Cue! – 01

OP Sequence

OP: 「」 (Start Line) by (AiRBLUE)

「はじまりのはじまり」 (Hajimari no Hajimari)
“The Beginning of the Beginning”

I found this quite fun! And if the first episode is anything to go by, the pacing seems like it’s not so bad either. But before that, a little disclaimer, there were a bunch of characters introduced in this first episode, so it’s almost sacrilege to ask me to remember them all. So I’ll just focus on Haruna Mutsuishi (Uchiyama, Yurina) (seems like she’s our titular Honoka) that’s the girl who made Hamlet feel like a feminine prince, which the other girls just completely ate up. Fun times!

Even though the topics covered felt short, that’s mostly because of its runtime. This first episode could have easily waddled off into the nether with filler backstory of the girls, but I’m glad they decided to go straight to the point. And in this case, it was having the girls read scenes from Hamlet. To be or not to be? That is the question. I have to say, it was fun! It brought me right back to my old high school theater days but in a good way. The feeling of being in a room full of amateur wannabe artist that all look in stride to the stars in hope of becoming one themselves. Was feverishly present here. The tone was captured perfectly if I do say so myself.

One by one the girls all take turns reading in pairs, one reading for Hamlet and the other reading for Ophelia, with each girl putting their own little spin on it. The reading Haruna made, felt so that Hamlet touched more like a sophisticated prince, who has his feminine side in check. While Ophelia felt more like a strong-blooded female. The way they read the lines and delivered their breath made for an interesting premise as they filled their room with their voice, and made pictures inside the minds of the other girls.

I do feel this could go interesting places, I wanted Cue to be this sort of snapshot into what the daily lives and struggles of being a VA in this fast-growing industry meant, what are the trials and tribulations that they go through? Even more, I wanted this show to acknowledge the difficulties of what it means to be a woman in this industry. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw that the chief who’s going to be training these girls is also a woman. I just didn’t want this series to become a tasteless cash grab full of fanservice. I’m glad that’s not the case and they’re taking it very seriously. And even so, the first episode ended in a sort of cliffhanger. Even if I’m not actively thinking every waking moment of what’s going to happen next, let’s just say my interest has piqued, and I could watch this with a cautious eye.

I’m glad it’s only the first episode and we already got to see some VA action, furthermore, we won’t have to wait long to actually see them audition for a real project. I could certainly continue to watch this, no problem!

Cue is an interesting show that is sure to provide some insight into the hardships, trials, and tribulations that VA’s goes through each and every single day. Personally, I find anime that represents the behind-the-scenes of the industry fascinating. Shirobako to Eizouken, or an anime about painting like Blue Period, counts as well. Praytell, the more stories we get about people struggling to produce their art, the merrier we get to be. And usually, stories like this don’t have a platform to be told, unless it’s through a medium like this. They usually go unnoticed and become invisible through the show. I certainly think Cue has some potential to explore countless topics we rarely get to experience unless you work in the industry directly. Here’s hoping for more!

Full-length images: 36.

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