The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady

Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure Spoiler-Filled Review

Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure is an original magical girl series directed by Koji Ogawa. It is produced by Toei Animation (which uses the “Izumi Todo” pen name for studio’s producers as series creator), a studio founded in January 1948. It’s known for over 240 anime, including Cutie Honey, Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon, Smile PreCure!, and Sailor Moon Crystal. Ryunosuke Kingetsu is the show’s head writer. As a warning, this review will discuss murder, death, trauma, attempted murder, psychological manipulation, and other mature themes.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the sixty-eighth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on March 3, 2024. On PCM it says this was posted on Mar. 4.

This series has an intriguing story. A girl named Sora Harewataru (voiced by Arkia Sekine) travels to Skyland’s main city to watch the birthday of Ellee, the Kingdom’s only princess. In an effort to escape her captors from the Underg Empire, she and Ellee (voiced by Aoi Koga) end up in Sorashido City, within Japan. While there, she comes across Mashiro Nijigaoka (voiced by Ai Kakuma). Later on, she meets Mashiro’s grandmother, Yoyo (voiced by Tomoko Shiota), a non-human animal named Tsubasa Yuunagi (voiced by Ayumu Murase) which can transform into a Puni bird, and a young adult woman named Ageha Hijiri (voiced by Ayaka Nanase). All of them work together to stop the Underg Empire’s evil deeds, and planned kidnapping of Ellee, even if it puts their lives into jeopardy.

Originally, I hadn’t planned to review this series. The series isn’t as environmentally focused as Tokyo Mew Mew New, nor a dark fantasy like Puella Magi Madoka Magica, a comedy such as Tweeny Witches, or a magical fantasy like Little Witch Academia. I changed my mind after reading an Anime News Network chat-log stating that the series “breaks the mold” by introducing the first boy in the Pretty Cure franchise, and an Anime Feminist article by Cy Catwell, which described the series as enjoyable, upbeat, feminine-targeted, and “incredibly empowering.”

Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure is more than a magical girl series where Sora transforms into Cure Sky, Mashiro into Cure Prism, and Tsubasa into Cure Wing. Sora has some of the strongest character development of any character in the entire series. She goes from someone who claims she is a hero to the reality, with many bumps around the way. She is only rivaled by what Tsubasa goes through, who is a species of bird, and can’t fly, causing his fellow bird peers to make fun of him.

Like other magical girl series, there is yuri subtext, specifically between Sora and Mashiro. In fact, both of them have a combo attack against any Ranborgs summoned by Kabaton (voiced by Yasuhro Mamiya), a general of the Underg Empire. As the series goes forward, their connection with one another gets stronger. It interlinks with camaraderie between the PreCures. For instance, Sora and Mashiro reassure Tsubase, increasing his self-confidence, helping him face his fears and insecurities.

One of the more interesting twists is the reveal that the grandmother of Mashiro, Yoyo, is from Skyland. She helps out the protagonists by connecting a magic mirror back to Skyland, and later, an inter-dimensional tunnel, with the right materials. She is a wise, guiding force, for the characters, and is often aware of more than what she reveals.

While Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure has characteristics typical in the magical girl genre, including transformations, friendship, heroic elements, youth, and femininity, this series is more than that. There are no heterosexual relationships. Rather, there’s the aforementioned yuri subtext and a focus on friendship, with the creation of a found/chosen family among the protagonists. Unlike Sailor Moon, two characters buck the idea of the PreCures as princesses: Sora and Tsubasa. Both appear to be more down-and-out fighters, not royalty. Mashiro is the closest to being a princess-like apart from Ellee (an actual Princess).

Uniquely, Sora sees one of the key generals in Skyland, Captain Shalala (voiced by Saiga Mitsuki), as her rolemodel-of-sorts, rather than a king or prince. Just as significant is the fact Tsubasa is a part of the team, showing that the magic-based and gentle power of magical girls isn’t just for girls. Instead it makes clear that men can fight without punching or having lots of physical training. In fact, the latter is done by Sora but not anyone else.

There’s some parallels between Tsubasa and Steven Universe, in that both do things seen as “girly” and “feminine.” However, the latter develops it more than the former. Steven uses his mother’s shield (with a rose in the center), his power for self-defense, rather than offense, and often cries, to name a few elements. Despite these differences, Tsubasa is a relatively well-developed character, as much as any other protagonist in this series.

Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure is more than a series focused on heroism, which uses sky as a main motif and features characters with their own signature power moves. For one, it is novel that Sora spares Kabaton life after he fails his Earth mission for the Underg Empire. As a result, he lives a new non-evil life in Sorashido City.

Sora is just as compelling. She makes up with a fellow guard that she trains alongside in Skyland, showing she has become more of a hero. She wants to fight evil and cares about those around her. Of course, this is not unique to Sora. Other protagonists act similarly, including those in other magical girl series. For instance, the Sailor Scouts in Sailor Moon often go out of their way to protect others, especially if those people are near and dear to them.

Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure shares the message that any obstacle can be overcome, even if it seems insurmountable. Something similar is communicated in Ippon Again!, except the latter series primarily states that hard work can lead to good results. The former is different, as it is more about the value of teamwork and friendship. Of course, this is present in Ippon Again!, but fights are more one-on-one, while those in Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure often feature multiple heroes fighting at once.

The Skyland arc is one of the more gripping plotlines. Sora becomes a member of the Azure Guards and fights against the villainous Battamonda (voiced by KENN / Ken’ichirō Ōhashi), along with other defenders of the city. This arc indicates that near-impossible challenges can be met. Mashiro and Sora use all of their magical girl energy to stop a bomb from destroying the capital of Skyland. This two-episode arc is short-lived. It ends in the fifteenth episode, setting the stage for a return to Sorashido City. The King and Queen are incapacitated by a curse-of-sorts. Captain Shala presumably sacrifices herself to save the city.

In the next two episodes are some of the series’ strongest. This arc features protagonists returning to Japan and the grandmother, Yoyo, finding a way to heal the King and Queen. They work together to cheer up Elle and Battamonda follows them, declaring he will stop them no matter what. As was the case in episodes before this, there are huge battles, but everything is always rebuilt afterward. There is also a nice bonding scene, in another episode, between Sora and Mashiro during a relay race, bringing them closer together.

There was some controversy about the sixteenth episode of Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure. Some claimed that one of the banners used had a Japanese imperialist origin. Whether that is the case or not, it pales in comparison to what happened with Oshi No Ko (which is returning with a second season this year). There were even complaints about a subset of that series fandom harassing the mother of professional wrestler Hana Kimura. She previously said that she doesn’t want to blame anyone and praised the series for raising “important issues” but wondered if anyone gave it “the proper consideration before releasing it out into the world.”

Apart from that, the camaraderie between the characters, the aforementioned yuri subtext between Sora and Mashiro, and the value of self-love are important series themes. When the heroes are pinned down, they use all the strength they can to beat the villains, even if they are facing stronger monsters. This is the case in the eighteenth and nineteenth episodes. In those episodes, Ageha Hijiri goes from being an 18-year-old woman who teaches at a nursery school to a magical girl named Cure Butterfly. She becomes an integral part of the PreCure team. The new opening in the nineteenth episode features her in a much more prominent place.

One of the best parts of the eighteenth and nineteenth episodes of Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure is the fact that Ageha is not some refugee from a magical land (as is the case for Sora and Tsubasa). She’s an ordinary person in more ways than one. Having a character who is passionate about primary school education is great. Many magical girls are teenagers, so they aren’t necessarily thinking of their future careers. That sets Ageha apart.

Surely, Mashiro is also an “ordinary person,” but Ageha is different. She cares about the students of her nursery class. She defends them, and the school, after she transforms into Cure Butterfly. By the nineteenth episode, she has settled in with everyone. She even works with Tsubasa, who’s worried about her, to develop a joint attack named “PreCure! Titanic Rainbow.” This magic spell involves one person using a paintbrush, turning a being into rainbow, and then using it against an enemy, if I understand it correctly. Basically, it is “death by bird butt,” to put it simply. It’s even more powerful than Mashiro and Sora’s joint spell, named “Updraft Shining.”

Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure harps on a theme expressed in episodes of Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, Cleopatra in Space, and in I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level. Viewers are told that overwork is bad and that breaks are good. This series goes even further: it makes clear that no one should take on everything by themselves, but should share the burden with others. By the end of the nineteenth episode, Tsubasa, Mashiro, Sora, and Ageha all divide up the house duties, embodying elements of a cooperative housing situation.

Ageha’s overwork and over-dedication are the result of her determination to give back to everyone. The series depicts the former as something people shouldn’t not strive for. Fitting with the anti-overwork message, collaboration is emphasized. This is not unique to this series. It is present in many magical girl and superhero series, especially when characters in those series are part of a team. Coming back to Ageha, I am reminded of the twenty-eighth episode. In that episode, it’s revealed that Ageha knows a well-known model (Maria Saotome), and a well-known model and designer (Kaguya Saotome). Both are her sisters. A divorce separated them and they took different paths. The episode ends with each sister agreeing to do their best and bring a smile to faces of other people, whether in the fashion world or within the classroom.

Ageha isn’t the only one who struggles in Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure. Throughout the series, Mashiro often works on picture book illustration and writing. In the twentieth episode, she has writer’s bloc and is unable to come up with a “good” original story. She believes she is borrowing from too many other stories. A mother reading to their daughter inspires her. Although there is an obligatory fight scene in this episode, with a monster summoned by an annoyed Battamonda, she still submits her drawing in time for the town’s picture book contest. Even though she doesn’t win, she dedicates herself to drawing again, which comes up later in the series.

Otherwise, some characters use their knowledge to assist their fellow team members. In the twenty-first episode, Tsubasa defeats Battamonda’s summoned monster because he knows that clouds are made of “tiny bits of water and ice.” He is helped by the other PreCures, who use their magical attacks, including a joint attack with Ageha. At the episode’s end, Yoyo gives him a book and Mirror Pad to help him learn more. In a later episode, Tsubasa connects with Shoko Amauno who knows about airplanes and flying. He uses it to help defeat the summoned monster. The former episode made me think back to a middle school science class I look which included a lesson about different cloud types. I probably still have the handouts from that class!

One of the most heartbreaking Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure episodes follows. Battamonda tricks Sora. He claims that she planted the dark hatred in his heart. Captain Shalala is inside the monster he summoned. He manipulates the monster to attack her. Other PreCures save her, but don’t purify the monster after he claims that Undergu energy is keeping her alive. The monster-of-sorts, and Battamonda, disappear. He declares he will continue to play with them until their hearts are “in pieces.” The latter happens with Sora. After she says she “doesn’t want to fight anymore,” her mirage pen disappears, so she can’t transform! In this way, Battamonda is one of the worst villains in the entire series. He engaged in psychological warfare against Sora because he tried to make her feel afraid / hopeless / less confident without physically hurting her.

The twenty-third episode brings this full circle. Sora returns to Skyland, believing she has lost everything, since she can’t access her powers. While her parents respect her decision, her brother does not. Her friends are worried about her. Yoyo says that she doesn’t know how people move forward when their dreams are shattered. Her friends Ageha and Tsubasa are unable to get her out of her funk. Instead, she thinks about the good times she had with Mashiro and that running away isn’t what a hero does. While reading Mashiro’s letter, and blushing, a new mirage pen appears (a product of her feelings for Mashiro?). Her father tells her that a dream isn’t a one-time thing, but can come back repeatedly. Almost like Superman descending from the sky, she comes back with force, and does an amazing Sky Punch.

Unsurprisingly, Battamonda is annoyed. The Mirror Pad collects the right amount of energy before their purification. After Sora does her combo attack with Mashiro, known as PreCure! Updraft Shining, the Captain is released from the monster-of-sorts. She is weak and recovers. The yuri subtext here is strong. Sora and Mashiro hug one another, with Mashiro calling Sora a “hero girl.” Mashiro gives Sora back her hero journal. Sora says she will get stronger so that Battamonda, who’s on the run, won’t hurt her anymore. After this high-stakes action, it is no surprise that they somewhat relax in the next episode after healing the King and Queen with the potion they have collected, and become famous in Skyland.

Ellee is ominously described as a “child of destiny.” She appeared out of nowhere, then the King and Queen adopted her. Ageha predicts, in the twenty-fifth episode of Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure, that Ellee will get her own magical powers. They first manifest themselves in her being able to talk to animals. These powers come in handy when fighting a monster summoned by Minoton, another villain of the week, as you could call them. This comes up again in the twenty-ninth episode. Ellee bonds with a stuffed animal, in contrast to Sora, who’s terrified out of her mind (she dislikes the animal as it is kowai rather than kawaii), until she learns the animal can talk because it is magic.

This mixes with episodes which have comedic moments or lessons. At the end of the twenty-sixth episode, Mashiro’s parents arrive and spend time at the cooperative house-of-sorts she is living in. They have “I Love Mashiro” shirts with them. This embarrasses her, but they only stay a short time before flying back overseas. In another episode, all the PreCures are pulled inside the mirror pad. After Ellee accidentally activates “hidden wild lessons” mode, they go through lessons of sorts. Somehow, they get back just in time for the fireworks. The “obligatory” beach episode, episode thirty, is a bit laid-back. Even so, it includes scary parts: Sora almost drowns while fighting Minoton’s summoned monster. In the end, they all have fun time and eat a meal at a beach restaurant.

This series never criticizes the beauty myth or beauty industry. On the other hand, Ageha could have been a model like her sisters, but chooses to be a nursery school teacher. As such, this series bucks the usual storyline, where she would become a model. It echoes how Fuuka Miyazawa, protagonist of the The Aquatope on the White Sand, chooses to leave her idol life behind and work at an aquarium in Okinawa. At the same time, Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure is less girly than Tropical-Rouge! Pretty Cure, which is much more centered on makeup. The focus on makeup being part of magical transformation is not new, but its central to this franchise.

The thirty-ninth episode is a turning point. It marks the introduction of Skearhead (voiced by Mitsuru Miyamoto). He claims to be ruler of the Undergu Empire, working on behalf of Empress Underg (voiced by Takako Honda). He kidnaps Ellee, to the shock of her friends, but, somehow, she escapes and new PreCure emerges: Cure Majesty. She saves her friends. He withdraws, saying he will remember the name “Cure Majesty.” They all are glad that Ellee is ok. In the end, Sora resolves they need to get stronger to defend Ellee from new enemies. This mixes with superb animation throughout, which is often rad and tip-top.

In the next few Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure episodes, Ellee comes into her own. The fact she is Cure Majesty becomes apparent, even though she can’t transform at will at first. Skearhead tries to eliminate her, with Minoton reborn with Undergu energy. He wants all the PreCures to disappear. Whether she gives off vibes from the beginning of Steven Universe or not, her friends are more than happy to help her, as the first toddler PreCure in the franchise. Aoi Koga does a great job voicing all her iterations! Coming back to the character, she leads the way to an ancient ruins where they come across the Majestic Chroniclon, giving them all a super saiyan power boost, and they beat back the dark energy.

Mashiro attempts again to become a picture book author in the thirty-fourth episode. Battamonda, living in the human world as “Monda,” in a terrible apartment, next door to Kabaton, tries to “discourage” Mashiro. He claims he is an art student and tries to gain her confidence. However, this does the exact opposite. Mashiro felt down after reading her story at the local library and some kids called it “boring.” Later, she thanks him for his words and which surprised him. This was the first time someone cheered him on. At the same time, Skearhead makes more appearances, even as the heroes beat him back with the Majestic Chroniclon‘s powers.

Episode thirty-five is one better Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure episodes. It centers around Tamaki Shinomiya, a student who also attends Sorashida Academy. She requests Sora be their special coach. Tamaki is injured and can’t throw before the next tournament. This puts the team in jeopardy because she’s their ace. This episode isn’t notable because Skearhead appears, Tamaki learning that Sora is a PreCure, Sora carrying Tamaki in a bridal carry, nor a baseball pitch defeating a conjured monster. Rather, Sora finds a friend who connects with her, even though she isn’t a hero with magical powers. Secondly, the episode realistically shows the time of Tamaki’s recovery. As a side note, the baseball club loves Sora. The yuri subtext is as strong as when people cheered for Marika Kato when she entered the academy in an episode of Bodacious Space Pirates.

Skearhead gets more dangerous, threatening kids in a nursery school in the thirty-sixth episode. He arrogantly declares, in the episode afterward, that only he needs to know why he is targeting the PreCures. In the process, Tsubasa and Ageha fight alongside one another. Ageha cheers up a sad kid (Takeru) who wants to stay at nursery school. She meets the nursery school teacher who gave her confidence all those years ago. That teacher happens to be Takeru’s mother! Ageha and Mashiro also reflect on when their friendship began. They learn that their favorite tree was chopped down and made into a swing that everyone can use. In the second of these two episodes, the monster fight seems unnecessary and obligatory. This is an issue with some, but not all, episodes in this series.

The PreCures continue to take risks. They meet a “flightless” dragon tribe with Tsubasa’s help, while Skearhead harasses them, even turning a bell into a monster. In the latter case, Ellee watches a television special about weddings with Aegeha, Sora, and Mashiro. Afterward, she’s determined to marry Tsubasa. While he agrees to “play wedding” with her, Ellee is serious about it, and Tsubasa has a nightmare about the marriage. She even holds his book hostage in response and declares she hates him. The episode ends positively. Tsubasa vows to be Ellee’s knight and protect her forever. She sees the other PreCures as her friends forever. She doesn’t think she is married to anyone. This makes clear that the “marriage” was only a method to ensure she would be friends with Tsubasa forever. On some level, this episode shows the problems with child marriages.

Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure‘s forty-first episode shakes everything apart. It begins with Mashiro struggling to come up with a theme for a writing contest. Monda acts nice, claiming that power is only for the ones who succeed. She tries to cheer him up and says she likes fallen leaves. Later, Skearhead calls Monda worthless, saying he doesn’t deserve to exist, and she defends him. But she is not the one shaken: rather it is Sora. She confronts Skearhead who says the “one they love” wants them to attack the PreCures. She isn’t sure what he means. While Monda’s words about fallen leaves echo in his mind while the words of Skearhead echo in hers.

This leads to the next episode. Tsubasa researches how to generate a specific type of energy, specifically having in mind a protective shield around Skyland (this foreshadows what happens in a later episode). Sora begins to have feelings of self-doubt. She puts on a strong front to the Captain, but wants to figure out these feelings by herself. Her friends say they will be there for her, supporting her where necessary. It’s revealed that Skearhead knows about Tsubasa’s research, implying there is a mole providing information to him. Sora continues to hesitate to fight. This clears up when she talks to Skearhead, explaining why she stopped fighting, saying that PreCures are fighting on behalf of the “one they love.”

Skearhead retreats but is unfazed. Typically, he declares that “thinking and worrying creates self-doubt in battle” and threatens to destroy the city. In response, she asks if he ever hesitates or worries when he is fighting for someone. She demands an answer from him as to why he is hurting others and making everyone suffer. He says she doesn’t need to know why. Instead, in his mind, she needs to “disappear.” He calls her naive, saying her beliefs will result in the city’s destruction. Sora doesn’t give up. She doesn’t care if she is naive. She uses her Sky Punch to purify the energy he’s gathered. Before he can talk, he’s shaken by her power and cowardly flees. Sora later tells her friends what he told her. She remains committed to learning why he is hurting people.

These serious Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure episodes are mixed with fun ones, like the Halloween-themed thirty-ninth episode. Battamonda dresses up as “Cure Pumpkin” and claims he is a PreCure. He wants to make the PreCures look bad, but his plan is an utter failure. He runs away, ashamed and apologized, while all the PreCures get candy. In some ways, the episode sets the stage for the forty-third one. In that episode, Monda agrees with Mashiro, who tells him that she decides her own worth. He attacks Skearhead, who believes that those without power are “worthless.”

In addition, he gives Mashiro back her transformer-pen. She is able to, with help of her fellow PreCures, fight back against Monda. He was turned into a monster-of-sorts by Skearhead. Although they almost lose, Mashiro uses one of her spells to make Monda’s heart “shine.” A combo attack by the PreCures allows them to purify him. He is forgiven by Sora. He apologizes to Mashiro for ripping her notebook. It almost seems he is on the road to becoming a better person/being.

In the series final arc, more about the “far past” comes to the forefront. Empress Underg tells the PreCures, in the forty-fourth episode, that the Skyland castle was built on “tears of sadness.” She wants revenge for what happened in the past. In an almost Steven Universe-esque manner, Sora proposes they talk with her, but she challenges them instead. Their massive attack fails. Their strength is no match for her, and they fall down, transforming back into their usual selves. The Empress blames everything on Ellee, who is shocked to hear this slander. In response, she freezes time thanks to the Majestic Chroniclon.

Ellee, Sora, and Mashiro travel back three hundred years into the past. They meet Princess Elleelain of Skyland. Sora and Mashiro are unable to transform. They do what they can to fight the Ramborgs. Sora remembers the classic stories. As the Empress declares, fighting only brings tears. This episode of Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure makes one thing clear: Ellee is the reincarnation of Cure Noble. This is continued in the forty-fifth episode. Cheer Noble is cheered on, condemning the Emperor of the Underg Empire for attacking against defenseless Puni birds. The Empress, a being born from the sea of Undergu energy, says that strength isn’t “everything,” standing against Skearhead’s conceptions.

What I found fascinating is that the male characters are the ones who promote the idea that strength is “everything.” This is one of the feminist messages of this series. Even the Empress tries to stop the fighting, but her father won’t listen. Her effort is successful and supported by Cure Noble (who says that fighting brings only tears), and the present-day PreCures (Sora, Mashiro, and Ellee). This is scuttled by Skearhead. He uses the meeting between Cure Noble, the Empress, and Emperor of Underg Empire as a trap/distraction to attack the city. Rightly enraged, Cure Noble goes on the attack and accidentally hurts the Empress. Even so, they achieve peace, but Skearhead is unhappy.

These events have reverberations in the present: the Empress is hardened and refuses to consider peace. Instead, she plans to wipe them out. The PreCures beat her. Skearhead whisks her away before they have a chance to talk to her. This plotline is interrupted by the forty-sixth Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure episode. It centers around ways to cheer-up everyone in Skyland’s main city. They have a celebration which resembles Christmas. That episode is one of the only ones without a villain battle. It includes nice Sora/Mashiro moments, with both pledging to protect the world together.

The audience learns about what really happened at the same time as the PreCures. This includes the revelation, in episode forty-seven, that Ellee is a manifestation of Morning Star, otherwise known as Princess Ellee-Lain. She tells them that she put her power in the Majestic Chroniclon. She informs them that good relations between Skyland and the Underg Empire suddenly ended, without warning. Fading away, she tells them that the world’s fate is in their hands. Hilariously, while Ellee remains as a teenage girl most of the time, she goes back to becoming a little kid when she gets hungry.

Skearhead is crafty. He claims that he would lay down his life for the Empress. On the other hand, he traps two PreCures in a bubble. He intends on draining their power and attacking the city. Skearhead disappears into nothingness after Ellee (as Cure Majesty) attacks him. He claims this is his “last lesson” to the Empress. Understandably, she is horrified. Sora tells her the truth: if she had talked to them, it wouldn’t have come to this. The Empress claims that Cure Noble attacked her father and ended the relations between her country in Skyland. Conveniently, Skearhead isn’t there, so no one can get to the truth and question her story’s validity.

The story that the Empress tells gives the audience a window into her perspective. She believes that Skearhead saved her and says she has lost everything. She claims she has nothing left due to the reported “death” of Skearhead at Ellee’s hand. Echoing Cassandra’s wildly-powerful moonstone powers in Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure, she calls forth all the Undergu energy, and tries to destroy the entire city. The PreCures do what they can to stop her. Some citizens are evacuated. Even former villains, like Kabaton, Minoton, and Battamonda, reappear. They are now on the side of the PreCures.

At first, it seems like the PreCures have made a breakthrough. She goes back to her normal form after they tell her that strength isn’t everything. Mashiro and Sora do their PreCure Updraft Shining combo attack to purify her. Before she can say anything, Skearhead, like a unhinged groundhog, pops out of nowhere. He stabs her through the body with a spear. This action is either attempted reginicide [killing of a queen] or, more specifically, attempted tyrannicide since the Empress is effectively a tyrant.

Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure‘s penultimate episode raises the stakes. Like a light bulb flickering on in a dark closet, the Empress remembers something she’d forgotten: Skearhead killed her father. He replaced her actual memory with a false one. To cover his tracks, he created the memory that Cure Noble betrayed her. This ensured that her body and mind would be tied to Undergu energy. He reveals his true form to the PreCures: an incarnation of Undergu energy named Darkhead. He psychologically damages the Empress even more, declaring that he doesn’t love her at all. This causes her to realize that everything she believed has been a lie. This is all part of the series’ feminist themes.

This all leads to one of the best series sequences. The PreCures travel to the Underg Empire to save the Empress. Along the way, PreCures continue peeling off to fight the Ramborgs. By the end, only Sora and Mashiro are left. They confront Darkhead who only saw the Empress as an effective “vessel” believing that a “hero’s light” was inside her. He sees Sora as a better vessel. He uses the sea of Undergu energy to turn her into Dark Sky! While this energy flow is poisonous to PreCures, she fights him regardless. Through her determination, she beats him, with the help of Mashiro. She is able to purge him from her body permanently.

Although Skearhead / Darkhead is gone (in a sense) and the Empress is healed, as a side effect, their battle is not over. Before they begin, they bond with the Empress. Sora defines a hero for her: a person fighting no matter what stands in their way and believing that your convictions are right. She admits that she isn’t great or naive enough to call herself a hero. Her friends have always supported her. The PreCures prepare themselves to fight, and win against, an evil snake beast known as Daijurg (another form of Skearhead / Darkhead).

In the Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure series finale, the Empress rejects Daijurg/Darkhead/Skearhead. They all de-transform since they have been transformed too long. Sora raises their spirits, declaring that the ability to be a PreCure is infinite, and inside them. In effect, she says that everyone has infinite possibility. Somehow, they are able to defeat the snake monster on Earth and purify it. Everything ends happily. The Empress declares that they will have a lasting peace in Skyland. Kabaton, Minoton, and Battamonda join her.

A fissure appears: Ellee, Tsubasa and Sora prepare to go back to their world (Skyland). Mashiro stays behind on Earth. They say their goodbyes. The most emotional moment is between Mashiro and Sora. She even jokes about how many times they held hands and says she loves Mashiro’s smile. In response, Mashiro calls her cool and strong. This break doesn’t last long. The next morning, Ellee, Tsubasa, and Sora come back so they can eat breakfast together. The series ends with Mashiro making a picture book featuring all of them, and herself. It’s akin to Rapunzel’s journal in Tangled. In a post-credits scene, Cure Wonderful, from the currently airing Pretty Cure series, Wonderful PreCure!, makes her debut.

This series is better than the decent adult PreCure, entitled Power of Hope: PreCure Full Bloom, a clear nostalgia trip. Its longer than Delicious Party Pretty Cure, the previous series in the Pretty Cure / PreCure franchise. That series had forty-five episodes. After this series ended, Wonderful PreCure! replaced it in the same time slot on All-Nippon News Network. Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure could have been longer. In a weird and unfortunate coincidence, Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure had more episodes, including the film as one episode. That is despite the fact that final season had its final series order cut from thirty-six episodes down to twenty-one, resulting in a total episode count of sixty.

