot) shallow, self-centered, arrogant, etc. It’s like she has a spell over every single person within her vicinity. Even adults, which is kinda weird. The only exception, however, is the male protagonist. As I watched this episode, I couldn’t help but wonder if this is a reaction to all those teasing anime. I briefly read a manga where the heroine was a hardcore tsunderekko that ends up going too far. The protagonist dumps her all within the first chapter, I believe? So finito, right? End of the story, because happy ending, right? Nah, the rest of the story involves her trying to get him back only for him to rebuff her at every chance. It almost feels like a tale of revenge. But who are we lashing back at? All those teasing heroines in other series that aren’t even real. Anyway, this show probably doesn’t have that mean streak in it.
The weird thing is that our heroine doesn’t even hide her bad personality. She’s boldly arrogant, going on and on about how she’s a queen bee, but no one seems to notice. She even throws a tantrum at one point because she just can’t understand why the MC isn’t kissing her feet like everyone else. A literal tantrum like a toddler. So for me, this makes the show seem dumb — like it doesn’t exist in a real world with real people. How do you sustain this for an entire season? When she slammed her head down in frustration after realizing that she was falling for him instead of the other way around, I thought the episode was over. Apparently, I was only at the halfway point.
What makes everything even less interesting for me is that our MC is truthfully just as obsessed with her as everyone else. He’s just hiding it due to silly religious reasons. So yeah, not the least bit compelling. In fact, why spoil the surprise so soon? The story should have kept us in suspense as to why he’s cold to her.
*****
Promise of Wizard
Couldn’t finish. I guess they tried to adapt a gacha game about wizard bishies. I saw a buncha dudes chasing after a girl, who is then saved by similar looking dudes. But the latter are supposed to be hot and unique unlike the group of generic dudes earlier. Sure.
*****
I Want to Escape from Princess Lessons
I found this show super depressing. Our heroine is living an idyllic life when she is suddenly forced to undergo princess lessons (“Lettie, you’re going to the castle to learn how to be a good wife”) from a harsh disciplinarian all so she can marry the prince. It just bummed me out right from the get-go, especially when our heroine looked out of her carriage and waved goodbye to her puppy. Her mother even says something like “I have good news! Your future has been decided!” Ew, gross. Gag. She’s a child, man. Obviously, this is the reaction the show wants from us. There’s no subtlety here. Still, it was a hard watch.
Eventually, we get a time skip in order to see that Laeticia is finally acting like a proper lady, but it’s painfully obvious that she’s deeply unhappy. She’s present, but there’s nothing behind the eyes. I doubt this is a mystery to anyone around her either. You can’t be that blind to basic human emotions. My read is that they know she’s sad, but they don’t care. Because it just doesn’t matter. Happiness is not important to being a proper lady. But that doesn’t mean she’s given up. She thinks that if the prince falls in love with someone else, she’ll be freed. So one night, when she sees the prince with another woman at a soiree, she thinks she just got her big break. She starts making plans to return home and all that. And I think that’s where the first episode ends if my memory is correct. But it just feels so futile. It feels like the more she struggles, the more the narrative will push her back towards the prince. At best, she’ll carve out a victory along the lines of falling for the prince, but it’s totally her choice guys so it’s okay!
Just to go on a bit of a tangent, I was not a big fan of Yukiko’s social link in Persona 4, because it had all this build up to her becoming independent, finding her own way in life, so on and so forth… only for her to inherit the inn after all. But it’s her choice so it’s fine.
Anyway, escape from what lessons? Our heroine has already been imprisoned for years.
What’s my beef anyway? This stuff happened all the time back in the day. Hell, you could say it still happens now in some places. So what’s wrong with the show depicting this? My issue isn’t about historical accuracy, but rather that I don’t really want to do this in a TV series. Sure, an anime could hypothetically do this subject matter justice, but my gut feeling is that this show probably ain’t it. I mean, just look at that image above. You can’t convince me that this show has the right tone.
