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Mar 29 2015

Categories: general review
Tagged: shirobako

5 Comments »

Don-don-donuts!

1. Fucking donuts. After every episode, I craved donuts. If there isn’t a Shirobako x Mister Donut collaboration, there should be. In fact, if Mister Donut where smart, they would open a Shirobako branch as well a Monogatari branch. I liked how the donuts were used in the show. They were a bonding food between the girls, they were something Miyamori went to for comfort whenever she was down, and they circled the plot. Literally. The first scene of the show was Miyamori and friends looking through donuts pledging how they will make anime. The last scene? Same thing, only a few years and an Exodus and an Third Girls Aerial Squad later.

(I recently came back from a trip to Kentucky and Ohio, and I had some tasty Holtman’s Donuts in Cincinnati. They were really good, with the doughnut part full of flavors and not too garishly topped, which is an issue with Portland’s Voodoo Donuts that have relatively bad base donuts but they cover it up with extravagant toppings. I think my current donut ranking is still Dynamo Donuts in San Francisco as #1 but Holtman’s is a solid #2. I think the natto-based donuts I had in Shimokitazawa get an honorable mention. In short, I like good donuts.)

2. At the start of the show, Miyamori and Ema were the only two working in the animation industry, and, as the show went on, both Misa and Diesel-san got jobs in animation too. For an almost eight episode stretch, it became awkward to see Shizuka on-screen. She was still a waitress who dreamed of being a VA, but she kept getting shut out of auditions. Then came the scene in episode 22 when the girl who beat her for a previous VA job has now become a big star and is on TV. Meanwhile, Shizuka is sitting at home, pounding beers, while secretly writing the girl’s name in her Death Note using potato chips as cover. She is constantly upbeat and happy even through all this adversity. You knew, for plot reasons, she would rebound. It wasn’t clear how until…

3. … we got the funny story where the Third Girl‘s mangaka, Nodame-sensei, refuses the plot for the final episode. Director Kinoshita mans up, and the two new bestest buds come up with Catherine’s younger sister. You know who was previous rejected for the role of Catherine for sounding too young? Yep. Cue Shizuka walking into the studio, and Miyamori is trying to keep herself together. Miyamori tries. She is so fucking happy for her friend. But as strong as Miyamori is, she can’t stop herself from breaking down. Great scene. Fantastic scene. One of the best moments of Shirobako and shows that the anime is about: friends slowly building towards their dream.

4. Of course, Ema volunteers to draw Lucy’s scene. She wanted to be the first to draw her friend’s character, and she too breaks down hearing Lucy say, “A step closer to my dreams!”

5. Manning up? Well, Director Kinoshita went from the object of ridicule for Jiggly Jiggly Heaven (which needs an OVA) to being trapped in a prison cell for Exodus to finally manning up for Aeriel Squad. He finally became the director that we want him to be. He shows a lot of growth throughout the series, from being unsure of himself to being a lot more assertive. Despite that, he is still not comfortable at being in charge, which is kind of why Miyamori works well with him. He can focus on the creative direction while Miyamori handles pretty much everything else. He even pawned the final wrap speech to her.

Nonetheless, his battle to see Nodame-sensei was splendid. I loved every second of it. The western theme? Watanabe tossing Kinoshita the badge? “Hadou Belly!”? Katsuragi servicing the elevator? “Shouryuu Belly!”? “Tatsumaki Senpuu Belly!”?

(It’s even better knowing that Kinoshita is based on Seiji Mizushima, who was the director for Full Metal Alchemist, Gundam 00, and the recent Expelled from Paradise.)

6. Cute random shit like this. I’m not sure what I enjoy more, the fact Misa has such a contemplative look or that the little girl is going O_O.

7. I love all the fake shows they create. It’s one thing to refer to a fake show, it’s another to actually develop a fake show complete with its own opening and animation style. Chucky a bit unrealistic in that it’s 16:9 format for whatever reason, but still good. The two stars, of course, are Exodus, which has a full OVA episode, and Third Girls Aerial Squad, which is getting an OVA episode as well. I just find it funny because if Exodus and Third Girls got married and had a baby, it would definitely be Cross Ange.

8. I just want to see the finished version of this scene.

(Andohbytheway, this is exactly what my puppy does when I try to play Bloodborne.)

9. I liked how Hiraoka is used as a jab at the rest of the anime industry. He represents the repetitive nature of the industry, in both how his character got beaten down by the churn churn churn cycle of the industry (before his final revelation that he does indeed like anime) and how his character animations get reused and over and over and over. I think PA Works might have drawn maybe six different movements for him for the entire series, with his hunched back walking plus his checking his smartphone being the two most obvious ones.

(Also, you can see Kero-chan’s butt in this screenshot. There’s also Nichijou toys in the office. It’s a nice touch having references to other shows that aren’t by the same studio and isn’t flavor of the month. Dammit, where is my Nichijou season two?)

10. I somehow get the feeling that every question in anime production can be answered with “Hideki Anno.” Very impressive for a guy who hasn’t done any anime since The Wind Rises.

11. If you watched the Exodus OVA, you’ll understand the significance of this random scene in the first OP. Shirobako just has so much little stuff that is so easy to miss.

12. “Howdy.” Speaking of small stuff, when Tracy (the group from Exodus) are on the run in the final episode, who saves them? A random cowboy shows up with a hundred horses leading to the greatest scene in anime ever, if it were actually animated. Who saved Aerial Squad at the last moment? A cowboy. Shirobako does a great job at remembering itself.

