Just like any auteur, the moments you step into Shinichiro Watanabe’s world you’d immediately know it. The man has a distinctive visual flair, one that relies on fluid animation, expressive characters’ “mannerism”, and a great ear for music that ride the whole narrative. We can see all these aspects in Carole & Tuesday. In fact, with Netflix streaming, this might become one of his most mainstream hit, and that might and that is both a blessing and a curse. I’m talking about “accessible” here. More than any shows he has directed before, this one appeals to the widest range of audiences: the story is an underdog story at heart, and everyone loves a few-good story when our mains start from zero to hero; the music are catchy and appealing; the duo is likable and the visual is a feast to the eyes. But my (mild) issues for Carole & Tuesday lies in the fact that there isn’t many layers underneath the surface. Take the titular leads, Carole & Tuesday, for example. They’re wholy distinctive in designs and how they talk and move, but their encounter always feel a bit easy. The same can be said for their journey together so far, to the point in the third episode it feels as if they function as one entity. I’d love to see more conflicts between them, not a whole arc (I know this will come eventually) but more about small details that we can pick out and tell them apart.
The life-changing event for our main duo happens in the second episode when they decide to do a guerilla performance in the concert hall, in which it catches an attention of the sound technician Roddy, who then upload their performance online. That’s where Gus (the drunken narrator) storm in and self-declares himself as their manager. Unlike the lead duo so far (which mostly a matter of expectation – I expect so much more from them), I quite enjoy the roles both Gus and Roddy are playing so far. They serve as comedic relieves (especially Gus when we see all of his plans are either outdated or simply not working at all), but for now they’re the ones who move the plot forward. Another little details that I really enjoy surrounding their worldbuilding is that the universe they live in isn’t that far off from our current world. They still use wikipedia, for example, or they use many real-name bands/singers that it brings a smile on my face when they mention them. But come on, I would never have expected Justin Bieber and Bruno Mars are mentioned in the same breath as Motorhead. They are as world apart as it comes.
Speaking of song references, I feel the need to mention the titles of the episodes, which Carole & Tuesday paying tribute to all these classic timeless songs, and that bring up to one of my earlier concerns. These titles are dropped not based on their tune or meaning, but merely a literal adaptation so far. In episode 2, Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run quickly translates into the girls constantly running away from the guards. In episode 3, the sad song “Fire & Rain” is indeed involves the moment where Tuesday loses it and burns her music sheet which triggers the waterflow. While there is meaning of why these songs are placed there, considering the fact that I know these songs by heart, and these songs bring the spirits and attitude like no others, it’s a bit of a letdown that Carole & Tuesday just borrows the surface and not the essence of the songs. I have no complains, however, about both the OP and ED, one brings one of the most gorgeous visually looking in recent years, the other is just an earworm. They are easily my favorites so far of this season, which saying a lot in a season where Mix’s OP and Sarazanmai’s OP are also airing.
At the same time with Carole & Tuesday journey, we follow Angela who going through her vocal training, which feels more like workplace abuse than actual training. Tao is a douchebag and he isn’t afraid to admit it. At the moment, Angela’s path and the girls’ haven’t crossed so far, but I expect it to happen soon in the future. Looking at it more closely, Angela emerges to be the exact opposite with Carole & Tuesday’s path. Tao, her so called “vocal trainer”, is more interested to create an AI song, the one where the song tune in which people’s heart so that the listeners will respond positively to the song, doesn’t matter who sing it. Whereas with our duo it’s all authentic here. They sing from their heart, they bust out into songs because they feel like doing it. Whereas Angela’s already successful when we met her, Carole & Tuesday have to work from the bottom ground. Speaking of Tuesday, we learn that her Mom running politics, which could be an interesting thread to follow. While I feel that the story beats so far are… straightforward, the visual direction still pretty much excellent. The earlier bit where Carole doing the fake moaning (well, this is real in Chinese culture), the visual bits of the Priest and the butterfly is very well-crafted, the timing in particular is exceptional. I don’t know if it’s a right comparison, but Carole & Tuesday reminds me a fair bit of Violet Evergarden last year, not necessary because they’re both Netflix-funded, but more about they are the most accessible works from acclaimed director/studio and it could work as a gateway for newcomers to get into their more distinctive, and more significant, works.