If the series received another ten episodes, it could have involved a corrupted Cure Sky becoming Dark Sky as a cliffhanger, possibly turning against her fellow PreCures. She could become a fallen magical girl of sorts. The latter led to fanart of Dark Sky and Cure Prism together, sometimes in very compromising positions. In the series, as it stands presently, the day is saved, arguably, by lesbian love between Sora and Mashiro. Additional episodes could have canonized this yuri subtext. To my knowledge, there aren’t any canon lesbian characters in the PreCure franchise. There’s only subtext which fans recognize from time to time.

Whether there is wasted potential or not, the writers clearly wanted to quickly wrap up the series. This allowed the series to set the stage for Wonderful PreCure!, the next PreCure series. Although I enjoyed the series conclusion, since it tied up loose ends, I don’t understand why all the PreCures couldn’t have lived together in the human world. Perhaps some fanfiction writers will imagine these possibilities, and others, adding to the over 180 fics for the series on AO3.

The show’s crew and cast are talented. Series director Koji Ogawa worked on other Pretty Cure and magical girl series, along with Chaos Dragon and Dragon Ball Super. Ryunosuke Kingetsu was head writer for Ninja Nonsense and Futakoi Alternative and a writer on Märchen Mädchen. Series character designer Atsushi Saitō, worked on Clannad, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Healer Girl, Is the Order a Rabbit?, K-On!, and Love Live! Superstar!!. The fact that I enjoyed watching most of these aforementioned series made me like this series more.

Voice actors for the show’s four protagonists are just as experienced. Akira Sekine voiced Princess Charlotte, a protagonist of Princess Principal, along with characters in Asobi Asobase, Assault Lily Bouquet, Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, and Birdie Wing. Ai Kakuma voiced Hazuki Kudo in Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible, Ilia Coral in The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady, and Natsu Umehara in Ippon Again!. She will voice Kaori Tachibana in Whisper Me a Love Song in April and Yuri Shibasaki in The Masterful Cat Is Depressed Again Today in July.

Ayumu Murase and Ayaka Nanase, who voice two other protagonists, are also seasoned voice actors. Murase voices Kento Yamada in Skip and Loafer and Hachi in My Roommate is a Cat. Nanase voices Mary Read in Fena: Pirate Princess and Noa Shiragiku in Tsurune. Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure voice actors Aoi Koga, Tomoko Shiota, Yasuhro Mamiya, and Saiga Mitsuki are known for their roles in Kaguya-sama: Love Is War, The Demon Girl Next Door, Asteroid in Love, Princess Principal: Crown Handler, Yurikuma Arashi, Ouran High School Host Club, Maria Watches Over Us, Spy × Family, and Stars Align.

Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure can be streamed on Crunchyroll, and, hopefully has a DVD or Blu-ray physical release in the U.S.

Spy x Family Season 2 Spoiler-Filled Review

Spy x Family is an action spy comedy based on Tatsuya Endo’s manga. It is directed and written by Takahiro Harada. The first season aired in two cours / parts from April to December 2022. Kazuhiro Furuhashi directed and wrote that season. Wit Studio and CloverWorks produce this series. The latter studio is known for Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, My Dress-Up Darling, In the Heart of Kunoichi Tsubaki, and Bocchi the Rock!. The former studio produced Attack on Titan‘s first three seasons. As a warning, there will be discussion of blood, violence, death, murder, and other mature themes.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the sixty-sixth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on February 7, 2024.

Spy x Family focuses on three people staying together as a family unit, each for their own reasons. Twilight (voiced by Takuya Eguchi) receives the top-secret mission, Operation Strix, from the Westphalia intelligence agency (otherwise known as WISE). They want to stop war from breaking out between the East and West by investigating reactionary political leader Donovan Desmond. Twilight lives in Berlint as a psychiatrist named Loid Forger. He’s the patriarch of a mock family including himself, his wife, Yor Forger née Briar (voiced by Saori Hayami), and his adopted daughter, Anya (voiced by Atsumi Tanezaki). He’s unaware that Yor is secretly an assassin named Thorn Princess or that Anya is a telepath. They all live together, hiding their true identities from one another.

The first episode of this season, episode twenty-six, re-introduces viewers to the characters. This includes Bond (voiced by Kenichirō Matsuda), who can see the future, akin to Garnet’s future-vision in Steven Universe. The opening is more aberrant and cartoony, differing from those for the two cours /parts of season one. I like the openings of those cours much better. This season opening gives the impression that this season will be wild and out of control. That somewhat pans out.

There’s no doubt that this season is more centered on female characters, especially Yor, than previous episodes. Surely, Anya has received a huge spotlight, leading to the nomination of her character as a “must protect at all costs” character during the Crunchyroll’s Anime Awards this year. Anya’s voice actor was also nominated for another award. However, Yor hasn’t received as much of a spotlight. This season changes that. The season’s first episode involves Yor and Loid going on a date after he notices her foul mood. In reality, a “bad person” shot her in the butt, while she was working as an assassin, and it hurts badly. Adding to the comedy, Anya and “Scruffy Head” (also called Franky), follow them.

This episode shows Yor and Anya’s inner strength. For instance, Anya uses her telepathic powers to stop someone who wants to kill Yor. She makes a bomb out of peanuts, telling the assassin to go back to his normal life. Yor eats a poisonous blowfish but survives because she has a built-up immunity to poisons. As a result, she enjoys her time with Loid and wants to go out on more dates with him. The next day, Loid has no idea what’s wrong. In reality, the medicine/poison has worn off and she feels terrible again, making him lament that he doesn’t understand women. From the get-go, it was clear that Yor would get “her due” this season.

Spy x Family episodes after this focus on male characters. Bond figures out a way to stay alive. Damian Desmond (voiced by Natsumi Fujiwara) goes on a field trip with his classmates, and an instructor named Mr. Green (voiced by Hiroshi Shirokuma), to the wilderness. The latter resembled a scene from Laid-Back Camp, and reminded me of my days in Boy Scouts, including a trip to the Adirondacks. The twenty-eighth episode focuses on an operation against Franklin, who distributed underground newspapers, and spotlighted secret police officer Yuri Briar (voiced by Kensho Ono). Although he has been shown as harsh, Yuri tried to be compassionate. He agreed to give Franklin’s father financial aid.

This series doesn’t attempt to portray Yuri’s work comedically. Rather, its shown negatively. Historically, both sides in the Cold War developed secret police forces. They were tasked with preventing the other side from overthrowing their government. Austin Murphy wrote in The Triumph of Evil: The Reality of the USA’s Cold War Victory that East German secret police were tasked with protecting “government leaders and buildings…uncovering plots to overthrow the government, collecting information…and spying in the West.” He described how political repression and secret police actions in Eastern Europe were exaggerated by the U.S. government and mainstream press. In this series, it does not go against this perception. The idea the East is “bad” and the West is “good” is ingrained in the plot. In this series, the Eastern secret police are brutal agents of repression, engaging in surveillance and harsh interrogation.

Yuri is determined to track down Twilight. He is not aware that Twilight is married to his sister, Yor, as Loid. Even so, he is angry at Loid, due to his obsession with his sister. Anya dislikes him. Otherwise, there’s a scenario from an episode of the in-series show, Bondman. Bondman creates a harem of eight women. He declares he’ll make all these women like him. Fissures form. Some women are angry at not getting enough attention from him and the harem breaks apart. After Anya asks him about it, Loid rejects Bondman’s actions, which echo polyamorous relationships. He say that Bondman was only being “gentlemanly” and hints that he doesn’t like the idea of relationships with multiple people. I would say it is more about respecting other people rather than a statement against polyamory and favoring monogamous relationships.

I’d forgotten how many slice-of-life moments are in Spy x Family before an arc which compromises almost half the season. Anya rides on a silly polar bear machine. Loid realizes he doesn’t understand the children’s minds. Anya is determined to get legendary pastries from the Eden College pastry chef. Perhaps hinting at the future, Anya cries in front of Damian. He loses the game of Old Maid, as a result. She gets a macron, following her failed efforts to be a “cool liar” and almost being exposed for being a mind-reader.

One of my favorite slice-of-life moments is where Franky Franklin (voiced by Hiroyuki Yoshino) and Yor work together to find a cat named Kopi. Kacey (voiced by Marie Ôi), a girl who works at a nearby cafe, owns the cat. This scene artfully combines combination of humor, technology, and action. Franky develops cat-shaped listening devices which cats destroy, and a device which shoots out catnip pheromones, which work too well. In the end, Franky is disappointed. Kacey has a partner named Mark. Yor is glad she helped Franky. This fades away when she’s called into a room to answer a call from her boss-of-sorts. She learns about another assassin mission.

Episodes 30-34, and part of 35, comprise the cruise liner arc. It is perhaps one of the best Spy x Family arcs due to the focus on Yor, something severely lacking in the series up to this point. Apart from episode 26, Yor had been treated as a secondary character among the protagonists. This echoed Oshi no Ko. That series centers around the perspective of Aquamarine “Aqua” Hoshino. Female perspectives are downplayed. Some critics raised the same issue about Helluva Boss.

The latter is curious. Hazbin Hotel, also created by Vivienne Medrano, centers on female characters. This raises the question as to why more wasn’t done in Helluva Boss. Medrano defended this decision in a Twitter thread. She said “Hazbin has always had a heavier emphasis on women led stories, so Helluva has steered more towards male-led stories.” She added even with such storytelling, she still loved female characters in the series.

Coming back to Spy x Family, the arc started off strong. Yor meets her aforementioned boss-of-sorts, known as the Shopkeeper (voiced by Junichi Suwabe). She receives her mission: protecting someone seeking asylum in the East. Her mission is complicated when she learns that Anya and Loid have tickets on the same luxury cruise ship, the Princess Lorelei. It is in-character for Anya to be excited for the cruise and then be disappointed once she entered the living quarters.

Yor protects Olka (voiced by Aya Endō), her son Gram (voiced by Marie Ôi), and Olka’s husband, Zeb (voiced by Shinya Takahashi). Olka and Zeb have shared wartime experiences. Olka gave Zeb a piece of bread when he was starving which brought them closer together. Assassins threaten Yor and her clients. Some even bug the entire vessel.

The episode that follows involves Yor fighting off an assassin, masquerading as someone providing room service. She;s assisted by Matthew McMahon (voiced by Kenyū Horiuchi), the director. Loid notices wiretaps and tries to avoid suspicious characters. At the same time, there’s a sub-story between Loid and Anya. She tries to ensure that assassins don’t try to kill or attack Yor and attempts to distract Loid. In the process, Yor and the Director use brutal tactics to defend their clients (Olka, her husband, and son). This includes Yor killing someone with a button and another with her hand strength, while the Director throws an assassin into the water.

The thirty-second, thirty-third, and thirty-fourth episodes of Spy x Family give more depth to Yor. This mixes with Franky realizing that he can “pick up” women with Bond and Anya continuing to distract Loid in one way or another. In the process, she ends up enjoying mini-golf, going on roller-skates, attending a play, and so on, rather than thinking about helping Yor. She realizes that she is worrying Loid and notes that she misses Yor. In response, Loid says he will leave a message to let them know when Yor is free.

These episodes feature some of the most brutal fights for Yor, which she wins. Anya assists her. She convinces people that Yor is only a circus performer. As a result, assassin becomes distracted and Yor leaves victorious. She kills other assassins through various means. Blood, violence, murder, and death in this episode make clear that this series is for adults.

Yor’s battles against assassins is some of the best action sequences in the entire series. The flowing animation fits well with the music and voice acting, all while she begins to question what she is fighting for. At one point, she gets cornered. She contemplates what would happen if she died. She remembers why she took on the job as assassin: to protect the simple life of her brother, Yuri. To fulfill that mission, she vows to “thoroughly clean” the world and ensure Loid acknowledges her.

She doesn’t give up. Using her strong kick, she lurches the enemy assassin backward and kills him. This episode, the thirty-fourth in the series, is shorter than others. It provides appropriate context for Yuri becoming sick that his sister isn’t around. As he drinks terrible herbal tea, he remembers when Yor went to extreme lengths so he would feel better. This led to determination to make the world gentler for her. This goal echoes what she is trying to accomplish as an assassin.

The thirty-fourth episode of Spy x Family is the final one entirely focused on this arc. The stakes are higher than before. Yor is determined to defend Olka and her family, who were formerly part of the Mafia, and attempting to defect. The fireworks distracts everyone from the bloody battle. Anya unknowingly saves all the passengers by giving hints to Loid and finding Yor’s weapon. Loid disarms the bombs on board, one of which unintentionally kills two assassins.

Yor is unsure how her weapon got there, not aware that Anya is her unstated accomplice. But, she’s glad that her fight is over. Loid hints at possible tensions to come: a group of miscreants attempt to destroy the vessel using bombs resembling those from the West. They hope war will break out, again, causing weapons sales to skyrocket. Loid’s quick thinking, and clues from Anya, ensure that all the bombs are found and disarmed. One bomb causes two extremists to be knocked into the water and be eaten by sharks.

Yor’s victory not only benefits the Garden, the “extremist terrorist group” she is part of, but Olka. She thanks Yor and hopes that her family, some day, can have true peace. Yor gets permission to meet with Loid and Anya. Loid is tired and annoyed he put his family aside. Yor does medical care on herself. The arc doesn’t end until the next episode, in which they them relax on Resort Island. Yor attempts to hide her injuries, even while they go snorkeling, go to a cafe, ride a tandem bike, ride a zip-line, ride hoses, build sand castles, or do spelunking. Through all of this, they enjoy themselves. After everything they have been through in Spy x Family up to this point, it is only right they get to relax.

After Yor and Anya conk out, Loid carries them both in a double princess carry. Following this, they return home, and Bond greets them. Loid tells his boss about what happened on the cruise ship, noting that some suspicious people were aboard. His boss reveals that the State Security Service is covering up what happened and says they will keep an eye on Ostanian “extremists.” Funny enough, Loid says that after everything Anya put him through, he has had enough vacations. He describes it as more backbreaking than his usual missions, making clear the challenges of being a parent (albeit of an adopted child).

Although this arc is enjoyable, I’m doubtful there will be another Yor-centered arc in Spy x Family. In the second half of the episode, which ended the arc, Yor attempts to give her co-workers skeleton keychains, an idea they are lukewarm to. Loid prepares the apartment for Yuri’s arrival. Anya attempts to brag about her cruise ship visit. However, this is a magnificent failure. This is a “normal thing” for students at this elite private school. Everyone makes fun of her. She attempts to lie about it but this does not work. They all commiserate, with Loid, Yuri, and Yor absurdly telling Anya that liars are terrible, even though they are all lying. Anya responds, saying that lying is too much work and that she isn’t going to do it anymore.

Following the end of this arc, there are stories which focus on two female characters: Becky Blackbell (voiced by Emiri Katō) and Nightfall / Fiona Frost (voiced by Ayane Sakura). For the first of these characters, Becky attempts to use “lessons” she learned from Berlint in Love to express her “love” for Loid. It’s an expression of her privileged mindset. Whether this obsession is a stand-in for fans who like Loid or male anime characters, I’m not sure.

A possible second cour / part of this season, could expand upon her assistant, who Loid remarked carries herself like a soldier. It is typical for Becky to think that Loid is acting sweet toward her, when he is being nice only because he sees her as a good source of information, knowing that the Blackbell family runs an arms manufacturing business. They are “masters of war” as Bob Dylan once described such people. Of all of them, Yor realizes that Becky is happy to meet Loid, who is wary of Becky.

The episode has some of the worst misunderstandings I’ve seen in a while. Yor jumps to the wild conclusion that she put alcohol in Becky’s drink, not realizing that Becky is fawning over Loid, and rushes her to the hospital. Becky ends up clearing everything up. But, Yor isn’t angry with her. She appreciates that Loid is loved. She tells Becky that Loid chose her because she is strong. This leads to another misunderstanding, on Becky’s part: that Loid prefers strong women.

She tries to use a hammer to hit a pan, and ring a bell, a common game used to test someone’s strength. This is another failure for Becky because the hammer is too heavy. Yor uses it, gets first place, and breaks the machine, because she can’t control her strength. Becky realizes that she isn’t a match for Yor and offers to become her apprentice. Yor happily agrees.

For the first time in the season, Nightfall appears. She’s still deeply in love with Loid. The Handler / Sylvia Sherwood (voiced by Yūko Kaida) warns her to not push herself too hard. Her missions are aptly interspliced with Loid and his family on vacation. She perfectly executes all the missions that Loid would have been tasked with if he wasn’t on the cruise ship.

Once again, she plays the role of the romantic interloper. She’s determined to take the role of Loid’s wife, wanting to achieve “complete victory,” even going through intense training. After Loid returns, she tries to ask if Operation Strix has changed and he tells her no. He does not tell her what happened on the cruise ship. She is overjoyed to receive a gift from Loid. He gave it to her in appreciation for all the hard work she did while he was gone. Although she doesn’t know that, she skips happily.

In some ways, Nightfall shares a similar obsession to Yor’s brother, Yuri. She isn’t the most sympathetic, considering the fact she wants to split apart the burgeoning romance between Yor and Loid, by claiming Loid as her “prize.” In reality, Loid has no feelings for her whatsoever. He only sees her as a diligent and skilled agent. Undoubtedly, she is dedicated. She works hard for the same goals as Loid. It remains to be seen if he will shatter her love for him.

The final episode of this Spy x Family cour centers on Bond. He tries to use his future-vision for good, causing problems at first, at least until he runs into a burning building and saves a pug dog named Daisy, with the help of Loid. Both escape and stop the man who set the fire. It is revealed that Bond is actually very skinny. His fur makes him look more puffy.

Loid is proud of Bond, although annoyed he bit the arsonist in the wrong place (the leg rather than the arm). He says the top priority is making Bond feel he is part of the Forgers, with his training taking a back seat. He promises to bring him to a dog park the next day. Later, Anya gives him and Bond fake Stella starts. Loid wants Anya to get real Stellas.

The episode ends with Damian studying and getting in a pillow fight with his dorm mates, Becky posing with her dog and trying on new clothes, Yuri eating his sister’s terrible cooking in which he sprays blood, Nightfall practicing her shooting with Loid’s photo in the middle, and the Forgers having a nice meal together. It says “see you next Mission” at the end. This episode is the last one for a while. The next cour is reportedly coming in October of this year. The movie, Spy x Family Code: White, released in Japanese theaters last year. It will release in theaters, and on streaming services (like Crunchyroll) sometime this year. A date has not been announced.

It is worth noting that manga artist Tatsuya Endo, who created the original Spy x Family series (for which this anime adaptation is based) has worked on manga series since 2000. While this has, primarily, included one-shots such as Blade of the Moon Princess and I Spy, there has also been serialized stories such as the action-thriller, Tista. He has been created as an illustrator for three books. Spy x Family is the first of his manga to receive an anime adaptation.

Endo is said to create well thought-out characters. Some say he writes stories which indicate negative or positive shifts in psychological states of characters. This translates into this anime. Anya, Loid, and Yor are more than they seem on the surface. Each one is trying to hide their true identities, either as a telepath, spy, or assassin. This is partially what drew them all together, and keeps them as a family, with each of them acting the part. As Jaques, an exiled noble, famously stated in William Shakespeare’s 1516 pastoral comedy, As You Like It, “all the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.”

(K)now_Name, a J-pop music group, composed the show’s music. Comprised of three vocalists, seven composers, and one illustrator, (K)now_Name also produced opening and ending themes for Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash, Sakura Quest, Fairy Gone, and Dorohedoro. The group did the theme song of Quiz RPG: The World of Mystic Wiz too. The music in this series earned the series some nominations, for various songs, in the recent anime awards hosted by Crunchyroll.

The English dub and Japanese voice actors enhance these aspects. Takuya Eguchi, Atsumi Tanezaki, Saori Hayami, and Kenichirō Matsuda, who voice the four protagonists, are emblematic of this. Eguhi voiced Kazuya Kujo in Gosick, Julius Euclius in Re:Zero, and Byakudanji Tsubaki in My Master Has No Tail. Tanezaki voiced Mizore Yoroizuka in Sound! Euphonium Season 2, Rio Futaba in Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai, Sajuna Inui in My Dress-Up Darling, Eiko Kikuchi in Shine Post, Gyokuyō in The Apothecary Diaries, Serina Yoshida in The Dangers in My Heart, and Iroha Inukai / Cure Friendy in Wonderful PreCure! (currently airing).

In addition, Hayami voiced Chizuka Nishikigi in Whispered Words, Mylene Certon in Bodacious Space Pirates, Midori Aoyama in Is the Order a Rabbit?, Yuzuki Shiraishi in A Place Further than the Universe, and Viola Cadaverini in Ace Attorney. She also voiced Maria Campbell in My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, Ruby Rose in RWBY: Ice Queendom, Inori in Shy, and Charlotte Evans in I’m Giving the Disgraced Noble Lady I Rescued a Crash Course in Naughtiness.

Matsuda voiced characters in Pluto, Tearmoon Empire, and Chainsaw Man. Hiroyuki Yoshino, Yūko Kaida, Kazuhiro Yamaji, Natsumi Fujiwara, Emiri Katō, Kensho Ono, Ayane Sakura, Umeka Shōji, Manaka Iwami, and Junichi Suwabe are just as talented. Yoshino voiced Masaaki Ohyama in Azumanga Daioh, Shakti in Carole & Tuesday, and Jaron Fate in Metallic Rouge (currently airing). Kaida voiced Minako Tsukiyama in Maria Watches Over Us, Amane Ootori in Strawberry Panic!, Nanette in Emma: A Victorian Romance, Sakura Muroi in Stars Align, Seira Amawashi in Birdie Wing, and Flare in The Executioner and Her Way of Life. Adding to this, Yamaji, Shoji, and Iwami voice many characters across anime.

Ono voiced Mikazuki Subaru in My Roommate is a Cat and Fujiwara voiced Yozora in the absurdist Too Cute Crisis. Katō voiced Himari Uehara in BanG Dream! seasons two and three. At the same time, Sakura voiced Alisa Ayase in Love Live! School Idol Project, Natsumi Koshigaya in Non Non Biyori, Cocoa Hoto in Is the Order a Rabbit?, Ran Mitake in BanG Dream!, and Kurei in Do it Yourself!!. Iwami has many roles under her belt, as of late. This includes Akane Kurokawa in Oshi no Ko, Euphyllia Magenta in The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady, Kokona Ōtori in World Dai Star, and Sakuna Memoir in The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess.

Presently, English dubs for most second season episodes are on Crunchyroll, but not on Disney+ (with Hulu Bundle) or Hulu as of yet. I plan to watch the dubbed episodes like I did with season one. Although I enjoyed watching this series, I wish the cruise ship arc had been longer. More episodes focusing on female characters, particularly Yor, would be great.

For that reason, and the fact the story too easily falls into the East (bad) / West (good) dichotomy, I am rating the story section lower than in my first season review. In that review, I was far too charitable when it came to storytelling issues. While saying this, I look forward to what the second season and film has to bring. I hope for more stories centered on female characters, like Yor, Anya, Becky, and Nightfall, in the future.

Spy x Family is streaming on Hulu, Disney+ (with Hulu Bundle), and Crunchyroll. Misordered episodes can be purchased on Prime Video. Also, you can order the Blu-ray or DVD for the series from the Crunchyroll Store.

Stardust Telepath Spoiler-Filled Review

Stardust Telepath, also known as Hoshikuzu Terepasu or Hoshikuzu Telepath, is a sci-fi yuri series. It’s based on a three-volume manga illustrated and written by Rasuko Ōkuma. Kaori directed the series. She supervised the show’s script with Natsuko Takahashi. Studio Gokumi produced the series.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the sixty-fifth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on January 31, 2024 (while it says Feb. 1 on the PCM site, in my time zone it was Jan. 31 when published).

Umika Konohoshi (voiced by Yurie Funato) is a girl, who like Shoko Komi in Komi Can’t Communicate, Bocchi Hitori in Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu, or Hitori Gotō “Bocchi” in Bocchi the Rock!, is extremely socially awkward. She barely even makes her way through her class introduction, hinting at low-confidence, and can’t talk or laugh like others, or make friends. Just as she feels like she’s from another planet, she comes across Hujinomisaki High School transfer student, Yū Akeuchi (voiced by Seria Fukagawa), who declares she is “an alien,” whose spaceship broke down. Yu can read the feelings of anyone when she touches her forehead with them (called foreheadpathy), catching Yu off guard, realizing that Umika is going through stress, worries, shock, and anxiety.

Stardust Telepath goes on from there, with Umika and Yu becoming better friends. Umika tells her about her dream to get to space in a rocket, and comes over to her “house”: an abandoned lighthouse. Curiously, Yu has amnesia. She can’t remember anything about what happened before she arrived on Earth, or why she is there, and calls Umika her “bestie…for life.” This series is more than what some call Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu with extraterrestrials. Its endearing, cute, sweet, fun, and has adorable characters. Umika becomes dedicated to learning about making rockets, but becomes depressed when learning the challenge toward making them. Afterward, class vice president Haruno Takaragi (voiced by Moe Nagamuta), appears on the scene. She’s cheerful and outgoing, but terrifies Umika when wondering if she went with Yu to the lighthouse on the cape.

In an attempt to protect Yu, she lies about the lighthouse, while Haruno calls it one of her favorite spots. As the second episode goes forward, she opens up more to Haruno, especially after she calls her voice sweet and beautiful. She reveals they are trying to build a rocket to space. However, Umika gets embarrassed after Yu touches foreheads with Haruno. Later, Umika decides to start with soda bottle rockets before building more complicated ones. They launch one at the lighthouse, together. Umika and Haruno talk about what they would do if met extraterrestrials in outer space. Yu is amazed by the bottle rockets until it’s revealed that the rocket landed in the ocean. There are some funny scenes like Yu drinking a whole soda by herself to make a soda bottle empty.

By the second episode, Stardust Telepath started to give me vibes similar to the 2020 slice-of-life anime, Asteroid in Love. Erica Friedman once listed as a “yuri anime” and said it looks like “a yuri story” (I’d say it is only yurish). Like that series, this one has “fundamental cuteness,” but has more going for it. Additionally, there are some similarities with an ever-popular romantic webtoon, Down to Earth, which involves an extraterrestrial coming to Earth and falling in love with a human.

I can’t blame people for comparing the series to Komi Can’t Communicate or calling it “Bocchi the Rocket.” There’s much more going on. I would even say this series is more than a sweet sci-fi yuri about “an anxious girl [Umika] bonding with a psychic alien [Yu],” as Anime Feminist once described it. Rather, it centers around the importance of reaching out to others, getting out of your comfort zone, and making friendships, breaking through misunderstandings, miscommunications, and missteps along the way. Yu helps Umika along this process, bringing her extroverted nature to assist her, while Umika tries to become a “gregarious introvert.”

I can understand why some don’t like high-pitched voices or dislike series centered around those with social anxiety. It makes sense why some people don’t find as much value in cute girls doing cute things. However, I like how Umika is autism-coded. Her desire to find a solution to loneliness “outside human society” makes sense. Although I don’t vibe with Umika’s desire, personally, the message undoubtedly resonates with queer viewers. The opening sequence is lovely. I have no issue with the animation, the theme of building friendships through rocket-building nor the idea that Yu is receptive and empathetic, with similar interests to Umika.

Whether the series distinguishes itself from other series or not, it surely is heartwarming, cute, funny, and low-key, often with light comedy. It is faulty to say that the protagonists are a “gimmick” rather than having fleshed out personalities, as it is clearer as the series goes forward. It has lively energy and colorful animation, even if not everyone vibes with the “cute girls doing cute things” idea, which drives the beginning of the series.

