If grownup anime is the overriding theme of this season (the query of whether or not it qualifies is fascinating), then it is a completely different story when huge administrators are engaged on exhibits you would not count on to see. The director in query is the superb Noriyuki Abe. And the sequence is Tsuma, Shougakusei ni Naru.. This isn’t as seemingly incongruous as Watanabe Ayumu and Kimi wa Meido Sama at some stage. Abe is not fairly the identical dimension, and this present does not appear to be as generic. However it stays an fascinating mixture.
It is exhausting to say an excessive amount of about this premiere, whilst a double episode (that is really a factor now). However to make certain, this sequence is one which has a greater repute than you (or at the very least I) would possibly initially count on. A present a couple of grown man married to a ten 12 months previous woman – which on some stage it’s Tsuma, Shougakusei is – has an inherent squick issue. And it might be off the charts, though the best way it is dealt with right here discourages that. However, it isn’t one thing that may be utterly averted, and I suppose it is to the mangaka’s credit score that they do not attempt to.
The hook right here, after all, is reincarnation – the man is not really a lolicon. Niijima Keisuke is a sort however fairly ignorant salaryman who lucks out in a wedding with the proper girl (for him at the very least), Takae. They’ve a daughter named Mai, and within the first episode we undergo a few years of their lives collectively. Takae dies in an accident (no, not a determine of speech in any respect) when Mai is a young person, and the story flashes ahead ten years. Each Keisuke and Mai are caught up in a slow-motion storyline – listless and directionless, as they eat mixture dinners in silence. And Mai does not have a job.
And in order one reincarnation adjustment ends (for now), one other begins. Takae returns within the physique of a 10-year-old woman. She says she solely began regaining her reminiscences of her previous life, attributable to strolling previous her previous home. However she definitely appears to recollect the whole lot now. And she or he utterly embodies the character of her former self, to the purpose the place there isn’t any clear hint of the kid anymore. That is difficult for a lot of causes, not the least of which is that Keisuke may simply label himself as a predator for expressing his emotions overtly (not to mention bodily). And Takae has a brand new life with expectations to dwell as much as (which I assume requires a number of performing at this level).
There’s one other complicating issue right here. One in every of Keisuke’s colleagues (probably a subordinate, who carries his personal issues) is clearly curious about him and means that they change into ‘bent tomatoes’. Apparent to everybody besides him (I did say he had no concept). Takae sees the issue straight away, however this raises the fascinating query of whether or not she expects (or needs) him to proceed along with his life in that sense. She’s already expressed her irritation that her household hasn’t moved on – however how far will she take that, particularly now that she’s reconnected with them?
The draw back of that is after all additionally on the desk. In Takae’s “actual” life – as a scholar named Shiraishi Marika – she has a boyfriend named Takeru who is seemingly curious about her. These are kids, so the implications are clearly completely different, nevertheless it does place a sure set of tasks on the shoulders of ‘Marika’. As an grownup who looks as if one other baby to them, she has the accountability to work together with them in sure methods – to not talk. It may be easy, like when she makes use of her expertise to mediate a minor swearing dispute. However as with a lot of this state of affairs, it has the potential to get very difficult in a short time.
Marika additionally has a household – particularly a divorced mom who appears to be the bogeyman of the story. She is, on the very least, negligent and verbally abusive (with ideas it’s extra so). However she expects her daughter to be a little bit woman, to be the place she’s speculated to be when she’s speculated to be. Marika’s different life as Takae inevitably results in bother, as her mom turns into very suspicious of her unexplained absence. In a reincarnation story below these circumstances, the sensible logistics might be an enormous problem – and it is good to see a narrative that does not gloss over that.
So what’s the sum of all this? A narrative with potential, for positive. Till now Tsuma, Shougakusei ni Naru performs as a sort of ‘what if’ premise, which is an fascinating tackle the reincarnation theme. It is a path stuffed with apparent landmines, however the writing right here could also be adequate to keep away from most of them. In the event you can, there are some fascinating concepts to discover right here. The present is clearly made on a budget, however Abe is a deft director and makes the whole lot circulate fairly effortlessly. It is also fascinating to listen to the extraordinarily versatile Aoi Yuuki as Takae/Marika, which is a distinct sort of function than we’re used to from her. It is a busy season, however this present has an opportunity to look someplace within the combine.
