Well I can’t quite remember what the last show that captivated me as much as Sarazanmai currently is doing was…at least a show I covered for The OASG, anyway. Maybe it was Sound! Euphonium? Or even the more recent SSSS Gridman? And the fact that it’s only done it in the space of two episodes is even more remarkable.
Sarazanmai has the potential of becoming the cult show of this year, and also become that show that companies like Crunchyroll will demand you watch again and again. Never mind the big franchises like Sword Art Online or My Hero Academia or One Punch Man all having new seasons this year, or classic shows like Chihayafuru and Fruits Basket making a comeback (in one form or another), or Shinichiro Watanabe’s latest creation Carole & Tuesday being stuck on Netflix Japan – this is a show that will blow your mind. And you thought last week’s opening episode made you curious, confused, euphoric and excited all at the same time…episode 2 went and dialed it all up a couple of notches, and made us think that Sarazanmai could already be a contender for anime of the year (even only after 2 episodes).
As episode 1 ended with Kazuki’s cross-dressing secret being revealed to Toi and Enta, episode 2 presented to us the motivation that Kazuki, Toi and Enta should have to collect these Dishes of Hope: Keppi will gift them a single wish of desire for every one they collect. Enta ends up blowing the first one they collect on a supply of cucumbers, and since these Dishes can’t be shared, the pressure for these three to work as a team is increased. We also notice even more how different these three boys are this week. We already know what kinds of things Kazuki is prepared to do to protect the relationship he has with his younger brother (who we learn today is a huge stan of Sara – even if Kazuki is disguising himself as her), but this week we meet Toi’s older brother, who is working himself up as a top criminal, and while we already know that Enta has a major crush on Kazuki, this week we learn that is currently stalking him.
While the main plot of this week’s episode revolves around a stray cat that both Kazuki and Toi are both chasing around Asakusa for (for two very different reasons), in the center is these Dishes of Hope, and that these three boys should fight for their desires, even if it means fighting each other. We are also introduced to the two policemen of the show: Reo and Mabu, who are quite a mystery to me…so far. I know that, as this is their introductory episode, I ought to give them more coverage, but actually, my attention is more towards the three boys right now. Soon enough, Reo and Mabu will do something more that’ll grab me, and I’ll write up some extended piece about them…but that can wait in the meantime. Sorry if you were anticipating me writing long paragraphs about how they wrap each others’ arms around each other in front of their police colleagues.
Can a show like We Never Learn ever top what I just saw? Absolutely no way…A shame, because this show could be so much better, but this harem is not enticing me whatsoever.
Is there even a best girl so far? Even though I like girls with glasses, even Rizu isn’t really enticing me. This week is the midterms for these third-years…well, Rizu and Fumino, anyway…when we’ll get to see Nariyuki and Uraka study for exams is anyone’s guess. Anyway, that’s not the main focus here; a school harem show just wouldn’t be a school harem show without at least one ‘study-at-home’ session, and this week’s episode has two of them. Our first is at Rizu’s family udon restaurant, where she needs to work on her modern Japanese (she wants to study psychology, remember), while the second is at Fumino’s huge mansion (because of course one of them is super-rich), so she can do well in her upcoming math exam (she wants to do astronomy).
I suppose that, compared to the truly remarkable Sarazanmai, we can’t expect too much from a show like We Never Learn. I’m sure plenty of us anime fans can be entertained by all of this though, as even though I say this isn’t enticing me, it isn’t the worst thing ever. Maybe something in it is resonating in me due to my current career goal (teaching English), but I have a degree of sympathy for all of them, even Uraka (who is my least favorite out of them all). I even understand how the school teachers feel, sometimes a little frustrated at how their genius students are committed to go into a career in something they are terrible at.
Meanwhile, Hitoribocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu was a show that resonated in me personally from the get-go, and it continues to. Even as we are mostly shown how Bocchi invites Nako over to her house for the first time, another major topic in social anxiety is raised: the feeling of losing the people we meet. That doesn’t happen in this show of course, but a lot of social anxiety sufferers jump to huge conclusions over the tiniest of things. This week, for instance, as Bocchi grows over-excited at how Nako is at her house (and ends up accidentally spilling tea over her), she jumps to the conclusion that Nako is furious with her over it, and will not want to be friends with her anymore. This feeling is only amplified when Bocchi catches a fever.
I think it’s interesting how we see the development in Nako’s character as well. Right now, she is a mixture of confused and frustrated at how she gives off a delinquent aura both in and outside of school; most notably in how their homeroom teacher is frightened by her so much and is overly-polite to her. I mentioned at the opening episode how I got the impression that Nako may have had some social issues at her previous school, causing her to initially be so aloof at the start of the term, well I think that having someone to latch onto like Bocchi is actually helping her just as much as Bocchi is treasuring having Nako around.
This is a school comedy show at its core, but I am really enjoying how it is touching on these slightly more serious issues of anxiety and learning to be social. This is a similar feeling on how I enjoyed how Kobayashi was learning to be less aloof and more social by letting Tohru and Kanna move in with her in Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid – how a show that is very clearly comedy can bring up these important issues in a such a way that can be both evident and subtle at the same time. The studio behind this, C2C, was also behind last year’s summer hit Harukana Receive, so I’ll tell you now: C2C is a newbie studio to keep an eye on in the future, as I predict they will bring out some more shows just as interesting as what we’ve seen so far.
Mai’s arc wraps up in episode 3 of Rascal Does Not Dream. It’s also this week where the first-time viewers may have got a lot of Monogatari vibes from this show – not just at how our main protagonist Sakuta is working to help all of the girls that crop up in this show, but at the character designs of both he and Mai, and how similar they are to Koyomi and Hitagi.
- Show begins with a girl with a personal/private problem, and needs help.
- Male MC shows up, and shows her that he sympathizes with her greatly.
- The two become a couple, so this show doesn’t turn into an atypical school harem/fan-service show.
- Show continues with more girls with very similar personal/private problems who need help.
- Show even names these problems differently than what the psychology and philosophy community call them (thanks to /r/anime for offering that theory up).
This closer to Mai’s arc is truly wonderful, and a bit of a tear-jerker as well; Mai’s condition gets so severe that even Sakuta begins to lose his memories of her, which terrifies him as he is beginning to fall in love with her.
Over on something a little lighter (but just as amazing), Kaguya-sama: Love is War, episode 3. This has become a show that frequently cracks me up, but the opening sketch was pure gold. The topic of virginity is something we may probably see a lot in school romance shows, and yet as these two are so sheltered from the rest of society, it becomes hilarious when, as they discuss the confiscation of a lewd magazine at school, Kaguya ends up confusing kissing with going to third base.
One final thing I noticed about this show is how the OP theme makes me think of James Bond opening credits so much…I just thought I’d put that out there, even though the two have no real connection whatsoever.
I think we can call this Spring season a pretty good one, as it has let me see 2 shows that I’ve fallen in love with with great effect…not to mention how I’m impressed by the drama of Rascal Does Not Dream, and the comedy/real-life of Hitoribocchi. Has this Spring season impressed you as much as it has me? Feel free to hit that like button and air your opinions in the comments below…