First Impressions / Outbreak Company / Series Introduction

OP Sequence

OP: 「ユニバーページ」 (Univer Page ) by 三森すずこ (Mimori Suzuko)

「気が付けば異世界」 (Kigatsukeba i Sekai)
“Awakening in the Other Realm”

Fantasy fans need to watch this. Comedy fans need to watch this. Romance fans need to watch this. Fans of world building need to watch this. Fans of Hataraku Maou-sama! or Scrapped Princess need to watch this. Fans of good storytelling need to watch this. You need to watch this.

Not As Crazy As You Think, Crazier Than You Imagine

The premise behind this show isn’t as crazy as it first appears. Japan stumbles across another world, and they want to use their soft power (culture) to become better allies with the nation on the other side of the portal. Unfortunately, government bureaucrats keep bungling the job, so they bring in hyper-otaku Kanou Shinichi (Hanae Natsuki) to bring their entertainment to this new land. While the “portal” and “other world” parts are far-fetched (if familiar), Japan trying to export their unique forms of entertainment for geopolitical and socioeconomic gains is something that happens in real life (not to mention the products of Hollywood, Bollywood, Broadway, Hong Kong cinema, and every other great entertainment media producing area). And who better to spread the word than someone who truly understands it?

Where it gets crazy is the comedy. The entire show is so genre aware (trope!), and Shinichi plays the role of the hyper-otaku to the hilt. Watching him react to adorable half-elf meido Myuseru Foartan (Mimori Suzuko) or explode upon seeing loli supreme ruler Petrarca Ann Erudanto III (Fuchigami Mai) were a treat to watch! It’s the energy I love, as the show plays the tropes for hilarity at every chance they can get.

Attention to Detail, Good Storytelling

But there’s more than just comedy here, far more. The attention to detail in this fantasy tale reminds me of nothing so much as Hataraku Maou-sama!. An easy parallel to make – the translation rings. Aliens or demons or magical monsters from another world suddenly speaking English (or in this case, Japanese. Also, trope!) is an old pet peeve of mine, and it’s the shows that bother to incorporate at least a handwave (or even better, just deal with it) that rise in my estimation. Here they take care of the problem with magical rings. That’s not even the part where it was used the best, though – that distinction belongs to the scene where the three Japanese characters took off their rings so they could speak without Myuseru understanding them. Good writers will take care of all the inconvenient details, but great writers use them to their advantage. This is just one example.

Another example of good storytelling – and a good adaptation by studio Feel – was in the comedic timing. Take when Private First Class Koganuma Minori (Uchida Maaya) was introduced. The bit where he inappropriately asked about her F-cup size was hilarious, I’ll grant you that, but the skill shows shortly thereafter, when after his two delusions about why he is there, there’s a solid second-long beat (trope!) where Minori just stares at him, and then calmly asks “Are you done?”. Comedy is all about timing, and one of the hardest things to do (in my humble opinon, naturally) is to wait. Silence is powerful, but the tendency is to keep barreling through. Little things like that make the comedy work.

Add on top of those other examples like Myuseru attending to Shinichi’s nosebleed and Matoba Jinzaburou’s (Fujiwara Keiji) glorious smug grin and laugh (with like four seconds of silence, for the beat, glorious!) upped things to a new level in both comedy and attention to detail. The two are intertwined, and so far, this story is doing them right.

My one qualm so far: the weird “da da da da da” OST stuff that they keep playing. A couple of time I thought a character was trying to speak over whoever was talking at the time, which is just distracting. A minor qualm, to be sure, but I hope they knock that out.

Finally, a Main Character I Like!

If I have a gripe lately, it’s that storytellers assume empathy for the main character. This guy is the main character, they say, so you should be interested in what happens to him! Why? Because he’s the main character! This kind of circular logic is how we get protagonists like Infinite Stratos’ Ichika. Don’t get me wrong, I still like the show, but it isn’t because of Ichika – they’ve never given us a reason to like him other than as an audience stand in, and if I ever act like that, I hope someone doesn’t miss with the knife. You need to earn our empathy for the main character just as you do with every other character.

