Pascoite gets bored and reviews anime, vol. 26 · 11:28pm Feb 1st, 2022
Featured items this week are Mary and the Witch's Flower and Space Dandy, after the break. This clears my backlog from Christmas vacation, and the end of the alphabet is in sight! I'm perpetually annoyed by the number of series I've had to skip reviewing for now because they're hanging in a sort of limbo as to whether there will be any more seasons of them, not to mention the ones that definitely are. Oh well.
Mary and the Witch's Flower was made by some of the same people who had worked on Studio Ghibli films, and those roots definitely show. From the very similar visual style to the whimsical atmosphere and creative fantasy elements, it definitely has those genes built into it. I've seen a number of critics say it was a bit of a letdown, that it was trying so hard to be Ghibli but couldn't attain that, and to a degree, I can see what they're talking about. However, not every Ghibli film was a gem either. While I consistently found them at least enjoyable, I wouldn't enthusiastically recommend them all; I liked this film better than Ponyo, for instance. It's based on a novel called The Little Broomstick, which I haven't read, so I can't say how closely it sticks to it.
An opening scene shows a young girl flying away on broomstick after stealing some seeds, then crashing in the forest while being pursued. Then we jump to a different young girl, Mary Smith, whose family is apparently moving to live out in the country with her great aunt. Only her family can't come right away, so for the time being, it's just Mary, her great aunt, and the domestic help. It's still a week until school begins, and Mary is fretting over how to introduce herself to her new classmates, how she'll be received, and hating her unruly clump of red hair. She tries to distract herself by helping out around the house, but it seems like everything she tries goes wrong.
She meets a local boy, Peter, who immediately makes a bad impression on her, so after leaving in a huff, she follows two cats into the woods, only to discover an unusual flower. When she brings one back, the gardener tells her it's very rare.
Once again, one of the cats leads her into the woods, having some sort of urgency, and it takes her to where she finds a broom, then deliberately gets some of the flower's sap on her, which immediately grants her magical abilities, though she struggles to understand what's happened and how to manage it. At this point, the movie really took on a feel of "what if Ghibli had done Harry Potter?" The broom flies her to a magical college, and not knowing it was caused by the flower, the faculty are duly impressed by her effortless talent at so young an age.
She has no idea what's going on, and so doesn't know what pieces of info she really should keep to herself, so when she lets slip about the flower... plans get set into motion, ones that through Mary's irresponsibility get Peter involved, so now she has to get both of them out of trouble.
There are a couple twists that will probably surprise few people. It's not exactly a strong plot, but I enjoyed the movie for its Ghibli-esque aesthetic and atmosphere, and the characters were well done. I do agree with some of the more common criticisms of it, which led me to debate whether I should have only rated it good, but I did have a lot of fun watching.
To those criticisms, though: Take something like Spirited Away. Chihiro finds herself in this utterly alien fantasy setting, and it reasonably freaks her out. It takes a long time for her to start getting the least bit comfortable with what's going on. Here, Mary takes to this previously unknown world of magic with little more than a shrug. Well, maybe that's not entirely fair. She doesn't know where she is or what to do, so she does feel lost. It's just that she doesn't seem upset by any of it.
There's also really no character arc for her. She does gain some self-confidence by the end, but other than that, nothing's really changed for her. She does obviously solve a conflict in rescuing Peter, but it's not clear that she grew in any way as a result.
Finally, the ending feels really abrupt. She and Peter are safe, and that's that. Nothing about her still acclimating to her new home, her family arriving, what it means to her that she now knows this world of magic exists. That just all gets swept under the rug, and it left for a pretty unsatisfying conclusion. It was a rather interesting ride getting there, though. As I said, art is on a par with Ghibli. Music isn't quite at Ghibli levels, but it was still pretty good.
Rating: very good.
Movie, relevant genres: fantasy, adventure, drama.
Space Dandy just inexplicably works in so many ways. Main character Dandy is a greaser-throwback type who works as a sort of bounty hunter. There's a bureaucracy that wants to document all types of aliens, so if you can bring an example of a type that hasn't been recorded before, you can make a lot of money. He has a robot assistant named QT, and he picks up another sort of sidekick, a cat-like alien he calls Meow. Really, they're all colossally dumb. Maybe not QT, but the rest, yeah.
