Hige o Soru. Soshite Joshi Kousei o Hiroo – 01
Let me just say this, in the first place. In any efforts to take this show seriously, there are two huge obstacles. First, why would the protagonist do what he did, taking this girl into his apartment? He could be arrested for kidnapping. She could blackmail him. She could rob him blind and be gone in the morning. Why not just give her ¥2000 and send her to a manga kissa? It makes no sense, at least not as presented. And second, the constant fetishizing over the heroine’s body – the lurid lingering close-ups of her breasts or her panties. What kind of message is that sending about your intentions as a director and writer?
That’s a shame, because Hige o Soru is not terrible by any means. That protagonist, Yoshida-san, is by all accounts a basically decent guy. Not only does he decline the chance to sleep with this unrealistically busty teenaged girl, he actually gives a shit about her. He even gives her some good advice about respecting herself a little. And after the fact, he’s not so stupid that he’s blind to the risk he’s taking in doing what he’s doing (though he still keeps doing it, even taking the heroine – Sayu – clothes shopping). In addition to that the writing (Akao Deko is adapting and she’s no slouch) and direction is decent. The dialogue is quite natural, when it’s not drowning in its own absurdity.
The illogic of the initial setup will pass I suppose, but the elephant in the room here is what happens once the two of them settle in together. There’s a sizable squick factor to deal with if this becomes an age-gap romance (as the premiere suggests it will), and the coming plot twist will complicate things further in that respect. But I liked the tone of the series enough to at least watch another ep or two out of curiosity, because there are obviously competent people involved (even the LN writer did HaruChika, which wasn’t catastrophically awful) and if they can somehow make a silk purse out of this big of a sow’s ear, they might have something genuinely interesting on their hands.
Odd Taxi – 01
I had absolutely no idea when I chose to pair these two shows off in a digest post that both would be dealing with the theme of adult men hiding high school girls in their apartment. That very much appears to be the case, but apart from that you aren’t going to find many similarities between Hige o Soru and Odd Taxi.
There was never any question that Odd Taxi would (aptly) be a strong contender for the weirdest series of the year. One early commenter on Twitter referred to the premiere as “if Polar Bear Cafe was The Wire” and if I wasn’t sold already, that would have sealed the deal. Upon watching the premiere I wouldn’t quite go there, but I get the notion. In point of fact Odd Taxi ended up being less weird than I expected – to the extent that a show with this premise and cast can not be really weird. There was a plot, consistent characterization, not as much surrealism as I expected. But yeah – still pretty weird.
The story behind this one is also odd. As far as I know both the director and writer have never worked in anime before, though the latter – Konomoto Kadzuya – is a mangaka. Most of the cast seem to be non-seiyuu too – manzai comedians, et al – though there three well-known names in central roles. Kappei Yamaguchi is in his sweet spot as a lonely 41 year-old janitor (and monkey) looking for online love, and Kimura Ryouhei as gorilla doctor Gouriki is the best part of the premiere – it’s a killer performance that lets Kimura really go outside his usual comfort zone. But Hanae Natsuki as protagonist taxi driver (and walrus) Kotokawa is downright, well- odd. He’s so obviously miscast that maybe it sort of works? Check back with me in a week or two, I’m still not sure.
The recurring plot set up by the premiere has Kotokawa letting a runaway teenager stay in his apartment (again, I had no idea), and a possibly rogue cop who likes to hassle him in league with a banchou named Dobo who’s supposedly a suspect. That’s fine, but the best part of the premiere are the weird, rambling conversations presented in such a way that it feels as if we’re eavesdropping. Like Kotokawa with the kid (hippo?) trying to go viral (like “foreigner views on gender in Japan”), and the hilarious exchange between Kotokawa and Gouriki about Bruce Springsteen’s role in the “We Are the World” recording session. Oh, and Gouriki’s nurse is apparently stealing drugs.
I’m fascinated to be sure, but I don’t have a handle on Odd Taxi yet. The cast being animals so far isn’t really mined for any material impact, it’s just kind of there for its own sake. As for Kotokawa his extreme anti-social behavior is sort of interesting, and he has a backstory too (can’t sleep, abandoned by his parents). This series doesn’t fit into any anime boxes so it’s pretty much impossible to figure out where it’s headed, but that singular nature is its most obvious drawing point. This was one of my sleeper picks for a reason, and the premiere does nothing to suggest I was wrong. It’s still a mystery but if you like distinctiveness you’d be crazy to ignore this series.