This is where flawed, interesting main characters are useful. Personally I’m a big fan of the shameless main characters, of which Kanou Shinichi is certainly one, a trait he shares with High School DxD’s Issei. That’s certainly not the only way to do it though, as Hanae Natsuki’s last starring role as Haimura Kiri in Dansai Bunri no Crime Edge shows. Flawed is interesting, and as a former hikikomori and current NEET who gets emails from his mom where she threatens to disown him, Shinichi isn’t a perfect man by any means. He’s way too into his hobbies, he has outbursts and inappropriate times, he causes inter-dimensional diplomatic incidents, and he wants to quit this new great job he just found where he gets his own meido because he wants to set his DVR and has a bunch of purchases from Mamazon on hold. He has many flaws, but he also wants to help Myuseru learn how to read. He’s also interesting, which I’ll take that every day of the week. And the funny thing? That makes him more relatable to boot.

Looking Ahead – What Kind of Plot Will We Get?

Or will we get much of one at all? That is the question, and in trying to answer it I will throw out one little detail – the original creator, Sakaki Ichirou, also created Scrapped Princess, among many other works. I will bet what little credibility I have as an anime blogger (it’s really not much) that this won’t be a vapid affair, but I don’t know what precisely the plot will entail so far. It’s a fair bet that diplomacy and intrigue will factor in, which gets my blood pumping.

I’m not sure whether I’ll continue blogging this or not. I’m going to play it by ear for now, so make sure to mention in the comments if you’re really digging this show, because I’m less likely to blog something no one is watching. It’s not impossible either way, but we’ll see.

tl;dr: @StiltsOutLoud – Attention to detail, good comedy, budding romance, interesting chars, good world-building. #yushibu isn’t the new #maousama, this is! #ob_c

Random thoughts:

  • Gentleladies and gentlemen, if you ever see a job ad as shady as this one on the internet, STOP. Do not apply. You will not be transported to a magical land. You will be sodomized. Put the mouse down and back away slowly.
  • What a bitch! Just ’cause he’s a little nerdy. Okay, maybe a LOT nerdy…
  • D’aaawww, look at that couple in the OP. That’s adorable right there, folks.
  • No no no Shinichi, she only doesn’t get full meido marks because she lacks thigh-highs. Tsundere personality TBD.
  • By the way, I love that here, the fanservice served the plot instead of the other way around. That’s the way to do it. Seriously Japan, I will give up the flagrant bouncing boobs today if you give me fanservice like this in every story. TODAY! Just try me!
  • Your country’s racism against half-elves means nothing to him, Myuseru. All it means to him if MORE BONERS!
  • What a good teacher. She’s right; there’s far more to life than what you learn in textbooks. Like what you learn in other books, for example.
  • Ahahaha, has to cover up his morning wood from the kawaii meido-san! Been there, done that, amirite guys? …no, I’m not. Not with a kawaii meido-san. *hangs head*

I’ve made a change on my blog to focus more on storytelling and the fantasy novel I’m writing, so check it out at stiltsoutloud.com.

Full-length images: 07, 09, 24, 34, 43.

 

ED Sequence

ED: 「私の宝石箱」 (Watashi no Houseibako) by 渕上舞 (Fuchigami Mai)

Preview

135 Comments

  4. I’ve definitely had good fun watching that. MC reminded me of a main guy from this year’s Kotoura-san, with his delusions and overall attitude. What I don’t like is that if ED means anything, loli is the main girl, and she’s really nothing good.

    brajt
    Reply

      1. I didn’t mean singing, but the story – ED is all about her, from beginning to the very end, which is by accident MC’s residence. Right, this time I’m all up for FirstGirlWins.

        brajt
        Reply

      2. Ah yes, I understand where you’re coming from – and you may be right – but I think it’s more that they were trying to make the love triangle more balanced (since Myuseru is First Girl and is so much more prominent in promotional material + this episode) and/or they thought up the sequence or the song and said “screw it, let’s go with that”, lol

        Basically, I wouldn’t read too much into it. My money is on the meido as of now, though it’s early enough that I’m only barely giving her odds. A lot could still happen.

        Stilts
        Reply

  5. I think the show was very interesting. At first I was a little bothered by the eyes, but the mood, the hilarious jokes, and the actions of the main characters have put a big impression on me. I hope to have time to continue watching this show because its pretty entertaining.XD

    Dualash
    Reply

  6. Expected nothing, got everything. I wouldn’t say Kanou is completly shameless, sure he does completly cut loose when he’s overwhelmed with excitement but it seems like he’s quick to keep it in check as soon as it starts making someone uncomfortable.