*****
Honey Lemon Soda
It’s hard to take these romances seriously when the pitiful wallflower is always saved from their doldrums by the most popular — most attractive — member of the opposite sex. Moreover, when the guy is the love interest, he always too cool and detached. Nothing fazes him. He’s blunt and rude with his words. Nevertheless, that rough exterior belies a sensitive soul that only the heroine is able to glimpse! Someone who does nice things without being asked to. Someone so considerate that he immediately predicts that she’ll be mocked for being the only person to wear gym clothes, so he quietly changes into his own gym clothes offscreen! Wowee! Someone who bravely stands up to bullies — kids who find it funny to toss someone’s shoes in the trash — because literally no one else will. Schools are so full of useless people, after all. And there’s nothing wrong with any of the stuff I just listed above… unless, of course, you’ve already seen it a thousand times before. So Honey Lemon Soda doesn’t feel bright and fresh like its name would suggest. It’s just another tepid, flat take to suck down if the first episode is anything to go by.
But I’ve got an even bigger bone to pick, because I’m like dad age now. I’m old enough to be a parent, and that makes me view these kids quite differently. I can’t help but shake my head when our heroine goes, “But today it was Miura who splashed me, so it actually made me happy.” What? Girl, c’mon. But what’s even crazier to me is when we learn why our girl is even at this school in the first place. Y’see, she’s a smart kid. She could’ve gotten into the top prep school (some place called Shinsei, apparently), but she aimed low instead. Why? Because the love interest saw her carrying a stack of prospective schools, and without knowing a thing about her, suggested that she attend his school instead. Fine, it’s not like she’s passing up Harvard. This is just high school. You can still be successful even if you attend a third rate high school. Hell, you can even be successful attending a third rate university. I make a decent living and I attended UCSB, the “party school” of the UCs. But man, don’t change your school just because a guy makes you “tingle” (hey man, her words). Could you imagine your daughter telling you she wants to pass up on a better education because a hot guy was nice to her once? Once?! If they were dating, I could understand. BUT ONCE?!
But it’ll work out, because we know it will. This is yet another one of those shows where the quiet, shy kid slowly makes friends, experiences wholesome moments, etc etc etc. I’m just being mean and cynical, because I can’t help but wonder why can’t she change at Shinsei? Why can’t she come out of her shell there? Why can’t she meet cool friends there? It’s a top school, right? So presumably, there would be a lot of students there who are like her — who may have been loners or picked on at their previous schools like her. But instead, the key to her happy life is a boy she met once on the streets? No one else can teach her how to ask for help? Again, please, do not base your future on boys that make you tingle. But who am I kidding? No one who needs that advice is reading this blog (insert “no one is reading this blog” retort here).
*****
I Left my A-Rank Party to Help My Former Students Reach the Dungeon Depths!
Not even S-Rank. Pfft. Losers.
Anyway, the show is about a guy who left his former party because he was greatly underappreciated (and under compensated) by, well, everyone. What usually happens in this story is that there’s one or two characters who feel bad for our MC, but not this time around. And if you’re familiar with this plot structure, you will already know that our hero did all the work. Hell, he was the only reason they could function at a high level. Yet somehow, all these A-Rank adventurers who spend all their days doing this stuff as a profession just don’t see it. These shows are revenge or comeuppance stories with extra steps.
Anime isn’t only juvenile because it’s often about shounens saving the world. If anything, the wholesome earnestness of those series are often brief respites from the shitty, cynical, caring-is-cringe reality that we live in. What really brings a lot of anime down, on the other hand, is all the pettiness inherent to some of the non-shounens that are supposedly for an older audience. If it’s not getting your revenge on the cruel goddess who summoned you to this world, bullies from your previous life, or whatever injustice they cooked up — like haha shields are for losers…? — then it’s the arrogant party leader who just can’t see recognize your genius. The persecution fetish and the resulting “I’ll show you” conclusion that just feels so pathetic. There are folks who keep reliving their teen glory days because they peaked in high school. On the flip side of that, however, are folks who can’t keep lashing out at ghosts of their high school days, letting those traumatic memories fester into adulthood. I feel doubly offended because the main character here is a red mage, and I main a red mage in pretty much every FF game that has a job system.