Antony John Shepherd
April 6, 2021 at 10:30 pmHige o Soru was not as bad as I’d expected, but I do feel it has this huge Damoclesian sword of sleaze hanging over its head waiting to drop.
Guardian Enzo
April 6, 2021 at 10:35 pmWell put.
Odd Taxi is obviously the more promising prospect. I really should have given it its own post, to be honest, but the symmetry of the premieres’ premise sort of appealed to me so I stuck to my original plan.
Litho
April 6, 2021 at 11:26 pmSo both have runaway teens staying in protag’s apartment?!! I’ll take my chances with the one that isn’t adapted from a LN. If it sticks, this season (at least from the premiers) might just be the best I’ve seen in years. Mars Red, Gojira SP, House Hunting Dragon (quite funny setup), KoiKimo (nothing special, but better than Horimiya, imho) and maybe Odd Taxi….. dang!!
Guardian Enzo
April 6, 2021 at 11:46 pmI’m hesitant to go too far out on that limb based on the frequency with which anime has broken my heart these last five years, but yes, I was just thinking that this season has a chance to be one of the best for a good while. Considering how many shows with high upside (Tokyo Revengers, Shadows House, and of course the big dog itself, just to name a few) haven’t even premiered yet it’s striking how many good episodes we’ve gotten. Spring 2012 was the best season of the 10s and Spring 2007 the best ever IMO, and we’re not going to reach those levels (probably ever again). But this could be among the top 2-3 seasons since 2012, and the early clubhouse leader for the 20s. Could be.
Litho
April 7, 2021 at 1:52 amWhat’s the “big dog” you’re talking about?
Just finished Odd Taxi. Quite liked it. MC is like a deadpan Ricky Gervais. Doesn’t seem to be all that popular, judging from the time it took for the torrent to seed back to 1.0.
Anyhooz, incel-baiting LN adaptations aside, seems like a decent anime season.
Guardian Enzo
April 7, 2021 at 9:12 amFumetsu no Anata e.
Misa
April 7, 2021 at 1:49 amI don’t think that Kotokawa is keeping the runaway teenager at his place; so that scene of him talking to someone else in his home may actually be the stray cat shown in the beginning of the opening. So reading Odd Taxi’s theme as similar to Hige may be off base.
animealex
April 7, 2021 at 3:01 amI concur regarding the cat.
The episode left me with a quite uneasy feeling overall. I can’t put my finger on it, but there’s something disturbing about the whole set-up. My guess would be a big reveal later down the line regarding the odd Taxi driver. Perhaps we see the world from his perspective and not only is he sleep deprived, but also suffers from some kind of schizophrenia (or something like that) and the animals are in reality humans. “How do I look like to you?” “You look like a gorilla.” or “You remember me?” “Not many Alpacas around here” “uneasy laugh”. But lets wait and see.
Simone
April 7, 2021 at 3:14 amI think Odd Taxi is going remarkably darker, yes. The girl may be dead already (see the body thrown in the water at the very beginning). Kotokawa might be delusional (what’s with everyone being an animal? From the reaction of the doctor and the nurse, it seems like his comments about species are just incomprehensible – maybe because this is just how HE sees people, not how they are). I suspect this is going to be a murder mystery or thriller, one in which we may either be following a seemingly normal guy who’s actually a monster, or the poor shmuck who’s going to get framed for something bigger going on behind the scenes.
Guardian Enzo
April 7, 2021 at 9:12 amAh – the cat! Good point.
JustBrowzin
April 7, 2021 at 11:56 amthe runaway teen is a cat tho, they showed her in the news clip
Zam
April 7, 2021 at 5:08 amI can’t wait for the day (maybe in 100 years) that these weird adult male fantasy animes aren’t a thing anymore. Just straight up creepy no matter which way you spin it.
Odd Taxi was great. The plot I have no idea about, but I definitely like the dialogue, it’s respectful of their characters as individuals.
River
April 7, 2021 at 5:51 pmI’d love to see a show that actually takes aim at the anime obsession with underage girls. For at least the first episode, Yoshida is ready to do that, which I quite enjoyed. I suspect it’s going to go more the way of Oreimo though. In the end they’ll get together with a “whatever makes you happy can’t be bad” justification.