    Someguy
    Reply

  7. Apparently i hadn’t this one on my radar – but now its a must watch.
    Half-elf Meido….hnnnnnnnng
    F-Cup Older-Sister Megane-Type *blush*
    Loli-Empress-Tsundere… *needs maybe some re-education*

    Else the whole seeting remind me on “Gate – Jietai Kare no Chi nite, Kaku Tatakeri” (Gate – Thus the JSDF Fought There)- just a more peaceful setting – and more moeeeeee.

    scrapped
    Reply

    1. \o/ I know right? I wouldn’t say what I’ve watched so far have been disappointing, but this is the first one that is really getting me rared up. Of course, I still have like 3/4 of my list to go through, sooo…

      Stilts
      Reply

      1. Actually, when the MC openly declare there’s another guy, then I think, “the way of anime it is, in the fantasy comedy genre, the other guy is either a gay bishounen or a completely different race altogether. both, if possible”

        And I was treated with him being some sort of reptile man.

        Kerfirou
        Reply

  15. Not sure what I was getting into when watched the first episode but I’m pleased to say I loved every second of it. I’ll be happy person if you continue to blog.

    So many great shows this season already!

    Pot Noodle
    Reply

  17. Come on, the protagonist is just the standard perverted otaku, an archetype we’d usually see as the protagonist’s friend, there to act as a foil and to complain about the protagonist’s bright love life. It’s neat to see one as the protagonist for once, but that doesn’t make it new.

    The premise of this show is great, but if they’re going to harvest all of their humor from breasts and tropes, this show will be as predictable as this first episode was.

    Senri
    Reply

    1. There’s nothing new under the sun. Nothing. Everyone steals from everyone else, and that’s how it should be. Artists steal, that’s what we do. Once we’ve nicked all the bits we like though, we reassemble them in a new way that is, in the final accounting, new and fresh in its own way.

      Yes, the component parts of this might not be unique, but so far it has been put together well, it shows serious genre savviness, and it holds out the hope for something on the diplomatic/intrigue front. Even if it’s occasionally predictable, who cares as long as it’s interesting and entertaining?

      Stilts
      Reply

  19. This was a little better than I expected – pretty solid overall though I don’t quite share Stilts’ enthusiasm – particularly for the main character. Rather than interesting, I’d put him more on the stereotypical side. My main concern is that his “otaku blunders” become too predictable and eventually stale. Not saying that will be the case, but at this point I think its a possible risk. Personally, Myuseru Foartan rates higher in my book than Kanou Shinich.

    But that OK because the show IMO doesn’t entirely rely upon the MC. As Stilts points out, there is good attention to detail and comedic timing. Definitely a few LOL moments for me. One of which was that the first thing that the Japanese government thinks of upon discovering an fantasy world is exporting manga, anime, etc. (Magic, dragons – who cares! Get the latest issue of Shonen Jump over there now!) Makes me wonder that if the nexus between the two worlds was discovered in the US, we’d see an attempt to install a bunch of fast-food franchises and coffee shops (wonder what the online test for that is like).

    At any rate, I’m in.

    daikama
    Reply

    3. @Stilts – of course it’s all subjective/opinion. Just to be clear, I do think this is a “step above” most of what I’ve watched so far. If you want to call it “legitimately good” I have no issue with that. I’m just not “blown away” so to speak, err, write.

      FWIW, after I posted, I read a detailed “introductory summary” of the show (contained general spoilers :<), and assuming that's correct, I believe your faith in the show will ultimately prove to be validated.

      @Bear: LOL – nice one :D.

      daikama
      Reply

  21. I didn’t plan to go on with outbreak company, but I ended up watching it, dont even sure why.
    I’d rather say it was bizarre. not in a bad way, however not necessarily too good one too.
    I mean, everything there combined from regular even shallow concepts(please dont kill me Stilts) – wrap/worm hole, hardocre fantasy world, half-elf maid and as you mentioned in comments here – nothing really new under the sun.
    yet, think about it – an Otaku who supposed to spread the “otaku” culture in a bizarre fantasy world?hell why not. gonna be hilarious.
    but the good comic touch is still missing to me.
    there were funny moments, bizarre funny moments and the crazy ones too.
    that’s probably why I wouldn’t call it maou-sama yet. plus there is no serious shonen and action as maou-sama, and there won’t be probably.

    yet, I am willing to give this show chance, if it can be a comic relief at weekend, then it’s only in our favor.