In the third episode, the final protagonist makes her debut: Matataki Raimon (voiced by Shiki Aoki). She loves robots and is skilled with mechanics. She reminds me of Entrapta in She-Ra and the Princesses of Power. Matataki’s tomboyish nature mixes with her solitary and aggressive nature. People mocked for her hobbies in middle school. She also loves an in-anime mecha, Ganbarion. Often, she wears goggles on her head to complete her look. Haruno, Umika, and Yu best in on her in the aforementioned episode, with a flashback to how Umika couldn’t become her friend in middle school, because she didn’t have the courage to talk to her. As it turns out, she and Matataki aren’t that far apart. However, their worlds aren’t connecting. The only thing that pulls her in is a bottle rocket challenge.

Unsurprisingly, the hard-nosed nature of Matataki impacts Umika deeply, causing her to cry and lose faith in herself, believing she can’t do anything on her own. Luckily, Yu and Haruno are there for her, and try to make her feel better. The icing on the cake, if you will, is when Haruno gives Yu and Umika a key to a secret room in the lighthouse, a special place she came with her grandfather. The rocket duel, in the fourth episode, comes to a head. It follows the introduction of a nice girl (Kei Akizuki) who later becomes the rival of Umika and her friends. Matataki wins the contest, but lets Umika say her piece: she praises Matataki’s goggles and hopes to see her in school. While Matataki lashes out at her for this, she ends up coming to school anyway, even letting Umika wear her goggles!

From there, it appears that Matataki is warming up to Umika and re-adapting herself to school life, even blushing when the strict homeroom teacher, Akane Emihara (voiced by Natsumi Takamori) hugs her. Later, she collaborates with Yu, Haruno, and Umika in writing a club application form. She ends up listing Umika as club president, to Umika’s surprise. Even so, some cracks begin to form. Raimon questions whether coming to high school was worthwhile. Umika and Yu become friendlier with the class president, Saya Kagami (voiced by Yūko Ōno). Yu and Umika get closer, as friends. Umika remains embarrassed when she notices others observing Yu’s foreheadpathy with her. This leads some to call them the “forehead girls.” Matataki, although weirded out by it, starts to accept it.

The sixth episode of Stardust Telepath advances the plot forward, with Emihara’s failure to make them a proper club. Umika argues they need to build up accomplishments so the school can accept their club. All four of them (Yu, Umika, Matataki, and Haruno) go to the secret base under the lighthouse. As a result, Matataki gives them lessons on how rockets work, shares her numbers with Umika, and they begin preparing for the model rocket competition. They watch a rocket launch by Kei Akizuki (voiced by Saho Shirasu), head of a rocket launch club at another school. In response, Matataki says they will challenge them. She declares that if she loses, she has to pay them 900 yen, and attempts to inspire Umika in one way or another. The colorful backgrounds and flowing animation easily accompany the action, especially in this episode.

The seventh episode opens the cracks between Matataki and other members of their amateur rocket club (Umika, Haruno, and Yu). For one, Matataki predicts that Umika will mess up her presentation with other club members. She is annoyed after Umika caused many rockets to fail, after teaching her and others. This is strangely after she is given presents, like sweets. Even worse, she acts bullish, believing she can lead the model rocket building and design alone, without anyone else.

This doesn’t end up well. Yu attempts to comfort Umika, telling her that she has the light inside her and that they have the same spark, after Umika said she thinks she is useless. She is concerned about getting better so she can live up to everyone’s expectations or what she thinks are everyone’s expectations are. There’s even a dream where Matataki acts as a villain and demands things from Umika and Yu. This is somewhat reflective of reality. Bit by bit, the series begins to somewhat resemble the break-up of the music group in Bang Dream! It’s My Go!!!!! before they got back together. The anime implied that the students would lose the competition to learn a lesson.

This is abundantly clear in the eighth episode, which was painful to watch. Launch tests aren’t going well. Matataki was being hostile to the club’s advisor and other club members. She even called Umika and Yu a “bunch of useless jerks” and although Haruno and her got closer while baking. Haruno teased her, and she replied that she can’t afford to lose. In her view, if she loses, then the group’s “idiotic hopes and dreams” won’t come true.

As such, she believes that no one in the group is capable and that she is the only capable one. Haruno counters that everything in the world is special, regardless of the process or outcome and says there isn’t a single thing she hates. If that wasn’t enough, Matataki says that all of them are on “errand duty” until the tournament, dislikes Umika, Yu, and Haruno cuddling, and demands they stay on schedule, no matter the cost.

Such harsh treatment is even worse than Marjory or even Bad Magz in Supa Team 4. It has negative results on self-esteem of the other members. Umika cries after Matataki tells her to go outside and look for rocks. She pushes Yu away after Yu tries to comfort her and flees. Absurdly, Matataki claims that everyone around her is dragging her down. Umika unnecessarily apologizes to her. Matataki demands that none of them get “in her way” during the tournament. On the day of the competition, she remains harsh, not liking the name they gave the rocket, and thinks about adjustments. Significantly, Kei believes that Matataki heads their group. Yu has to correct her and tell her that Umika is the leader!

The ninth episode is heartbreaking. Kei’s team easily outdoes them, causing Umika to feel she has to be perfect, and that the mountain she has to climb to keep up is insurmountable. Her speech goes badly. Their team doesn’t even make it past the qualifying round. Matataki over-dramatically believes it is “all over,” implying that she might have learned a lesson, but is clearly angry. She tells Haruno that it must be nice to not care whether we won or lost, calling this the only place she belonged. She demands that Haruno never talk to her again. The cracks between the club members widen beyond that.

Umika distances herself from Yu, who tries to remain upbeat, believing that she can’t be a charismatic leader like Kei. She says she was nothing but a “useless burden” until the end. She runs off crying. Yu senses that she can’t see sparkles from Umika anymore. This is because she thinks she ruined everything and would have been better doing everything on her own.

Over a week later, her condition isn’t any better, but Kei helps her get out of her funk. She tells Kei she is helpless, weak, and will never make it anywhere. Kei rightly reminds Umika that Raimon, Yu, and Haruno didn’t laugh at her idea but joined her because they believed in her dream and chose her as the leader. In an additional note, she tells Umika that there’s a place she belongs, and that if she really did ruin everything, then she needs to find firm footing again, so she can fly further and higher.

Basically, Kei tells her to not be too hard on herself, to understand the place she belongs, to stand tall even if she can make a fool for herself. She opens the door so they can talk if anything can weigh on her mind. These messages may be helpful for those going through similar struggles, especially those who are coming out as queer, trying to find their community. The episode ends with Umika looking forward to the competition in the next year, and resolves to apologize to Yu.

In a heartfelt moment, she can’t find Yu anywhere, with the implication she is like a ghost / inspiration similar to Shizuka (for Kokona Ōtori) in World Dai Star, and she apologize to her, and they embrace one another. As a result, Umika realizes she belongs on Earth and wants to protect it with Yu and everyone. Yu says the sparks are inside of her, sparkling brightly, and won’t go away. Yu recalls a memory of her home planet, singing an unfamiliar song which has a nostalgic ring to it. The episode was tough, and emotionally heavy. It showed they had a failure to learn from, especially when it came to Matataki.

The tenth episode of Stardust Telepath begins with a start, even without the series opening! Yu happily does foreheadpathy with Umika. Haruno is glad to see that Umika is doing better. The class president is impressed with the rocket that Umika’s club created. She encourages others to watch the video Haruno took of its launch. Umika is surprised considering their “failure” at the competition. She commits to learn from their hard and painful loss. Unsurprisingly, Matataki has walled herself off from everyone. Umika learns that she won’t be attending school and that she isn’t responding to anyone’s messages. It is heavily implied, although not outright stated, that Matataki is experiencing some level of depression.

Considering the teacher’s words, Umika and her friends attempt to get Matataki out of her bad state. Haruno is more reserved, not lifting the garage door as in the past, even saying she isn’t sure if Matataki will come to school again. This response is not surprising. After all, Matataki said she never wanted to see Haruno ever again! Yu uses her foreheadpathy on Haruno for the first time, learning that she is good at hiding her feelings. Haruno calls herself pathetic. She reveals that getting top place scared her after her friend stopped coming to piano lessons many years ago. In response, she began to believe that all results have “equally precious value” and that everyone’s dream could come true without causing sadness.

Haruno’s mindset and Umika’s new perspective are revealed in the episode. Yu tells Haruno that seeing people hurt, when their dreams are shattered, is the true cause of her doubts. Umika clarifies that their dream remains intact. She says losing and failing hurts but that she will find firm footing again. This means that there isn’t a reason to give up. Yu encourages Haruno to discover her feelings, resulting in all three rubbing foreheads. Haruno commits herself to change.

The same episode involves Haruno telling her grandfather, in a flashback, that you don’t need to have your own dreams, but you can be someone who cheers on another person’s dreams. He says that this means you need to be the strongest, kindest, nicest person. She commits to becoming that person. However, she wants this to change. She confronts Matataki, calling her a “big dummy,” tells her to apologize, and says she is uncool for becoming grumpy after losing one time. She challenges Matataki, saying that she’s giving up after losing one time and declares they will make the rocket without her. If that isn’t enough, she takes the extra step, arguing that she will be as accomplished at Matataki, calls her a “big loser,” and says she should be ready to lose. She tops this off by snatching her goggles.

Matataki has lost her edge, in a sense. She lets Haruno take her goggles and says she hasn’t accomplished anything. Privately, she claims that she is less competent than Haruno and everyone else believes. This emotion-filled episode features crying and possible trauma and/or depression from Matataki. Even Haruno calls Matataki out on her BS! Understandably, some people dislike Matataki. I’m not sure if I dislike her more or less than some character in BanG Dream! It’s MyGo!!!!!, considering everything she has been through at this point, and what comes in the next two episodes of Stardust Telepath.

The eleventh episode hits hard. Yu, Haruno, and Umika meet with Kei, and her fellow team members (Neon Teruya and Michiru Yugumo). They get tips on making model rockets. There are some funny dynamics between Neon, Michiru, and Kei. They use virtual software (i.e. a rocket simulator). Perhaps a second season would give them a more prominent role. Two weeks after Umika gives Matataki a letter of challenge, they have a model rocket competition. They use her rules and she even uses a less powerful engine as a “handicap.”

Haruno denounces Matataki for losing. Umika hugs her while bawling her eyes out. She says she didn’t understand what she was going through. She believes that she was the only one who felt weak, miserable, and in pain. Then there’s the kicker: Umika wanted to be like her, to be strong, and to find a place to belong.

Almost immediately, she tells Umika to shut up. She doesn’t want them to take pity on her or hear their “empty words.” Yu calls her out as a liar, saying that her heart is an “open book.” Umika tells her that she wants their group to become a place where she can belong. She wants to help her aim for the sky again and thanks her for previous self-confidence boosts.

Understandably, Matataki is worried. She reveals that in the past, she lashed out with harsh words over the smallest things. That ended her relationships, with no one giving her a second change. As a result, she lost hope in relationships and stopped caring about anything. More powerfully, she recognizes that she said and did hurtful things to them. As Yu puts it well, Matataki’s own words hurt her internally the most, more than anyone else. Later, Matataki admits she was selfish, ignoring all of them in an attempt to win the competition.

The episode ends with Umika committing to her friendship scheme. Matataki admits she had fun making rockets with them and apologizes again. They all end up hugging her, apologizing, and crying. Haruno puts back the goggles on her head, Yu pulls back her goggles, and they all rub her head. Annoyed, she says she’ll get them back for it, and they have a good laugh. In a post-credits scene, Raimon ends up saying she will treat everyone and Yu calls her a “tsundere alien.” After all of this, it appears that Umika collapses from all the excitement, but something more serious is going on.

In the Stardust Telepath series finale, Umika is bedridden with a fever. Her sister Honami Konohoshi (voiced by Hina Yōmiya) is surprised to see Umika’s friends. She closes the door at first, then lets them inside. Yu jumps toward Umika, wanting her to be better. Umika is glad they all came to see her. Even Matataki gets embarrassed while Yu butts heads with her. Umika ends up burning up from the thought that other people are getting Yu’s foreheadpathy instead of her. In her fevered state, she tells Yu that she only wants Yu to do foreheadpathy with her, and no one else. This expression of true feelings catches Yu off-guard, who becomes flushed.

The next day, everyone’s glad for her recovery, while Yu feels out of sorts. Umika leads the charge. She wants their club recognized. Matataki tells her that her personal goal does not have to be the group goal. This is an attempt to ensure that she doesn’t guide the group like in the past. Yu pushes her to be more social. Everything seems to be going back to normal, except for how Yu is acting toward her. The episode ends with Yu learning that Umika is worried about her. Umika’s new dream is for them to go in a rocket to outer space together. The lighthouse lights up, possibly a result of their mutual expression of shared feelings. They happily touch their foreheads one more time together, with stars going out into space.

By the end of Stardust Telepath, the yuri subtext is more than obvious. This a yuri sci-fi on the face. However, romantic feelings between Umika and Yu, or between Matataki and Haruno are never directly stated. Instead, the series has one message: these characters are in romantic friendships. Perhaps, a second season could make these friendships into romantic relationships. Hopefully, Studio Gokumi decides to continue the series.

The show’s character designer and chief animation director, Takahiro Sakai, is known for work on various series, whether Ace Attorney, B Gata H Kei, Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere, Nodama Cantabile, Ms. Vampire Who Lives in My Neighborhood, Spice and Wolf, or Toradora! The show’s director, Kaori, previously did storyboard and animation work on Encouragement of Climb: Next Summit, Is the Order a Rabbit?, Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, Revue Starlight, and Yurikuma Arashi. These series all have direct or indirect yuri themes. This is reinforced by her similar work on How to keep a mummy, Engage Kiss, and Shirobako.

Natsuko Takahashi worked with Kaori as co-director. She’s a former series writer of a dramatic yuri sci-fi (Blue Drop) and of a series with some yurish themes (Cutie Honey Universe). Furthermore, she wrote for two series with yaoi themes: Antique Bakery (implied) and Gakuen Heaven (directly shown). That undoubtedly impacted themes and storyline of this series.

The studio animating this series, Studio Gokumi, is over 13 years old. It has produced various series with yurish themes like Kin-iro Mosaic and Ms. Vampire Who Lives in My Neighborhood, or other problematic ones (Seton Academy: Join the Pack!). The latter features Iena Madaraba, a hyena who was said to be “born female” but believes she is male, meaning she is implied to be genderfluid, and intersex. One anime writer even described her as a “gender-ambiguous hyena person.”

Stardust Telepath is not my favorite 2023 series by a long shot. I’m in Love with the Villainess, Birdie Wing, MagiRevo, Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, and Yuri is My Job! are among those I chose as my top anime for last year. While yuri themes could be stronger, it remained enjoyable. I liked the autistic-coded, autistic, and otherwise neurodivergent, protagonists. The manifestation of such awkwardness is not a turn-off. It is relatable to those with such neurodevelopmental disorders, likely numbering in the millions.

Stardust Telepath is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

I’m in Love with the Villainess Spoiler-Filled Review

I’m in Love with the Villainess, also known as ILTV, Watashi, Wataoshi, or Watashi no Oshi wa Akuyaku Reijō, is a yuri isekai and romantic comedy anime. It’s based on a Japanese light novel series by Inori and illustrated by Hanagata, serialized between 2018 and 2021. It was later adapted into an ongoing manga, novel series, and other spin-offs. This anime is directed by Hideaki Ōba, written by Ayumu Hisao, and produced by Platinum Vision, a newish Japanese anime studio. As a warning, this review will discuss sexual harassment, violence, electrocution, attempted murder, and other related themes.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the sixty-first article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on December 30, 2023.

This romantic comedy has the typical story of an isekai: a worker named Ooshashi Rei (voiced by Yu Serizawa) dies as a result of her office work (known as Karoshi in Japan) for a small business. She finds herself in the life of Rae Taylor, the protagonist of Revolution, her favorite otome video game. Pushing aside the original romance routes with the princes of the game (Rod, Thane, and Yu), she sets her heart on the game’s antagonist, Claire François (voiced by Karin Nanami). She uses her game knowledge, as a dedicated otaku, so she can give Claire a happy ending before the revolution happens.

Watashi is not alone. The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady, is also a yuri isekai, although less so than this anime, as is The Executioner and Her Way of Life. Popular non-yuri isekai such as My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, Ascendance of a Bookworm, and I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss, share some of the same characteristics. They feature characters with knowledge from another world who try to apply it in a new world, either for their benefit or for others. Other isekai such as Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World, Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, and I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level do not have those same qualities.

Similar to how Arcane or Ouran High School Host Club depict class structures, Claire is a noblewoman who thinks little of the “lower lifeforms” (as White Diamond termed them in Steven Universe: The Movie). She believes in the existing aristocratic system. This is easily overcome by Rae. She catches an unprepared Claire, who is unsure how to deal with someone who has a crush on her. Rae is helped by her roommate, and friend, Misha Jur, who recognizes that Rae has changed.

The first episode throws the viewer into the action. Rae meets Claire, who is caught off guard. She declares she will not accept the flirtations of a “mere commoner.” She becomes more incensed when Rae demands that her bullying continue. Whenever she has a chance, Rae declares she loves Claire. Her roommate, Misha Jur (voiced by Aimi Terakawa) is confused, wondering what Rae is doing. In hints what is to come, Claire says she personally wants to “take care of” Rae and begins blushing when talking to Rae. At the same time, she has feelings for Prince Thane (voiced by Daisuke Namikawa), which Rae knows, causing her embarrassment. Later, Rae wins a contest (in magic and general curriculum) against Claire, even though Claire beat her in the etiquette exam.

I have to disagree with those who criticized Watashi‘s first episode as breathing new life into “stale romantic archetypes by putting a queer spin on them.” I understand why some see Rae’s humiliation of Claire as uncomfortable. However, these comedy gags, are an intentional effort by Rae to break away at Claire’s tsundere nature. They are nothing like Vill’s sexual harassment of Komari in The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess. Instead, they are purposely over the top. Rae loves Claire because of her “overdeveloped sense of noble pride and the twisted way it comes out.” She doesn’t expect her feelings to be reciprocated. This leads Rae to become Claire’s maid, alongside Lene Aurousseau (voiced by Ikumi Hasegawa), a maid for Claire’s family since she was younger.

Rae’s love for Claire goes beyond personal looks. She loves Claire’s personality and popularity, with Rae saying she has a sense of love rather than loyalty. This is why she tells Claire to vow to never give up, no matter the circumstances, and that she will fight until the very end. At another point, she ignores romantic attractions from the Princes toward her and washes Claire’s hair. She confides, one night, that she will try to make Claire believe that she is in love with her.

The ending sequence of each episode often shows Claire and Rae speaking to each other with talk bubbles, or only individually, depending on what happens in each episode. In the second episode, some argued that when Rae saw Claire, with only a bra on, it indicated that Rae wasn’t on the same “wavelength” as everyone else and still sees the world as a “toy” to play with. Although this is a possibility, Rae could be putting on a facade instead. On the other hand, Claire may deserve it, on some level, after trying to humiliate Rae. After all, she is getting the attention she “needs.”

The third episode of Watashi is a high point in the series and in yuri anime as a whole. After Rae almost beats Claire in a game of chess, Prince Yu (voiced by Yoko Hikasa) defeats her, and many others, in a game of Poker. Rae almost gets Thane and Claire to kiss, and then makes a bold declaration. She tells her roommate Misha that she is gay, following Lene’s attempt to caution them to not talk about this subject openly. Claire thinks the discussion is a “mess.”

At another point, Claire feels she is in danger because Rae is a lesbian. In response, Misha exposes her prejudice and adds that no one lusts after everyone all the time, despite their sexual attraction. In a line that hints at what happens in later episodes, Lene adds that gender doesn’t matter when it comes to love, and that people can happen to fall in love with a woman (or a man). For Rae, gender does matter to her. She says she wouldn’t fall in love with a man.

This discussion ends with Rae noting that some people never have a chance to un-learn their prejudices (and can’t help that). She remarks that admiring Claire every day makes her happy. Although Claire pushes this off, Rae admits she has, in some ways, given up on Claire. She believes her feelings won’t be reciprocated (in the past, in her previous life, she was hurt by unreciprocated love), and says she only wants to support Claire’s love for Thane.

She claims that Claire isn’t her end goal, that she wants Claire to remain happy (even if Claire is with Thane rather than her). In her internal monologue, she admits that the latter is painful. In another foreshadowing moment, Claire pours water on two female students being lesbophobic. Lene claims that Claire didn’t defend Rae (who she claims that she still “hates”). This follows Misha’s surprise at the fact that Claire defended Rae.

Watashi is produced by a newer animation studio, Platinum Vision. It is known for series like Love of Kill, Servamp, and Devils’ Line. None of the series previously produced have been yuri, making this a new experience for the studio. However, the show’s director, Hideaki Ōba, previously directed two anime produced by the studio: Love of Kill and Dr. Ramune: Mysterious Disease Specialist. As such, some animation is “basic,” although I agree with one commenter who said that the animation quality “all looked very nice,” even if I’m not always the best at judging the quality of animation.

This experience is strengthened by the fact that script writer Ayumu Hisao is well-known in the anime industry, writing for series such as Spy x Family, Nekopara, and Tokyo Mew Mew New. Character designer Yōko Satō is known for working on Wondering Son and R.O.D. the TV. One show composer, Noriyuki Asakura, composed soundtracks for series such as Rurouni Kenshin and Knights of Sidonia. The other composer, Usagi to Uma, appears to be new.

To sneer at this series, note its potential, and say it is “mired in uncomfortable gags,” in which Rae ignores Claire’s boundaries, is faulty. For one, Rae’s behavior is supposed to be in your face. It is supposed to make Claire uneasy. She purposely enters Claire’s personal space, since she believes that her romantic affection will be unrequited. On the other hand, she “unintentionally” interrupts a romantic moment between Claire and Thane, after which Claire admits she is worried about Rae and claims she isn’t getting affectionate. Following this, Claire praises Rae for fighting a “monster.” Rae blushes, as this praise was unexpected.

Similar to other series this year, like Yohane the Parhelion, Unicorn: Warriors Eternal, Tokyo Mew Mew New, and Otaku Elf, magic has an important role. Magic stones are at the center of every tool. As an expert game player, Rae knows that Claire’s family manages the kingdom’s magic stones. As such, she effectively uses magic, as a multi-caster. This means she can use any of the magical attributes (Earth, Water, Fire, and Air) at once. This comes into play in the fourth episode, when Rae attempts to take down a “monster.” She is saved by Claire, with an assist from Thane. The former overjoys Rae.

Using her game knowledge, she tames the “monster” and makes it her familiar. She names it Ralaire, which combines her name with Claire’s. I liked the funny scene where Misha is terrified by Ralaire, at first, but is soon charmed. The same is the case for Claire, who is annoyed by the name and even wants to kill the creature. She is angry that Rae didn’t get her approval before adopting it. However, when Ralaire emulates her form, she accepts it.

The Academy Knights arc, in episodes 5 and 6, is one of the best in Watashi. Rae, Misha, and Claire easily pass the written Academy Knight exam. Once again, Rae and Claire have a contest, this time to test their magic abilities, with Claire exuding over-confidence. All the while, Prince Rod (voiced by KENN) almost kills Misha in a battle, with continued fire magic attacks making her oxygen deficient. Symbolically, when Rae puts a rock wall around Claire, she melts it away. This could mean her protective/personal walls are melting and that she is falling in love with Rae.

Although Claire is skilled with fire magic (and is named the Red Lotus Queen as a result), Rae easily outmatches her. Since Claire was her favorite character in the game, she knows her magic attacks in and out. The fifth episode ends with Claire falling into a hole, following her use of a flame technique reminiscent of Prince Rod’s magic attacks, and a special magic ray-blast. It could represent that she has fallen for Rae. To Claire’s chagrin, Rae wins the contest. Claire pledges, again, to never give up, abandon hope, and fight to the end.

The sixth episode takes it further. Rae’s off-hand comment to the fellow Academy Knights leads to a cross-dressing cafe: female students dress up as butlers, male students dress as maids. Although some of the boys don’t like this idea, Yu wants to dress as a girl (hinting at the fact that Yu is a trans woman). Claire falls in-line after learning that Thane will be dressed like a girl, as she still has a crush on Thane. Rae and Claire bond over food, with Rae sharing her homemade chocolate cake. Since Claire is scared of ghosts and dark hallways, she sleeps side by side with Rae.

There’s flashbacks to Claire’s troubled childhood when her mother Melia (voiced by Megumi Toyoguchi) died in an accident, with Rae wiping her tear. As a result, Lene cared for her, even giving her a comb to brush her mother’s hair, but she never got to use it. Later, Rae gives Lene some recipes as insurance, in case she needs it. In an internal monologue, she admits that although these days are blessed, and wishes this would last forever, they won’t continue.

Throughout Watashi, societal fissures are on display. By the sixth episode, there are fights between commoner and noble students. Flames of discontent are brewing. Claire finds it beneath her to wait on people. She goes on to declare that nobles never “go back” on their word. The episode that follows, episode seven, is a major turning point. Claire, and other Academy Knights, are taught by Lene, in a scary session, that maid work is about service and devotion. This comes in handy when she saves Rae from an annoying customer who makes impossible demands, which surprises Rae. In the same episode, Rae annoys Claire to no end when waiting her table. Claire says she is used to “putting on a front” for others and hiding her honest self. She agrees to go with Rae on a date-not-date through the school fair.

Claire’s privilege is directly shaken. She dismisses the Commoner movement, which wants quality between nobles and commoners, as “utter foolishness.” Her dismissal causes them to become even more radical and revolutionary. Rae boldly declares that the movement’s ideas aren’t foolish and that she will continue to serve Claire whether she is a noble or a commoner. Later, Claire says they are only “noble” and “commoner,” and nothing else. In a post-credits scene, Claire, Lene, Misha, and Rae come back from a shopping trip and learn about an incident where a noble attacked a commoner with magic, which leads into the eighth episode.

For Claire, Lene is particularly important to her. She started working in Claire’s household as a maid, with Claire thinking she’d be unable to deal with her selfish demands and quit in a week. But this does not happen, and she accepts her as a maid. Claire and Lene became close. At one point, Claire defended Lene, like she defended Rae, to annoying customers. Following this, she told Lene that she hated royals like the ones who harassed Lene and called Lene the highest-ranked royal in the kingdom, asking her to take pride in this fact.

The eighth episode of Watashi is one of the main series climaxes. It is revealed that the attendant of Prince Yu, Dede Murray (voiced by Takahiro Yoshino) attacked a student named Matt (voiced by Rikuya Yasuda) in the Commoner movement. This punctures the oft-belief that everyone in the royal academy is treated equally, leading to an understandable outcry from commoners. Interestingly, Matt declares that Rae is a commoner “tainted by the aristocracy,” which is only partially true. Rae is only dedicated to Claire, a noble. She has no affinity for any other part of the nobility. He explains what happened and why he was attacked. Later, Yu defends meeting with Matt although the other Princes call him “foolish” for doing so. Claire begins to sympathize more with the commoners.

