「みんなのカフェ/カフェのお花見」 (Minna no Kafe / Kafe no Ohanami)
“Everyone’s Café / The Café’s Flower Viewing Party”

“Miss Penko laughs. Miss Penko walks. Miss Penko eats fish.”

Beautiful.

Up to twelve minutes in the jokes were dry and the pacing was slow, but the humor started picking up in the second half. Why, you ask? The characters’ potentials were finally being unlocked.

The first half of the episode had its interesting bits, but those jokes were isolated and didn’t flow. Llama’s ridiculous cafe idea and Shirokuma’s scratching technique were perhaps the two only real funny jokes. The rest of the first half was still spent on introductions or playing expected jokes (Panda is still obsessed with bamboo…).

However with the second half, the humor gets much better. Penguin’s hyperbolic personality is finally utilized (thanks to the power of alcohol no less)! Using the trademark personality that Kamiya Hiroshi brings to the table is the best way to inject much needed pacing. His antics, while funny isolated, serves its main purpose in bringing out the energy of the other characters. The drunk lovesickness of Penguin brought out the deadpan humor of Shirokuma, whilst also making Panda a bit more bearable (oh pun) character-wise by generating pity for his ahem…indiscriminate…actions.

Sloth also deserves special mention, not just for a well-timed joke, but for also ending up in a fairly beautiful scene with Shirokuma at the end of the day. The “refreshment” joke serves as an example of how animal-specific jokes could be properly executed, as well as a taste of the unique animal humor that largely has gone untapped so far.

If the series can continue to generate the comedy that made up the second half, then there may be hope for this show’s appeal beyond the cute and animal. The pace picked up slightly this episode as introductions tied themselves up, allowing for more time for jokes to set up. Here’s to hoping the third episode continues this trend of synergizing characters and bringing out the animal humor!

[insert obligatory ‘check-the-alt-text-by-hovering-over-the-images’ reminder here.]

Today’s Full Length: 02

 

Preview

37 Comments

      1. what i’m no hate i’m so confuse who cafe anime & see you mention did girlfriend x give only bother disturb me is saliva-drool.

        really i got no probs bit confuse on some of those things really you check anime i seen or watched.

        back to here so what is this for & how many eps is this got?

        MAR-KLAC-VELOUS DE-KLAC-CADE
  1. Instead of a kiddy show, this anime felt more like one of those comic strips you’d find on a daily or weekly newspaper with recurring characters, except animated. I feel like I can relax and enjoy this show with a cup of morning coffee.

    Yukie
  2. Don’t ask a polar bear for a massage! Ouch!
    https://randomc.net/image/Shirokuma%20Cafe/Shirokuma%20Cafe%20-%2002%20-%20Large%2005.jpg
    I would love to go to the “Penguin’s Cafe” because I love sushi. But that “Llama’s Cafe” is tempting. I can’t go to a “Panda’s Cafe” to eat bamboo, but I would love to see pandas. What was funny was that Panda was dressing up in a panda costume when he’s already a panda.
    This show does a good job of reminding us that we are watching animals (after all) living in a human world. And that point makes it a great show in my opinion.

    random viewer
  3. It’s amusing to see FukuJun as the boke this time. Kamiyan will always be the glorified tsukkomi in any comedy.
    And do want more drunk penguin.
    Great stuff and glad I picked this up coz it was being covered here.

    That stomach dancing polar bear…

  4. It’s so rare nowadays when anime try to bring something different on the table. No bishounen, robots or fanservice (there’s still some pandaservice) but penguins and polar bears (Oh Sakako-san is a real cuttie anyway). Very relaxing with great visuals, OKAWARI!

    Oh, Penko-san…

    Ananas
  5. I don’t know what compelled me to watch this show, and in theory I would normally drop this kind of show or not even consider starting it…but there is some quality in this series that allows it to grasp, and keep, my attention for an entire episode, as well as leaving me NOT dissatisfied.

    scinosrepus
  6. I hopped for this show expecting a slice-of-life with life lessons at the level of ARIA. I was disappointed though, indeed the show provides some outlooks to living a life but that’s a little too subtle for me. And then I feel that it tries to be funny in adorable ways, but after 2 episodes I have not laughed at any scene. In conclusion…I like this show! Well, I just throw aside my stupid expectations and enjoy what I feel that this show does best; being gentle and relaxing! Good drama is tear jerking, good comedy makes you break bones from falling off a chair, good romance makes you smile and go kyaaa kyaa~ like an idiot, and good action leaves you adrenaline pumped. So for me it’s quite refreshing to be able to peacefully enjoy a show without feeling drained when the episode ends. I would recommend this to anyone who want to watch some anime in the morning before going to school/work 🙂

    Jellyfish Marine

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