I can already tell Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru is going to be a complicated series for me (and, I think, generally). The response to last week’s episode – which I consider something of a dumpster fire – reflects that. A lot of people had problems with it, mostly but not entirely for the same reasons I did. I saw some who were offended that Marin likes that sort of eroge, which loses me totally – for all the problems I had with the ep that wasn’t one of them (vive la porn, I say – whatever gets you through the night, it’s all right). And of course some people just slurped up the fanservice and uttered a contented “gochisousama” when it was over.
This show puts me very much in the mind of how Nazo no Kanojo X mangaka Ueshiba Riichi so eloquently summed up that series, “a mecha series where the girl is the giant robot”. Few have done it as well as MGX but the formula is an animanga chestnut to be sure. Another series which very strongly recalls Ueshiba’s description for me is Sakurai Norio’s Boku no Kokoro no Yabai Yatsu, which LiA readers (and viewers) will know is a manga I adore beyond all hope of impartial criticism. And Bisque Doll does remind me of it in one important way, the general dynamic between the two leads. That’s obviously a strong point in its favor as far as I’m concerned.
The similarity mostly ends there (and not in Bisque Doll’s favor) but it’s still important. On some level I think these series are as much about the dynamic between introvert and extrovert as they are between boy and girl. There are certain things I believe about this dynamic, one of which is that no matter how empathetic an extrovert may be, they’ll never truly be able to understand what an introvert feels as they interact with the world. I also think that introverts project an air of indestructibility to extroverts, to the point where they refuse to believe that extroverts have self-doubt and insecurity (which they do). These opposites can and often do attract, perhaps drawn by the alien fascination of the other, but true understanding is very hard to achieve.
In narrative terms I’m writing off Episode 2 as a misstep, a mediocre gag stretched for far too long. It’s over, and the surrounding eps were far better. What it says about Marin’s character is far more important and enduring, because that colors the rest of the series. I don’t think she’s a mean-spirited person, even if I do think she was somewhat aware of the impact she was having on Wakana and even enjoying it. Marin is single-minded if anything – once she gets going on what she loves nothing else matters, including the feelings of anyone around her. I think it’s fair to say the way she handled the measuring incident was an exercise in poor judgment, but she’s a kid – poor judgment is just what they do.
Another concern I have is the enormous potential for Marin to exist mainly as an otaku wet dream (obviously an intentional allusion on my part). Impossibly hot, a geek, and non-judgmental – what an idealized schoolgirl that is. She even pays her own way – though Wakana should never even have suggested getting out his wallet on the shopping trip, since he’s doing her an enormous favor by making her a complicated outfit free of charge. The pressure is on the writing to elevate Marin above that tsunami zone. Normally I don’t focus on the gender of the writer but the fact that mangaka Fukuda Shinichi is female (as is Sakurai Norio) makes me somewhat more optimistic (though that itself may be a bias on my part).
The positive slant on all this is that introverts and extroverts can help each other in a Yin/Yang completion sort of way. In practical terms Marin is getting a free cosplay designer, and Wakana is getting to do something he clearly enjoys doing. She’s also showing him a world he knows little of – otaku stuff yes, but also social acceptance. Kudos to her pals for not belittling him and his obvious awkwardness, but this exposure is a double-edged sword for an introvert like Wakana – the attention he gets makes him exceptionally uncomfortable. He actually worries that Marin’s social standing might be damaged by association with him (which is less unrealistic than one might think, depressingly enough – both that he’d feel that way, and that he might be correct).
The shopping trip was obviously a far more winning way to spend narrative time than the measuring fiasco. I was pleased that Wakana flat-out called Marin out for teasing him (albeit she was still doing it) and that she didn’t let him pay for anything (and that we got an explanation for why she had money). Again, they’re useful to each other – she likes having someone around she can vent her passions to, because even if he doesn’t really embrace them he doesn’t judge her for them either (though the rest of society is another matter). In truth a beautiful and socially adept girl like Marin can get away with otaku inclinations and avoid being ostracized in a way an awkward dude could not – it’s not pleasant, but that’s the truth of the high school social hierarchy. But she still wants to share, and he allows her to do that.
I think the way forward for My Dress-Up Darling is Wakana. For this series to be more than an amusing escape, he needs to be more than a gashapon hanging off Marin’s bag. There are positive signs there – the writing allows him an idealism about beauty, and Marin doesn’t dismiss it as silly or trivial. But he needs to express his individuality as much as she does for this to be truly noteworthy (as I would argue BokuYaba is, partly for that reason) – not just on-screen when he’s alone, but in their actual relationship. It’s way too early to make a call on whether that will happen, but one can already say that Bisque Doll is a fascinating conundrum of a show at the very least.
Polly
January 23, 2022 at 1:47 pmYou know, despite her rather glaring misjudgement that a (skimpy) bathing suit was all it was going to take to stop Wakana from getting flustered at the sight of her body, I rather like how genuinely Marin appreciates his talents and contributions- and she makes sure he knows it. Goes a long way in boosting his confidence.
Also, I had no idea the mangaka was female.
Guardian Enzo
January 23, 2022 at 1:56 pmTBH I don’t think that was a misjudgement – I think she knew damn well it would still mess with his head and did it because it made her feel less uncomfortable. I think it was juvenile and self-involved, but I guess I don’t think she’s really mean-spirited. Just, you know, a self-involved juvenile.
