OP Sequence

OP: 「齧りかけの林檎」 (Kaijiri Kake no Ringo) by 竹達彩奈 (Taketatsu Ayana)

「ラブ&エロス フォー オール / ナイトメア ビフォア カルナバル」 (Rabu & Erosu Foo Ooru / Naitomea Bifoa Karunabaru)
“Love & Ero For All / Nightmare Before Carnival”

After previewing the show for the Season Preview and having a good idea what this first episode would cover, I can’t believe how much of a positive effect the transition to an anime had on this show. All I know is that I was laughing way more than I should have been.

A Quirky Cast of Lovable Characters

Even though we didn’t see much of the zombie loving Rotten Girl, I was surprised how quickly the show fleshed out a majority of the cast. Not giving any one character too much or too little attention, we got to see all the little quirks that make them so memorable. While I’ll leave it up to you to find out which character is your favorite (Hio, Sensei, and Sommerlier are probably mine), I feel safe in saying that whoever it ends up being, you’ll get more than enough service to satisfy your needs. Because if this first episode is any indication of how the rest of the series is going to be, it looks like everyone’s going to get more than enough time to shine.

Also, if you’re on the fence and not sure if you’re going to enjoy this show and zombies are your thing, there should be a zombie-related thing happening sometime soon. So if that’s your cup of tea, watch more!!

Ero G-Man and Mangakas

For a first episode, I thought this week’s skits were freaking hilarious. Starting with the one I was anticipating the most, I loved seeing Ero G-Man (Government Man) in action. Something about watching a female government worker quickly shuffling through the 18+ aisles of a bookstore was just too funny. Toss in how she’s actually a proud lover of all types of ero and you have such a quality one-off character it’d be a shame if she didn’t come back some time soon. And don’t even get me started with how cute it was to see Hio yell out her love for ero into a packed crowd. Because, come on who wouldn’t love to see that?

On the other hand, I wasn’t expecting to see such a dawww moment between Umi and Sensei. I didn’t remember the skit itself being very memorable in the manga but boy was it awesome in the anime. A combination of shots with Sensei pouting, Hio exerting her power over her, and Umi being a damn good guy made for an amazing skit that had me giggling and fawning over its cuteness.

Overall Impressions and Looking Ahead

After being extra hyped up for this show, I was pleasantly surprised with what we got. While I was a little afraid that some of the charm would be lost from the transition into an anime, it looks like I was afraid over nothing. With a quirky combination of characters that can all stand on their own, I have nothing but praise for this show. Sure it may be a slice-of-life and a lot of people generally associate that genre with some type of synonym for boring, but I think this might be one that breaks slightly from the mold. See you next week!

 

ED Sequence

ED: 「two-Dimension’s Love」 by denk!girls

Preview

39 Comments

  1. Sensei, Sommerlier, and Ero G-Man ftw! XD

    I was actually caught off-guard for a second with Sensei getting wrapped up (looking like it’d be some quirky comedy) only for her to wake up from it actually being a dream, lol.

    HalfDemonInuyasha
    1. We were created/evolved/designed (pick your beliefs!) that way, otherwise humanity would be long extinct!
      BTW, did you know there are actually G-Men in Japan charged with checking if all ero-vids are properly mosaiced-out in certain places (if properly is erm, proper word…). Talk about (wet) dream job…

      ewok40k
  2. I love this manga, and I was really nervous about how it would transition to anime, but it’s all good so far. The start was a teeny bit slow, but it picked up steam soon after that.

    For those who don’t know, the name of the store in the show “Uma no Hone/Horse’s Bone” is a parody of the name a famous anime/manga/doujin chain in Japan called “Tora no Ana/Tiger’s Hole.” Yeah. Not gonna comment on that. XD (But man, Tora no Ana was one of my favorite stores when I lived over there. So many freebies. @_@)

    Character-wise, there’s a lot of dawwwww to go around, especially for the Hio x Sensei lap pillow moment, and for Umi coming back to save Sensei. Favorite character? Ugh! That’s so hard! Kameko is pretty awesome in her own way. So is Sommelier. Kantoku’s teasing of Hio is on another level, and Hio’s reactions are great. Sensei’s dere side is so cute. Gah. It’s like asking me who my favorite character in Working! is.

    Speaking of which, if you like Working!, ServantXService, and similar shows, you should check this out, especially if you like manga.

    s_w
    1. I believe the “ana” means “den” in that context, so “tora no ana” = “tiger’s den”.

      The actual word for “tiger’s den” doesn’t actually have a “no” though…

      Hanabira.Kage
  3. Agreed takkun. After your preview and s_w’s comment on the season schedule, I was daring to get a little hyped, which is why I (atypically, for me) jumped on the new episode so quickly. I was pleased with the result. Definitely watching this one :3 Senseiiii!!

    Stilts
    1. I always get nervous when I hype something, but the source is strong with this show. If the production company likes the material/”gets it,” then I look like a genius. Otherwise… (._.)

      They even did a good job on the art. It’s *really* close to the manga. (The story is *slightly* different here and there, but nothing major.) In this case, it’s a good thing.

      I’ll be happier in 2-3 eps, when I know for sure.

      s_w
  4. After visiting Akiba, Toranoana and Comiket for the first time this Summer, this show fills me up with a wonderful kind of nostalgia I’ve never felt before (because I’ve never been there before, duh). And even without that, the characters are too charming to ignore. The jokes are a bit hit and miss, but that’s how most comedies are.

    Anyways, does anyone know how old the heroines are supposed to be? It’s clear that the artist can draw mature women just fine, so it feels a bit jarring to see someone who might’ve come straight out of Ichigo Mashimaro working overtime in an adult comic shop.

    SingerOfW
  5. One of a few shows I tried the source material before watching. Overall I’d say a pretty good adaptation though some of the humor didn’t come across as well for me as in the manga, and I could have done without the anime-only stuff/minor changes. In other words, so far for me manga > anime. Not terribly so by any means unlike some recent adaptations, but enough IMO to be noticeable at times. I’m not a big megane fan typically, but Sensei/Master is best girl IMO. 100% shipping Umio x Sensei. Good pairing that.

    Even though we didn’t see much of the zombie loving Rotten Girl…”

    True, though did we see anything regarding the zombie aspect for her character? She just blushes furiously and “overheats” (steam coming out of her head) around 3:30 mark because… no clue. Just happens in the anime. O.o. TBH, I wasn’t all that enthralled by her zombie shtick in the source material (meh), but if you take that away from her character, then what’s left other than Just Another Cute Loli™? Curious if the anime is simply tabling that stuff for now or removing it entirely from her character.

    TL:DR = Humor is always subjective. That being said, personally I liked the manga well enough to the point I’ll probably loosely follow it (i.e. binge read), but I’m not quite sure about the anime adaptation yet. 3 Ep. Rule in effect.

  6. I suppose that more characters will be introduced as the anime progresses. If slice-of-life comedy is your cup of tea, then ‘Denkigai no Honya-san’ is an ideal choice on a lazy day. Do read the manga as well, especially if you can’t sit still for the next episode to air. I’m definitely following this series!

    Max

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