Anyways, it’s always the same dumb setup where everyone (read: idiots) think the main character isn’t strong, but psst he actually is. He has feats such as casting three enchanting spells at a time, refreshing mana (apparently rare in this universe), freezing undead in their tracks, having every useful potion in his bag of tricks because he’s also an alchemist, so on and so forth. To top it all off, he can cook delicious meals which apparently no one else in the new party can do. Why? Shrug. To belabor the point, these MCs are always super knowledgeable, studies the ins and outs of every mob, every dungeon encounter, every map, always knows everything. But at the same time, just a normal dude, y’know? And why did no one else recognize all of these awesome qualities in our MC? Because for these stories to function, everyone else has to be as dumb as rocks.
At some point, our MC’s previous party will struggle. Maybe they’ll come begging for him to return to them. I think I saw that in some show last season about a healer who can only cast basic healing spells or something. I never found out what happens later, but does it really matter? Probably not. And I can probably say the same here.
*****
I’ll try to watch some more shows over the next few days, I guess. If I have enough to write a post, I will.
The Red Ranger Becomes an Adventurer in Another World
Ah yes, yet another isekai series. If a new anime season doesn’t have at least four or five new isekai adaptations, is it really a new season at all? And this one is Super Sentai flavored. I don’t have much experience with Super Sentai type shows. As a kid, the Power Rangers were huge, but it never appealed to me personally. Of course, I watched a few episodes, because when everyone at school talks about it, you get curious. I distinctly remember seeing a green guy kicking everyone’s butts? Even back then, I never felt that live action was adequate for this sort of aesthetic. It just looks goofy. Even now, with Marvel flicks commanding budgets in the hundreds of millions, I feel the same way. They’re better off animated like the Spiderman cartoon movies. But that’s enough of this tangent.
Basically, Red defeats his nemesis, but dies in the process. And like all Japanese men before him, dying in this day and age means being isekai’d to a generic fantasy universe. Right off the bat, we skip to him becoming a “reputable” adventurer. There’s no learning the ropes here, and I kinda appreciate that. Mainly, I’m tired of watching the average isekai hero go through the same song and dance. “Ahhhhh, what world am I in!” “Wow, time to register as an adventurer at my first guild!” “Time to find a place to stay!” It’s never anything interesting; it’s always the same events but with “different” characters. Also logically, Red’s already done his homework, so to speak. He wouldn’t have become the leader of his Kizuna Five without a lot of training and experience.
So instead of acclimating to his new surroundings, Red’s first episode devotes itself to impressing his first party member, a somewhat tsundere and definitely scantily-clad witch girl. She has him procuring a source of mana metal (which from anime explanation sounds a lot like oil), and in the process, he wins her over with his earnestness. They even win their first major battle together by using the power of their bond — what bond? They’ve just met! But Red’s that affable. What woman can resist such pure, uncut shounen energy? Red is absolutely corny, but it’s the kind of corny where you roll your eyes, but maybe the corners of your mouth are smiling.
That aside, there are minor details I like. A lot of times, when people get isekai’d, they never even look back. They immediately embrace their new world as if their previous lives never existed, their previous family and friends never mattered. That always bothered me, because what’s the point of making it an isekai then? What’s the point of going from one world to the next if the first world never carries any significance? Just do a fantasy anime right from the start then. Red still embraces his new world wholeheartedly, but he at least explains that he initially wanted to return to his world before realizing that everyone here needs his help. It’s not a huge thing, but it makes his journey a little more believable.
Red doesn’t struggle at all in his new environment. In fact, he’s a reputable adventurer precisely because “everything” still works. His suit, his mech thing, etc. It’s all there, and it’s all in tip-top shape. Does his stuff run on limitless energy? Are we going to get an arc where they suddenly fail and our hero is useless? Maybe these questions are all pointless because it’s not that serious. This probably isn’t some new epic isekai tale. It’s yet another gimmicky flavor that will come and go in a flash. Nevertheless, while I can’t say that I love this flavor, I don’t really hate it either. If this show was dubbed, I’d be down to listen to Red’s adventures while gaming. But is it strong enough to be your primary form of entertainment? Ehhh, nah.
*****
Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You.