13. I love Diesel-san. One, she has the greatest nickname in the whole show. Two, she is the writer. Three, she has a glorious sidetail. Four, she knows a lot of combat airplanes. But you know who else I love? The president of Mushashino Animation, Marukawa. The dude rarely contributes to actual anime production, insisting instead that the best way a president can help his company is by cooking for it. You have issues negotiating contracts or hiring animators? Marukawa won’t help you. You need curry or karage for a lunch meeting? Dude is on it. We see him wearing his apron more than anything else. He’s like if Guinan from The Next Generation was actually an admiral in Starfleet. The best part of this scene though? Marukawa had Watanabe bring Diesel-san into his office. Yep, he takes her into the kitchen. God bless any company that can functioning operate where it’s president doesn’t have a computer or a cell phone but does have a twelve cup rice cooker and a book of his grandma’s old recipes.

(Since Marukawa was Desk at Mushashino Pictures, I think it is reasonable to think if there is a sequel and there better be a sequel, Miyamori becomes chief. She’ll have the position and do actual non-cooking work. I think the next logical step for Shirobako is for PA Works to kickstart season two. It’ll blow away both Under the Dog and Little Witch Academia in support just judging from how Japanese Twitter is in love with this show. Plus my Twitter. Anyway, the plot could be Miyamori and her friends start their own studio and kickstart their own anime. That could be fantastic. A seecond season of Shirobako kickstarted by PA Works that is about Miyamori kickstarting her own anime studio to make Seven Lucky Battle Gods.)

(If PA Works kickstarted season two, I think I would be in at the $150 level or so.)

14. This dude.

15. This ship.

16. I saw those Softbank wifi signs featuring a shiba inu everywhere in Japan. I rented an LTE modem that was superfast everywhere I took it to between Tokyo and Osaka, and I had unlimited data for $60 a month. I always feel like I’m in a third world country whenever I arrive at SFO and can’t get LTE service. Anyway, I like how Shirobako portrayed Bones as a bunch of drunks… though this behavior totally explains Star Driver and Captain Earth. Kiraboshi!

17. Now, that’s a panel gag I’ve not seen in a long time. A long time.

18. Erika is really good at her job. Maybe if her dad wasn’t sick, she would have been Desk instead of Miyamori… wait, maybe that’s why the story had her dad being sick so it would make sense that Miyamori would become Desk. No contest between her and Tarou. The way she rounds up the delinquent episode directors and editors remind me of Elmer Fudd trying to outwit Bugs Bunny. Just ain’t gonna happen. The more interesting dynamic in the show is that it is a very female driven show. The lead characters are a group of female friends, but every capable worker at the studio is a women. The best production people? Miyamori and Erika, with the two new girls outshining Tarou by the end. The best animators? All women, except the old guy who draws animals. The best driver? The woman. The men are mostly depicted as bumbling idiots, from Tarou to the director to Nodame-sensei’s terrible assistant to the key animator who loved to bike. Keep in mind Taitanic Studio had all male employees, and look where it got them. All the male characters needed help from the female characters. The only male characters who actually did their job were Watanabe, who played mahjong, the president, who cooked, and the dude who likes to draw clouds… which he did splendidly. Okay, maybe the sound guy too. But the most capable characters? All women.

19. Speaking of effective characters, Goth Loli Animator. I would totally watch two cours of Goth Loli Women’s Koushien.

(If PA Works kickstarted Goth Loli Women’s Koushien, I think I would be in around the $100 level.)

20. Ema’s gyrating hips.

21. Just Miyamori going from a new hire to Desk to Ace. It’s like a typical anime power progression no different than Simon’s rise in Gurren Lagann or Leon in Garo. But, you know, it’s anime. I just hope in the universe of Shirobako, maybe someday Miyamori will become the next Hideki Anno.

22. The final rush was fantastic too. I like how they conquered land, air, and sea to deliver the final episode, though wouldn’t it have been easier to just Dropbox it? I did like Miyamori somehow traveling through snow to get to Hiroshima, despite not snowing where she started or ended. Exactly what route did she take? What time of year is this? How does weather work?

23. When Shirobako started, I didn’t really know what to expect… was it going to be Initial D? A moe anime? Romance? Cooking? I didn’t really like PA Work’s recent series including Red Data Girl, Nagi no Asukara, and Glasslip. I enjoyed True Tears and Angel Beats, but I felt both series left something on the table. I felt Hanasaku Iroha to be their best work as it felt like a complete story full of real characters led by strong women lead characters. But now Shirobako is my favorite PA Works series. The show feels like it brings together what the studio did well before and executed well on it.

(I mentioned it before when the show first started airing, but the scriptwriter is Michiko Yokote, who is a team of three female writers. They wrote the Aa! Megami-sama movie plus Genshiken, Princess Tutu, Hare+Guu, and You’re Under Arrest S2. They are all fantastic anime that I recommend. Interesting thing is that the Aa! Megami-sama movie plus YUA S2 are not adaptions of manga plotlines but instead 100% original. It’s hard to tell that Kosuke Fujishima didn’t write either as the Aa! Megami-sama movie is my favorite anime version of the series and YUA S2 is fantastic as well.)

FIN. Holy shit, huge cast. But it never felt huge. Shirobako did a great job in making characters feel distinct yet not one dimensional (except maybe Hiraoka). It out Durarara‘ed Durarara in a season with Durarara. That’s impressive. Wait, is that Hideki Anno near Miyamori?

Great show. Now, where is that donut I had around here…