This episode is the height of the Commoner arc, with social commentary on religious power and light punishment against Dede (only house arrest for a week). This series is not unique in criticizing the church, likely based on the Catholic Church. I Shall Survive Using Potions! and The Executioner and Her Way of Life both depict religious leaders as villains, who are only out for power. In Watashi, the power struggle between the Church and Bauer royal family has played out through the church fomenting animosity between nobles and commoners in order to push out the royals, even encouraging a rift between the Princes. The weak punishment for Dede is reminiscent of how wealthy individuals are treated differently in criminal systems of Western countries, especially, as compared to those who have little income. This reaches a high point in the episode.

The academy’s closure doesn’t prevent commoners from breaking into the academy. Nor does it stop Lambert from attempting to steal a demon-summoning bell. Rae confronts him, knowing he messed with Dede’s wand and is stirring up noble-commoner antagonisms. She is surprised to learn that Lene is in on it. Rae, who put Claire “to sleep” for her protection, thought Lene was trustworthy. The opposite is true. Lene kidnaps Claire and holds her hostage. To make matters worse, a mysterious man (voiced by Junta Terashima) reforms the demon-calling bell. He tells Lambert that he can run away with his sister, Lene, so both can be incestual lovers. Feeling he has no other options, Lambert summons the monsters. Some on social media believed that Rae is equating homosexuality and incest. Instead, Rae is saying that both are frowned upon in the society shown in this series.

This shadowy person departs, but Rae and Claire are drawn closer to each other. For one, they fight together against the chimera together, with Rae calling it their “first labor of love.” Notably, Rae saves Claire with a princess carry. Hilariously, Rae calls Claire a “tsundere.” In the episode before this, Claire had praised Rae and claimed that Rae’s explanation for why she is romantically obsessed with her (she says Claire saved her heart) isn’t a truthful answer. In another example of Rae’s internalized self-destructive behavior, she believes that Claire’s happiness is more important than her love being realized!

Watashi is more than a comedy. Its one of the best series of 2023. It was one of the most anticipated anime adaptations, especially by yuri fans, and other anime watchers. Inori, the manga’s author, remarked that she is aware that incest is a “very sensitive topic” and added that, in her view, love is “less a matter of active participation and more something that one inevitably falls into at any given moment” and notes that she leaves “the judgment of whether this is correct or not to the readers.” So there you have it! I’d say this series is pretty anti-incest and that’s not a bad thing.

Watashi‘s ninth episode is as strong as the one before it. Rae and Claire beat the Chimera, then Thane gets injured when trying to protect Claire from a mysterious noble-hating enemy. Rae heals Thane. While in some stories, this would make Claire realize her romantic feelings for Thane, in this story, it brings her closer to Rae. In fact, while dressed in their finery, with Rae’s outfit made by a tsundere Claire, they support each other when talking to the King and Queen. Due to the society’s hierarchy, she speaks on Rae’s behalf and makes a request to spare the lives of Lene and Lambert. Thane assists them. He argues that a harsh punishment could inflame more anti-royal sentiment, since the insurrection happened because injustice was committed in favor of nobles.

This episode has a strong ending. Claire even happily dances with Rae. In a touching scene, Lene, whose assets have been seized, like Lambert, talks to Rae and Claire from behind an iron fence. She thanks Rae and Claire for stopping her and her brother. Rae gives Lene notes with recipes so she can make money. Claire wishes Lene the best of health wherever she goes, and says they will meet again, bringing tears to Lene’s eyes. Rae hugs Claire, as she cries since she doesn’t want Lene to leave. Later, Rae adds “we can’t even love the one we want to.” This alludes to her “one-sided” love for Claire. The latter calls her “incredibly audacious” for a commoner. This might be hinting at the spin-off manga, from her perspective, entitled I’m in Love with the Villainess: She’s so Cheeky for a Commoner.

This Watashi episode ends positively. Rae claims that Claire “finally” understands her. She proposes they get married (which does happen later in the manga). Predictably, Claire pushes this off. Even so, they walk off together, with both smiling. Surely, this episode has some fuzzy areas with consent. However, it is not as insidious as Vill’s sexual harassment against Komari throughout The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess. That ruins its watchability. Claire, Rae, and the other characters are more relatable than any of those in the aforementioned show. In fact, one of the best parts of this series is how diametrically opposed the personalities of Rae and Claire are, but they still are drawn to one another.

The final three episodes comprise the Love Scales arc of Watashi. Rae’s romantic feelings for Claire are directly challenged. Before this, Rae was content with openly displaying her love for Claire without reciprocation. She thought that if Claire was “happy,” that was fine. Manaria Sousse (voiced by Nana Mizuki), princess of the Kingdom of Sousse, challenges and smashes this mindset into a thousand little pieces. This causes Rae to take extreme measures to prove her feelings. Manaria is a childhood friend of Claire. She comforted Claire following her mother’s death ten years before. More directly, she positions herself as Rae’s love rival. At the same time, it’s hinted in Claire’s diary that Manaria’s attraction to Rae, rather than her, stirs up jealousy.

Very quickly, Rae realizes that Manaria is causing trouble. Girls at the academy treat Manaria as a celebrity and are overjoyed to see her. Manaria attempts to reach out to Rae. She talks to her telepathically through wind magic. Rae doesn’t want to talk. She pushes off Manaria. This has the opposite impact. It makes Manaria even more interested in her. In some ways, this reminds me of the unfortunate romantic triangle in Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl, which could have had a polyamorous triad instead. That’s one of the earliest anime (and manga) to have a trans lesbian as a protagonist. In the past, I’ve written that such romantic triangles are preferable to heterosexual ones. While that opinion has value, these days, I am preferring polyamory as a storytelling feature rather than romantic triangles.

Later on, Prince Rod is defeated by Manaria in a battle, thanks to her Spell Breaker spell. Claire says that if Rae can put an offering of the Flowers of Flora at the Amour Ceremony, it will make her romantic feelings clear. Claire hurts Rae when she declares that she prefers Manaria over Rae. She even says she’d believe Manaria’s declaration of love! With all this pressure, Rae completely loses it. She becomes uncomfortable with the entire situation. This has led some fans to dislike Manaria. I understand that perspective, but Manaria’s presence is the final push which leads Claire to realize her feelings for Rae.

The 11th episode is even more heart-breaking. Manaria continues to annoy Rae. She flirts with Claire in front of Rae. Misha shows she doesn’t understand Rae by claiming this is a “good opportunity” for Rae to wean herself off Claire. Rae refuses to do this. At another point, Claire’s lackeys Pipi Barlier and Loretta Kugret, voiced by Minami Kurisaka and Sara Matsumoto, plead with Rae to protect Claire from Manaria. They know she is up to no good.

Rae begins questioning herself. She decides to fight Manaria, with the right to have Claire as a “prize.” However, she loses badly. Blood pours out of her head, making Claire worried. It’s implied that Manaria’s full-out attack nearly killed Rae. In fact, Claire even chastises Manaria for going too far. As a result, Rae believes she lost and that it is time to give up. From her perspective, this makes sense. It also shows how much she has downgraded her own happiness.

This reaches a crescendo when, in a post-credits scene, Claire tries to talk to Rae. In response, Rae snaps that she has Manaria, so there’s no issue. She then reveals the truth: the duel between her and Manaria was over Claire. As a result, Rae states that she doesn’t have a right to be at her side. What follows is one of the best points in Watashi: Claire says she isn’t some “prize to be won.” This is diametrically opposed to messy messaging in Tokyo Mew Mew New. In that series, Ichigo’s boyfriend, Aoyoma, puts a collar, with a bell, around her neck. He wants to know where she is always. His “true form” is a villain named Deep Blue. Later, he tortures her with lightning and almost kills her. In this series, on some level, Rae treats the world like her toy, but also realizes recognizes it is real.

In many ways, this episode ends sadly. Claire tells Rae to take back her words about Manaria, but Rae refuses. Claire claims she is sulking like a child and losing her nerve because she lost. If that isn’t enough, she takes this one step further: she says Rae isn’t fit to be her maid. In response, Rae quits. This shocks Claire, who begrudgingly accepts the resignation. She tells Rae to go, apologizes for her “selfish demands,” and wishes her happiness in the future. Rae sees her departure as a fatal mistake she can’t take back. Claire says she is being “left alone,” due to Rae’s resignation. She calls Rae a “liar.” In some ways, Claire is right. On the other hand, Rae is right to call out Claire for her closeness to Manaria. Claire is acting happy and flirty around Manaria without realizing how this impacts Rae.

Manaria serves an important storytelling function in Watashi. Even so, she is a terrible, conniving person. Manaria’s function to the story doesn’t make the Love Scales arc any less painful. In the final episode, Manaria and Rae talk to each other again. Manaria tells her that Claire was crying all day because Rae left. Once again, Rae says she will stifle her feelings if that is what is good for Claire. In response, Manaria tells a story of how the same thing happened to her. As a result of this discussion, Rae decides to challenge Manaria at the Scales of Love. She wants to show how much she loves Claire.

Manaria gives the condition that Rae and Claire are “hers” if she wins. Rae accepts these terms. She is determined to win without fail. What she doesn’t consider is how Claire will react. When she hears of this contest, she looks for Rae, but doesn’t find her in her room. She learns that Rae is trying to complete tough monster quests.

Claire considers her feelings for Rae. Manaria thinks she is victorious after finding a Flower of Flora and is about to kiss Claire. Rae interrupts, refusing to let this stand. While the flower is weighty, the branch of eternal love, which Rae carries with her, becomes a tree. This causes Manaria to lose badly. As a result, Rae goes on one knee and asks Claire to be her girlfriend. This lovely moment is disrupted, predictably, by Manaria, the tomboyish princess. She admits that all along she had a crush on Rae rather than on Claire. She pulls Rae toward her and tries to kiss her. Horrified, Claire boldly declares “Rae belongs to me! You can’t take my things from me!” Although the dubbed version has a slightly different version, the same point comes across.

Typically, Claire tries to deny her feelings, after making this declaration. Rae and everyone one refuse to believe it. This surprises Rae. She doesn’t want to let Claire go. In a post-credits scene, Manaria departs for Sousse. Rae believes that Manaria wanted Rae and Claire to begin a romantic relationship from the start. Many of Claire’s friends (like Misha, Loretta, and Pipi) and the Princes, wish Claire the best. They root for her and Rae to marry. Claire likes this idea, saying that Rae would be her bride, before attempting to take it back. Later in the manga, both characters marry. Hopefully, that would be animated if this series is renewed.

In another powerful scene in Watashi, Rae refuses to reveal who she is to Manaria. She says, in an inner monologue, that she is doing all of this to prevent a future tragedy. She shakes Manaria’s hand and agrees to take care of Claire. They are some other nice moments. Rae teases Claire. She blushes like nobody’s business, since she is having fun with Rae teasing her. The series ends happily for them and was crafted to give them a “happy ever after.” However, as Steven Universe told Spinel in the 2019 film (which has conflicting messages on happy endings), “there’s no such thing as happily ever after. I’ll always have more work to do.” The RWBY Volume 8 theme declared, “Happy ~~Ever~~ Never ~~After~~ Again.” Both are applicable here.

A possible second season could involve new twists, like Rae’s plan, which echoes Mia Tearmoon’s efforts in Tearmoon Empire, to avoid Claire’s execution (her “downfall ending” as one Q&A puts it). Characters like Lilly Lilium may appear. Storylines which accurately portray sexuality would continue. The latter isn’t surprising. The manga’s author, Inori, is a lesbian (is possibly trans) and is influenced by various yuri works. She has another recently published yuri novel. It’s entitled The Girl Who Wants to Become a Hero <me> and the Girlfriend Who Should Become a Hero <you>. It’s not known when an English translation will be available.

I’d love to see some trans characters and perhaps even have some Claire-centered episodes. After all, there are light novel series entitled I’m in Love with the Villainess: She’s so Cheeky for a Commoner, from Claire’s perspective, and “Claire’s Diary” which some fans happily translated. Other fans have even translated all the opening and ending sequences, TV spots, promotional content, Q&A, and more. Even though I highly doubt there would be any criticism of marriage as an institution. Nothing in a future season would echo Young Love. On the other hand, this series is more positive on lesbian romance than others. This is no shock. Rae, throughout the manga, has four women interested in her: Claire, Manaria, Lilly, and Lana Lahna! At one point, Claire even calls Rae a “womanizer” as a result, which surprises her.

I’d love to see some trans characters and have some Claire-centered episodes. After all, there are light novel series entitled I’m in Love with the Villainess: She’s so Cheeky for a Commoner, from Claire’s perspective, and “Claire’s Diary” which some fans happily translated. Other fans have even translated all the opening and ending sequences, TV spots, promotional content, Q&A, and more. I highly doubt there would be any criticism of marriage as an institution. Nothing in a future season would, probably, echo Young Love. On the other hand, this series is more positive on lesbian romance than others. This is no shock. Rae, throughout the manga, has four women interested in her: Claire, Manaria, Lilly, and Lana Lahna! At one point, Claire even calls Rae a “womanizer” as a result, which surprises her.

Unlike some other anime, the subbed and dubbed versions aired simultaneously. Surely, the Japanese voice actors, including Yu Serizawa and Karin Nanami for Rae and Claire, and Nana Mizuki for Manaria, did an excellent job. Serizawa voiced Mutsu in Love Live! Sunshine!!. Mizuki voiced Airi Amano in D4DJ First Mix and Riko’s mother in Love Live! Sunshine!! The same can be said for Princes Rod, Thane, and Yue. They are voiced by Ken’ichirō Ōhashi (also known as Kenn), Daisuke Namikawa, and Yoko Hikasa. All three are talented voice actors. The same is the case for Aimi Terakawa, Ikumi Hasegawa, Sara Matsumoto, Minami Kurisaka. They voice Misha, Lene, Loretta and Pipi respectfully.

Aimi is known as Kasumi Toyama in the BanG Dream franchise and Kyoko Yamate in D4DJ. Hasegawa voiced Sorane Matsuyama in If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die, Desumi Magahara in Love After World Domination, Koito in My Master Has No Tail, Ikuyo Kita in Bocchi the Rock!, Kotoko Nogisaka in Ippon Again!, and Shizuka in World Dai Star. Matsumoto voiced golf mafia boss Charlotte in Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story as well.

English dub voice actors, like Hannah Alyea, Lindsey Sheppard, Corey Wilder, Oscar Seung, Ciarán Strange, Marisa Duran, Kara Edwards, Erin Nicole Lundquist, Abigail Blythe, and Katelyn Barr, are talented too. Alyea, a non-binary actor, who voices Rae, did the dubbed voice for Aoi Inuyama in Laid-Back Camp and for Lumi and the Great Big Galaxy, an indie animation. Sheppard, who voices Claire, is known, in part, for voicing Saphron Cotta-Arc in RWBY, Amy Sibble in Wild Card: The Show, and Kaede in Sasaki and Miyano. Like Alyea, Duran, who voices Misha, is also non-binary, and of Spanish descent. She’s voiced a variety of roles. Wilder, who voices Rod, is a non-binary Black man, voiced a wide array of characters.

This also the case for Seung and Edwards. They voice Thane and Lene. Strange is a talented trans non-binary man. Lundquist is Latina, queer, and “military veteran voice actor.” Blythe describes herself as a “demi lesbian.” She said that voicing Pipi is a “dream come true,” noting she’d been a fan of the manga, and was overjoyed to voice “a sapphic character in a sapphic anime.” Barr is a seasoned voice actress known for roles such as Hina Hikawa in BanG Dream! and Chiaki in Laid-Back Camp.

While I have criticisms of Watashi, it remains the stand-out series of 2023, with amazing music, and is fun, goofy, serious, deep, and very queer at the same time. Avid viewers and fans may encourage Ichijinsha (the publisher of the light novel and manga) for a second season, per Erica Friedman’s suggestion on her site. This series comes when there are many yuri series in 2024. This includes possibly yurish Pon no Michi and Metallic Rouge in January. By April, others with yuri themes will include Nijiyon Animation season 2, Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night, Laid-Back Camp season 3, and Whisper Me a Love Song.

I’m in Love with the Villainess is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Burkely’s Top Twenty Anime TV Shows of 2023

Composite image comprising of screenshots from seven of the twenty shows on this list. **Top row:** *Birdie Wing* (left), *Magirevo* (right). **Middle row:** *Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear* (left), *Skip and Loafer* (right). **Bottom row:** *Yuri is My Job!* (left), *16Bit Sensation* (middle), *The Apothecary Diaries* (right). **Not pictured:** Ippon Again!, D4DJ, BanG Dream! It’s My Go!!!!, Shy, The 100 Girlfriends, Yohane the Parhelion, Otaku Elf, Power of Hope: PreCure Full Bloom, I’m in Love with the Villainess, Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure, The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess, My New Boss is Goofy, and Tearmoon Empire.

In my last post, I chose ten (Western) animated series which I felt were the best of 2023. However, of the over 40 reviews I wrote in the past year, 14 of them were anime. Originally I was planning to make this a top 10 list, but I decided that was too limiting, and added entries for five series I didn’t review on PCM (Shy, 16 Bit Sensation: Another Layer, Tearmoon Empire, The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You, and The Apothecary Diaries), as I did not wish to overwhelm myself by writing reviews of every single series that I watched in 2023, as that would be too much. There will be spoilers for each series.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the fifty-ninth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on December 21, 2023.

Originally I planned to only list 15 anime series, but later decided to expand it with five others (Power of Hope: PreCure Full Bloom, The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess, Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure, My New Boss is Goofy, and I’m in Love with the Villainess). Although I would put Stardust Telepath on this list, I am still bringing together my thoughts on that series. So, it wouldn’t be right to include it in this list. Also, I wanted the list to be a round number. As a warning, this post will discuss death, near-death experiences, memory loss, murder, poisoning, sexual harassment, bullying, and sex work, among other topics.

20. “Power of Hope: PreCure Full Bloom- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

Originally, I hadn’t planned to watch this series, a continution of Yes! PreCure 5 and Yes! PreCure 5 GoGo!. Some have been calling this the “adult PreCure” series. It is the only series within Izumi Todo’s Pretty Cure franchise which includes adult magical girls, specifically Nozomi Yumehara (voiced by Yūko Sanpei), Rin Natsuki (voiced by Junko Takeuchi), Urura Kasugano (voiced by Mariya Ise), Komachi Akimoto (voiced by Ai Nagano), and Karen Minazuki (voiced by Ai Maeda). They are joined by Kurumi Mimino (voiced by Eri Sendai), a rabbot-like fairy who has a human form, and two fairies from the Palmier Kingdom (Coco and Natts), a bird-like fairy from the Donut Kingdom (Syrup), a handyman and humanoid bumblebee named Bunbee (voiced by Wataru Takagi), and many others. Each magical girl can transform into a PreCure.

Some fans were disappointed that the magical girls transformed into their younger forms. This was transformation is purposeful: they can only transform thanks to a sinister time flower, a plant which dictates how long someone lives. This means that every time they transform, they risk causing themselves to be mortally injured or die! Nozomi struggles with this the most: she is pushed to the brink of death to fight the “shadows.”

Like everyone else, she juggles her professional life with that of a hero, although the latter takes precedence. All of them fight against the system. The main villain is Bell (voiced by Yoko Hikasa). She is the town’s guardian angel who traveled from the future to the present. She’s convinced that if she culls the town of “selfish” people, she can stop its destruction by human-induced climate change and abandonment by humans. Later, she’s convinced that this is foolish. Her super-powered shadow later begins destroying the very town she swore to protect!

19. “The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess- Streaming on HIDIVE”

The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess, also known as Hikikomari Kyūketsu Hime no Monmon, is an adventure fantasy anime based on a Japanese light novel series by Kotei Kobayashi, which Riichu illustrates. The plot of this series is relatively simple: a vampire hermit named Terakomari Gandesblood (voiced by Tomori Kusunoki), or Komari for short, awakens to learn that she is commander of an army, as arranged by her father. However, she leads a notoriously insubordinate group, and the fact she hates blood has put her in a bad position. Her trusted maid, Villhaze (voiced by Sayumi Suzushiro), helps her, to ensure that she can be successful, despite her obstacles. There’s a lot more going on than that description.

For one, Komari does not actually “hate” blood, but was hypnotized for her own protection. When she has even a drop of blood, it causes her to go into a rage, allowing her to decimate any foe. She displays this on various occasions against villains and to protect her friends. However, she can’t remember these blood-induced moments and denies they happened. Unfortunately, this series has a problematic side. The manga was criticized because Villhaze engaged in sexual harassment and cares little about consent. This is also true in the anime adaptation. It is one reason I am extremely ambivalent about this series. There are certainly good points about hiding one’s “true self” from others and presenting a certain version of yourself to others. At the same time, Vill’s sexual harassment (which Komari hates) is cringeworthy and, in some ways, implies that such behavior is permissible (it is not).

18. “Ippon Again! – Streaming on HIDIVE“

I gave this series one of the lowest ratings, apart from D4DJ, which also has a cumulative total rating of 4.3. Ippon Again! was based on Yu Muroaka’s ongoing manga series, is a judo sports anime produced by Bakken Record. It centers on Michi Sonoda (voiced by Ayasa Itō) who planned to quit judo, but was encouraged by her friend and two others to change her mind, resulting in all three forming a judo club at Aoba Nishi High School. All of this is to the chagrin of Anna Nagumo (voiced by Nene Hieda), who wants Michi to join the fencing club instead. Although I’m not much of a sports person myself, was drawn in due to the well-animated action sequences, voice acting, and simple story. This series is nothing like any of the other sports anime I’d watched before.

In many ways, this series is in a league of its own, with some yuri subtext (especially between Michi and Towa), comedic moments, social awkwardness on the part of Towa, and talented voice actors. The series also is authentic in the sense that the writers clearly knew the right lingo about judo martial arts style. The series is filled with drama, emphasizes how determination and strategy are just as important as personal strength, and unfortunately says that hard work / gumption can lead to success (which is not always true). Regardless of whether people see any moments are problematic or suspicious, it is fair to say that this series has mild fan service. The choreography of this series is strong, fitting with the oft focus on sports matches, some romantic tension, and strong animation in the fight scenes, which offsets weak character development at times.

17. “D4DJ- Streaming on Crunchyroll and YouTube“

D4DJ was an enjoyable series for many reasons. Directed by Seiji Mizushima, this music anime is part of a wide-ranging Japanese music media franchise of the same name. The most recent season (named D4DJ All Mix) aired this year. The first season, aptly named D4DJ First Mix, centers around an idolish DJ unit named Happy Around! at Yoba Academy which plays a mix of J-pop and dubstep. It includes jubilant Rinku Aimoto (voiced by Yuka Nishio), school DJ Maho Akashi (voiced by Maho Akashi), VJ and talented illustrator Muni Ohnaruto (voiced by Haruka Mimura), and wealthy-born piano player Rei Togetsu (voiced by Kanon Shizaki). Music is front and center, informing character actions and dialogue, with the story almost built around the songs. Other musical units completing with Happy Around!, each have their own themes.

Although there isn’t anything to write home about, when it comes to the plot, songs played by each band are catchy. Then there’s the Muni-Runku rap battle (as shown above) about their feelings. This series has as much glitz as recent Love Live! anime series. Since this series has a 3D animation style, it took me some time to adapt to it. However, the distinct character personalities, fast pacing, and character journeys, made me more invested in the series. The second season pivots to another DJ group, composed of students at Arisugawa Academy, a well-regarded all-girls Catholic school. Like the first season, with Muni and Rinku especially, there is abundant yuri subtext. Unfortunately, these episodes do not pick up where the first season leaves off and Crunchyroll treats the show’s first and second seasons as separate shows, leading to even more confusion.

16. “BanG Dream! It’s MyGo!!!!!- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

With a total rating of 4.8, this series, this anime series adapts the band MyGO!!!!! and is the latest adaptation of Bushiroad’s BanG Dream! music media franchise, also known as Bandori, with Koudai Kakimoto as series director. The series centers on a girl named Anon Chihaya (voiced by Rin Tateishi) who returns to Japan and learns that everyone at her new school is in a band. She meets avid rock collector Tomori Takamatsu (voiced by Hina Yomiya), piano player Sakiko “Saki” Togawa (voiced by Kanon Takao), drummer Shiina Taki (voiced by Coco Hayashi) and a student from a prestigious academy, Soyo Nagasaki (voiced by Mika Kohinata). However, Tamori, Soyo, and Taki were former band members, and there is tension between them as a result.

The CGI looks better than previous iterations. There’s relatable characters (including autistic-coded Tomori) and yuri subtext (either between Tomori and Taki, Tomori and Anon, or any others). Kaname Rāna (voiced by Hina Aoki) throws a wrench to the mix. She only participates when she feels like it and avoids getting caught up in interpersonal drama. Taki, Tomori, Soyo, Anon, and Rana form a band. Strains and teenage angst split them apart. When Soyo departs, the band breaks up, with the revelation she wants the band to crash and fail, and revival of her former band. None of this seems rushed. Each character is relatable without falling into a bad/good binary. Although their band reunites, with everyone realizing they are “lost.” Their tension fades, the series central focus shifts toward Ave Mujica, setting the stage for BanG Dream! Ave Mujica. I wish that pivot hadn’t happened.

15. “Soaring Sky: Pretty Cure!- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

This magical girl series is the latest in the Pretty Cure franchise apart from Power of Hope: PreCure Full Bloom. Like that series, it is produced by Toei Animation, a studio known for Cutie Honey, Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon, Smile PreCure!, and Sailor Moon Crystal. In Soaring Sky: Pretty Cure!, Sora Harewataru (voiced by Arkia Sekine) travels to watch the birthday of Princess Elle. In an effort to escape her captors, she and Elle (voiced by Aoi Koga) end up in Sorashido City, where she meets Mashiro Nijigaoka (voiced by Ai Kakuma). Later on, she comes across Tsubasa Yuunagi (voiced by Ayumu Murase) who can transform into a bird, and a young adult woman named Ageha Hijiri (voiced by Ayaka Nanase). All fight together against the Underg Empire, its plans to kidnap Elle, and learn what it means to be a hero.

Although fights with villains get repetitive, the magical girl transformations are amazing. The characters are relatable. Sora tries to be the best hero possible. Mashiro tries to become an illustrator. Tsubasa, the only male PreCure protagonist in the franchise, attempts to fly. Ageha is an aspiring preschool teacher. She comes from a divorced family, knows that Sora and Mashiro are Pretty Cures, and is the only adult PreCure as a protagonist, to date. Technically those in Power of Hope: PreCure Full Bloom are not adult PreCures as they don’t transform into adult forms. A mysterious woman named Empress Underg (voiced by Takako Honda) leads the villains. She vows to get revenge for Cure Noble “killing” her father 300 years ago. She is assisted by generals, monsters, and cold-hearted Skearhead (voiced by Mitsuru Miyamoto). It is later implied that she became cold-hearted over time.

14. “Shy- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

I only started this series on a whim and was pleasantly surprised, looking forward to the release of each episode every week. It is unique to have a series be critically analyzed on Anime Feminist in a positive way (sometimes they can be overly critical) and while I won’t say as much as their reviewer, Toni Sun Prickett, there is still a lot to talk about with this series. For one, Teru Momijiyama (voiced by Shino Shimoji), who transforms into a superhero named Shy using Heart-Shift Bracelets, is constantly awkward and embarrassed, hence her hero name, making her very relatable, especially to those who are socially awkward. There is a constant strain between Teru’s shyness around people and her hero self (as Japan’s hero), where she has to be among people.