Ah, the folly of false expectations. First, the first minute of the show made me think that we’d get a story with and about adults. Unfortunately, that is quickly dashed. Our somewhat despondent 27-year-old heroine is supposed to be celebrating her birthday, but she instead learns that her serialized manga series is ending by the end of the year. But somehow, seeing a bunch of happy go lucky high schoolers cross her path makes her reminisce on “sparkling” days of her past, so we quickly rip off the bandaid and quickly return to the all too familiar high school setting. Yay, time to sparkle like a vampire.
My second false expectation actually comes from other people. They make it seem like this is a pandemic love story. Maybe it still can be one, but the first episode is not a strong effort. To start off, it doesn’t reflect my experience of a pandemic. Everyone’s still out and about without masks… but maybe it’s not that kind of infectious. But whatever. Let’s get to the the meat and potatoes of the show.
Y’see, our heroine is in love with a senpai on the swim team. And when he performs at the next big swim meet, she initially plans to confess her feelings to him afterwards. Of course, with a pandemic, big events like that are canceled. She’s forced to kinda confess to him at a bus stop? I mean, I don’t think her original plans are great, anyway. They feel inconsiderate, y’know? Win or lose, he’ll be running on an emotional high of… I dunno, competition, camaraderie with his team, personal pride on achieving his goals, whatever. So she then wants to swoop in and be all, “I like you, pls respond?” Nah, man. It’s not the right time and place. In any case, he rejects her bus stop confession anyway.
So in comes one of her four childhood friends, who immediately confesses to her after noticing that she has been crying. Again, bad timing in my opinion, but I’ll get to that in a bit. Yes, one of them… for now. Our heroine is in a group of four hot guys and, well, her. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but I always have to raise my eyebrow when the gender ratio is that lopsided. Especially when our heroine does have a girl friend, but she only serves as a backup lunch partner when our heroine doesn’t feel like hanging out with her boy pals for whatever reason. But snarkiness aside, I’m not in the mood for a love polygon. Maybe there will be one, maybe there won’t. But I’ll be surprised if at least one other boy doesn’t also get his feelings for her all up in a twist, and I’m interested in melodrama but not that kind. Plus, the first episode is odd in that it simultaneously dull (I blame the pacing) and also super melodramatic at the same time.
So what’s up with all these bad confessions? If you know that your friend has been rejected, do you think her mind is clear enough to process your feelings for her? I suppose I can somewhat excuse this. After all, these are kids, and even adults are clumsy with their own thoughts and actions. Who can expect a hormonal teenager to be better? My problem, however, is that this guy gives me bad vibes. He’s also on the same swim team as her senpai. He immediately tells the guy to leave her alone, which is kinda scary possessive. Maybe I’m reading him wrong, but it’s not one event that makes him seem sketchy. You can write off one event. Multiple events, however, constitute a pattern. At her birthday, he babies her by wiping cream off of her face. Hey man, are you gonna ask permission first?
But that’s the confounding thing with romance: where are the lines drawn when it comes to boundaries? What’s romantic and what’s over the line? It’s clear that our heroine isn’t catching on. Or rather, she refuses to. She still sees him as a crybaby from all those years ago, and she seems steadfast in maintaining that perception of him. So he does the classic anime trope thing of backing her up against the wall and planting a kiss on her after being rebuffed over and over. Super hot when it’s a love interest. Super creepy when it’s not. So which one is he? Is he an actual love interest to her? Because if you go by her own thoughts and actions leading up to this moment, he isn’t one. She hasn’t even had the chance to grieve her first love, and one of her best friends — someone she’s supposed to trust — starts putting on the moves. Is it in her best interests or his?
Plus, it calls into question what we saw at the start of the episode. The 27-year-old version of our heroine didn’t sound like she was married, but we actually don’t really know anything about her. Maybe the plot twist is that she’s still with him despite what the opening suggests. Or maybe she’s not. So what kind of love story are we in for? Is it destined for happiness? Personally, I’m kinda rooting against the kid. If I could advise her as a friend or parental figure, I’d say stay the hell away from a guy who can’t respect your feelings or personal space. Sure, I only have one episode to go on, but I feel like that’s enough, man. Moreover, I’m not sticking around to find out when he eventually gets painted in a better light in future episodes because this first episode was frankly boring as hell. It did make me laugh out loud at one point, though. I think I’m supposed to swoon when he has her against the wall with his bare chest is glistening from the shower water. But I belly laughed. As a dorky nerd in his thirties, I am so clearly not the show’s target audience.