    thedarktower
    Reply

      1. dont get me wrong – I agree with this statement.
        but let me ask you this (somethink I’ve been thinking about this show today) – do you think that this show can surpass the threshold between a good funny anime or a bad one claim to be good?
        I am not sure myself, that’s why I am willing to give it a chance next week, but I have doubts whether it can be. I hope I am wrong with my doubts, we’ll see 😉

        thedarktower
        Reply

      3. after a week with 2nd episode, I must say…you hit the jackpot here.
        episode 02 was great and dispelled my doubts.
        this ‘potential sleeper’ indeed implements its potential. I stick to this one!
        sasuge Stilts!

        thedarktower
        Reply

      1. other Otakus clinches Animes, would let him Jump the Maid, and begin to folder her Boobies or some sort of Pantsu showing…

        Well, lets see how it continues. the next Moe candidate seems like the “Queen”

        Germanguy
        Reply

  29. Shinichi wakes up after being drugged and sees a “ceiling he doesn’t know”. Clearly he’s been piloting too many Evangelions lately.

    And just put the Empress in an elementary school (under the pretext of exporting “Cool Japan”), and Shinichi can then legitimately invoke Hasegawa Subaru’s incriminating quote:

    Elementary schoolgirls are the best!!!111

    echykr
    Reply

    1. Nice catch! I figured out that Retsam = Master as soon as she started speaking in Japanese, but I didn’t bother to try to figure out the scheme. It does the job, probably especially to a Japanese-speaking audience.

      Stilts
      Reply

  32. Anyone knows who the hell’s composing the BGM for this episode? What i heard during the scene when the blue dinosaur entered the room was really, really dumb. It sounded more like a person murmuring something than an actual BGM

    Amiluhur
    Reply

  35. All right, all right, you’ve convinced me to take a look at this. But I warn you, I’m not a fan of anime with male leads just on general principle (mostly because male protagonists are often idiots, in one way or another), and watching them bumble their dense and idiotic way through everything is often enough of a turn-off to make me abandon a show, even if I like most everything else about it.

    Wanderer
    Reply

    1. Well, as I expected, I dislike the protagonist. His inability to restrain his outbursts is not endearing in any way.

      Everything else about the show seems fine, however, and the ED with the empress wandering around the palace and the city was pretty interesting in and of itself. Why don’t we get rid of the guy and make the whole show be about her, instead? 😛

      Wanderer
      Reply

  36. When an anime makes a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reference, I’m instantly sold lol

    This anime has everything you could want from a fantasy setting story. Tan girl on the left got her hand on the SDF girl’s butt, possible lez duhuhu. The ruler is a loli, much like the one in Ixion Saga DT, which needs a second season!. We’ve got .hack’s Balmung on the right side of the Priest and an imouto loli standing next to Lord of the Rings’ Legolas. There’s also Lizard Bro who most likely has a heart of gold.

    Magoiichi
    Reply

  38. Fantasy fans need to watch this. Comedy fans need to watch this. Romance fans need to watch this. Fans of world building need to watch this. Fans of Hataraku Maou-sama! or Scrapped Princess need to watch this. Fans of good storytelling need to watch this. You need to watch this.

    You didnt have me until Scrapped Princess

    Sun-Ku
    Reply

      2. Scrapped Princess is one of my favourite Fantasy-Adventure Animes from the early 2000s.
        The Opening song is still every now and then in my playlists.

        And “Scrapped Princess” was really the only point that got me into this series here. I like a good story, I like good Worldbuilding, I like Fantasy, but these are things, that never get me into those series on a week by week basis. I would have probably picked it up, when it was finished, to binge watch it, maybe even not then and overlooked it. Hell, I overlooked Infinite Ryvius till 2012! It is since in my Top5 of all time.

        But I dont think, that this series here will get anywhere darkthemed and scifi like Scrapped Princess (one can hope ^^)

        Sun-Ku
        Reply

      5. I remember and love Scrapped Princess! One of the best shows my local TV decided to Air (I have neither movie player nor home internet those days.) It has the same author with this really? Well, I quite like outbreak company so far but that brings my expectation up. Though,
        I think Sutepri more interesting so far, even if we just compare the first two episode due to 1) better art; and 2) Sutepri’s story flow more naturally (not sure if that’s the right descriptor/word but some scenes/story element in this series feel a bit forced to me).