There is abundant yuri subtext in this series, whether between Teru and her friend Iko Koishikawa (voiced by Nao Tōyama), or vibes between Teru and her hero colleague Pepesha Andreanova (voiced by Mamiko Noto). This connects with Teru’s long-standing empathy for others, allowing her to save her friend Iko from Amarariruku leader Stigma (voiced by Mutsumi Tamura), who tries to take ordinary people’s hearts and change their desires/wishes into reality. Iko and Teru go closer and even go together to the same school. One of the most heart-wrenching recent arcs was when Pepesha (as Spirit), who is a heavy drinker of Russian vodka, faces her mother, Letana Andreanova (voiced by Miyuki Sawashiro), in another form, and is able to share a short moment with her until she disappears. In the process, more about Stigma’s motivations to destroy the world and make a new one are hinted.

13. “The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

Known as The 100 Girlfriends for short, some on social media disdain this series as yet another harem anime, I look forward to it every week as much as the reviewer on Anime News Network. I can understand people being critical of this series, as there are surely ways to go even with, as one reviewer put it, “a rise in polyamorous romance in Japanese anime and manga.” However, even that reviewer calls The 100 Girlfriends as a “landmark series” and notes it takes place in modern Japan like Girlfriend, Girlfriend, going against societal expectations. The protagonist, Rentaro, received explicit consent from Hakari and Karane to date them both at the same time, and did the same for every new girlfriend he added to his grouping, later called the “Rentaro Family.”

Surely, this series is bizarre and very entertaining, but its hard to know whether it sensible portrays polyamory or not, but it is undoubtedly better than depictions in Futurama. Its also more outward than polyamory in Young Justice, Steven Universe, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, with the latter two confirmed after the fact by the series creators. However, there are also good depictions in Open Earth, Muted, and Ma Belle, My Beauty to name a few. The 100 Girlfriends shows what it means to have a healthy relationship with multiple people and loving each one of those people equally.

12. “My New Boss is Goofy- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

This series was another one that I had not intended on watching, but came across on a whim, and don’t regret my decision, one bit. At first, it might seem this is about a goofy boss (Yūsei Shirosaki) who has a new subordinate (Kentarō Momose) who is learning the ropes. There is more at-play. For one, Momose (voiced by Koutaro Nishiyama) dealt with power harassment at his previous job, where he often worked overtime, resulting in mental and physical injury, like trauma. He often has flashbacks to the terrible work environment of his previous company. However, his new boss (voiced by Takahiro Sakurai) is supportive and reassuring.

He even lets Momose live with him, to avoid his abusive former boss, and his new cat Hakoto (voiced by Hiro Shimono), who had a former owner who disliked him. Also brightening the mood are two others who work at the company, including is manager Mitsuo Aoyama (voiced by Tomokazu Sugita) and fellow employee Aigo Kinjō (voiced by Tatsuhisa Suzuki), who also left his former company because of power harassment. In more ways than one, this series is wholesome, making Momose and Kinjo, and others, realize that even if life is terrible, there is always hope it will get better. This series also has serious yaoi vibes, although it does not compare to the slow burn in Sasaki and Miyano between the two protagonists, or the upcoming yaoi comedy entitled Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!, among the many others out there.

11. “Yohane the Parhelion: Sunshine in Mirror- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

This series was a bit of a shoe-in for this list, considering that it is a spin-off of Love Live! Sunshine!!, and I’m generally a fan of idol anime, although I detest the idol industry. This series re-imagines characters from the aforementioned Love Live! series in a fantasy world, while being directed by Asami Nakatani, written by Toshiya Ono, and having Yumiko Yamamoto as the character designer and Tatsuya Kato asn the music composer. Sunrise, a division of Bandai Namco Filmworks, an anime studio which produced animated series within the Love Live! franchise, produced this series.

In this anime, Yohane (voiced by Aika Kobayashi) fails her audition to become a music idol and returns to her hometown. She re-connects with her childhood friend, Hanamaru (voiced by Kanako Takatsuki) and a talking wolf named Lailaps (voiced by Yoko Hikasa), while she tries to become a fortune teller. She meets administative chief Dia (voiced by Arisa Komiya), Dia’s fairy sister Ruby (voiced by Ai Furithata), Dia’s administrative assistant Kohaku (voiced by Mao Ichimchi), and others. As is typical in this franchise, there are many catchy songs, with the characters transported to fantasical and magical places, while singing. This even comes to play in the series finale, where they sing together to stop an evil force. There is yuri subtext between Yohane and Hanamaru, but also between the so-called mysterious Demon Lord Mari (voiced by Aina Suzuki) and Yohane. Friendship, family, togetherness, and self-worth are key in this series.

10. “Otaku Elf- Streaming on HIDIVE“

Originally, I hadn’t been planning to watch this series, but when I did, I was not disappointed in the slightest. Otaku Elf, also known as Edomae Erufu, is a fantasy comedy anime based on Akihiko Higuchi’s manga of the same name. This series focuses on a sixteen-year-old named Koito Koganei (voiced by Yuka Ozaki) who becomes a shrine maiden and caretaker of an immortal elf namec Eldarie “Elda” Irma Fanomene (voiced by Ami Koshimizu). Koito often attempts to get Elda, an otaku who fears going outside, to enjoy life outside the shrine. The animation style, comedy, endearing characters, and centrality of food drew me in.

What makes this series so interesting is that every episode has a story about Japanese culture, especially from the Edo period. There’s also undeniable yuri subtext in this series, specifically between Koito and Elda, while the anime as a whole centers on the importance of spending time with others above everything else. A related theme is the value taking breaks and not overextending yourself. I enjoyed the slice-of-life nature of this series, the other elves who come to the shrine, Koito’s sister Koyuzu, and another miko (and social influencer) named Komari. Unfortunately, the series implied that gambling was a non-issue and downplayed it, when it could have been more critical. Even so, the series often highlightd the importance of rememberance and preservation.

9. “Tearmoon Empire- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

This was another anime I watched on a whim. In a sense, it has some sci-fi themes, with the protagonist, Mia Tearmoon (voiced by Sumire Uesaka), getting a second chance which she uses to prevent herself from being killed by a guillotine (as she was in the original timeline). In some ways, this shares similarities with My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, which is also known as I Reincarnated into an otome game as a Villainess With Only Destruction Flags. Surely, enjoyment of this series may depend on how, as one reviewer put it, how you feel “about the glamorization of royal figures like Marie Antoinette.” On the other hand, I see this series as a redemption story, of sorts, for Mia, as she attempts to do better for the world than in her first life.

On the one hand, Mia comes with a plan to prevent a revolution and her death. Her reasoning is completely self-serving. She makes allies, rather than enemies, wherever she can. She becomes “The Great Sage of the Empire” rather than “The Selfish Princess who Ruined Tearmoon” as charms people along the way. I’m not necessarily a big fan of noble / royal fantasy, but I don’t have as negative of a response to this series as others. The animation and voice acting is excellent, and I don’t see any characters as badly written. On the other hand, this series falls into existing heterosexual patterns, with Mia having romantic feelings for Abel Remno (voiced by Yoshitsugu Matsuoka). There are no yuri subtext or themes in this series at all. Even so, this series is still enjoyable, although not as much as the others on this list.

8. “The Apothecary Diaries- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

Like Tearmoon Empire and Shy, I started it on a whim. This series did not disappoint! The Apothecary Diaries goes beyond exploring ways that women try to survive under a patriarchal system and help others in their own way. Set in a fictional country based on real-life China (in the Ming Era), Maomao (voiced by Aoi Yūki), who is working in a brothel in the red-light district, is kidnapped and sold to the Imperial Palace. Her anonymous actions save the life of the emperor’s children and catch the attention of Jinshi (voiced by Takeo Ōtsuka), an influential eunuch, leading her to become forensic pathologist in the rear palace, using her skills as an apothecary, and a taste-tester and lady-in-waiting for an Emperor’s concubine named Gyokuyō (voiced by Yoko Hikasa). She even puts freckles on her face so she is less attractive.

This series is more critical of the inner workings of royalty than Tearmoon Empire and much more than relatively pro-royalty Disney series like Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure, Elena of Avalor, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, and Sofia the First, or even Sailor Moon. More than that, I enjoy this series because of how Maomao uses her skills to solve mysteries for the royal court, often involving poisoning or death, but also related to bullying and allergies. There’s continual romantic tension between Jenshi and Maomao. Obviously, she has no interest in him, but he often teases her, which annoys her to no end. Her own life is a bit of a mystery, but it is implied that she may be the child of one of the former or current concubines.

7. “16Bit Sensation: Another Layer- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

You would not think that an anime centering on a time-traveling illustrator named Konoha, from 2023, who works on bishōjo games in the 1990s, traveling thanks to opening classic games, would be a hit! But, it was one of my favorite series from this year. In fact, it is what convinced me to watch the animated adaption of Kanon, an eroge visual novel, a series that goes beyond a male protagonist interacting with cute girls, to characters becoming endearing, and an effective transition between humor and serious content. The series gets very heavy in the last half, due to trauma caused by death, magical disappearance, sickness, and memory alteration, to say the least. Every week I look forward to the newest episode of 16bit Sensation: Another Layer.

Without a doubt, this series has nostalgic elements that only some fans would know, with Konoha (voiced by Aoi Koga) as an effective and energetic guide to these elements, even if annoying at times. This series is effectively a spinoff from the original manga which entirely took place in the 1990s, with Konoha getting a second chance to use her passion and skills, and it has feminist messages. More than anything, it is entertaining, interesting, and a love-letter to the 1990s, without having romantic relationships between the protagonists. Although I’m not sure I would classify this series as “isekai,” it does have unexpected sci-fi elements. This includes the impact of Mamoru, Konoha, and the rest of Alcohol Soft creating an amazing game in December 1999 entitled The Last Waltz, dramatically changing Tokyo’s Akihabara neighborhood, and the world as a whole.

6. “Yuri Is My Job! – Streaming on Crunchyroll“

This yuri comedic anime is a stand-out series for 2023. Yuri Is My Job!, also known as Schwestern in Liebe! or Watashi no Yuri wa Oshigoto Desu!, is based on Miman’s ongoing manga. Passione and Studio Lings produced this series, while Hijiri Sanpei directed it. The plot of this series pulls you in quickly. A high school girl named Hime Shiraki (voiced by Yui Ogura) who cares about her outward image as sweet and helpful, actively works to hide her self-centered nature. She is guilt-tripped into covering shifts at a yuri-theme cafe (Cafe Liebe) after accidentally injuring the manager, Mai Koshiba (voiced by Yukari Tamura). At the cafe, waitresses pretend they are students at an all-girls boarding school, each with their own persona. In the process, she’s drawn to another waitress, Mitsuki Yano (voiced by Sumire Uesaka) who appears devoted, but seems to hate her in private.

Each character shows a different level of fakery as waitresses. Sumika Chibana (voiced by Makoto Koichi) is calm and collected as a waitress but a gyaru outside work, Kanoko Mamiya (voiced by Minami Tanaka) is a shy girl and knows Hime’s true personality. As time goes on, Sumika grows closer to Kanoko, despite Kanoko’s unhealthy obsession with Hime. Yano becomes a “sister”/partner of Hime (who is hinted as demisexual). This anime also alludes to Maria Watches Over Us and parodies the Class S genre. This is coupled with appealing animation, drama, and emotional scenes. It is later revealed that Hime and Yano met each other as kids and they work to clear up this misunderstanding. Miscommunication is a major theme: Yano is coded as autistic and Hime tries to get everyone’s approval. The anime itself explores expectations built into existing social interactions.

5. “Skip and Loafer- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

This anime is a stand-out romantic comedy and slice-of-life series, which was written and directed by Kotomi Deai. It was produced by P.A. Works. This series has a simple storyline, with Mitsumi Iwakura (voiced by Tomoyo Kurosawa) going to a school in Tokyo, with the goal of becoming a rural planner in her hometown. She leaves her friends behind and meets another student, Sōsuke Shima (voiced by Akinori Egoshi), who helps her get to the opening ceremony in time. All of this is part of this coming-of-age story, with a protagonist who is driven, anxious, and endearing, which includes Mitsumi’s trans female guardian, Nao (voiced by Mitsuki Saiga). There’s humor which isn’t based on any tropes or common stereotypes. It is easy to emphasize with the characters.

Each character is given depth, even among those who appear organized on the surface. For instance, student council treasurer Tokiko Takamine (voiced by Minami Tsuda) is anxious and barely holding it together. Mitsumi and Sōsuke get romantically closer as their friendship strengthens. This anime focuses on the plot, characters, and worldbuilding. There’s casual queerness in this series, either through Nao, or yuri subtext between Yuzuki Murashige (voiced by Maaya Uchida) and Makoto Kurume (voiced by Megumi Han), who are opposites from one another. Mitsumi is sympathetic because she isn’t good at athletics. However, Ririka Saijou (voiced by Minako Kotobuki), an unsympathetic toxic character, nearly destroys Sosuke and Mitsumi’s burgeoning friendship. In the finale, she departs Sosuke’s life for good.

4. “I’m in Love with the Villainess- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

Although I’m still collecting my thoughts on this series, I’m in Love with the Villainess, it certainly is a stand-out series for 2023. This yuri isekai and romantic comedy anime is directed by Hideaki Ōba, written by Ayumu Hisao, and produced by Platinum Vision. This series has the typical story of an isekai, with Ooshashi Rei (voiced by Yu Serizawa) dying as a result of her office work and finds herself in the life of Rae Taylor, the protagonist of her favorite otome video game. She sets her heart on the game’s antagonist, Claire François (voiced by Karin Nanami), using her game knowledge in hopes of giving Claire a happy ending. At first, she teases Claire, which some called “uncomfortable” and “awkward.” But, those actions are purposeful, as she believes her love is one-sided.

Claire slowly starts to catch feelings for her, especially after Rae admits she is a lesbian and explains why she loves Claire. She seems to lose interest in Prince Thane, a romance supported by Rae, who believed that only Claire’s happiness mattered, not her own. This thinking is smashed into a billion pieces when Princess Manaria, an outward lesbian, enters the scene. She tries to take away Claire from Rae and is successful, at first. Claire is outraged they are both fighting over her, causing Rae to resign as her maid. The series finale ends this arc. After she is defeated at the scales of love, Manaria reveals her true goal: to be with Rae. She only wanted infuriate Rae and get under Rae’s skin. Ultimately, Claire blurts out “Rae belongs to me! You can’t take my things from me!” Hopefully there is a second season!

3. “Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear- Streaming on Crunchyroll and Hulu“

Some time ago, I first came across Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, a fantasy comedy with isekai and iyashikei elements. Since then, I’ve watched the dubbed and subbed versions of the series. The second season picks up where the first season leaves, following Yuna (voiced by Maki Kawase), a bored teen reincarnated in a fantasy world. The world’s God gifts her an all-powerful, but comical, bear suit. She adapts to her new life and meets a ten-year-old girl named Fina (voiced by Azumi Waki), who becomes her work partner and sister. She also meets another ten-year-old, Noire “Noa” Foschurose (voiced by Rina Hidaka), who founds a fan club for the bears that Yuna uses to defeat monsters, Fina’s younger sister Shuri (voiced by Miyu Tomita), and granddaughter of Gran Farrengram, Misana “Misa” Farrengram (voiced by Satomi Amano).

Although this series is an isekai, it is unlike any other out there. Its immersive setting, worldbuilding, and characters in calm environments are devoid of romance, music, camping, or mystery. Instead, Yuna only tries to enjoy her life, with help from her friends, her bears Kumakyū and Kumayuru, and her bear powers. There is particularly strong yuri subtext between Yuna and Fina. Often, Yuna is pulled into the world of nobles. After all, her fan club includes princesses Flora, Noa, and Misa. Even the local feudal lord owes her favors. The series also makes clear that judging based on appearance is faulty and that overwork is a negative. In many ways, Yuna is inspirational, as she is extremely loyal to her friends and will do anything to rescue them from harm.

2. “The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

This yuri isekai, named The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady, also known as MagiRevo for short, centers on a Princess named Anisphia “Anis” Wynn Palettia (voiced by Sayaka Senbongi). She saves Euphyllia “Euphie” (voiced by Manaka Iwami), who was publicly dumped by Prince Algard, Anis’s brother. Anis whisks her away on a magic broom. She applies what she remembers about witches from her previous life in Japan, to this new world, to move it toward social, or industrial, revolution. This series mixes dramatic and slow scenes with bloody battles, and remains engaging, with Algard (voiced by Shogo Sakata) trying to seize power by any means necessary, even if people are killed or hurt along the way.

Unlike other series, MagiRevo depicts monarchies as slow-moving and bureaucratic. This contrasts with the incompetence shown in Disenchantment or the benevolent monarchy in Elena of Avalor. I liked how Anis’s principled nature influences Euphie to see a societal potential for Anis’s inventions. Anis even creates special weapons for Euphie! Even so, Anis can be reckless, going to extreme lengths to ensure she can use a power akin to magic. MagiRevo is woven together nicely. Other than the cuteness of the show, the writers did a good job. Euphie is more practical, attempting to sell magicology, concocted by Anis, to skeptical people. One well-constructed aspects is the internal struggle Anis must confront when faced with the prospect of becoming queen. The final episode ends very powerfully with romantic development between Anis and Euphie, and sets the stage for a possible second season.

1. “Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

There was no contest to putting this series at the top slot of anime for 2023. I wrote two reviews of the first season in May and July, but the second season blew the first one out of the water. This original (wild) golf anime is directed by Takayuki Inagaki, with Yōsuke Kuroda as the series writer. The first season centered on a spunky teenage girl named Eve (voiced by Kito Akari) from the Nafrece slums who illegally golfs for money and a rich Japanese girl named Aoi Amawashi (voiced by Asami Seto). Both match each other in their skill and determination. Diversity is central to Birdie Wing. Issues like undocumented immigration, corrupt urban renewal, political corruption, and racial injustice brought to the forefront. Yuri subtext is abound, primarily between Eve and Aoi.

The second season picks up where the first one left off, with magical girl-esque golf drives by Eve and Aoi. This series flaunting rules of the sports genre, mixed with well-placed comedic moments. Birdie Wing goes above and beyond other sports anime, with compelling plot and characters, and physical toll of playing such intense golf hitting both protagonists. I liked how the series seemed to imply that Eve and Aoi were half-sisters, then demolished this idea with an absurdly complex web of relationships. In an intriguing twist, it is revealed that Eve doesn’t remember her past because of amnesia. She is displaced from Japan, thanks to Aoi’s controlling / overprotective mother, and works to get herself back so she can face Aoi again. Although the final episodes of the series are strong, it wrapped up too quickly. Even so, there is space a possible third season could expand upon.

Runners-Up

There are a few series which are runners-up to this list. Two of those are Tokyo Mew Mew New and Oshi no Ko. I liked the former much better than latter, because was very environmentally focused. On the negative side, it sent an unclear message about abusive relationships and involved the protagonist torturing one protagonist by almost electrocuting her to death. The latter series involves the protagonist being murdered, their mother (once reincarnated) being murdered, and manipulation. It is very male-centered, similar to how Spy x Family focuses on Loid Forger while Yor is too often sidelined. At the same time, I enjoyed watching Ron Kamonohashi’s Forbidden Deductions, I’m Giving the Disgraced Noble Lady I Rescued a Crash Course in Naughtiness, I Shall Survive Using Potions!, The Way of the Househusband, Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible, and World Dai Star this year.

Furthermore, I’m unsure about The Dangers in my Heart, felt that The Family Circumstances of the Irregular Witch was mediocre like Alice Gear Aegis Expansion and Kizuna no Allele. Nor have I finished My Happy Marriage and Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury before publication. 2024 promises to be a good year for anime, with the premiere of Whisper Me a Love Song, Pon No Michi, Laid-Back Camp (season 3), the Rinkai! anime, Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night, Metallic Rouge, Love Live! Superstar!! (season 3), and many others. So, I look forward to it immensely.

BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! Spoiler-Filled Review

BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! is an anime series adapting the band MyGO!!!!!. It’s the latest adaptation of Bushiroad’s BanG Dream! music media franchise, also known as Bandori. Koudai Kakimoto is series director. Sanzigen animated the series.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the fiftieth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on September 29, 2023.

This series has a simple premise: a girl returning from the U.K., Anon Chihaya (voiced by Rin Tateishi), returns to her homeland of Japan, and learns that everyone at her new school, Honeoka Girls Academy, are in bands. So, she tries to create one of her own, meeting avid rock collector Tomori Takamatsu (voiced by Hina Yomiya), piano player Sakiko “Saki” Togawa (voiced by Kanon Takao), and a student from a prestigious academy, Soyo Nagasaki (voiced by Mika Kohinata). However, she faces an unforeseen obstacle: Tamori, Soyo, and Taki were former band members. Guitarist Mutsumi Wakaba (voiced by Watase Yuzuki) and drummer Taki Shiina (voiced by Coco Hayashi) were CRYCHIC’s other members. At first, it seems that Taki caused the previous band to split apart.

In many ways, BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! differs from BanG Dream!, which aired three seasons from 2017 to 2020, short series such as Pastel Life, CiRCLE Thanks Party!, and Morfonication, and the five films related to the franchise. More broadly, Bandori was created by Takaaki Kidani, president of Bushiroad, in January 2015, with Kō Nakamura as writer of the manga. In fact, the franchise itself compromises various manga issues and volumes, and a light novel, until September 2017, overlapping with the beginning of the anime series. Later, a game was created, and the related manga, RAiSe! The story of my music, began in February 2019.

As for this series, the CGI looks better than in previous iterations and the cast remains realistic, even with a feel which isn’t like other shows centered around girl bands. It was even recommended by Anime Feminist, calling it a sweet, and enjoyable, introduction of a new group in the franchise (and girl band anime in general), and an “easy recommendation.” There is much more going on than this in the series, however. While I’m not aware of every detail about the characters, the characters are relatable in many ways, to those who have been part of a band, and those who haven’t.

I haven’t seen a series which begins with a band breakup in the first episode, bringing with it angst and emotions. Most series centered around girl’s bands follow a similar structure as the characters build-up the band through the first (and sometimes only) season. Unfortunately, BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! is a bit rocky at first. Viewers are thrown into a practice session. Saki quits the band. Taki demands to know whether this is true. Mitsumi admits that being in the band wasn’t fun.

The writers, such as head writer Yuniko Ayana, do a decent job of calming those rocky, chaotic beginnings. This begins by focusing on Anon. She is a young woman with long pink hair who returns from the U.K. She tries to remake herself. As a new student at Honeoka Girls Academy, she meets Tomori, who collects rocks for fun. In the process, it is easy to relate to both characters. Social interaction tires out Anon. Tomori is more introverted. Taki pushes Anon away, calling her “scum” and doesn’t want to interact with anyone else. The drama, animation style, and music pull you in even more.

At first, it seems that a new band comprising Anon, Taki, and Tomori is possible, thanks to Soyo, with various meetings are RING, where Taki works. However, Anon is controlling and Soyo seems to have a hidden agenda. This doesn’t get any better, even as Anon and Tomori get closer, with the revelation that her diary entries are songs (or at least they can be songs). One of those is Spring Sunlight, which she composed when she was part of CRYCHIC, as shown in a flashback in the third episode. The fourth episode hints at Soyo’s real agenda. She claims that no one is at fault for CRYCHIC breaking apart. Later, she challenges Taki, declaring that everything will turn out the same way with this band, claiming that they never connected.

The story leads viewers to see Anon as controlling and problematic, Tomori as submissive, and Taki as more forthright. While Anon is arrogant and selfish, there is more to it. For one, emotions are high between all of them. The yuri subtext within this series, and the franchise, is clear. The feelings between Taki and Tomori are clear, with Taki having a soft spot for her, while Anon teases Taki. In addition, after Kaname Rāna (voiced by Hina Aoki) calls Tomori an “interesting woman,” Taki protects her. Occasionally, during BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!!, Taki blushes when talking to Tomori, when they are talking one-on-one.

Rana is one of the more interesting characters, as she only participates in the band when she feels like it. She doesn’t want to get caught up in the drama between the other girls. She is extremely skilled at playing the electric guitar. Often, she wows people with her skills. Anon worries about Rana outshining her. Clearly, Rana’s skills go beyond Anon’s meager guitar skills. As a result, Anon attempts to become competent at guitar playing, but takes shortcuts, which backfires.

It takes Taki to tell Anon the truth about her for her to open up. She confides in Tomori that Taki was right. She reveals in a date-not-date at the Sky Forest National Aquarium, with Tomori, that when she was studying abroad in England, she couldn’t keep up. In a very relatable scene, Anon is excited to be in another country, but can’t understand what people are saying. Since she doesn’t know much English people ignore her. She is even nervous to introduce herself to the class.

After she says that her whole life she has been running away from her problems, Tomori ends up reassuring her that even if she runs into a dead end, you look for a path and try and move forward. She even admits that Anon pulls her forward. She says she wants to move forward, even if she feels lost. Ultimately, Anon and Tomari agree to perform a live concert, despite the band’s lack of preparation.

The character writing (and storytelling) of BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! on another tier, with real emotions and comedy mixed together, with love triangles, with good use of the light, and dark, to symbolize the moods and thoughts of the characters. The sixth episode brings all of this to the fore. It makes clear that Anon is still a beginning guitarist. While she plays guitar, her fingers get hurt. Taki tries to compose music. But she causes fissures in part by being too hard on everyone.

Rana’s character shines in later episodes, not only as the “stray cat” as some characters call her. She is the only character who distances herself from the emotional conflict between all of them. However, as shown in the sixth episode, her lack of presence causes stress on Taki (called “Ricky” by Anon), who attempts to be the leader of the band, rejecting help from anyone. Rana later helps Tomori express herself by playing the right music behind her, giving what she is saying meaning. She also calls them all “boring women” due to their arguments with each other, and takes a step back from the band.

Even so, the band puts on a stellar performance in the seventh episode, despite the fact none of them feel ready, and they have little live performance experience. Other bands, shown in the BanG Dream franchise, like Afterglow and Poppin’ Party, make an appearance. Tomori’s voice shines above all of them, as she believes that her songs are “screams” from her heart. Everyone is in the groove, except Soyo. She’s caught up in the past. Angrily, she grumbles when the band begins playing Spring Sunlight. She snaps, almost claiming the song for herself, even though it was Tomori that composed it, not her.

The seventh episode of BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! makes Soyo’s motives abundantly clear: she wants the band to crash and fail, and revival of CRYCHIC. Her beliefs echo Jay Gatz/Gatsby, in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby who famously told Nick: “Can’t repeat the past? Why of course you can!” Just as it was a failure for Gatsby, it is also a failure for Soyo. She attempts to rope Saki back into the band. Her goal is to bring together the former band members, including Tomori and Taki. She sees Anon as someone who can further her goals. She can’t accept the reality: that CRYCHIC is dead and gone.

Although Anon was controlling, Soyo is much more manipulative. She claims that she is sick and cannot go into band practice, causing the band to split apart. Later, she texts Saki repeatedly, but gets no response, since Saki blocked her. But Soyo won’t stop. She even strong-arms Mutsumi into meeting Saki. This doesn’t go as she expects. In a heated discussion, Saki calls out Soyo for being selfish and tells her to forget the past. She tops this off, with a bold declaration: “CRYCHIC has been destroyed. It will never be revived.” Unsurprisingly, Soyo begs and pleads with Saki to reconsider, even after Saki tells her to leave her alone. This leads to the clincher: “you only really think of yourself, don’t you?” This completely destroys Soyo.