*****
Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf
The vast majority of salarymen get themselves killed by some maniac with a knife, then ends up isekai’d into a harem full of hot, young ladies. Our hero, on the other hand, doesn’t get knifed. Instead, he has the power to isekai himself by going to bed, and he returns to the comfort (or drudgery) of his everyday life every time he wakes up or, well, dies. Not so bad, right? Well, only a single elf waifu this time around. Gosh, salarymen can’t get a break. First, their salaries stagnate, and now no harem? Has isekai anime gone woke?!
Anyways, this flavor of isekai is not too exciting. The first episode feels like a build up to your standard fish-out-of-water story, but in reverse. But therein lies the problem: I’m not really interested in seeing the marvels of our, uh, modern life? Sure, it might be cute to see elf waifu’s reaction for a couple of episodes, but 12 or 13 of them? Meh. But like I’ve said above, if this was dub or is going to be dubbed in the future, I’ll toss it into the easy listenin’ pile.
*****
I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I’ll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time
Our heroine values safety and stability, so instead of becoming an adventurer like everyone else, she chooses instead to be a guild receptionist. We’re basically going through the list. Everyone gets a POV; every role will get its time in the spotlight. Eventually, there’s going to be a show about the butcher to handles all the animal parts that adventurers bring home. Or maybe that show already exists and I just haven’t been lucky enough to watch it.
Anyways, our girl’s problem is that the adventurers around her suck. And because they suck, they get stuck on bosses. Them being stuck somehow leads to mountains upon mountains of paperwork for her. Why? I don’t know. I wasn’t paying attention. The point is that she has to take matters into her own hands and kill those dastardly bosses herself. If she’s so concerned with safety and stability, how did she become so strong? If shitty adventurers are inadvertently forcing her to do all that overtime, how did she find the time to get strong? But also, if she can solo them with ease, then what is she even afraid of? Can’t she keep doing these easy bosses, rake in the treasure, and live the easy life? Sure, there are always bigger fishes to fry, but no one is forcing you to do the hardest content possible, right? Fuck if I know. I guess we’d have to keep watching to find out, because the first episode doesn’t have time to explain all of that. Maybe it never will. The key question, however, is if we want to keep watching.
Anyway, the current driving force of the story is that the top adventuring team lost one of its veteran members, so the enterprising leader decides that our guild receptionist is obvious person to recruit. But if she can already solo bosses, the hell does she need a party for? More questions for future episodes to answer, I suppose. If I have to pass judgment right this second, I’d say the first episode was kinda boring. Mainly, I’m just not invested in our heroine, and the gimmick of her being a guild receptionist doesn’t really excite me. It’s one of those ideas that I feel like could be explored in an hour or so — a movie, perhaps.
*****
As always, I’ll be back for more later… maybe… if time and energy permits. To be honest, I’m forcing myself to play through the Kingdom Hearts series, so I’ll probably take plenty of “breaks” to watch anime instead.
By the way, I hate the new WordPress editor. If I really start blogging regularly again, I might need to find a new solution.
Ah yes, completely hair beastmen, but super bangable beastwomen. Anyway, I’ve already watched a couple isekai shows this season, but let’s get the rest out of the way. I already know I won’t keep following most of these insipid series to the end, but let’s find out why.
*****
I’m a Noble on the Brink of Ruin, So I Might as Well Try Mastering Magic
Yet another isekai where an adult becomes a child. Yet another isekai where the main character doesn’t even or think about his previous life. Y’know, I’m not even close with my parents, but I think I would still miss them if I could never see or speak to them again. If a selfish asshole like me can miss my parents, what’s their excuse? Are isekai MCs sociopathic? Probably not. It’s laziness. These authors are in for a quick buck, and the audience don’t care. So why waste time addressing these concerns? Clearly, the genre isn’t going away any time soon, so what they have works. They won’t win over curmudgeons like me, but don’t need me or my money.