        Salbazier
        Reply

  43. I was waiting for the so-called good storytelling to kick in, then the episode ended. This looks like every other “loser MC gets all the girls” anime, it’s decent, mindless fun but I fail to understand why you’re getting so overly excited about it.

    jsmith
    Reply

    2. I was referring to the attention to detail about the world and characters, as well as the genre savviness. Storytelling takes many forms, not just plot. Hopefully we’ll get some of that once we’re past introduction time, though!

      Stilts
      Reply

  44. This show’s title totally lied on me: I thought it was about a virus outbreak and it’s another zombie apocalypse anime. Instead it’s a fantasy parody anime with an eroge plot.

    Got trolled? Perhaps, but it’s a cute show anyway.

    TheMoondoggie
    Reply

  48. I love little girls!

    Pretty much sums it up!

    Looks like it could be a very entertaining (comedy) series.

    I kinda get a Dog Days design feel (not plot-wise).

    I’m not expecting anything deep, but I think this is worth following
    (but you never know – could get very cliché very fast). But I agree 100%
    with you Stilts that the writing seems to consider the details quite well.

    I know you mentioned about the “translation” rings as one of those details.
    I wonder if they’ll work the other way, that is if they’re taken he’ll be
    at a disadvantage. Or, maybe at some point the rings will become unnecessary?

    But there are hints of strife (half-elfs are second class) – whether those
    become mainline to the story could add quite a bit to the series if played well.

    @Stilts,
    I hope you continue to blog this as this is one I’d like to participate in!

    mac65
    Reply

  52. Half-elf moe maid? Hhhhnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnggggggggg!!!

    Definitely an excellent opening; the general idea is solid and the show was hilariously genre savvy. It got quite a few laughs out of me, and so far all the characters seem good. It’ll be interesting to see where this goes, I’m hoping that the MC will be genre savvy about any love interests instead of a typical oblivious hero. Fortunately the opening didn’t seem to indicate much more than a love triangle.

    And did I mention, Half-elf maid!!! Lucky bastard. Kanou should take full advantage of that, for interdimensional relations OFC. Also for SCIENCE!

    Hochmeister
    Reply

  56. While I’m not exactly as enthusiastic as you are (calling it the new HataMaou seems a bit premature), this show did have a strange draw on me. The setup seems total wishfullfillment at first sight, but I find the whole ‘modern government and fantasy world government trying to establish diplomatic relations’ aspect kind of interesting and the world did have some thought put into it. Not to mention that the male character, while a total otaku, didn’t fall into the cliché of stereotypical pervert dude, but instead actually has some consideration for the people around him. He’s still a goofball who should occassionally learn to shut his mouth of course, but he’s endearing at the least.

    Now let’s hope they manage to build a plot around it – the building blocks are there, after all.

    Dvalinn
    Reply

    1. For the time being, I only meant that they both have a similar setup (fantasy world / modern Japan collision) + good attention to detail and some solid comedy. Whether Outbreak Company can live up to that comparison will have to be earned over the rest of the season, naturally.

      Stilts
      Reply

  62. That art seems to have a lot of reflection, and flow… almost like has some legacy with Satoshi Urushihara. I couldn’t read Japanese, but can anyone verify if he’s behind this?

    launcelot
    Reply

    1. Thanks for the post. Not like I don’t have enough manga/LN to read (or anime to watch) already LOL, but that does look good – certainly well rated. Will definitely check it out.

      daikama
      Reply

    1. Ahaha, well, it’s hard to break out of your cultural mode as a writer. Though perhaps Myuseru learned how to act like that specifically to make her Japanese master feel more comfortable? Though if so they should have said that, so eh, you’re probably right

      Stilts
      Reply

    1. Really? That’s good to know! Honestly I’m not opposed to it staying in, I’d just prefer they lower the volume on it a bit so it doesn’t sound like a character speaking, or just use it when no one is talking.

      Stilts
      Reply

  75. I have to agree: this looks like it’s going to be a good show. 😀

    Personally, I liked that when Shinichi learns that Myuseru can’t read or write, he just sits down and says “I’ll help you” in like no seconds flat. Now THAT’S a good MC.

    platinum
    Reply

  77. I suppose this will be a non-violent show?
    Not like Bog Days or Zero no Tsukaima or most modern to alternate realm shows (El Hazard, Wataru, etc)?

    Put just in case:
    Show Spoiler ▼

    Anyway the best parts of this episode to me are those two references to TMNT and Nadesico(Or is it a mix?).

    More references and it will be like Hayate no Gotoku or Haiyore! Nyaruko-san 😛
    Those are fun to watch.

    iron2000
    Reply

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