What really makes this work is the characters. So many of them are great. Meow is just the right kind of clueless. QT is overworked and (usually) helpful. Dandy is a type that turns up in other shows here and there, and the first example that comes to mind is Archer, who is pretty brainless about most things but is surprisingly top-notch at his badass job. Though for his efforts, Dandy doesn't see a lot of success; they're constantly scrounging for food and fuel.
The plot is more of an anthology type, where they go after a different lead on an unusual alien each episode, but there are a couple of running themes. In one, there's a bad guy who senses Dandy is somehow important to the universe and constantly sends massive fleets to destroy him, which Dandy manages to evade without ever noticing they're even there. Dandy's always trying to impress the lady agent who works at the alien registration office, though he's also got a soft spot for a particular waitress at his regular haunt, BooBies (an obvious Hooters analog). The agent, Scarlet, and eventually the waitress, Honey, both get surprising depth. I'll come back to this in a moment.
The narrator ends up being a character as well, and the campiness of it is just great. Just... the lines from the show's standard opening voice-over. "Space Dandy: he's a dandy guy in space." "These are the spectacular adventures of Space Dandy and his brave space crew in space." If that kind of silliness tickles your funny bone, there's a lot of it.
Back to that character depth, though. This is a show that's just dumb fun most of the time, but it occasionally blindsides you with a very heartfelt episode. Adventure Time was good at doing that, too. Any episode about Simon's or Marceline's back story, or another that stood out to me was when Finn was transported to the pillow world. There are 3 or 4 episodes of Space Dandy that were really serious and did a great job of it, too, even when there are still humorous elements in those plots. One where he's transporting a child of a rare alien race, one where he's in what looks like a giant celestial junkyard (the mood of this was really quiet and felt a lot like the train scene in Spirited Away, where there's little actually happening but tons of things implied), one where a possible romance with Scarlet comes into play. It can actually be unpleasant when you're expecting another laugh-a-minute romp and get something that can almost bring you to tears, but it takes skill to pull that off, and this show does it well.
Music was rather good, and so was the art. Unless that type of humor doesn't suit you, this one comes highly recommended.
Rating: excellent.
26 episodes, relevant genres: action, adventure, comedy.
To the rest, and the first 5 are all based on something Paul Asaran recommended to me.
Genshiken (12 episodes + 3 OVAs)—the action first seems to focus on a college student named Sasahara who's shy about joining extracurricular clubs. He sees something about Genshiken that catches his interest and eventually decides to join up. The members are all hopeless otaku, but ones who don't want to focus on manga or anime or video games specifically (plus they all hate a prominent member of those clubs) would prefer a club that's more about generic "study of modern visual culture." This reminded me of a number of high school random comedies I'd seen, though it takes a little while to get going. After a couple episodes, there's not really a focus character anymore, but just these otaku and each one's particular interests. There's not a lot to it—just the occasional "yeah, I've been there" moments about the stresses in the life of someone into a fandom enough to join clubs or attend conventions related to them. I know I'm not doing much to talk this up... it's just that a lot of it feels expected, though that's not bad. Most of the characters are well fleshed out and entertaining, the jokes are funny but not raucous, and the best part is probably seeing the one non-otaku (Saki) hanging around only because she can't pry her boyfriend away. Plus everyone else being amazed someone like her would date an otaku. Then finally, an actual girl member joins (Ohno), and she's the best character of the season. This is more enjoyable as a character study, and the pretty varied types in the club all get enough screen time to shine. The three OVAs start to bridge the gap to the next season and introduce another girl who'll join up. Rating: good, relevant genres: comedy, slice of life.
