What’s the show? The Girl In Twilight (Akanesasu Shōjo), Episode 2.
So what happens in this episode? I was so into this show last week, and this week… not so much!
Okay, that’s not exactly what I asked, but go on, what’s led to this change of heart? First and while I hate to bring it up, the animation/art quality has gone down a whole heck since the first episode, like I always expect a dip but this is what I expected the show to look like at Episode 10 not 2!
Fair enough, that’s a detriment. Anything else? I said last week that the ‘forced quirkiness of each of the characters’ was something I enjoyed about the show but now it just feels kind of stale—it’s almost feels like a different writer was responsible for this episode. Sure there’s still some cute character moments that made me smile, but a lot of it was always kind of awkward and lame.
Scathing! Anything else?! The plot of this episode (and the next since this episode doesn’t resolve it) is an ~interesting~ idea but I kinda hate how they’ve gone about executing it because it absolutely robs the central character of all of her ‘feminist’ leanings and genuine complaints about the ‘alternate reality’ she suddenly found herself in.
Oh boy, “feminism” huh, this oughta be fun… explain what you mean? What’s this “alternate world” she’s in? So blonde girl Nana, she’s the one who had the ~boy crazy~ characteristic written to her. She finds herself in a parallel universe that diverged from an ‘event’ 10 years ago where Japan has mandated a law where all girls on their 17th birthday must be married off to a man. Its not said why but it’s safe to assume it’ll have something to do with Japan’s declining birth-rate. Anyway it’s quite possibly one of the most archaic and un-feminist things I’ve seen in an anime and kudos to the show, Nana says as much (though she says it’s “weird” and “gross” rather than dropping anything buzzworthy as the word ‘sexist’). And I was like, “yeah, you go girl, you show those backwards bastards!” and then she meets her soon-to-be fiancé. And it’s a hot guy, and not just any hot guy but a celebrity she has a crush on.
Well that’s lucky for her! Doesn’t change the fact that she’s still in a government mandated arranged marriage! And from then on she’s absolutely ~fine~ with the whole thing.
Wait, didn’t you say this is only part 1 of this particular story? Surely she’ll be brought round to the side of reason by her friends? Probably. In-fact, dare I say ~absolutely~ she will, it’s not like this show is just going to get rid of one of it’s characters that quick. But it’s just such an obnoxious and narrow-minded view of women that “oh girls would totally be fine with an arranged marriage as long as it’s with a hot guy she’s into”.
But wouldn’t you? Wouldn’t I what?
Wouldn’t you be fine with an arranged marriage if it was to a celebrity you have a crush on? That’s different, I’m a man and men are idiots (and apparently too the men who wrote this show), besides there’s no celebrity I have a crush on, my crushes are all 2D nowadays. Makes things easier that way!
Uh-huh… So I’ve been meaning to bring this up but in your review of the first episode you compared this to critical darling and fan-favourite series of Winter 2018 anime ‘A Place Further Than The Universe’… I take it that ~opinion~ is now null and void? Pro-tip for the future, don’t listen to my opinions after a first episode because I don’t know what I’m talking about… unless it’s an ecchi anime like ‘How Not To Summon A Demon Lord’ I was write about that show! And I’ll be taking that win with me to the grave! Ahem…
But this show? Will it correct itself next episode? Probably. But am I possibly too perturbed to care about this show going forward? That too. It almost seems like everything it did right last episode it did wrong in this one. Oh well.
Previous The Girl In Twilight Reviews:
Let The Parallel World Come To You – Episode 1 Review
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