Guardian Enzo
April 7, 2021 at 6:01 pmThat would be my guess. But then the LN writer did do a story about a gay/bi teenaged boy that didn’t treat him as a BL sales pitch or a joke, so it’s possible there could be slightly more depth to this series.
sonicsenryaku
April 8, 2021 at 9:40 amI don’t know if I fully agree with your viewpoint regarding the scenario of Yoshida inviting Sayu over to his apartment not making any sense. I think the scene is, for the most part, staged well enough in the way it sets up the circumstances of these two characters meeting for a general audience member to react like: “Hmmmm, you’re walking a very fine line here, Yoshida sir; but I get that this came about due to impulsive decision-making and now you’re finding yourself getting much deeper into this than you’re probably comfortable with.” First and foremost, Yoshida is drunk when all this is going down; an aspect of the storytelling that is very intentional here. Yoshida’s “nosiness” and interrogation of Sayu feel off-the-cuff and super impulsive, all of which is supported even more so when he wakes up in the morning and is practically like: “What the hell did i do, why the hell did I invite a 17 year old girl to my house, you need to get the hell up out.” Yoshida doesn’t even consider the ramifications of his initial actions until he sobers up, which i think works for the narrative as a slick way for it to immediately jump into its unorthodox premise without wasting too much time while also justifying the absurdity of the situation. It’s clear to me how the combination of Yoshida’s kind-hearted nature, his drunken stupor, in addition to feeling lonely after his rejection would influence his careless decision of letting Sayu stay over his place.
That being said, while i think the elements of how things played out in the episode leading to Sayu’s stay at the house are sensible enough, I think it could have had more emotional pathos if perhaps the decision to let her stay at the house was dragged out just a tad bit. Like maybe the decision would have felt more natural if Yoshida passed by Sayu during multiple nights before attempting to stick his nose in her business. Like maybe the first time he passes her by, he doesn’t say anything to her but he takes note of that fact that there’s a girl sitting in the corner of the road at night near his street. A few nights later, he sees Sayu sitting at the same spot, inciting his curiosity about the potential precariousness of her situation. He speaks to her for a bit to inquire what her deal is but it ends with her leaving after they talk for a bit. Finally on the third night, after Yoshida gets rejected by Gotou, he’s walking by and sees her at the same spot again. After once again inquiring why she has yet to go home, she asks if she could crash at his place for a few days just until she can get on her feet, and in his drunken stupor he agrees. Once she arrives at his place, the rest plays out like it did in this premiere.
Overall, I found HigeSora to be a decent premiere. Not amazing by any stretch, but decent enough to make me wonder where this all goes. I’ve never been the type to get overly sensitive about underage romances, but I absolutely understand why others do. I personally would never date someone who was underage, but i understand the circumstances that leads to that shit. Sometimes those circumstances are pure predatory impulse/lack of conscienable behavior and that’s an absolute no for me: those are the kind of circumstances that are inherently predisposed to resulting in trauma or abuse i.e. negative and damaging outcomes. However, there are also circumstances where underage relationships are simply the result of human beings naturally growing emotional bonds, connecting with one another intimately, and discovering love within one another (mostly due to healthy hormonal action potentials in the brain). Even if this series ended up going into a taboo territory, as long as the events leading to its endgame are compelling, interesting explorations of genuine human interactions and what circumstances lead people to break societal taboos, I’ll be down to give the show my favor.
toroidal
April 10, 2021 at 4:14 pmI hope good speculation doesn’t spoil an original series, but there was an interesting guess as to what drug Kotokawa was taking: basically, google “Ambien Walrus”.
Guardian Enzo
April 10, 2021 at 4:21 pmDamn.
Yann
April 12, 2021 at 12:17 pmConsidering what the walrus says in the first drawing he’s featured in… It puts the whole “abandoned by his parents” in another light
Cloudedmind
April 13, 2021 at 8:27 amI need to get my hands on some f’ing Ambien. lol
Yann
April 12, 2021 at 12:22 pmI think Odd Taxi might be my favorite premiere of this season… Love how the cartoonish artwork and the story firmly grounded in reality enhance each other by contrast. I think we have a winner there!