Anime Column] Midterm Review of Fall 2017 Anime by Anime Writers

We are now in the second half of the Fall 2017 anime season! In this issue, we take a mid-term review of five notable works. Neto Mitsume no Susume," which is also a hot topic because all the DVDs will be released during the broadcast; "Jewel Country," based on the popular comic series "Gekkan Afternoon"; the original coming-of-age anime "Just Because!"; the couple's hot romantic comedy "Sake wa Marunin ni Natta Kara Kara"; the stuffed animal running around a museum "Touken Ranbu! Okkii Kon no Suken no Katana Walk Ⅱ," in which a stuffed animal runs around a museum.

Netojin no Susume (Recommendation for Netojin)

Moriko Morioka, who dropped out of the real world when she quit her job, transforms into a handsome boy in the world of the online game "Fridomere. It is a love story in which she spends her days in fulfillment. The anime emphasizes Moriko's lifestyle even more than the original story, and the depictions of her daily life are hilarious, such as when she dusts the carpet cleaner around because she feels guilty for lying about being a college student when she is actually thirty, and when she uses a luminous keyboard designed for gamers before she knows it. The way they play games in a pitch-dark room, bathed in the light of the monitor, is also something that makes them seem like no one else.
There are many works based on games, but the key point of this work is that communication with online friends is intermingled with reality. In the sixth episode, in which the two take a walk in the city at night without knowing that the other is a fellow gamer, the starry sky shines brightly and watches over their conversation, just as it does in "Fridmere. The original story is not yet complete, but what kind of finale will we see in the anime?

The Land of Jewels

Set in a distant future where living creatures have become immortal gems, this action fantasy depicts a war against the moon people who flew from the moon to use them as ornaments. The genderless gems have a girlish appearance and radiate the same mineral luster as their names: fosfophyllite is a light mint color, and shinsha is a Western red. 3DCG created characters are all glittering, and their hair is a giant gem itself. Even the reflection of light falling on their shoulders is meticulously depicted, creating a fantastical worldview.
The battles with the moon people are so intense that arms and necks are blown off, but instead of blood flowing, the severed surfaces are dazzlingly bright. The more they are wounded, the more beautiful they become, and the more immoral their charms become. The cast is made up almost entirely of female voice actors, and listening to their sparkling voices, you may feel as if you have wandered into an all-girls' high school. The harem-like teacher, Kongo-sensei, is the one who makes you envious.

Just Because!

This is an original coming-of-age ensemble drama in which Eita Izumi returns to his old town in the winter of his senior year of high school and is reunited with his junior high school classmates. Although it is a school drama, the story is set in the three months remaining until graduation, and a sense of frustration that something has been left undone flows throughout the work.
Eita is reunited with his friend Yoto Soma at the high school he transferred to, and is forced to participate in a one-ball baseball game. Watching them, Hazuki Morikawa of the brass band casually plays a cheering song, and the tone reaches the ground where they are both present. Ena Komiya, a member of the photography club, captures the out-of-season transfer student in the frame, and Mio Natsume, who has a crush on Yoto, watches the game unfold. The story begins when Yoto hits a home run, and the first episode, in which the characters, who will go their separate ways in April, are drawn together in one place, is a fitting opening to the story.

Sake is for married couples.

Chisato Mizusawa is a cool, beautiful office worker who works hard at her job, but when she drinks a cocktail made by her husband, Sora, she changes into a pampered character. Chisato is so cute that it is almost embarrassing to watch her husband Sora pull her down on his knees and carry her around like a princess. Chisato, who is usually dressed in a crisp suit but wears loose-fitting clothes at home, is cute and well proportioned.
Her habit of saying "shifuuuuuu" when she has been drinking is varied from sexy to horror. One can't help but wonder what this week's episode will be like. The cocktails that appear in the book are all stylish. The recipes are so easy to make that I can't help but want to try them, but it's obvious that a single guy would be filled with emptiness if he made them, so he has no choice but to drink a paper packet of Onikoroshi (devil's drink). The ED animation of the mascot character, Remo Otoko, riding a motorcycle is pointless, but it does a good job of expressing the feeling of wanting to start running when the lovey-dovey is on display.

Sword Dance: Okkii Konosuke's Sword Walk Ⅱ

A travel program introducing famous swords from the sword-breeding simulation game "Touken Ranbu-ONLINE-. The mascot character Kon-nosuke becomes "Okkiikon-nosuke," a stuffed animal, and visits art galleries and museums across Japan that have swords in their collections. While the viewer is soothed by Kon-nosuke's carefree strolls, such as riding on a rickshaw in Asakusa and eating kitsune udon in Kagawa, the commentary section on swords is quite serious. The historical background of the swords, including their origins, origin of their names, and past owners, is given in an easy-to-understand manner.
The narration is done by the cast of the sword featured in each episode, who take turns narrating. The calm voice of the narrator allows the viewer to think about the long history of the swords. The careful explanations of how to appreciate the swords are also a great feature for beginners. After watching the video, you can enjoy the world of "Sword Dance" even more by comparing the swords and the characters.

(Text by Katsunori Takahashi)

(C) Kuroyorin/comico/Susume! Netojin Project
(C) 2017 Haruko Ichikawa, Kodansha/"The Land of Jewels" Production Committee
(c) Hajime Kamoshita/Kiseki Himura/JB Production Committee
(c) Yosuke Kristaluna, Shogakukan/"Sake wa matasuru ni kara ni kara" Production Committee