Kiznaiver – 03

「どんなにさんざんな状況だって捉えかた次第でなんとかやっていけるかも…… ねっ？」 (Donna ni Sanzan na Joukyou Datte Torae Kata Shidai de Nantoka Yatteikeru kamo…… ne?)
“Depending on How You Look At It, I Think We Could Get Through Anything… Right?”

An unexpectedly humorous affair.

This week, Kiznaiver surprisingly showcased its competent comedic ability. The gang spent the majority of the episode searching for the seventh member of their weird little social experiment, while also testing out the parameters of the Kiznaiver system. This led to a batch of genuinely funny moments, from Tenga’s range of humorous reactions and emphatic exclamations, to Yuta’s egoistic insecurities. Usually, a series’ third episode insists on establishing a larger narrative going forward. While Kiznaiver’s kind of pulled this off, it mainly concerned itself with fleshing out the dynamic between members of its main cast—a no doubt wise move for such a character-centric show as this.

The episode conveyed spectacularly the chemistry between this group of outcasts. Each kiznaiver is wholly unique from one another in personality and style of humor. I find myself actually liking and enjoying the screen presence of each one—they all get their time to shine this week. The outspoken Tenga is a little dense in the head, but likable for the sense of community and friendship he seems to have already fostered for the group. He’s completely honest—you get the impression that he doesn’t really have all too much to hide. Yuta is surprisingly far more enjoyable than expected—his fragile ego and chauvinistic façade is rife with humor. The rest of the cast is fun to watch in much of the same way—the only outlier would seem to be the enigmatic Maki, who doesn’t get a lot of time to showcase her character this episode. This level of mystique is obviously intentional, however, so I think she’ll get time to shine as the series no doubt steps into darker and more dramatic territory in the coming weeks.

I’m also pleasantly surprised with the show’s newest character. When we first caught glimpses of Yoshiharu in the opening sequence, I was afraid he’d be a bland and uninteresting pretty boy of a character. However, I’m taken aback at how eccentric he really is. He comes as some flamboyant weirdo, and this is both awesome and worrisome. It’s great because he’s incredibly entertaining to watch, from the creepy way his body moves to the off-putting groans and yelps he lets out—this guy’s is freakin’ hilarious. This whole episode was made all the more funny with his presence, especially when the episode revealed his pervy masochism.

And therein lies my biggest concern. All we’ve seen of him so far is a caricature of a person—will he be fine when the show dives into larger character drama? I’m not saying that it’s not possible, but if our first impression of him is as a cartoonish clown, I’m wondering how well or not he can transition into a more fleshed-out character.

At the very least, I’m intrigued by his character, and curious if his self-inflicted wounds go beyond sensual pleasure. I’m also wondering why he was specifically introduced this late and not with the rest of the cast early on. What significance does he bear that the others don’t? How deep really is his involvement with the Kiznaiver program—is he in cahoots with Sonozaki? A lot of interesting stuff to work with here going forward.

Overall, a strong way for Kiznaiver to show off its comedic ability. Genuinely funny moments lead to more likable characters. I can’t wait for the show to dive into some deeper drama.

Preview