Do It Yourself!!
Short Synopsis: A klutzy girl decides to join the DIY club to make things with her own two hands.
Mario: For a CGDCT show, and as a CGDCT resident, I am happy to report that Do It Yourself is a solid offering of this season. The premise is simple and formulic, but it’s how they get there that raises it above the rest. The first strength here is how the episode successfully establishes our main character, Serufu, with just enough personality and charm. She’s a klutz (think of Yui from K-On), but it’s the small moments we witness from her – her struggling to commute from home, her worry towards the growing distance with her best friend – that makes her totally relatable. Second, the visuals are similarly charming with watercolor-like backgrounds, expressive character designs and a unique setting that mixes a present-day town with modern technology (on that note: it feels weird to me that her childhood friend’s main house gate is electronically guarded, but her room window can be easily accessed). Lastly, the topic at hand is DIY projects, which is a great way to showcase the unique spirit of each character as they make things they like with their own hands. It brings out such promising potential that I’ll surely visit Serufu and the gang again next week.
Potential: 50%
Lenlo: Do It Yourself is… It’s fine? The designs are cute I suppose, though not really my style, and it moves and looks good enough. Definitely one of the more expressive, and unique, shows of the season visually. But narratively it’s just your classic Cute Girls Doing Cute Things: Arts and Crafts edition. It’s a Slice of Life cutesy show where nothing is going to happen and you watch it purely for the chill vibes. Sort of like Yama no Susume this season and hiking. If that’s up your alley, then awesome. I think Do It Yourself is probably one of the better chill vibes kind of shows to air in a while. But for me? This 23 minute episode felt like it took an hour to get through. There’s nothing to really get my attention, nothing to hook me, make me sit down, and want to watch more.
Potential: 30%
Bibliophile Princess
Short Synopsis: A young Noblewoman who loves books and a Prince who wants to dodge royal politics get engaged. 4 years later, has this convenient “marriage” run its course? Or will they fall deeper in love?
Lenlo: This is about as Shoujo romance as Shoujo romance gets. And my god is it boring because of that. It’s just so clinical with its dialogue, and the visuals lack any sort of depth to their coloring. It’s all one big bright colored blob. Maybe if the leads had some sort of chemistry I could sit through it. But they have about as much personality as these stock-standard books. Like just look at the other “lords”, they all look exactly the same with slightly different hair colors and eye shapes! I just… This late into seasonal previews, I don’t have the energy to deep dive on just how dull this is.
Potential: 5%
Mario: It’s the damnedest thing when you watch an entire episode and still haven’t a clue what the main story is gonna be. We have an entire episode tracking closely from the POV of our main princess (an attribute I do appreciate), seeing her accepting an arranged marriage just to read books, and falling in love with the Prince, and falling in and eventually out of favors with other hot lords. And the point of all that is… what exactly? Will our Princess become an unlikely villain because of her bitterness? Is it a story of her becoming a victim from the coldness of others that has nothing to do with her? Either way should be fine if the show is more clear about where it wants to go. Visually-speaking, Bibliophile Princess has the traits of typical shoujo (with roses and all that), but the style does run in isolation with the (lack of) romance of the story. As a character, sadly we don’t see much of Elianna’s personality despite staying in her headspace all the time. Her most defining trait is that she loves reading books, but we frustratingly don’t get to know much about books. I have no doubt that we will get a fuller picture in the next episode, but I won’t be around to check out more from the show, all things considered.
Potential: 20%
Shinobi no Ittoki
Short Synopsis: A boy who wants to enjoy a normal life finds out that he’s the future head of a ninja family, which is being targeted by a rival clan.
Amun: If there was an award for how many overused tropes could be incorporated per 20 minutes of airing, Shinobi no Ittoki would take the cake. From the painfully obvious seduction to the big “reveal” of the ninja retainers, this was not well-written. I also really hate the ninja outfits and the weird sci-fi/motorcycle helmets – the fight scenes were mediocre at best. Unlike the delinquent in Eminence in Shadow, ninjas beat truck-chan! Who knew! The masked ninja bodyguard was the only slightly redeeming character, and that’s because she said like 3 lines. Nothing about this stood out in a good way, and I really am not that interested in seeing anything more.
Potential: 1%
Mario: TROYCA studio might be most well-known for their Idolish7 works… you know, a male idol show, but when it comes to Shinobi no Ittoki, the closest point of reference would certainly be their Re:CREATORS. They are both original shows that take a “fresh spin” to their respective tropes. For Shinobi no Ittoki, it’s an old-school feud between two clans in a modern setting. But maybe it was only me who expected the “fresh spin” part because the episode is painfully plain and average in its story and the characters. We can tell the events that happened in this episode ahead right after 5 minutes (that is not a great sight), and to top it off, the way the episode establishes Ittoki’s normal life doesn’t feel remotely believable in the first place. Ittoki isn’t that memorable as the main character himself, so far he’s a step behind everyone, the audiences included, in catching up with the story. I still see the show’s potential, as its main hook – their ninja clan has to fight against the other clan – still hasn’t been fully explored yet, but as far as the first episode goes, it is plain and soul-less.
Potential: 20%