Genshiken 2 (12 episodes + 1 special)—and the new girl is Ogiue, who now takes over as the best character. She's incredibly self-conscious about her interests, though Saki and Ohno do manage to coax her into doing a little cosplay and admitting she likes yaoi. This season tried to have more of a plot, related to the group wanting to produce a fan comic and sell it at a convention. Some tensions arise about that, which were presented in a rather realistic manner, and Ogiue comes through as an unexpected talent. By the end, she's even gone so far as to try doing one on her own. I do like her character arc, but it made the season more drama than comedy, and I just wasn't into the concept enough to enjoy it as much without the same level of humor. Plus this season got quite a bit more adult. Several of the members play hentai games, and rather than just talk about it obliquely like in the first season, this one shows some of the gameplay, and there's some pretty aggressive frenching in one episode that I gather even got censored during its original airing in Japan. I just didn't connect with this as much. There are two series that the club members are particular fans of, and this season's special was like an example episode of one of them, Ramen Angel Pretty Menma, which I just found stupid. Rating: decent, relevant genres: comedy, slice of life, drama, romance.
Genshiken: Second Generation (Genshiken Nidaime, 12 episodes + 4 specials + 1 OVA)—a few of the members have graduated since last season, and a few even graduated during that season. They occasionally come back and hang around, and Ogiue is the leader now. It's similar to the previous season, as it revolves around them producing a manga, but the turnover in membership has resulted in it being overwhelmingly female now, and most of them are yaoi fans. There was still a push to include romance in this season, and I thought it was rather forced, though I did like the new characters, and they have an interesting dynamic, plus Ogiue mellowing out is always a good thing. One character in particular is notable, a guy who cross-dresses because he can easily pass as a girl, and as a yaoi fan himself, he finds people are far less judgmental about it when they think he's a girl. Season 2 had introduced two American girls Ohno knows from living abroad, and one of them (Susanna) now attends this college. They were a very mixed bag. Mostly annoying in the previous season, but Susanna has her moments as she starts to get the first inkling of how normal people behave. Rating: good, relevant genres: comedy, slice of life.
Kujibiki Unbalance (3 OVAs)—the original Genshiken starts with a nice fake-out. Kujibiki Unbalance ("Unbalanced Lottery") is the other series the club members enjoy, and you often see bits and pieces from episodes they're watching. The first episode of Genshiken starts with the theme song to Kujibiki Unbalance, and it had me wondering if I was in the right place. They collated the disparate clips shown, added a little more, and created a sampling of three episodes, ostensibly the pilot, one from the middle of the season, and the next to last episode. Just from what you see in Genshiken, I never had a good idea of what it was supposed to be about. A couple of girls are prominently referred to as President and Vice-President, mushrooms seem to be important somehow, and at one point, they look like they're trying to fend off an alien invasion by challenging the aliens to a swim meet? Once assembled into these OVAs, though, a clearer picture emerges. They're at a school where they trust fate that lottery should determine the best students, so they are sorted into teams through one, and the action follows one team as it has to compete against others in seemingly random subjects. It was alright, inasmuch as you at least understand what all the Genshiken characters were into, though it suffers from an effect I just talked about in a recent blog. And that is that the club members talk this show up as some masterpiece, yet when you see it, it's just silly and dumb, and not even in a great way. Rating: decent, relevant genres: drama, comedy, parody?
Kujibiki Unbalance (12 episodes)—and then a few years afterward, they reimagined the series and put out a whole season of it. It's substantially changed, though. They shuffle around several of the characters and completely change some. The lottery now is to choose successors to the student council officers from among the first-years so they can spend the school year apprenticing. It was a nice touch that the Genshiken VAs talk it up and do the next episode previews. They all held the highest reverence for the student president, whose name is Ritsuko Kübel Kettenkrad, and there's a lot to unpack there. She's half Japanese and half German, her last name refers to that World War II-era German vehicle that was like a mini tank with the front wheel and handlebars of a motorcycle (I assume her middle name is also a reference to a Kübelwagen, though the word Kübel just means a bucket, so it may refer to the ceremonial helmet she wears as a badge of office), and in a brick joke, during a brief shot of the bike rack at school, there's a Kettenkrad parked there. There's some manufactured drama, but mostly it still suffers from Genshiken talking it up so much only for it to be just okay. At least it's over the top with all kinds of assassination and intrigue plots, but it's also very gratuitous with the fan service. And it's yet another series that has a sibling with inappropriate feelings for another. Not sure I want to know why that comes up as much as it does in anime. At least Ritsuko has some pretty good character exploration. Rating: decent, relevant genres: action, drama, parody?