Saki feels that she told Soyo the cold, hard truth, while Mutsumi stands there, unsure what to do. The story’s construction makes you somewhat sympathize with Soyo. This is despite the fact she is a jerk, just like Saki. However, there is more going on. The ninth episode of BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!! makes this clear. In a flashback, the origin of Soyo’s depression is shown. She moved around a lot as a kid and her mother doesn’t come around much. These memories are bathed in a warm light. They include remembrances CRYCHIC’s formation and its breakup, and playing a bass. Soyo comes to realize that Saki’s words about her were right.

Soyo’s actions don’t only affect her: they impact her fellow band members. As noted earlier, her actions cause the band to splinter, with Tomori blaming herself for everything that’s happening. Soyo actively ignores Tomori and Anon, who only want to talk to her. Taki even confronts her. Soyo defends herself by claiming she told lies to keep the band together. Despite the fact that Soyo, who seems to imply, almost in a homophobic way, that Taki is nothing without Tomari, she restrains herself from punching her. After the new bassist (and classmate of Taki), Umiri Yahato, leaves, Taki makes matters worse: she explains what Soyo told her. As a result, Anon declares that they don’t “need her. Tari is unsure what to do as Tomori bawls her eyes out, with Tomori questioning whether she wants to be in a band.

All of this comes down to teenage angst, either between Tari and Soyo, or more generally. Some fans were right to say, after this episode, that Soyo is the jerk. Taki, Soyo, and Anon, at minimum, are horrible. Tomori isn’t, nor is Rana. The characters in this series go beyond the bad/good binary and are more complex than they seem on the surface. Surely, this could have been shown in more episodes, but the thirteen episodes of BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! didn’t seem rushed. They perfectly show the angst the characters went through, making them relatable. All of them have clear (and understandable) goals and motivations.

Otherwise, Tomori’s astronomy club could be called an “autism club.” This, however, only scratches the surface. Tomori doesn’t want to repeat the mistakes of the past, as she did with her previous band. Taki is one of her only friends. In the third episode, Tomori composes a song about her social isolation. While she tried to fit in, she felt alone even when she was with other people. Tomori is not unique in feeling this way. Consider the protagonist Bocchi in Bocchi the Rock! who occasionally has anxiety attacks, or other protagonists such as Shoko Komi (in Komi Can’t Communicate), Rina Tennoji (in Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club), Bocchi Hitori (in Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu), and Sasaki (in Azumanga Daioh).

By the tenth episode of BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!!, it seemed that the band won’t get back together: the members had split and are doing their own things. Tomori is determined to reunite the band. Soyo pushes back and asks about Soyo. One person helps her, playing background music to match her feelings: Rana. She calls Tomori an “interesting girl,” helping give Tomori’s spoken word poems/songs meaning. Tomori is successful in getting Tari to play drums, and Soyo and Anon to play guitar. The latter is possible after Soyo and Anon talk. Anon hears what Soyo has to say. Both realize they are lost. The episode ends with Tomori, Rana, Tari, and Soyo playing a rock song together. It is about how the band was blasted apart into nothing. All of them (apart from Rana) begin crying, with their memories flooding back.

While Tomori is the only “normal” person, Rana goes above the fray of the emotional conflicts. She becomes a bigger part of the band by the eleventh episode. Soyo is partially redeemed, after she admits she used all of them, but stays with them regardless. Tomori leads the band forward, pushing them to do public performances. Taki remains stubborn, not wanting to perform. Despite continued conflicts, the friendship between them grows. Even Soyo and Tari become friends-of-sorts. Most significantly, Anon comes up with their new band name: Maigo, meaning “lost girls.” This later becomes “It’s My Go!,” hence the title of this anime.

There is one interesting connection to the previous BanG Dream series in BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!!: Rana’s grandmother, Shifune Tsuzuki, ran the club SPACE!. It connects the two series together, making clear they are in the same world. It also makes the crossovers-of-sorts of characters within the BanG Dream franchise smooth and without much explanation. There isn’t a need for direct confirmation of this. Take for example the Season Two opening of Milo Murphy’s Law, “The Phineas and Ferb Effect.” That episode indicated that characters from Phineas and Ferb would crossover into that series. In this series, such confirmation would be unnecessary.

The tension between the characters fades away as they bear their emotions on stage in a performance which compromises most of the twelfth episode. Tomori sings her heart out about finding herself and loss. She ends up embarrassing Taki when introducing everyone. Then, she explains what each of them means to her. To her, being lost is fine. Powerfully, Tomori sings about feeling scared, hurt, self-righteousness, moving forward, and not hiding anything.

This heavily music-centered episode is the last one which centers on this band. At the episode’s end, Soyo pushes away Mutsumi. She doesn’t want to see her again. At the same time, Saki recruits Mutsumi and Yutenji Nyamu (voiced by Akane Yonezawa) into the new band she is forming. This is reinforced by the final episode. Soyo, Tomori, Tari, Rana, and Anon meet in RING for their band. Anon and Tomori meet Uika Sumika (voiced by Rico Sasaki) outside a planetarium. Soyo realizes she’s self-centered. None of these interactions are the central focus. Instead, the story focuses on Saki’s new band: Ave Mujica.

This band is led by Saki, who demands that they hide their real / true identities by wearing masks. Their debut concert begins like a play. Each wears mask which hide most or only part of their face. They begin with introductions and give themselves code names of sorts. The song they play has horror vibes and has images which connect to the Moon. To make matters worse, Saki doesn’t even have an after-party with them. She returns home to her alcoholic father, who she calls “rotten.”

If it wasn’t apparent enough from the final episode, the story of Soyo, Tomori, Tari, Rana, and Anon will be in the background in another series. Instead, the story will center on Ave Mujica now, even though Saki is terrible. The sequel is entitled BanG Dream! Ave Mujica. Whether the song played in the final episode of BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! is weak, not fully there with a metal / hard rock vibe, gothic metal, or pretentious, it is clearly meant to close one chapter and open another.

Personally, after watching all thirteen episodes, I’m not very sympathetic to Saki. More likely than not, BanG Dream! Ave Mujica will center on trying to make Saki sympathetic, just as the writers did, particularly, with Soyo and Anon in this series. Some may dislike this series because of the angst, or argue it was not as strong as D4DJ. However, the difference is that D4DJ, from what I remember, didn’t have angst at any level comparable to this series.

BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! is more than the adaptation of a five-member band. It is like previous parts of the BanG Dream! franchise, either the three-season BanG Dream!, which aired from 2017 to 2020, the chibi BanG Dream! Girls Band Party! Pico series, Morfonication, the five films, and other parts of this expansive franchise. It has a tone which is very soft, comforting, and with drama, but is not over the top. It is hard to say that it integrates “canonical queerness and themes of gender identity” like D4DJ, as some described it. Nor does it focus on the reality of being a young caregiver like BanG Dream!.

While I can’t be sure whether this series has similar vibes to Uma Musume Pretty Derby, as some have asserted, it shares no similarities with other music-themed series. The “delightful” Carole & Tuesday strangely has all of its songs sung in English and has themes centered around race, gender, and environment, which garnered its some criticism. Then there’s the mix of healing and music depicted in Healer Girl, the slice-of-life feel of K-On, and the series within the Love Live! idol music franchise. Adding to this is the combination of fantasy and idol music in Yohane the Parhelion: Sunshine in the Mirror, which is, itself, a spinoff from the aforementioned franchise, which recently ended. This doesn’t even account for the many other music series.

Personally, I wish that BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! could have focused on Anon, Tomori, Rana, Tari, and Soyo for another season instead of pivoting to an entirely different band. In that way, the series isn’t as strong as it could be. However, it still goes to extremes, with peaks and depressing valleys. It is more ambitious than any other BanG Dream! series and features Tomori, a neurodivergent-coded character. All of this interlinks with melodrama. The visuals also keep pace with the narrative tone, which has clear awkwardness. At the same time, the series’ abrupt conclusion could be purposeful.

The voice actors are all very talented. For instance, Coco Hayashi is known for voicing Mirai Momoyama in the idolish Kiratto Pri☆Chan, Setsuna Yūki in an OAV entitled Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club Next Sky, and Ikuko Kamiyashiki in Stella of the Theater: World Dai Star. She voiced characters in Bocchi the Rock!, High-Rise Invasion, Luminous Witches, and Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai as well. Hina Aoki voiced characters in series such as The Great Cleric and Cardfight!! Vanguard will+Dress. Hina Yomiya prominently voiced Anna Yamada in The Dangers in My Heart and Lainie Cyan in The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady. She will voice protagonist Honami Konohoshi in Stardust Telepath, which premieres in early October.

Other voice actors, Mika Kohinata, Rin Tateishi, Akane Yonezawa, Hazuki Tanda, Kanon Takao, Mei Okada, Rico Sasaki, and Yuzuki Watase specifically, are just as talented. Although Kohinata, Tateishi, and Yonezawa, are new to voice work, their talent shines through in this series as Soyo, Anon, and Yutenji. In contrast, Tanda prominently voiced Miyū Sakurada across the D4DJ franchise. In addition, Okada voiced Marika Mizushima and Watse voiced Miiko Takeshita in the same series. Those voice roles could explain why they voiced characters in this series.

Takao also had many voice roles. This included characters in Asteroid in Love, Bibliophile Princess, Edens Zero (Hermit Mio), and Management of a Novice Alchemist (Sarasa Feed). Additionally, Sasaki voiced Poporon in Dropkick on My Devil!, Ayoko Yamada in Kageki Shoujo!!, and Chisa Sasuga in Stella of the Theater.

The BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! director, Koudai Kakimoto, is known, in part, for his work as an episode director and storyboard director on many other iterations of the BanG Dream franchise. He was an episode director on Library War and Le Chevalier d’Eeon, and storyboarder on A Lull in the Sea, to name a few. The series writer, Yuniko Ayana, in contrast, has written on many series, including series composition throughout the BanG Dream! franchise. She wrote episodes of D4DJ First Mix, Flip Flappers, Given, Kinmoza Kiniro + Mosaic, and Sweet Blue Flowers. Considering that some of these series have yuri subcontext, or even yaoi themes (in the case of Given), that undoubtedly influenced how this series played out. After all, Ayana is a go-to person “for yuri content.”

The animation studio for this series, Sanzigen, previously produced seasons 2 and 3 of BanG Dream! (and other parts of the franchise) and D4DJ, provided key animation for I want to eat your pancreas, photography for Little Witch Academia, 3D graphics for Wandering Son, and 3D layout for Yuri Is My Job!. The company has worked on many other series beyond this small grouping.

Even though there is a lot of angst, emotions flaring, and drama, and the series abruptly ends, BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! stands strongly on its own, unlike other anime centered on girls’ bands. That, combined with the focus on the music process, makes the series shine above others which have aired this year, even if series airing later this year are just as strong.

BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! can be streamed on Crunchyroll.

Oshi no Ko Spoiler-Filled Review

Oshi no Ko, also known as “My Favorite Idol” or “Their Idol’s Children”, is an anime which mixes the supernatural, mystery, idol, and drama genres. Daisuke Hiramaki directs this series, which is based on an 11-volume manga written by Aka Akasaka. This series is produced by Doga Kobo, a studio founded in July 1973. As a warning, this review will discuss suicide, cyberbullying, death, murder, and other related themes.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the forty-fourth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on August 9, 2023.

This series is intriguing from the get-go. It follows the life of Gorou Amemiya (voiced by Takeo Ōtsuka). Gorou is a doctor in a remote region and is murdered by a mysterious man. He is reborn as the child named Aquamarine “Aqua” Hoshino (voiced by Yumi Uchiyama) of his beloved Japanese pop idol, Ai Hoshino (voiced by Rie Takahashi). He adapts to this new life. His sister Ruby Hoshino (voiced by Yurie Igoma) is a reincarnated version of his former patient, Sarina Tendōji (voiced by Tomoyo Takayanagi). Their life is challenging. Ai cannot publicly reveal she has children and Aqua meets a child actress, Kana Arima (voiced by Megumi Han), who vows to be his rival. Disaster strikes when the same stalker who killed Gorou and Sarina mortally wounds Ai. This leads Aqua to begin a quest to find his father and kill him in revenge.

The above is only what happens in the first episode! I was drawn to Oshi no Ko in part because it is based on the reality of the Japanese entertainment industry. It is somewhere where are, according to Akasaka, no “union[s] for talent and writers…no guarantees…[and] opportunities…given based on the balance of power between companies.” The idol world is portrayed in a dramatic and dark way. This series shows how the women’s emotions and labor are so commodified that they internalize it. In addition, this series makes clear how the idol industry exploits those in vulnerable situations.

This stands in contrast to the many idolish anime out there, whether Kizuna no Allele, and those which have aired in previous years, such as If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, Shine Post, Cue!, 22/7, BanG Dream!, Macross Delta, and Macross Frontier. Also, this is the case for the idolish D4DJ and Alice Gear Aegis Expansion, and the multiple series in the Love Live! franchise.

Oshi no Ko is one of the only series which focuses on the dark side (and reality) of being an idol. Another example is Heroines Run the Show. In that romantic idolish series, the protagonists must deal with rabid fans, rumors, violations of privacy, being marketed and commercialized, and harsh working conditions. This is also the case for Hiyori Suzumi, a first-year student who comes to a Tokyo school for track-and-field, who helps the idols as an apprentice manager.

The second episode of Oshi no Ko brings all these themes to the fore. Ruby attempts to join a huge idol group. Her brother, Aqua, tries to dissuade her, telling her about the disrespect, low pay, and violation of privacy for those within the industry. In a strange effort to “protect” his sister, Aqua engineers something. He works with the director he is working under, Takashi, so it appears that she is “rejected” from the talent pool. At the episode’s end, Miyako, the mother-of-sorts of Aqua and Ruby, re-opens the idol department of Strawberry Productions, becoming their manager.

By the second episode’s end, it seemed that the story focused more on Aqua than Ruby, despite Ruby, Miyako, and Kana as important characters. There should be equal weight to both of their stories. This changes in later episodes. Kana becomes more involved in the life of Aqua, even following him to Takashi’s apartment. At one point, she reveals to him that she is holding back her acting so that she doesn’t outshine others.

The attempts of Aqua to learn more about the lives of his mother, leads him down a strange path. He joins the cast of a hastily produced reality dating show, My Love with a Star Begins Now. It is directed by Masaya Kaburagi (voiced by Masaki Terasoma). He does a paternity test and discovers Kburagi is not related to Ai whatsoever. All the while, the series makes clear its social commentary. Storyboarders are shown sleeping on the floor to get their work done. Popular actors are brought on the dating show to gain viewers. Manga artists note their disappointment at adaptations of their work.

This all becomes intertwined. Aqua invites Kana to be part of Strawberry Productions. His sister Ruby sees idol potential in her. There are romantic vibes between Aqua and Kana. Also, Ruby and Kana are drawn close together due to their roles in the same company. Their idol group takes the name of B Komichi. It is the same name of the group headed Ai before her tragic death. Unlike other series, the close relationship between Ruby and Kana doesn’t seem to be romantic.

By the show’s sixth episode, female characters have a much bigger role. For instance, Kana and Ruby are closer together. The former tells the latter about egosurfing and how fans and content they consume is in a “state of mutual surveillance”. She further argues that people in showbusiness are the content. She even admits that she holds her tongue so that she doesn’t create flame wars online about certain topics. The friendship between Kana and Ruby is one of the best parts of this series.

Women on the reality dating show, such as Akane Kurokawa (voiced by Manaka Iwami), get ample screentime. In the latter case, she claims she is vegetarian so that she won’t eat meat. It appears to be a ruse to get to her the “correct” weight and shape, and takes notes on what do for the show. This comes to a head in the sixth episode, when Akane ends up attacking another actress, Yuki, for not standing out.

Following this, they hug it out, and everything seems solved. Online fans take issue with the scene, causing a firestorm of criticism, even after Akane apologizes. The toxicity of the internet echo machine is clearly shown. Akane becomes terrified, with people even angry at her at school. She makes this worse for herself when she reads negative comments and begins spiraling. This reaches such a fever pitch that she attempts suicide. She is only saved, at the last second, by Aqua.

This episode resulted in controversy. Fans were reportedly shocked. Kyoko Kimura, mother of Hana Kimura, a Japanese pro wrestler, who recently died from suicide, also criticized the series. She said she didn’t approve of the anime’s writers using Kyoko’s death as “free source material.” She argued there wasn’t proper consideration before the series release. Later, she claimed the series causes cyberbullying victims to suffer, while acknowledging the series “raises important issues”.

The criticism by Kyoko Kimura, and others, makes perfect sense. The episode seems to have parallels to the case of Hana Kimura. That it may be triggering to some people, especially when it comes to cyberbullying. The manga’s chapters were planned prior to Kimura’s passing. The creators could not control when the series was released. The manga‘s author, Aka Akasaka, said he wanted people to know how young talent is being “hurt, exploited, and suffering”. He added that he focused on the reality of the Japanese entertainment industry. His words fit with the anime’s criticism of toxic fandoms and fans.

The Oshi no Ko staff should have reached out to her before the series aired and could have handled this with more care. The episode shows how young people can be pushed to the brink. Suicides have been on the rise, especially among Japanese women, and declining among Japanese men. Over 20,000 in Japan end their lives every year, often due to economic hardships, a number which increased due to the coronavirus pandemic. In comparison, over 40,000 Americans take their lives each year, with a total of 800,000 between the years of 2000 and 2020, with men representing over 78% of the victims.

This series is not unique in focusing on this theme. In the ever-controversial and ridiculed gen:LOCK, all the protagonists give up their lives in “ascension” to become swarms of nano-particles known as the Flow. More recently, in Volume 9 of RWBY, the subject is treated more respectfully. One of the protagonists, Ruby Rose, either engaged in a suicide attempt, or ended her life. It appears to be the former rather than the latter.

Coming back to Oshi no Ko, the seventh episode caps this “dark chapter” for Akane. It makes clear that someone’s mental state can push them toward suicide. Kana admits to Ruby, in the same episode, that she even thinks of ending her life some days! Ruby observes that lying is the best way to protect yourself. In her view, every day people are bullied online in the “name of justice and freedom of expression”. Following her rescue, Akane’s mother and fellow cast members embrace her. This proves that she is not alone and has a support network to support her. There is a slight criticism of the police. A police officer asks Akane if she is ok after she is saved by Aqua, but not before.

The same episode shows that Aqua cares about Akane. While it appears weird that he reveals that Akane attempted suicide, he also pushes to release footage taken by the production staff of the scene between Akane and Yuki, showing the reality of the situation: that the staff selectively manipulated the scene. This means the reality dating show is rotten at the core. Aqua’s actions, in coordination with the rest of the crew, change the image of Akane online, solidify her popularity, and cause criticism of her to disappear.

Not everything is that simple in Oshi no Ko. Aqua admits that the only girl he likes is Ai to the other cast members. This solidifies the determination of Akane to become Ai. She even goes to the National Citze Library, learning more about her, and embodies her. This, predictably, surprises, and terrifies Aqua, as he senses that she has Ai’s spirit within her.

There is more than a popular opening song, an incredible debut, and amazing art in the manga (which the anime is based on). In the eighth episode shows the protagonists, Akane, and others, have important character development. Akane gives off a charisma and magnetism which draws people to her. In fact, Aqua even reveals his true colors when he will only listen to Akane, and not to what others are saying. Like Aqua, Ruby sees the spirit of Ai within Akane.

Jealousy comes to the forefront. Kana is angry at Aqua for getting close to other female cast members on the reality dating show. She is caught off guard when they both skip school. They play a game of catch in the park. On some level, Aqua probably has feelings for Kana. He tells her that he has crushes on all girls his age, but prefers older girls. Later, Kana calls for him to “drop dead” and calls him “big jerk” for kissing Akane on the reality dating show. She wants him to kiss her instead.

The eighth episode of Oshi no Ko predicts what will happen in the future: the “boundary” between his former self, and Aqua, will vanish. As such, he will become one person and his former memories may fade. In fact, he states that his mind is suiting his body and environment, with his thinking influenced by his physical development.

Aqua sees Akane as someone he can use, declaring that she knows more about the personality of Ai than him, even though Ai was his mom. He even agrees to let them be “dating” on paper, until they decide to amicably end it. This is expanded upon in the season one finale. Aqua often uses people for his own ends, which fits with who his character is, but also justifies his manipulation and almost makes it seem acceptable. It is disturbing, especially since such manipulation was criticized in Tokyo Mew Mew New. It aired at the same time as this series. That series featured a character who engages in multiple creepy romantic advances toward the protagonist.

Through it all, Aqua learns more about his mom from Masaya Kaburagi, who says that the entertainment industry is a place for bluffing and lies. He notes that Ai began as a “country bumpkin fresh out of the sticks”, lacked professionalism, and would show up to work in cheap clothes. He implies that Ai fell in love while at a certain theater company and got the face of a “grown woman” as a result. Like the rest of the series, there is a criticism of the Japanese entertainment industry as a “place of creating and calling in obligations” between agencies and production, which plays a “big role in casting”.

The ninth episode is one of the best episodes of Oshi no Ko. Aqua pushes the idol department in Strawberry Productions to new heights. He invites Mem (voiced by Rumi Okubo), a cast member from the reality sating show and a well-known YouTuber, to join. In a possible commentary on fudgery in the Japanese entertainment industry, Meme admits she is not honest about her age. She had been saying she is seven years younger than her actual age! Her honesty leads Kana and Ruby to sympathize with her. In a likely incorrect observation, Ruby believes that this shows Aqua’s preference in women.

The formation of the B Komichi idol group in the ninth episode, with planning for a music video and choreography for dances, is the beginning of further comments on the idol industry. Before this point, the series had only been idolish. After this episode, it becomes more of an idol anime. Kana, for her part, thinks she can’t be as good of an idol as Mem and Ruby. She even believes that she can’t head the group, or be “the center,” and is “bad” at singing. The latter is a lie.

The same episode of Oshi no Ko raises the possibility that Masaya will have a bigger role in the future. He is taking the long game of making an alliance with Aqua, to giving him a leg up in future battles over casting, and sees potential in Mem and Kana. He even believes that B Komichi is a promising investment. This comes to fruition in the 10th episode. Aqua dresses up as Pieyon to inspire the members of B Komichi. He talks to Kana. She is worried about being the group’s center.

I found the 10th and 11th episodes to be the strongest because they focused on female characters like Kana, Mem, and Ruby, rather than Aqua. Aqua is a creepy and disturbing character, who is not very relatable. He manipulates others to achieve his goal of finding out more about his birth father, who paid off someone else to kill his mother. This isn’t the case for the female characters. Maybe Aqua is despicable on purpose.

I liked the focus on Kana and her internal struggle. She worries that everyone sees a former child actor, rather than an idol. Ruby reminds Kana that they are rookie idols, will fall down and fail sometimes, but that this is okay. Ruby relates to Kana even more than Mem, noting how she was once as an idol otaku and that Aqua’s previous incarnation was her first love. The latter is a strange and cringeworthy. Such incestual romantic love is deeply problematic.

The 10th episode of Oshi no Ko continues the commentary about the Japanese idol industry. Their manager, Miyako, words ring true. In the next scene, the underground idol groups are shown to be treated terribly: they are crammed into one room. More well-known idols get their own changing rooms.

Kana’s insecurity on the Star Stage, performing with Mem and Ruby, is front and center. Many audience members have yellow or red glowsticks, representing fans of Mem or Ruby. She sees no one with white glowsticks, representing her fans. Aqua comes to save the day. He waves yellow, red, and white glowsticks at the same time. This inspires her to outshine Mem and Ruby on stage.

The season one finale of Oshi no Ko makes the romantic feelings between Kana and Aqua clear. He claims he only dressed up as Pieyon to ensure their performance was a success, but hints at romantic feelings. Ruby notes that when he is with Kana, he is like his “old self”. Their connection is further buttressed by Aqua admitting to his manager/mom-of-sorts, Miyako, that he only has a “work relationship” with Akane. Mem realizes this means that Kana has feelings for Aqua.

The conflict for the next season is set in motion. Aqua, Kana, and Akane are cast in a stage adaptation of the Tokyo Blade. All three are in a love triangle. Kana and Akane have a long-standing rivalry. Akane feels that Kana took away “her” parts. Aqua sees the play as a way to learn more about his birth father. The Lala Lai theater company, where his mother Ai got her start, is putting on the production. He declares that he will find his father, who works in the entertainment industry. It is not known if he would kill his father after he found him.

A love triangle in Oshi no Ko isn’t surprising. Aka Akasaka, the manga’s author, also wrote Kaguka-Sama: Love is War manga. He has written other manga, such as Sayonara Piano Sonata, Ib: Instant Bullet, and Ren’ai Daikō, since 2011. None of those have anime adaptations. Kaguka-Sama had no love triangles, from what I remember. That series focuses on a wealthy girl (Kaguya Shinomiya) trying to confess her love for the school’s student council present (Miyuki Shirogane). Then they try to figure out how to advance their relationship following their romantic confessions.

Oshi no Ko has dark, mature, and depressing themes. As such, I would not rewatch it. Even so, it has value in terms of its social commentary on the Japan’s entertainment industry, especially related to idols. On the other hand, it does not represent idol anime.

The series is idolish. It becomes more of an idol anime as it moves forward. However, it does not criticize or mimic any of the tropes in idol anime. It is more about the exploitation that those who work in the industry endure rather than subverting tropes in other anime. Some online fans don’t realize the latter and think this series “defines” idol anime. Nothing could be further from the truth. I can understand why some people don’t want to watch this series and can’t blame them, as the series is a lot to take in.

I was familiar with some of the voice actors. Rie Takahashi is known for voicing Aileen Lauren Dautriche in I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss, Megumin in KonoSuba, Ena Saitō in Laid Back Camp, and Takagi-san in Teasing Master Takagi-san. The same is the case for Yumi Uchiyama. She voiced Shino Natsume in Ippon Again!. Kent Itō voices Hirotaka Nifuji in the enjoyable romantic comedy, Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku.

I recognized Lynn as the voice of Karin Kudaka in The Aquatope on White Sand, Sanya in Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, and Shirara Tsubaki in My Master Has No Tail. Manaka Iwami had previously lent her voice to Christina in Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, Euphyilla Magenta in The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady, and Millie in Spy x Family. She will also voice Sakuna Memoir in The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess. Megumi Han voiced Penny Polendina in RWBY: Ice Queendom and Momo in Vampire in the Garden. Tomoyo Takayanagi previously voiced Mikan Hinatsuki in The Demon Girl Next Door. I wasn’t familiar with Takeo Ōtsuka, Yurie Igoma, Rumi Okubo, and the many other voice actors for this series.

Although Akasaka has stated that he will no longer draw manga, and will only write instead, considering the manga has 11 volumes at present, there is a lot of material to pull from. As a person who often watches anime which are 12 or 13 episodes, or Western animated series which are even longer, the first season seemed short. It could have been longer.

As I noted in my Otaku Elf review, summarizing an article in Anime News Network, companies often try to limit corporate risk by planning for each season to have between 11 and 13 episodes, but if a show is successful, there can be additional seasons. This happened with Birdie Wing and it is the case for Oshi no Ko.

The latter is no surprise as each one had a lot of fan interest. I hope that the second season is even stronger than the first one, with more character development and focus on the female characters instead of the male ones. If the series moves toward an incestual relationship between Aqua and Ruby, as is reportedly in the manga, that will ruin the entire series. Hopefully, the writers know better than to incorporate that into a second season/cour.

Oshi no Ko is currently streaming on HIDIVE.

