It’s been over four years since Osomatsu-san Season 3 ended. But I can’t really say it’s surprising this sequel exists. For me at least, Osomatsu-san is one of the most surprising kaijuu in anime history. Maybe there’s some genius somewhere in the production committee that expected it, but I’m skeptical. A remake of a decades-old kids anime was simply not going to become one of the biggest commercial powerhouses in the 21st Century in anime. Except it did. It doesn’t wield that same power now, but it’s still plenty popular – and profitable – in Japan.

I found the ending of S3 – and the season in general to an extent – to be rather thoughtful and melancholy by Osomatsu standards. It’s always had those qualities, but never ended a season with them. I think the show became almost philosophical in a fascinating way. The brothers have rejected the things so many would love to reject – work, stress, conformity. But they’re also a drain on their parents, unmotivated, and basically unable to sustain a relationship outside their cadre. Are they admirable or shameful? On some level, do most of us envy them?

If the franchise was going to end, that would have been a pretty decent spot to do it. But this year is the 90th anniversary of Akatsuka Fujio’s birth, and there’s still money to be made off the franchise. So here we are. And here, indeed, is Sakurai Takahiro as Osomatsu. He’s been in exile for three years, after a scandal involving him cheating on his wife. I don’t want to go down that road (I’ll just say that while I disapprove of cheating, I don’t think it should get one professionally blacklisted), but I for one am glad to hear him. Sakurai has always been one of my favorite seiyuu and the industry has been poorer without him. Whether this is merely an isolated return for a character closely identified with him remains to be seen, but I hope not.

The season premieres with a relatively low-key episode by Osomatsu standards, maybe somewhat in the vein of Season 3. Basically, a day in the life of the sextuplets. They wake up about 1:00 in the afternoon (after nobody wanted to be the first), and only Juushimatsu dares head out in the afternoon sun (briefly). Eventually it cools off a little and the typical absurdities start to happen. Choromatsu and Todomatsu run into Totoko at the park dressed as Orihime (no modern anime has been as timely as Osomatsu-san). Totoko says she’s looking for Hikoboshi, who of course is up there in space. So the three of them go there, naturally.

Probably my favorite pure gag of the ep was Jyuushimatsu and Dekapan trying to pull a giant daikon out of the ground, with various members of the whack pack showing up to help. When it does it turns out to be a “Dayon-kon“, which get a rousing “Sheeh!” out of the assembles masses. Speaking of, Iyami has decided to rope off a section of the river and charge admittance as a pool, which pisses off Osomatsu (for not thinking of it first). Karamatsu decides to build a bike, with disastrous results. And eventually a tanabata barbecue is held and fireworks set off, though eventually that goes to pot as you’d expect.

All in all it’s a re-introduction that feels very “in situ”. No big jolts here, but a measured re-entry into this strange and rather unique comic universe. This season will have its hits and misses as they all have – it’s the nature of the beast. Hopefully there will be a couple of full-on hilarious chapters, and some more of that philosophical bent I liked from S3. As always it’ll be interesting to see this season carve out it’s own identity in the Osomatsu lexicon, as each one has done.