It’s… a little dismaying, I guess. Whenever these shows dive headfirst into their made-up fantasy magic system, they go into so much detail. So, so much detail. But not a single word about their loved ones from their previous lives. This anime is no different. Our MC and his eventual tutor goes on and on about prime numbers and strengthening their magical spells, absorbing summons, whatever. As you can probably guess, I tuned that shit out. Why would I waste precious brain power trying to understand a made up magic system? It’s not a story. It has no humanity in it. It’s just… pointless minutia. I care about characters undergoing big changes like learning to be a better person, surmounting shortcomings, defeating vices, etc.
It’s also weird when they wake up in an existing person’s body. If they suddenly regained memories of their previous life, okay, fine. But when you take over someone else’s body, where did the previous person go? But again, we never stop to think about it. We’ve got the same tired tropes and genre conventions to get through! Those are more important!
Anyway, our hero Liam is born into a noble family, but one on (as the title suggests) the brink of ruin. There’s a class system, but I guess there’s a bit of meritocracy mixed in? If nobles haven’t been very noble, i.e. doing actual good stuff, then they will be stripped of their title. Needless to say, our MC has oodles of rare magic talent (of course) and his brothers either don’t care or are green-eyed losers (of course). Dad don’t care unless you can make him look good. I’m guessing he pumps out kids in the hopes that one of them can do something for him. Pretty sad, but par for the course.
It’s also common for isekai stories to do a little cultural fusion. The setting is almost always European in some fashion. They love that shit. But they also want to have their cake and eat it too, so the MC almost always introduce Japanese culture to his new world full of super open-minded people. No one’s ever like, “Ew, miso is kinda weird.” What’s kinda weird about this show, however, is that ramen somehow already exists. What’s an enterprising MC to do then? Well, he tries to invent instant ramen.
For plot reasons that aren’t important enough to explain beyond big bro jealous. Big bro tries to screw over MC. Our hero becomes an adventurer at the ripe age of 11? 12? Somewhere around there. Naturally, he’s probably 99% stronger than the adults in the area. Hell, maybe the world. We meet Asuna (pictured above), likely the first love interest. But surely, a simple girl like her can’t keep up with our uber awesome MC, right? So the guild leader or whatever suggests a suspicious sounding idea: become Liam’s familiar. If you’re thinking, “Wait, doesn’t that make him her master?” Yes, yes it does. An 11-year-old is her master now. Look, she’ll have to obey his orders, but in return, she gets super speed! Who wouldn’t take that trade? Gimme a break. She even says she wouldn’t mind if he did anything weird, which is a weird fucking thing to say to an 11-year-old that you’ve only been adventuring with for a short while. But the hilarity doesn’t stop there. They test this familiar on one of her friends, who now gets the unique ability to make delicious healing sandwiches. I can’t make this shit up. Well, isekai harems gotta harem.
Eventually, Liam catches the eye of the princess, then he has to take care of some dangerous dragon. But honestly, I’ve stopped caring about this show by this point. Big bro is up to something, but I’m ready to move on. Look, I gave it three episodes. Next!
*****
The Daily Life of a Middle-Aged Online Shopper in Another World
Not all isekai heroes are fighters. Some of them only wanna bring modern conveniences to a fantasy world for whatever reason. Nobody thinks you’re hot shit in your world, but you could blow a bunch of puny minds in the Middle Ages if you showed them your phone or whatever. So what does our MC here do? He sweeps them off their feet with clothespins. No, seriously.
Basically, our hero Kenichi has the power of Amazon Shangri-La at his finger tips, and somehow, the same online merchant can also deliver items to Kenichi’s new… dimension? World? He briefly questions how it works and all, but it’s just lipservice. He’s not going to stew on it. I guess you could argue that this is better than isekai heroes pretending that their previous world doesn’t exist, but barely.
Also, I vaguely remember seeing this concept before. Wasn’t there an isekai with the same online purchasing mechanic but the main character there spent his time cooking instead? I remember watching a guy making all sorts of meals for his demanding direwolf or whatever. But the animation was kinda shit and there was no real conflict to speak of, so I stopped watching. Will this show be any better? Doubt it.