[Ratings: Animation: 5 Voice Acting: 5 Music: 5 Story: 3]

Skip and Loafer Spoiler-Filled Review

Skip and Loafer is romantic comedy and slice-of-life anime, written and directed by Kotomi Deai. It is based on an ongoing manga series of the same name written and illustrated by Misaki Takamatsu. This animated series was produced by P.A. Works, known for series such as Canaan, Kuromukuro, Akiba Maid War, and Aquatope on the White Sand.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the fortieth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on July 16, 2023.

This series has a simple storyline. A girl named Mitsumi Iwakura (voiced by Tomoyo Kurosawa) goes to Tsubame West High School, a school in Tokyo, with the goal of becoming a rural planner in her hometown. She leaves her friends, such as Fumino “Fumi” Toyama (voiced by Sumire Morohoshi), behind. While walking to school, Mitsumi believes everything is going her way, but gets lost. She is helped by another student, Sōsuke Shima (voiced by Akinori Egoshi). Somehow, they both get to the opening ceremony just in time, allowing her to give a speech to the incoming class. However, thanks to their fast running, she throws up onto her teacher, earning her the nickname of “barf girl”. And that’s only the first episode.

Admittedly, I had not originally planned to watch Skip and Loafer. Reading Alex Henderson’s review of the first episode for Anime Feminist, convinced me otherwise. This view was reinforced by the spring premiere digest on the same site. It described the series as a “sweet coming-of-age story” with an anxious, driven, and endearing female protagonist. The review also said the series had a “positively depicted trans guardian” named Nao (voiced by Mitsuki Saiga). After watching all twelve episodes of the first season, I have to agree with their assessment. However, there is a lot more to the show than the assessment by these reviewers.

There are hilarious moments in each episode. This is especially the case when it comes to Mitsumi’s antics, or when the reality of people is hidden. This humor is not based off any tropes or common stereotypes. Even so, it makes you empathize with the characters, endear them to you, and make you interested in learning more about them as people.

Unlike other anime I’ve reviewed this year, Skip and Loafer gives its characters depth. In the fourth episode, Mitsumi is told by slacker teacher Hanazono that student council treasurer Tokiko Takamine (voiced by Minami Tsuda) is an organized person. She is impressed and connects with her almost instantly, seeing her as a senpai. Takamine even tells her how to use her time more efficiently.

However, Takamine has anxiety hidden below the surface. She is barely holding it together and even has nightmares about missing the bus or train. I liked that Takamine learns from Mitsumi to not panic if things don’t go her way, to accept what is around her, and not be tense all the time. This is something which many people can resonate with.

Somehow, Mitsumi inadvertently causes Takamine’s nightmares to disappear. She even influences her to admit that everyone should have their own path and way to use their time. Overall, Takamine is very relatable, as she is generally very organized. In some ways, she reminds me of my own personal organizational habits.

The interactions between Mitsumi and Sōsuke are at the center of Skip and Loafer. They learn more about each other and cheer up one another, if one of them feels down. While there are some romantic feelings between them, they are undoubtedly good friends who support each other, even if times get tough. That is part of the great storytelling in this anime.

I further liked the series because it isn’t as dramatic like Kaguya-sama: Love Is War or Yuri is My Job!. Nor is it idolish like Alice Gear Aegis Expansion and Kizuna no Allele. Instead, it has a similar same pace, and feel, to Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear or iyashikei series like Adachi and Shimamura and Laid-Back Camp. It reminds me a bit of K-On! and My Roommate Is a Cat for the same reason. However, it isn’t an iyashikei series. There is a focus on the plot, characters, and worldbuilding. But there isn’t an immersive visual setting, meaning that it does not fit the definition of this anime sub-genre.

Slice-of-life series are some of my favorite anime. I still remember fondly watching, apart from those already named, Azumanga Daioh, Squid Girl, YuruYuri, Kin-iro Mosaic, and Teasing Master Takagi-san. However, Skip and Loafer isn’t exactly like those anime. Not is it like Let’s Make a Mug Too, Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, Sasaki and Miyano, Gabriel DropOut, or Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop. In some ways, this series gives me the same vibes as the first cour of The Aquatope on White Sand, a series also produced by P.A. Works. The second cour of that series had a different tone, as it showed the brutal reality of the workplace and how it can wear you down to nothing.

Skip and Loafer stands out because of the casual queerness shown in the series. This is especially exemplified by Mitsumi’s aunt, Nao. I hadn’t picked up that she was trans, because it is relatively subtle, until reading some articles about it. After that, I could recognize it being mentioned throughout the series. Nao appears to be accepted and no one bats an eye about it.

The fact that Nao is trans is as subtle, in some ways, as May Marigold stating openly that she is trans in a Volume 8 episode of RWBY, without specifically using the word “trans”. There is some danger in subtlety, as everyone may not recognize it. Some series have done it better than others. I would say that Skip and Loafer does a good job of this, although it would be great to have additional LGBTQ characters.

There is more than casual queerness in Skip and Loafer. It is represented by characters that lean into “common archetypes.” Nao experiences transmisogyny and Mitsumi supports her. She cares for Mitsumi deeply. She goes undercover as an “uncle”, and is joined by Egashira (voiced by Yuka Terasaki). The latter thinks Sosuke is a “clout-chaser,” during Mitsumi’s date with Sosuke in the eighth episode. The reality is that Egashira has a crush on him and is jealous.

In that same episode, Mitsumi and her friends come over for a summer outing, a sleepover, allowing them to get even closer than they had before. She tells her friends that Nao is “biologically male” (i.e., trans), to not cause a panic. Thanks to Nao, she knows some make-up language, which gives her a leg up in their conversations. Later, when Egashira tries to leave, Nao convinces her to stay, again showing her role in keeping Mitsumi’s friends together.

The bond between Egashira and Nao is strong. In one Skip and Loafer episode, Egashira is sad that she can’t talk to her at the school festival. This is after both, as noted earlier, bonded when they were spying on Sosuke and Mitsumi, during their date. Hopefully, a second season will expand on their friendship.

One of the most popular ships among fans is between Mitsumi’s two schoolmates, Yuzuki Murashige (voiced by Maaya Uchida) and Makoto Kurume (voiced by Megumi Han), who are opposites from one another. Mitsumi brings them closer together, with fans praising their romantic “chemistry”, including cute interactions.

The implied romantic feelings between Makoto and Yuzuki reaches a high point in the show’s 11th episode. Yuzuki puts off a guy who is hitting on her and says that she dislikes it when people praise her art without looking at it deeply. Of course, Makoto does the opposite, praising the art, and makes Yuzuki blush in response.

While some may say their interactions are “yuri-baiting”, referring to series which show romantic relationships between girls/women without having that “relationship come to fruition,” it is more fair to call it yuri subtext. For one, Makoto and Yuzuki have unresolved feelings for one another and aren’t a couple. Their feelings have not been realized. Yuri subtext is all over the place in anime, from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha to Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica. It differs from more directly-shown love like that between Anis and Euphie in MagiRevo or one-sided love shown in Alice Gear Aegis Expansion.

Mitsumi is a sympathetic character because she isn’t good at athletics, like Mako’s worries about athletic events. This serves as a way for Mitsumi to bond deeper with Sosuke, who accepts her for who she is. Sports, and their emphasis, are a major part of Japanese culture, like it is in the U.S. Those who don’t conform to the “norm” to be ridiculed. In this series, the difference from the norm is portrayed as acceptable. It is fine to be less social, quiet, and not like sports.

One of the best parts of Skip and Loafer is how Mitsumi connects with her classmates, either Sosuke, Yuzuki, Makoto, or Mika Egashira. The latter is nervous, at first, at interactions with nasty male classmates. She even has a mental list of those who are mean to her and vows revenge on them for what they did to her.

As a result of their friendship, Egashira’s attitudes change. Her crush on Sosuke strengthens, even as she feels left behind as Sosuke appears closer to Mitsumi than her. She is hiding inner conflicts and trauma, implying she has low self-worth.

Her desire to go through schooling, to help her hometown of Ikajima, is admirable. Throughout the series, she has a connection to Ikajima since her childhood friend, Fumi still lives in the town. She doesn’t have many lines in the series and so few, that no one even bothered to add her to the show’s Wikipedia page. She is someone that Mitsumi can vent and talk to. This all comes to a head in the ninth episode when she visits Ikajima and has a fun time with her middle school friends.

The romantic comedy themes of Skip and Loafer shine through in the show’s sixth episode. Mitsumi begins believing rumors about Sosuke, thinking he is a “bad boy” who skipped school and faked being sick. After he tells her to not believe the rumors, she realizes that she is in love with him, and tells Fumi she feels the same way about Sosuke as Fumi did about her friend as well.

This plot is interlaced with Mitsumi’s work in the school’s student council. She becomes the student council secretary alongside Takamine. She encourages the latter to work with the new president-elect, Hiroto Kazakami (voiced by Junya Enoki), telling her that all we can do is hope it pays off some day. This is diametrically opposed to what is shown in Ippon Again!, that hard work can lead to success. This idea has been questioned in recent years.

Not everything is puppies and roses in this series. This is made clear when Ririka Saijou (voiced by Minako Kotobuki) comes out of nowhere at the end of the seventh episode. She is said to be a “childhood friend” of Sosuke. Ririka is more than that. She is a model who sneers at Mitsumi, calling her a “circus act”. She even declares that he can’t have a high school life because of an incident four years before in which he, apparently, showed bad judgment. In essence, she blackmails him.

This doesn’t stop the growing romance between Mitsumi and Sosuke, however. In fact, in the ninth episode, she expresses her enthusiasm, and gives him three squid crackers from her hometown, because she feels bad for him. Although he feels he doesn’t “deserve anything”, their interaction brings a smile to his face. As such, Skip and Loafer is saying that rather than beating ourselves up over our mistakes, we should take chances instead.

The last three episodes are some of the strongest in the entire series. While the preparation for a school festival is not a new plot in anime, the play is pertinent in today’s world that reactionaries are stronger than ever. It is about a person who falls in love with fascists and joins them because of romance, even turning on his own family!

Some Jewish fans have even stated that anime has a “Nazi problem” and is anti-Semitic due to Attack on Titan, Angel Cop, Fullmetal Alchemist, Hellsing, and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, and Hetalia: Axis Powers characters. These views remain controversial, with the argument that Western viewers are misinterpreting plotlines through a distorted lens.

Back to Skip and Loafer, Sosuke’s role as a friend shines through. He cheers up Mitsumi, thinking back to his bad childhood, and tries to make sure Mitsumi doesn’t hurt herself. They end up talking and having a fun time together. Understandably, Mitsumi feels bad that she allowed Sosuke to be picked for the play. After all, he didn’t want an acting role. Again, this shows the power of peer pressure and “need” to be socially accepted. In fact, Sosuke worries that people only see him one way and he can’t do anything to “ruin” that perception.

Sosuke ends up shining through, in the 11th episode. He does an amazing performance, impressing his half-brother Keiri and his mother. He ends up enjoying himself. The series says that he should be grateful to his brother, who has been considerate of him, rather than dismissive. However, Ririka’s arrival threatens to destroy it all!

The Skip and Loafer series finale brings this to a head. In an act of intimidation, Ririka falsely accuses Sosuke’s mother of making Sosuke act for her again. This causes Sosuke’s mother, and Keiri, to leave. Even so, Mitsumi bravely defends Sosuke from Ririke, standing between them both, like an anteater. As a result, Sosuke realizes he can act for himself, rather than doing it for others. He is comforted when he forgets his lines at the end of the school play.

In one of the most powerful scenes in the entire series, Sosuke stands up for himself. He says that he can’t make up for what he did to Ririka. Even so, he refuses to follow the same self-destructive path as her, noting that he is enjoying school life. As an olive branch, he offers to do anything to help her move on. Predictably, Ririka is infuriated.

She lashes out, declaring that Sosuke is selfish and narcissistic, and says the same about his mother. She doesn’t want him to get his life back and wants to continue manipulating him. As a result, she pushes him away, arguing that Sosuke and his mother can do what they want, but to not show his face to her again. After he thanks her, this shocks her to the core.

Although the series finale might be beginning the “redemption” of Ririka, she is not a sympathetic character. Her pity crying and admission that the scandal, and losing her job, was partially her fault (rather than Sosuke), makes her toxicity that much worse. She is an awful character who treats others poorly. Even her friend, Chris Fukunaga (voiced by Yuusuke Nagano), tells her to not guilt-trip Sosuke. He adds that it is her sole fault her grades sucked. Whether she reforms herself, takes responsibility for her actions, understands her harm, and doesn’t cause any further harm, or not, hopefully she is out of Sosuke’s life for good.

The Skip and Loafer series finale wraps up loose ends. President Hiroto gets more depth. He tells Takamine that he was expected to be the best from an early age. His family had high standards for success. This causes Takamine to develop a crush. As the school festival ends, there is a touching scene in which Sosuke and Mitsumi realize how much they mean to one another. Mitsumi is undoubtedly more in love with him than ever. She closes out the episode, encapsulating her story of wanting to become a government official in her hometown, and how she got there.

The show’s colorful and vibrant animation really sticks with you. Some series are flat and don’t have expressive animation. Skip and Loafer is the exact opposite of that and has a distinct art style. As such, the series is that much more appealing.

The same can be said for the series’ voice actors. The voices of Mitsumi, Sumi, Sosuke, and Nao, who are Tomoyo Kurosawa, Sumire Morohoshi, Akinori Egoshi, and Mitsuki Saiga respectfully, are talented. Kurosawa is known for her roles in Cutie Honey Universe, Astra Lost in Space, BanG Dream!, and Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina.

Murohoshi lent her voice to characters in series such as Princess Jellyfish, Little Witch Academia, and Violet Evergarden. Egoshi has voiced characters in Shirobako, Kino’s Journey: The Beautiful World, Fruits Basket, and many others. Saiga is known for roles in Cowboy Bebop, R.O.D the TV, Maria Watches Over Us, Ouran High School Host Club, and Yurikuma Arashi.

Minami Tsuda, Yuka Terasaki, Maaya Uchida, and Megumi Han, who voice Takamine, Egashira, Yuzuki, and Makoto, have done many recognizable roles. Tsuda voiced Mei Aihara in the ever-controversial Citrus, Terasaki voiced Babel in Gargantia and Akari Hyūga in Bloom Into You, and Uchida lent her voice to Sharo Kirima in Is the Order a Rabbit?, Catarina Claes in My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, and countless others.

Han has voiced characters in series such as Komi Can’t Communicate, RWBY: Ice Queendom, The Dangers in My Heart, and Oshi no Ko. Junya Enoki and Minako Kotobuki, the voices of Hiroto and Ririka, are known for roles in anime such as Heroines Run the Show, Wandering Son, and Your Lie in April.

The last frame of the final Skip and Loafer episode says, “see you tomorrow”, implying a possible continuation. If a second season for the series was ordered, which is unlikely, romance between Sosuke and Mitsumi will blossom. The same may be the case for the bond between Makoto and Yuzuki, possible growing feelings that Takamine has for Hiroto, and other relationships between characters. In the process, Mitsumi’s trans aunt, Nao, will likely have a significant role.

Skip and Loafer can be streamed on Crunchyroll and is available for purchase on Prime Video.

Tokyo Mew Mew New Season 2 Spoiler-Filled Review

Tokyo Mew Mew New is magical girl anime. It is a reboot of the classic 2000s series, Tokyo Mew Mew. It is based on a manga series of the same name written by Reiko Yoshida and illustrated by Mia Ikumi. This series is produced by Yumeta Company and Graphinica. Takahiro Natori directs this anime. As a warning, this review will discuss attempted murder, sexual harassment, assault, electrocution, and other disturbing themes.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the thirty-ninth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on July 9, 2023. Note: I added a warning at the beginning here. I foolishly did not add it to the original on PCM and regret not doing so.

The first season of Tokyo Mew Mew New introduced protagonists Ichigo Momomiya, Mint Aizawa, Retasu/Lettuce Midorikawa, Bu-Ling Huang, and Zakuro Fujiwara. Each is magically granted animal-like powers from endangered species, which they use to fight the extraterrestrial forces of evil, becoming the Mew Mews. All the while, they juggle their personal lives and try to hide their magical girl forms, even from those they love deeply. This is complicated by the fact that some individuals, such as the villain Quiche (voiced by Nobuhiko Okamoto), engage in repeated romantic advances.

Like other magical girl series, such as Cardcaptor Sakura, Little Witch Academia, and Revolutionary Girl Utena, there is yuri subtext in this series. Mint (voiced by Mirai Hinata) has a crush on a professional model and actress, Zakuro (voiced by Momoka Ishii). However, the romance that takes center stage is between Ichigo (voiced by Yuki Tenma) and her boyfriend, Masaya Aoyama (voiced by Yuma Uchida). Repeatedly, she attempts to hide her secret identity from him.

Tokyo Mew Mew New is like Sailor Moon, and anime-inspired series such as LoliRock, because the villains are often unsuccessful, despite their taunts and brazen plans. The Chimera Animals, parasitic “aliens” which change animals into monsters, have a similar effect as removal of Silver Crystal shards in the first season of Sailor Moon. When removed, any living thing turns into an evil creature, which attacks the heroes. The Chimera are also different from the Daimon seeds in Sailor Moon S. The latter manifest themselves in beings which try and steal the “pure heart crystal” of those targeted.

This season intensifies the drama from the first season, with Aoyama pulled more into the action. At first, he has visions of Ichigo crying, disturbing him. He is later implied to be the Blue Knight, a hero-of-sorts who saves Ichigo and the other Mew Mews. In some ways, this makes him akin to Tuxedo Mask, who “saves” the Sailor Scouts throughout much of Sailor Moon. The Blue Knight’s identity is later revealed, which will be examined later in this review.

Romantic tropes are integral to Tokyo Mew Mew New, especially when it comes to Ichigo’s feelings for Aoyama. Quiche attempts to interrupt this with unwanted advances. This disrupts the plans of his fellow villains to end humanity. His actions are paralleled by Ryô Shirogane (voiced by Yūichi Nakamura), a head of the Mew Mew Project, along with Keiichirô Akasaka (voiced by Yusuke Shirai). He kisses Ichigo multiple times, without consent, in his cat form. This allows her to turn back into a human. In addition, there are one-sided romantic feelings of Lettuce (voiced by Ryōko Jūni) toward Ryô. The latter believes saving the world is more important than romance. Bu-Ling also has feelings for Tart, which he somewhat reciprocates.

In the process, the series makes clear that possessive and controlling relationships are wrong. Such relationships are executed better than the abusive relationship in Steven Universe between Lapis Lazuli and Jasper. Both Gem warriors are fused together as Malachite from the end of season 1 to the beginning of season 3. In Tokyo Mew Mew New, toxicity is plainer. Quiche calls Ichigo his “toy” and wants to “play” with her, even though she rejects this outright.

This is complicated by the fact that Aoyama asks Ichigo to wear a bell so he can hear her. In many ways, this is possessive. Ichigo seems ok with it. She never takes off the bell, even though it marks her as the “property” of Aoyama. In the series itself, this is addressed, to an extent, but never directly. In contrast, Ryô founded the Mew Mew Project after his home in the U.S. was burned down by monsters, as shown in the eighteenth episode. He is kinder to Ichigo and respects her relationship with Aoyama even though he occasionally messes with her.

The series shares, tangentially, similarities with Is the Order a Rabbit? and Yuri is My Job!. Both are primarily set in cafes, as is Ouran High School Host Club. The difference is that the cafe is the headquarters of the Mew Mews. It has some characteristics of a front organization. This sets the series apart from oft headquarters of superheroes, such as the secret hideout in DC Super Hero Girls, which is under an ice cream shop.

There is a strong camaraderie between the show’s protagonists. They provide a leg up for one another if one of them is down or needs encouragement. In fact, Zakuro brings in the other Mew Mews to her music video stage set so that she can embody her true self. After she transforms, the video’s director, familiar with her, recognizes that Zakuro is a Mew Mew. She is one of the only people who knows the true identity of the Mew Mews.

Environmental themes, especially human pollution of the ocean, and human-induced climate change, are central to Tokyo Mew Mew New. Ichigo, Mint, Lettuce, Bu-Ling, and Zakuro each transform into different animals, either a cat, monkey, bluebird, mermaid, or wolf. They all have specific powers. As it was stated in the sixth episode, they were chosen by Ryô and Keiichirô without their permission, even though the effects are life changing.

This lack of permission flies against the principle of informed consent. Ryô and Keiichirô’s actions plainly violate Article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Japan is currently a party of that treaty, as of September 1979. The treaty states that no one should be subjected “without his free consent to medical or scientific experimentation.” If there was a court, and this series happened in real-life, Ryô and Keiichirô might even be questioned before the United Nations Human Rights Committee. Both would, probably, argue that the requirement of informed consent would be waived, especially if they were brought before the International Court of Justice, since conventions are considered part of international law.

Aoyoma worries about human destruction of Earth constantly. Mint uses her technological expertise to build devices to clean up pollution, like a home wind generator. In the latter case, she reconciles with her brother Seiji Aizawa (voiced by Akira Ishida), after he tells her that each person has their own path to walk. He builds, presumably with her assistance, automated water-cleaning robots, fueled by refuse. In the real world, incinerators, which are popular in Japan, reduce the amount of original waste. However, incinerators also contribute to air pollution and are harmful to human health. People of color are disproportionately impacted. Incinerators are built in communities deemed unable to fight against them, a manifestation of environmental racism.

If this isn’t enough, the villains (Quiche, Tart, and Pie) of Tokyo Mew Mew New aim to create environmental disasters. They attempt an eruption of liquid hot magma through the Earth’s crust and destroy Tokyo, mind control rabbits, and take over a trash-cleaning robot. The latter is the most successful. It creates a red tide, otherwise known as a “harmful algal bloom“, in Tokyo Bay, making it uninhabitable for aquatic life. The damage is stopped by Lettuce’s use of Mew Aqua. She risks her life, swimming through toxic, polluted water to save the day.

In a manner which reflects other female protagonists, like Adora in She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Rosemary in High Guardian Spice, and Korra in Legend of Korra, Ichigo believes that she isn’t doing anything to help. She begins to doubt herself and starts questioning her purpose, even her relationship with Aoyoma. This is coupled by her wondering whether if there is anything else she can do. When she learns the reality about Aoyoma, as I’ll explain later in this review, this all changes.

At one point, Lettuce ends up in a strange society comprised of pointy-eared people. She meets Madeline and Chiffon. The latter wants to leave before the island society is flooded, while former does not want to leave. This tale warns of environmental destruction. It reminds me of the 10-episode sci-fi cyberpunk adventure series, Sherwood. In that series, Robin uses a gauntlet to fight against the Sheriff and his allies, in a futuristic Britain beset by environmental disaster. In Tokyo Mew Mew New, Lettuce helps, creating a water bridge, allowing Chiffon and Madeline to confess their love. Madeline thanks Lettuce for pushing her to express her feelings.

There are some parallels to the amazingly animated yurish anime The Aquatope on White Sand. The latter has romantic undertones between protagonists Kukuru Misakino and Fuuka Miyazawa and magical realism. That series strongly focuses on sustainability, environmentalism, and a small community where everyone is close. The aquariums, whether Gama Gama or Tingarla, bring people together and granting almost supernatural visions.

Tokyo Mew Mew New shares themes with Squid Girl. The latter series is centered on Squid Girl, a humanoid girl who vows revenge on humans for ocean pollution. She is forced to work at a small restaurant by the beach after she breaks a hole in a wall in an attempt to show her power. In an interesting coincidence, Squid Girl was animated by the same studio which produced The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady!

Other series have environmentalism in their cores. The ever-controversial gen:LOCK describes the poor as making “peace with climate death”. In one episode, New York City faces a deluge of water, with a character lamenting the city’s inevitable destruction. Similarly, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet is primarily set on an interlocking fleet of ships on a planet entirely covered by ocean. It takes place many years after a climate catastrophe and somewhat resembles the 1995 Hollywood film, Waterworld. Tokyo Mew Mew New is different from all these series. It is a magical girl series front-and-center. The others fall into dramatic, isekai, mecha, science fantasy, comedy, and slice-of-life genres.

As a person who indexed declassified U.S. government documents about climate change last year, even writing briefing books on the U.S. pursuit of military exemptions to the Kyoto Protocol and the Pentagon’s integration of national security policy with environmental policy, my interest in the series was heightened. The environmental themes drew me in. This was enhanced by my personal views as a person who has been vegetarian for over seven years.

Unfortunately, this series does not feature any vegetarian or vegan characters. The latter are prominent in Avatar: The Last Airbender, DC Super Hero Girls, Legend of Korra, The Simpsons, Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water, But I’m a Cheerleader, Lore Olympus, and Runaways. This is a bit of an oversight (and lost opportunity). Lettuce’s connection with the water, her name, and her green theme color would easily fit with her character being vegetarian or vegan.

The last half of Tokyo Mew Mew New season 2 turns everything on its head. For one, Ichigo admits to Aoyoma that she is a Mew Mew. The Blue Knight saves her, after a peaceful lunch is interrupted by Quiche. This takes a lot of courage. It shows that she is being honest and open with him, by not hiding anything about herself from him. By the eighth episode, everyone at school knows Ichigo and Aoyoma are a couple. Both hold hands without batting an eye.

Although Quiche is horribly injured by the Blue Knight, his claim in the seventh episode, that Aoyoma will awaken soon is eerie. His attempt to separate Ichigo from Aoyoma seems wrong and twisted. However, he has a reason behind it, as does his kidnapping of her on multiple occasions. It isn’t unexpected.

Unsurprisingly, Ichigo rejects his declaration that she abandon Aoyoma and his romantic advances. One of the biggest reveals follows: Aoyoma is the Blue Knight! In some ways, his memories are split due to his dual personality, like Yukito Tsukishiro / Yue in Cardcaptor Sakura. He is shocked when he sees the villains bowing to him, declaring that he is their leader, and that they will follow him no matter what. While they depart, their action implies that something sinister is going on.

I liked the character development in Tokyo Mew Mew New between Mint and her brother Seiji. At first, she is under house arrest because it is “dangerous” to leave the mansion. She is able to convince Seiji to let her leave, after unplugging the computers he is using for his workplace. Once she transforms in front of him, he recognizes her determination and states that this drive will make her a good businesswoman. His statement may be foreshadowing what happens following the end of the series and some fans may use it in their fanfictions.

The imagery of a toxic blimp, which traps Tokyo with a greenhouse effect, alludes to greenhouse gases, and to climate change. It differs from the climate change catastrophes depicted in Waterworld, Blade Runner, The Day After Tomorrow, Snowpiercer, Blade Runner 2049, and The Day After Tomorrow. The toxic blimp and devastating environmental effects aren’t like Dune, The Wind from Nowhere, The Drowned World, The Burning World, and many other climate fiction stories, either.

The ninth episode of Tokyo Mew Mew New is one of the most intense. This isn’t because the Mew Mews try to get Mew Aqua to purify the toxic cloud, nor is it due to the revelation of Aoyoma as the Blue Knight. Rather, it is the realization of the villains’ ultimate plan: awakening of Deep Blue, after Quiche pushes him over the edge. It is further stated that his previous two identities, the Blue Knight and Aoyoma, were “false” and “fake”.

I am suspicious of the story the villains tell the heroes. They claim that they settled the planet first, then the humans came in later, polluting it. Is there something being left out? Apparently, the story that Lettuce experienced, by accident, was the reality of the villains’ ancestors. But no other proof is given, apart from this being implied.