And so it's not all Genshiken, I'll toss in two more things I watched based on enjoying several of director Makoto Shinkai's movies.
She and Her Cat (Kanojo to Kanojo no Neko, short film)—this is just a brief picture of some interactions between a lady and her pet cat from the cat's perspective. It does generally show the cat's affection for her and the disconnect on their levels of understanding, but there's really nothing specific. The lady seems upset by something, but it's never said what, and it doesn't come to any sort of conclusion, but it's not really the kind of piece that's meant to. It's more just a snapshot of life, and it succeeds at that well. Just watch it. It's maybe 6 minutes long, and you can find it on YouTube. It was the initial project for director Makoto Shinkai, who went on to make several very successful movies. The art has kind of a sketch-like quality and yet is kind of photographic as well, and the animation is very smooth. Rating: good, relevant genres: slice of life.
She and Her Cat: Everything Flows (Kanojo to Kanojo no Neko: Everything Flows, 4 episodes)—this is basically a lengthening of the short film. Each episode is almost 8 minutes long, including credits, and it's the same situation as the film, except it's greatly expanded upon what has the lady upset, and a lot of it is told through interspersed flashbacks. It's nothing earth-shattering, so there's not much to spoil. She's just at a crossroads in her life, and the cat doesn't know any more than to be there for her while she's hurting. It's a touching look at a pet-owner bond, but as a dog person, I'm not one to think that this is actually the attitude cats have toward people. I always got the impression they didn't give a shit about anything that didn't benefit them right then and there, but as a fictionalized take, you can ascribe whatever attitude to the cat you like, and it is a sweet story. It's a different art style than the film, more standard anime, but still good quality, and the music was good. The final episode even has a little epilogue after the credits. Rating: good, relevant genres: slice of life, drama.
Seen any of these? Did I convince you to try any of them? I'd like to hear about it in the comments.
Last 10:
vol. 16 here
vol. 17 here
vol. 18 here
vol. 19 here
vol. 20 here
vol. 21 here
vol. 22 here
vol. 23 here
vol. 24 here
vol. 25 here
Space Dandy is indeed excellent. I'm probably the only person who prefers it over the director's other works, namely Cowboy Bebop.
I've seen images of Space Dandy and I love how it looks. Good to know it works as a series, too!
Space Dandy takes place in the same universe as Cowboy Bebop. Let that sink in.
5633063
Seems academic at best, because at no point do they cross paths. It's like saying because Star Wars takes place "a long time ago in a galaxy far away" that it's possibly in the same universe as Star Trek. Sure, they could be, but that changes nothing about either of them. Does the manga cross over? Not sure if I've read all the Cowboy Bebop manga, but of what I did read, it never turns up there. I'm guessing this is just an instance of the creator saying so without there being anything in either property to suggest such.
Ah, I see you saw Genshiken. I only watched the first season, myself. It came out at the time I was just starting to move away from anime as a major hobby, so I didn't even know the other seasons were a thing.
5633068
I'm on the same page, just thought it was a funny tidbit.
5633098
Heh, since you were the one to recommend it, I thought you'd have more to say about it...
5633148
I haven't seen the show in probably a decade, so I don't exactly have everything about it down in my head. I just really liked the whole concept of Saki, the non-otaku, meeting these weirdos and exploring their world. Her involvement was what I liked most about the show, particularly in how her relationship grew with the others, be that trying Madarame's doujin suggestions or dealing with Kosaka's attraction for anime girls. She was easily my favorite character for her flawed nature and regular character growth. I shamefully admit I forgot all about Ohno, but now that you bring her up I'm recalling all sorts of things about her.
Dang, this is making me want to rewatch it. I'll have to go hunt it down.
5633155
Saki was indeed my favorite character, though once Ohno joined, it would be tough to decide between them. Then adding Ogiue from the OVAs through the rest of the sequels made it an even harder choice. The only thing I didn't like about Saki doesn't come until Genshiken: Second Generation, where there's a pretty forced romance subplot.
5633168
I never knew Ogiue. If I do go back to Genshiken, I'll have to make it a point to also watch the other shows.
5633179
Ogiue doesn't show up until the 3 OVAs that come just after the original series, so you may not have ever seen her.