Kenichi starts off by buying himself food, a bike, impressing the locals with black pepper, so on and so forth. Like the previous show, Japanese products are always a big hit. Why wouldn’t these isekai folks be impressed with superior Japanese katanas! Nippon steel folded a thousand times!!! He settles on the idea of becoming a trader, but before he can do that, he needs to learn how to read and write (despite magically being able to speak the same language). So he barters for education with candy. Look, fellas, if your dating game is weak, simply isekai yourself with candy corn or whatever. Isekai women are DTF with just a bit of sweets and a pretty picture.
Anyway, the first episode ends with a poor, destitute catgirl in a forest struggling to survive. She’ll probably end up being the MC’s adopted daughter, because that’s how these shows go. Everyone in the MC’s circle has to be an adoring, devoted female. Even your kid has to be female. There’s a second episode out already, but not when I was taking notes for this show. Will I watch the second episode? Meh. Lemme guess, he’s going to go bust a few slavers’ heads.
*****
Headhunted to Another World: From Salaryman to Big Four!
Speaking of uninspiring middle-aged men, we get yet another salaryman as an MC. Our hero Uchimura is underappreciated by company, but somehow a demon king from an entirely different world can spot everything that makes him great. How does the demon lord have so much info on Uchimura? Shrug. How does a demon king even understand anything about the MC? Why does not go “Huh, what’s a salaryman?” Shrug. Did our MC really die because a woman on a scooter hit him? Shrug. It even looks like our guy has friends and loved ones, but it doesn’t matter anymore. Who cares about all that? It’s time to dive headfirst into your new world full of hot anime waifus.
Curiously, the other generals and important characters are all hot women. They’re not super impressed with Uchimura right now, but y’see, this is where the character arc comes in. Over time, a salaryman who doesn’t even have the requisite soft skills to get promoted in Japan will somehow expand the demon king’s territory, reorganize the army, negotiate various pacts and alliances with rival countries and clans, so on and so forth. And one by one, each of those tut-tutting generals will fall in line and thus in love.
It would be something if Uchimura actually flexes real skills. But it’s all basic, baby shit. For example, if you’re going to negotiate, try not to lose your temper and start screaming at the person (or minotaur) that you’re trying to befriend. Try, y’know, understanding their culture and not make assumptions. Try looking beyond their words and — shocker — reading their body language. Don’t get baited when the other side is obviously trying to antagonize you in order to get you off your game. In other words, learn basic communication. Wowee, maybe if I watch this show from start to finish, I can get my MBA and beocme a big deal at a Fortune 500 company! But all of the tips above are somehow major revelations to our skin-bearing demon general Ulmandra, so she’s the first to fall for the guy.
In any case, the show was boring. Next.
*****
Magic Maker: How to Make Magic in Another World
Here’s another isekai where the main character is obsessed with magic. Shion loves magic so much that he “voluntarily” stayed a virgin until he was 30, because he thought his penis not touching another general for an arbitrary length of time would somehow make him a wizard. Does he actually believe that? No, but he wanted to believe, man! If a man can’t dream, what is even the point of life?
I guess the one somewhat novel thing about this show is that the first episode actually plays out from Shion’s isekai sister Marie’s perspective. So if you went into this show blind, you might not even suspect that it’s an isekai until the very end of the first episode. After all, Marie just sees her parents bring home a baby boy. And over the years, she saw him get depressed when their parents told them that they know nothing about this thing called “magic.” Naturally, our protective big sis takes it upon herself to cheer Shion up by proving that there’s magic somewhere in this isekai world. Uh, something about trout doing a courting ritual results in balls of light emerging from a lake. That’s… certainly one way of introducing magic. Shion then learns that he too can glow like a trout whenever he expresses his love for his sister. Not quite courtship, but… that’s bit odd, no?
Anyway, if the relationship dynamic between the two siblings sounds wholesome, it’s only true on paper. Anime then has to do its anime thing where the all-too-innocent sister insists that she has to marry her brother. When told that she couldn’t, she still swears that she’ll never want to leave Shion’s side. That’s fine, I guess, since the girl is still young and doesn’t know any better. But you gotta remember that Shion is a 30-year-old self-professed virgin obsessed with being a wizard in a young boy’s body. So for him to be like, “Yo, I swear I’ll never a woman either so we can be together forever,” that’s a bit weird to me. A lot weird.