As would be expected, the Deep Blue reveal internally destroys Ichigo, putting her in a state of shock. Ryo and Keiichiro are angry that they didn’t figure out the identity of Deep Blue sooner. Understandably, Ichigo is so broken up that she even hurts her friends in the process. What isn’t directly addressed are the implications of this reveal. For one, the possessiveness that Aoyoma has over Ichigo may be an outgrowth of his Deep Blue form. It puts their relationship in a negative light as a result.

Furthermore, Deep Blue is more extreme than the other villains. He declares that humans need to play for their sins, as Tokyo begins to fall apart, as the city experiences destruction at the equivalent of a huge earthquake. Tar-Tar and Quiche even rethink their roles. The final battle between the Mew Mews and the villains reaches a fore by the end of the 11th episode.

Predictably, the other Mew Mews make Ichigo feel better, as do Ryo and Keiichiro. They act as her chosen family. Mint even slaps Ichigo on the face and tells her to pull herself together. This helps them to unite against the villains.

The battle between the Mew Mews and the villains reaches a fever-pitch. They enter the villains’ lair, so they can get the last Mew Aqua, to stop the evil plan. There is even a lovely scene in which Mint and Zakuro tag-team against a villain. Tar-Tar turns to the “good side” after Ling declares that she loves him. All of this is topped by the intense confrontation between Deep Blue and Ichigo. The hatred of Deep Blue comes out when he electrocutes Ichigo, causing her intense pain.

Everything changes when Quiche comes to her rescue. He ends up dying in the battle against Deep Blue and kisses her on the cheek. It seems that viewers of Tokyo Mew Mew New are supposed to sympathize because he did the “right thing” in the end. I am unsure. Quiche seems like a demented villain, to say the least.

Quiche claims he wants to save Ichigo after the world is destroyed. On the other hand, he kidnapped her, attempted to murder her, and tried to mentally manipulate her. He even puts a lightning-filled cloud over Tokyo, which cuts it off from the rest of the world, turning it into a heated greenhouse. Additionally, he is a sexual harasser and assaulter of Ichigo. That can’t be forgiven.

To make matters worse, the last Mew Aqua is within Aoyoma. Although he comes to his senses, saying he will kill himself to take out the substance, Deep Blue takes over. He says he won’t allow it and strangles Ichigo in response. In the series finale of Tokyo Mew Mew New, he declares that Aoyoma doesn’t exist. The Aoyoma inside him fights back to such an extent that Aoyoma is expelled from the body.

In the ensuing battle, Ichigo, while being electrocuted with black lightning, defends all of humanity by herself. Deep Blue says that humanity needs to be killed so that others can live. Ichigo pushes for a compromise with “aliens” and humans coexisting. She notes her inspirations, which include Aoyoma, and sways Deep Blue.

In one of the most tragic parts of the episode, Pie makes clear his deeply held dedication to the imperialist ideology, formerly espoused by Deep Blue. He stabs Deep Blue through the chest after he states that they will no longer destroy humanity. As a result, the gateway to the “alien” home world opens, beginning their invasion.

Luckily, Deep Blue, who has transitioned back to Aoyoma, survives. He works with Ichigo to reverse damage to Earth. He also returns life to the “alien” planet, making it habitable once more. With this, I see parallels to Steven’s magical spit healing the world after Spinel almost killed everyone on Earth in Steven Universe: The Movie, or when Rapunzel used her magical hair to bring Cassandra back to life in the series finale of Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure.

In Tokyo Mew Mew New, the combined power of Ichigo and Aoyoma resurrects Quiche, Tar-Tar, and her Mew Mew comrades. It appears that Aoyoma dies for a better world, with a tearful Ichigo giving him the bell around her neck, his first present to her. In an almost Disneyesque moment, her tears bring him back to life, and they kiss one another.

The episode ends with everyone getting a happy ever after. The now-former villains return to their home world. Tar-Tar is later shown staying with Ling and her siblings. Zakuro has a Mew charity concert, Lettuce works at a museum about the ocean, and Mint founds her own corporation. In one of the last scenes, the Mew Mews give Aoyoma a nice send off before he goes abroad. Ichigo declares she is grateful for everyone and says she can do anything she sets her mind to.

Despite this happy ending, I am unsure whether Aoyoma and Ichigo have a truly healthy relationship. Ichigo is shown wearing the bell, at the end of the episode, signifying that she is the “property “of Aoyoma, so she doesn’t get “lost”. On the other hand, their relationship can be wholesome and sweet. So, it is a mixed bag, to say the least, or abusive to say the most.

The villains never suffer any consequences for their actions, or even take responsibility, as is laid out in restorative justice principles. Perhaps they are, to an extent, repairing the harm and maintaining positive relationships with those on Earth. Are any structures or systems changed? Why couldn’t the “aliens” be granted (with agreement of nearby inhabitants, of course) a place on Earth to live? This question is never answered. The ending seems to wrap up everything too nicely.

Despite the fact that Tokyo Mew Mew New has yuri subtext between Mint and Zakuro, whom Mint calls her “queen”, this is not a major theme. The anime, as I noted earlier, primarily centers on the romance between Ichigo and Aoyoma, and blossoming feelings between Ling and Tar-Tar. Even so, the relationship between Mint and Zakuro has a new dynamic, compared to that in Tokyo Mew Mew, adding depth to their relationship, which is a positive.

With Tokyo Mew Mew New, the characters exude “cuteness” in a way that is more effective than Too Cute Crisis. In that series, protagonist Liza Luna flips out every time she sees something cute, and “dies” from the cuteness. That series is enhanced when other members of Luna’s team, from the space empire Azatos, come to Earth. While there, they meet humans that Luna lives near and “cute” animals. Tokyo Mew Mew New has more of a story than Too Cute Crisis, which is a fun watch.

The latter series is a mix of glorified cat videos and the importance of proper cat/animal care. Tokyo Mew Mew New, in contrast, does not focus on animal care. Rather, it centers on personalities of characters, and their struggles. This differentiates it from well-known iyashikei anime like My Roommate is a Cat and How to Keep a Mummy. It is also distinct from any of the animated series about cats, lions, and others from the animal kingdom, like the comic (and later short film), Lackadaisy.

Another currently airing magical girl series, Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure, has similarities to Tokyo Mew Mew New. In the former series, the protagonists are given tones, allowing them to transform into magical girls and fight villains. Although they are chosen as heroes, they have more of a choice than the Mew Mews, whose role as heroes is hoisted on them, without any consent.

Apart from these comparisons, the series shines through in its voice acting. Some, like Mirai Hinata, Momoka Ishii, and Rian Toda are new to voice acting. Others, like Ryōko Jūni, Yuki Tenma, Daiki Yamashita, Kaori Ishihara, Yūichi Nakamura, Yuichiro Umehara, Yūma Uchida, and Yusuke Shirai have experience lending their voices to many series. This includes Cue!, Taisho Otome Fairy Tale, Turkey, Blue Period, Shine Post, Too Cute Crisis, Edens Zero, Teasing Master Takagi-san, Macross Frontier, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss, and Sasaki and Miyano. The talents of these actors are put to good use in this series, making it more of an enjoyable watch.

The same can be said for Yoshida, who wrote Tokyo Mew Mew, and others on the show’s staff. Yoshida was a script supervisor for the first, third, and fourth seasons of Maria Watches Over Us. She also worked as a supervisor of scripts on K-On!. Yoshida has experience working on series in the iyashikei, comedy, and food genres, such as Tamayura, Non Non Biyori, and Deaimon. It is not known whether she worked on this series or not, but her influence is still present.

Other than Yoshida, the show’s composer, Yasuharu Takanashi, has done music for various anime series, films, video games, and additional media. The director of Tokyo Mew Mew New, Takahiro Natori, worked on Gosick and Tamayura.

Graphinica, one of the two studios which animated this series, is newer. Only established in 2009, it recently did animation work on Cue!. Yumeta Company, the show’s other studio, is 19 years older. It did animation production for Tamayura: Hitotose, two YuruYuri OVAs, and Cannon Busters. The company collaborated with Graphinica on Cue!

In the end, I will remember Tokyo Mew Mew New for its occasional yuri subtext and strong environmental themes, beyond many other series I’ve seen, whether anime or Western animation. It may be some time before I come across another series that is as environmentally focused as this one.

The first two seasons of Tokyo Mew Mew New are currently streaming on HIDIVE and Spectrum.

Review box: Animation: 5 Voice Acting: 5 Music: 4 Story: 4 Overall: 4.5

Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story Season 2 Spoiler-Filled Review

Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story is an original (wild) golf anime directed by Takayuki Inagaki, with Yōsuke Kuroda as the series writer. The series is produced by Bandai Namco Pictures, a subsidiary of Bandai Namco Filmworks. The first cour/season of Birdie Wing aired from April to June 2022, and the second season/cour aired from April 2023 to June 2023.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the thirty-eighth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on July 2, 2023.

The first season of this off-the-wall anime centered on Eve (voiced by Kito Akari), a spunky teenage girl from the slums of Nafrece who illegally golfs for money, and a rich Japanese girl named Aoi Amawashi (voiced by Asami Seto), who matches her determination and skill. That season showed that this anime is more than a sports story, which are common these days, with wild underground golf games against organized crime bosses obsessed with solving issues through golf.

Diversity is central to Birdie Wing. Heavy issues like undocumented immigration, corrupt urban renewal, political corruption, and racial injustice are brought to the forefront. Unsurprisingly, yuri subtext is abound in this anime, primarily between Eve and Aoi, especially during their golf games against one another, or together.

The second season picks up where the first one left off, with magical girl-esque golf drives by Eve and Aoi, and continued ridiculousness. This series is more mature than many Western animations. It is even more intense and relatable than the previous season, with Eve remaining at a prestigious Japanese golf academy in the first part of the season. It does this while flaunting rules of the sports genre, mixed with well-placed comedic moments.

Surely, there are terrible women in Birdie Wing, but others are more relatable. In many ways, this series makes the elitist sport of golf interesting to watch. The series goes above and beyond other sports anime focused on girls. The plot and characters remain compelling. The talented crew and cast allow the series to excel. This season went a different direction than I had anticipated in my season one review: that Aoi would lose her privileges, that Eve would become a subservient golf supersoldier doing the bidding of the golf-obsessed Mafia, and that Eve would remain in Japan.

In fact, Aoi never lost her life of privilege while Eve did not remain in Japan. It is heavily implied that she has romantic feelings toward Aoi and vice versa. The first few episodes of the second season show Aoi making mistakes. But Eve did not kiss her since promised to only do so if Aoi did well. On the other hand, Eve’s repressed memories began to come back when she did one of her golf power moves, revealing her true identity.

Unlike season one of Birdie Wing, the physical toll of playing golf, at this intense level, is a major theme. At the beginning of the season, Aoi gets a headache and her playing suffers, with Eve filling in for her. Aoi collapses because of the stress she is under. Predictably, Eve declares she will “kill” her opponents in golf. Otherwise, there is a connection between the condition of Aoi’s father, and her condition, with the latter a result of overwork.

I liked how the series seemed to imply that Eve and Aoi were half-sisters, then demolished this idea with an absurdly complex web of relationships between the show’s characters. It turns out that Leo Millafoden (voiced by Shūichi Ikeda) taught Eve golf at request of Eve’s real father, Kazuhika Hodoka (voiced by Kousuke Toriumi). The latter was in a relationship with Eleanor Burton (voiced by Yuko Minaguchi). He later married Aoi’s mother, Seira Amawashi (voiced by Yūko Kaida), after she was pregnant with a baby from another man: Reiya Amuro (voiced by Tōru Furuya). Reiya later became a coach of the golf academy which Aoi and Eve attended.

In an intriguing twist, it is revealed that Eve doesn’t remember her past because of amnesia. A cruise liner crashed, killing her mother and father, and countless others. When she woke up from the accident, she didn’t remember anything, not even her name. So, there wasn’t any human experimentation, as I had thought before. Instead, she grew up in the slums. Klein Clare (voiced by Sayaka Kinoshita), Lily Lipman (voiced by Akira Sekine), and others in Nafrece take her in and raise her.

The arc in the first few episodes of Birdie Wing‘s season 2, with Aoi and Eve playing together, ends abruptly. Seira incorrectly believes that Eve is “bad news”. She plans to expel Eve from the country, in an effort to “protect” Aoi, in a decision based on faulty information “proving” Eve is tied to the Mafia. The “deportation” of Eve, as some fans termed it online, results. She is pressured to quit school, kidnapped, and brought to an airport, then told to leave Japan “or else”.

The definition of deportation in U.S. law is simple. It refers to the removal of a foreigner from a country. In legal terms, such foreigners have a presence which is “deemed inconsistent with the public welfare and without any punishment…imposed or contemplated”. In contrast, expulsion is removal of a person or people, by a governmental act/dictate/declaration, from a territory against their will. A successful expulsion is deportation.

Eve wasn’t pushed out of Japan by a government official or agency. As such, it is either forced migration, forced displacement, or forced relocation. Even those terms don’t fit, since the latter applies to people persecuted for one reason or another. On the other hand, what happened to Eve is likely is a form of displacement, which can be caused by conflicts, disasters, development, criminal organizations, political entities, and conflicts.

Moreover, it is accurate to say Eve was displaced, but not deported, as no government official forced her on a plane. Eve left the country of her own free will, although the driver threatened her with violence. This analysis is further confirmed by looking at definitions of “deportation,” “expulsion,” “immigration,” “immigrant,” “emigrant,” “emigration,” “alien,” and “illegal alien” in the Third Pocket Edition of Black’s Law Dictionary which I have on hand.

By these definitions, Eve would be an “alien”, and technically an “illegal alien”. She has a passport, but a fraudulent one. It is, ultimately, questionable whether she was deported or expelled, as there isn’t enough evidence to say definitively that she was compelled to leave.

Eve’s return to Nafrece results in a big reunion. She meets Vipere (voiced by Kaori Nazuka), who she calls the “snake lady”, along with her partner-of-sorts, and visits her parents’ grave. In a possible commentary on reality of the golf world, she gets sponsored by the Burton family, thanks to former pro golfer Alan Harvey (voiced by Shigeru Ushiyama), allowing her to achieve her goals. She uses her golf skills to destroy her opponents and re-firm support of the Burtons, which may have Mafia connections, in her.

The self-made and ever-changing golf course of Mafia boss Catherine (voiced by Umeka Shouji) reappears with gusto, in a callback to the first season of Birdie Wing. In order to win against Catherine’s golfer, Remelda (voiced by Marina Inoue), and possible lover, the caddy of Eve, Ichina Saotome (voiced by Saki Fujita) joins her. In a leap of faith, she even quits school, at the request of Eve, so that she can offer the best advice possible. The savvy well-versed and knowledgeable caddy of Aoi, Amane Shinjō (voiced by Ami Koshimizu) does the same, in a parallel to Ichina’s actions.

In many ways, Ichina brings realism to the situation. She realizes the danger in going against Catherine, through her golfer, Remelda, on a golf course that uses an absurd amount of power and energy. Even a hydroelectric dam overflows so the course can move with incredible speed. Ichina is rightly terrified after Catherine threatens Eve with a gun. She puts her hands up in fear. Eve is used to her life being in danger and easily shrugs off the threat. At first, Ichina seems like one of the only people in this series who is above the absurdity. As such, she doesn’t recognize what Eve sees: that the course is a place filled with “money and greed”. Nor could she ever do golf shots which have a ball skip across the water to get to its target!

Eve’s victories are paralleled by what Aoi was doing, although there are entire episodes of Birdie Wing‘s season 2 where Aoi barely appeared! I liked that Aoi had her skill on the decline when Eve isn’t there, but builds herself back up. The connection between Eve and Aoi remains, even if they aren’t directly talking to one another.

Time and again, Eve doesn’t waste any time deeming women as “bellissime“, including Remelda, who she plays during the second season, and likely others as well. She even didn’t mind when Ichina seemed to have a crush on her, with Ichina declaring that she’d be Eve’s caddy “for life”. She may even have some feelings for Aisha Khambatta, who faces Eve later in the second season. Assisted by Leo, Aisha is a person that Eve describes as “incredibly dangerous”.

The focus on found and chosen family is a big part of Birdie Wing‘s story, especially for Eve. Once back in Nafrece, she happily greets Klein, Lilly, and their adopted daughters. Thanks to the actions by Vipere, in season one, they all have legal status in Nafrece! As for Aoi, she has a chosen family as well, represented by assistance from her father, and her loyal caddy, Amane.

Although Seira later supports Aoi, she outs herself as a terrible parent when Aoi travels to a contest where plays Eve, and perhaps golf, for the “last” time. She forced/strong armed Amane to becoming the caddy of Aoi in the first place! Later, Amane decides to stay with Aoi, as her caddy. She does so even though she is no longer forced to do so, as an act of her own free will, indicating her power as a character. She may even have a crush, to some extent, on Aoi.

Birdie Wing is even more compelling when Aoi does her own golf power moves. She calls them Shining Shots, like Eve with her “rainbow bullet”, “blue bullet”, and so on. The absurdity of Aoi winning because of rain, over her opponent, Shikishima, in a game the announcer declares will go down in Japanese women’s golf history, says more about the series than anything else.

The final episodes of the second season push Aoi and Eve to the brink, but especially Eve. She begins to suffer from the physical demands of golf, more than ever before, especially after she does her rainbow burst, combining the styles of Leo and her father. This is the “terrible price” she plays for this form of golf. This makes clear that neither Eve nor Aoi are invincible. They are as fallible as the rest of us, even if they don’t want to show “weakness” on camera.

This reminded me of similar themes in Carmen Sandiego. Although Carmen appears to have strength and energy to do everything, this is only based on her own training. She has a terrible wipe out in the episode “The Stockholm Syndrome Caper”. It causes her almost life-threatening injuries that she has to recover from. Kim Possible in the series of the same name is similar. She is a cheerleader and uses her skills to fight villains and “save” the world. She is not invincible either.

More than any other character in Birdie Wing, apart from Aoi, Eve is a lesbian icon. She only has eyes for other girls and never for any men, whatsoever. Not even Sumire Heanna in Love Live! Superstar!!, Mari Ohara in Love Live! Sunshine!!, or Nijika Ijichi in Bocchi the Rock! compare to Eve, in the slightest.

Eve might only be rivaled by badass huntress Yang Xiao Long in RWBY. Yang can go super saiyan if she wants and is deeply in love with catgirl Blake Belladonna. Hime Shiraki in Yuri Is My Job! or Anisphia “Anis” Wynn Palettia in The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady are other “rivals”.

The final episodes of Birdie Wing‘s second season are some of the strongest. Eve’s body can’t sustain the pressure from her intense golf. She even gets acupuncture from Allen Harvey so she can use her Rainbow Burst without grievously hurting herself. Aoi perfects her golf and apologizes for letting everyone down.

The various health issues Aoi experiences don’t stop her. She suffers from an awful genetic disease (Tuberous Sclerosis Complex). There are nice montages of both engaged in physical training to make their bodies stronger. They prepare for their match at the Bandai Namaco British Women’s Open the following year.

It is powerful for the final episodes of Birdie Wing to center a Black woman, Juha Hamilail (voiced by Yuu Asakawa). She previously had been hinted in the show’s opening sequence. In the next-to-last episode, she comes into her own. She plans to take the British Open for herself, putting her face-to-face with Eve and Aoi. Eve expresses the annoyance of yuri fans who may see Juha as a hindrance and believe Juha should get out of the way.

On the one hand, it seems strange, and possibly racially tinged, that the obstacle which impedes the protagonists is represented by a Black woman. Even so, she is not an evil character. Rather, she is out for herself. She believes that the unexpected always happens in golf, making it fun. She expressed this directly in the 24th episode, to her caddy, Karen Lapana (voiced by Shizuka Itou). Juha is a strong and gorgeous final boss, of sorts, making the series that much more dramatic.

The latter is like how Aoi feels. She enjoys playing golf with Eve, even though she can barely hold it together. This fallibility is clear when she collapses in the same episode, causing Even to shake her and cry. Not long after, she falls once again. She asks a higher power to give her one more chance to fulfill her promise to Eve.

The role of the two other caddies, Amane and Ichina, come to a fore in the next-to-last episode. For instance, Ichina gives Eve advice on how to get birdies and keep pace with Aoi. Amane helps prop up Aoi, who is faltering. Eve and Aoi express their feelings, in their own way, to another, seeing the golf skills each of them can do. This is something that Juha recognizes, remaining jealous that each of them has a rival which drives them to improve.

Birdie Wing, is, as well-known yuri reviewer Erica Friedman put it, “the shounest anime about women’s sports ever made”. As such, Eve, Aoi, nor none of the other characters goes the route of golf shown in The Phantom of the Open, or in various other golf manga and anime over the years. There are so many of the latter that “Golf in anime and manga” is a Wikipedia category!

The final episode shows Friedman to be right. Even after Aoi collapses and is taken off the field, Juha keeps swinging her golf clubs. Eve, for her part, openly defends Aoi. Eve visits Aoi in the hospital. To make this even more absurd, she declares their game is still on even though Aoi isn’t actively playing her! One of the best parts of the episode is the surprise twist: Aoi cuts her hair and serves as Eve’s caddy. Even though they don’t win, thanks to sneaky and corrupt shenanigans by Karen, they still go out with a bang. Eve even uses Aoi’s golf clubs. She has a new golf move, which combines her skills with Aoi’s golf strike. It is named the Shining Rainbow Burst. Of course, her human body can’t take all the strain and Juha ends up winning.

In more ways than one, Karen acts like a Karen: she slyly leaks to the media. She received the damning information, from Remelda, “proving” that Eve has Mafia connections. Although this rumor is false (as Eve no longer has such connections), it leads to an investigation. Her professional license is suspended for three years by the golf association! Juha shows a bit of a backbone, for the first time. She doesn’t approve of these slimy tactics against Eve. Strangely, she doesn’t fire Karen. She lets Karen be her caddy for the rest of the game. After all, she didn’t even a bat an eye, and kept playing at full speed after Aoi collapsed. Unsurprisingly, neither Karen nor Remelda faces any consequences for their actions.

The final episode of Birdie Wing ends strongly. In the first time skip, set three years later, Eve begins training with her caddy, Ichina, at a golf course in Japan. This happens after Ichina says she won’t be a caddy for anyone else because she is Eve’s personal caddy. Then, there is yet another time skip, with Eve and Aoi finally facing one another during a golf tournament. It appears that the affliction Aoi suffered from is cured and their scores are close. There is even a great scene showing all of Eve’s sisters, from her adopted family, all grown up, and are now teens. The series closes positively, with Eve doing her Rainbow Bullet golf strike and viewers can see the bullet going through the sky, as the credits continue to roll.

Although there, sadly, wasn’t a kiss between Eve and Aoi, the series was filled with gay subtext. While some may call it yuri-bait, it is more charitable to describe it as yuri subtext. In any case, the show was a fun ride. It wrapped up far too quickly, with many time jumps. Despite this, the ending of the series makes clear that the game between Aoi and Eve continues forever. There is the implication that they won’t be apart and may even play again.

The ending could have been stronger, but I don’t detest it. There is enough space and possible storyline, especially during the two aforementioned time skips, that a third season or even an OVA could expand upon. Such a season, or OVA, could focus on Eve and Aoi, or the growing closeness between the two caddies, Amane and Ichina, shown in the final episode. There is fan support for another season, or OVA. It remains to be seen if executives think the same.

There are other praiseworthy elements of Birdie Wing. The music complements the action. It accompanies the strong, flowing animation. The two highly skilled series composers, Kōtarō Nakagawa and Hironori Anazawa, make the series that much better. The former composed music for Gosick and Chivalry of a Failed Knight, while the latter composed music for Scarlet Nexus.

Birdie Wing is nothing like any currently airing series produced by Bandai Namco Pictures, or those by Sunrise. Such series are supernatural action, mecha, or military science fiction. Bandai Namco Pictures is known for Gintama, Brave Beats, and Aikatsu!. Another division of the same company, Sunrise (also called Bandai Namco Filmworks Inc.), is recognized for other series. This includes Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury, Love Live! Superstar!!, Love Live! Sunshine!!, Love Live! School Idol Project, Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, Tiger & Bunny, Dirty Pair, and Cowboy Bebop.

The series director, Takayuki Inagaki, worked on Fuuka, KanColle, Kokoro Library, Princess Tutu, and R.O.D. the TV. Yōsuke Kuroda, main writer for Birdie Wing, worked on Kokoro Library as well. He served as a head writer for Valkyrie Drive: Mermaid and Madlax.

The voice cast are just as seasoned and have often voiced queer characters. Akari Kito, who voices Eve, voiced magical girl Momo Chiyoda in The Demon Girl Next Door, Kanata Konoe in Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, Touko Usagihara in Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, and Sakura Adachi in Adachi and Shimamura. Asami Seto, voice of Aoi, previously voiced Yoshino Takatsuki in Wandering Son, Charlotte Scherzen in Valkyrie Drive: Mermaid, Fena Houtman in Fena: Pirate Princess, and Nene Saionji in Yuri Is My Job!

Seto is scheduled to voice Yori Asanagi in Whisper Me a Love Song in January 2024. M.A.O. (voice of Kaoruko Iijima) will voice Kohaku in Yohane the Parhelion: Sunshine in the Mirror. The latter is a Love Live! Sunshine!! spinoff which recently premiered on Crunchyroll. The voice actor of Amane (Ami Koshimizu) voiced Yang Xiao Long in RWBY: Ice Queendom, Elda in Otaku Elf, Maria in Management of a Novice Alchemist, and Sailor Jupiter in Sailor Moon Crystal. All these characters are directly or indirectly queer.

Akira Sekine, voice of Lily, previously voiced Sora/Cure Sky in Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure and Princess Charlotte in Princess Principal. Saki Fujita, who voices Ichina, previously lent her voice to school president Mitsuki Sonoda in Sakura Trick. Sonoda had a huge crush on Haruka Takayama. Other voice actors are known for their roles in Maria Watches Over Us, Yurikuma Arashi, D4DJ, Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, YuruYuri, Strawberry Panic!, and Sweet Blue Flowers.

Birdie Wing will likely not be continued. Similar themes were likely added to the video game associated with the series. The connection to Madlax, since it is in the same universe, will remain a topic of ongoing fan speculation. I will always remember this anime fondly. It may be some time before another anime can shoot me right through, as Eve says to her opponents, like this one.

All 25 episodes of Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story can be streamed on Crunchyroll. The second season can also be purchased on Prime Video or on the Microsoft Store.

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20. “Power of Hope: PreCure Full Bloom- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

19. “The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess- Streaming on HIDIVE”

18. “Ippon Again! – Streaming on HIDIVE“

17. “D4DJ- Streaming on Crunchyroll and YouTube“

16. “BanG Dream! It’s MyGo!!!!!- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

15. “Soaring Sky: Pretty Cure!- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

14. “Shy- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

13. “The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

12. “My New Boss is Goofy- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

11. “Yohane the Parhelion: Sunshine in Mirror- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

10. “Otaku Elf- Streaming on HIDIVE“

9. “Tearmoon Empire- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

8. “The Apothecary Diaries- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

7. “16Bit Sensation: Another Layer- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

6. “Yuri Is My Job! – Streaming on Crunchyroll“

5. “Skip and Loafer- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

4. “I’m in Love with the Villainess- Streaming on Crunchyroll”

3. “Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear- Streaming on Crunchyroll and Hulu“

2. “The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

1. “Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story- Streaming on Crunchyroll“

Runners-Up

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