It is nice that she praises him, not that one shouldn’t expect someone in her position to be grateful but I suppose in anime especially not everyone would be.
Polly
January 23, 2022 at 2:45 pmI’m not entirely convinced she did it specifically to make herself feel less uncomfortable, though I concede to your general point about it being self-involved.
Guardian Enzo
January 23, 2022 at 3:16 pmDo you think even Marin would have been comfortable parading around in front of Wakana in a bra and panties? I mean she did flash him at the lingerie shop but that was for a literal flash, not half an hour or more. Plus by then her original stunt had kind of broken the ice.
datdood
January 23, 2022 at 3:38 pmNot sure if her part time job has has been mentioned/hinted, it might (deleted).
Guardian Enzo
January 23, 2022 at 6:54 pmThat sounded like a manga spoiler…
Sonicsenryaku@gmail.com
January 23, 2022 at 5:27 pmThis was a good ass write up; your most insightful on the series yet, Enzo. Like you said, there’s a wholesome dynamic growing here and I only imagine it’s going to get more apparent as the eps go by. While the animation wasn’t at its strongest (cloverworks couldn’t keep that effort going for 12 eps straight the way a studio like Kyoani could), this was for my account the strongest episode of the 3 so far.
This show seems to have a way of portraying the casual nature of a budding, healthy, romantic relationship. This episode was just these two lovebirds getting to know each other better through natural banter and interacting through their opinions of their passions. These aspects are the very things that define a strong, self-actualized relationship, and we as an audience received that through well acted performance by our main Seiyuus and a tightly written script that did not insult its audience. 1. I love how Wakana’s whole flustered dilemma in ep 2 reaches his logical conclusion in that he wakes up with an extreme hard on and runs one out for Marin. Just the idea that the story doesn’t idealize Wakana’s attraction for Marin, but grounds it in the reality of what a 15/16 year old boy coming to terms with his sexual awakening would do, is a great narrative move, especially after all that time spent on the fan service. 2. I love how quickly this story resolved the entire conflict regarding Wakana’s concern for Marin’s social status. Usually that’s a thing in Romance manga/anime that would span a whole ep or be needlessly drawn out. My dress up darling just says no to that shit and says: ” nah, we’ll squash this whole plot point in less than two minutes because we’ve established our characters as being mature and we ain’t about to make them be stupid for the sake of the plot.” Marin just flat out says: “you got a problem, talk to me about it.”
Yea I agree that Marin can come off as an otaku’s wet dream; however, what softens that rather annoying aspect of waifu commercialism is that at the end of the day, Marin is still effectively portrayed through the writing and dialogue as a genuine, tangible person. She has insecurities but ultimately finds being true to herself to be more important than anything else. It doesn’t matter how hot she is (even though it does matter from an otaku wish fulfillment standpoint), she doesn’t think twice about her standing when it comes to showing respect to the people she values; that’s badass as fuck. It’s official; I think I found my horny, wholesome anime of the season
Guardian Enzo
January 23, 2022 at 7:00 pmBeing good ass is certainly the goal…
“Horny, wholesome” can be a powerful combination in anime. I’m not prepared yet to say Bisque Doll’s understanding of organic chemistry is sufficient to pull it off, but I’m hopeful. In a sense I’m put in mind of B Gata H Kei, a series which definitely understood the meaning of the the term but was sadly underappreciated.
sonicsenryaku
January 24, 2022 at 2:26 amB gata H kei was an awesome show and I always wondered why it never got the appreciation I thought it should. Not every day you come across an anime depicting a girl who’s horny for sex without it being her only defining characteristic. Yamada was treated like a character; one with real insecurities who slowly learns to overcome them, which made for a very rewarding watch. And who could ever forget Yamada and her morning check ups? What a hoot, which was the other aspect of the show I appreciated; it was a romcom that was actually funny.
Snowball
January 24, 2022 at 6:35 amOh damnit! Yuzuwaya was my paradise. 🙁
Guardian Enzo
January 24, 2022 at 10:36 amCosplay Heaven?
Snowball
January 24, 2022 at 4:14 pmHaha! No, I’m really into crafts and no place does craft shops better than Japan. Lots of variety. I really miss them. I stayed in Chiba a while back and frequented Yuzuwaya a lot.
L0ken
January 24, 2022 at 10:42 amI delved into manga a bit and would just say that Gojou’s carrying the series just as much as Marin,often he actually overshadows her in terms of being ultimate waifu/husbando.
Guardian Enzo
January 24, 2022 at 12:39 pmWell, that’s good to hear anyway.
Marty
January 24, 2022 at 1:41 pmSomething this series has made me wonder is if the anime industry has found itself in a sort of “No-Man’s Land” when it comes to Rom Coms, or just outright romances. Shows like these and last season’s “My Senpai is Annoying” aren’t painfully bad necesssarily, but they don’t seem to be above-and-beyond great neither.
Honest question: which was the most recent Rom-Com or just Romance that you could honestly put it amongst the élites of anime history? How far back does one need to go for that?
Guardian Enzo
January 24, 2022 at 4:08 pmTsuki ga Kirei off the top of my head.