After watching the shenanigans of Hime cut girl 1 (and her boobs) from Sankarea, we now move on to the shenanigans of Hime cute girl 2. Surprisingly featuring less cleavage, considering the source material is drawn and written by a doujinshi/hentai artist. Although the resemblance is not as uncanny as the manga, we at chunlikickedme bring to you:

GHOST YOMI: THE ANIMATION

PLOT (or lack thereof)

When I first picked up the original manga for Dusk Maiden, I most definitely did not do it for the plot. After all, Maybe (that’s the author’s name, Maybe; as in “maybe he should’ve picked a less confusing name”), being a porno artiste, is in no danger of winning the Pulitzer prize for his writing. However, what really kept me coming back was the art. Gloriously detailed art (at least in regards to Yuuko, some of his backgrounds are rather Kubo-esque and the MC can’t seem to figure out whether or not he’s actually near-sighted).

The plot, while simple and episodic, had enough cute things happening to keep me entertained. While there were mystery/horror elements involved, much of the focus was placed on Yuuko and Teiichi Niiya, the MC (and I suppose the mystery of why a smokin’ hot ghost like Yuuko would be interested in Niiya).

The anime, at least after episode one, seems to be taking this in a different direction. It opens with a dizzing Cloverfield-esque run through the hallways of the school, only to end up in…

…the abandoned Paranormal Investigations clubroom, with Momoe Okonogi apparently not using a mechanical pencil.

Unlike the manga, the anime delves into the story and the mysteries immediately, leaving out the circumstances under which Niiya meets Okonogi and Kirie Kanoe, the fourth member of the club.

Most of the first episode is actually the same footage, played twice. The catch, and I must commend Silver Link for thinking of it (as it’s not in the manga), is that while in the first run-through Yuuko is invisible, she is visible in the second. As Okonogi cannot see Yuuko, this naturally leads to some rather comedic situations.

Okonogi’s role in the anime is the “funny man” through her frequent misunderstandings, with Kirie playing the “straight man”. Okonogi’s mild crush on Niiya is also much more apparent than it is in the manga, although being veterans of Japanese romance, we all know that nothing will come out of it.

THOUGHTS AND FEELS

Quite honestly, I have mixed feelings about the first episode. While the invisible/visible duality was quite funny, it’s not a plot device that Silver Link can use again. The short length of the series means that we will most likely see an anime-original ending, and those seldom end well (see: Gantz, Beck, etc.). Considering the significant deviation from manga plot in the first episode, we can only imagine what material they will cover in the remaining 11 episodes. Considering there are 7 mysteries at the school (assuming they’re not counting the Seven Minutes in Heaven elevator as one), that only leaves 4 episodes for other things (beach episode?). The manga focused more on cute interactions between Yuuko and Niiya, with some mystery/horror elements thrown into the mix; Okonogi and Kirie would be absent sometimes for entire chapters. While their characters aren’t exactly bad, their art certainly is a step down from the manga. Which brings me to my next point.

The animation quality and art in the anime varies greatly in quality at times. The detailing in Maybe’s art (he also seems to have an obsession with dress creases) doesn’t translate well into animation. Ever since the first PV was released, I’ve had reservations about the art style of the anime. After episode one, it would appear that my fears were proven correct. Both Okonogi and Kirie suffered from the transition to animation. The former looks suspiciously manly at times, and the latter lost her “Yuuko-with-short-hair-and-smaller-bust” look. And while some shots are excellent, you do have instances like Niiya’s disappearing cellphone.

Overall though, the episode was a lot better than what I imagined it would be. The voice actors also nail their parts perfectly, with only Niiya sounding a tad off from what I imagined. In any case, I will be looking forward to what episode 2 with Hime cut 2 will bring.

‘Til next time.