Anyway, because our MC is a mage, his sister naturally has to be a bit tomboyish. Shion has no interest in studying swordfighting, but Marie embraces it. After all, she has to protect the brother she can’t marry but will remain with forever! Then there’s some stuff near the end of the second episode about fairies being caught and sold — yes, the parents don’t know if magic exist, but they do know about fairies — so I guess if that sounds intriguing, you can keep watching. Personally, I’m not a big fan of child protagonists. The OP suggests that they will eventually grow a bit older but not too old. And as such, I’m not too interested.
*****
From Bureaucrat to Villainess: Dad’s Been Reincarnated!
Here comes the only isekai in this post that has a somewhat novel concept: when our main character, a 50-something-year-old bureaucrat gets hit by a car in order to save a kid, he finds himself in the body of an ojousama with drill hair. Even funnier is the fact that this is the most wholesome isekai of all the shows in this post. Despite the fact that our ojisan looks like one of those shady men from all the ojisan memes, he’s actually a caring father with a loving family that is just as dorky and bespectacled as he is.
Anyway, he ends up in his daughter’s favorite otome game for some reason. This will probably never get explained. He gets to play the role of Grace, a girl who used to be really nice and friendly with everyone, but was led astray by proper lady lessons. Yup, being high class makes you a bitch. Grace is supposed to play the villainess to Anna Doll (what an unfortunate name), i.e. try to steal Anna’s love interests and what not. Right off the bat, my big question is whether or not he’s going to romance any of the boys. I mean, c’mon, it’s an otome game and you’re one of the main female characters! Romance is literally the game!
Of course, even though the basic premise of this isekai is novel, the setup is still very familiar. If you get zapped into an otome game, you gotta be the villainess. It’s always the villainess. Something about a bad-girl-turn-good really captivates people. It’s just funny that if you flip the genders, then the male MC becomes a demon lord or whatever. But not, like, one of the playboys vying for the harem’s attention over the main male MC, y’know? You don’t see an isekai where the hero wakes up as a gyaru-oh and stops NTR’ing people.
And of course, our ojisan immediately embraces his new environment like all isekai MCs before him. This is especially tough because, again, we can even see his loving, adorkable family. If I were him, I’d be dying to return to my wife and daughter. But our ojisan rolls with the punches a little too easily. He wants to fulfill the role of the villainess even though he can’t, and he doesn’t want to deviate from the plot too much. But why? I wish these characters would take a minute to reflect on their situation and ensuing motivations.
Anyway, ojisan’s problem is that he’s a nice guy, and you can’t turn into a mean girl overnight. According to otome genre conventions, he has to be mean to main heroine (always a commoner, always ditzy, always gets top marks so she gets to enroll in a prestigious academy full of nobles, etc), but ojisan doesn’t have it in him! Even when he tries to flex his meanness, it comes out as (at best stern) fatherly advice. Naturally, this endears him to everyone around him. So if we’re not going to do a yuri thing with Anna because ojisan has a family back in the real world, and he’s not going to court the boys, what exactly are we doing? I’m not sure.
This might just be a light-hearted show where Grace’s natural elegance and ojisan’s fatherly love gets him into silly, somewhat amusing situations. And while I do appreciate the novel premise, can this really sustain my interest for a season? No major plot threads have really merged. Yes, they learn magic at the academy. This is an isekai after all. A golem briefly attacks, but ojisan subdues it just as quickly. The boy hunks invite Grace and Anna to the student council, but that’s it. There’s no conflict yet; they’re all impressed with Grace’s “growth.” And finally, ojisan comes across a few mean girls when he goes to eat at the cafeteria. But instead of hatching a scheme as stereotypical mean girls in fiction are wont to do, ojisan teaches them to be nice in a few minutes flat. So… what now? Of all the shows in this post, this is the one I’m most likely to keep watching, but I’m still not entirely sold.
Last but not least, you can’t convince me that this is enough food for a teenage girl. No way, man. It doesn’t even look like it adds up to 500 calories.
