I feel for Miko… So much. That is a face only a broken writer can make.

Anime Gataris
Studio: Wao World
Genre: Comedy, School

Episodes like this are the reason I love shows like this. It focuses on our lovable anime geeks as they set out to create an anime for an upcoming cultural festival, lest they have their club shut down. Because at this point it’s evident that this is all we’re going to get for a plot. But whatever. Apparently, Minoa didn’t have even the slightest idea how much work actually goes into making an anime. Which is kind of appalling. I’m fairly certain the average person has to know that making almost any kind of content is ludicrous amounts of work. There’s “being new,” and then there’s just not using your brain. But I digress.

“Don’t be a dummy, you dummy.”

The references are once again back in full force, and it continues to amaze me how the show manages to make them fit without it being too glaring. Should someone unfamiliar with anime watch this, they may completely miss that references are happening. Why? Because they’re just natural. But in any case, what follows is the club going through creative meetings to determine how they’re going to go about things.

The creative meetings were honestly the highlight, for me, having been involved in god only knows how many of them, myself. It comes with all of the familiar pitfalls, too. But the real selling point was riiight after they decided on their concept. The script meetings. As a writer, allow me to just say that Miko… you are not alone, my friend. Miko is probably my favorite among them, so I like any time she’s a little more in the spotlight. But Those meetings are nightmares. Everyone has their own idea of how a thing should go, and the writer just has to sit there and listen, and… hoo boy do I feel for her. Never have I seen that scenario portrayed in a show that just hit the nail on the head that perfectly. Exaggerated, obviously, but still pretty true to life.

I know that feel, sister.

I liked seeing them decide on their roles. Particularly their… “producer.” Everything about that little dig was amazing, right down to the music choice during her little producer moments. The process of actually putting their little project together was montaged through fairly quickly, though it was still pretty interesting. Seeing something put together on the amateur level that they could manage was amusing, especially considering their reactions to all the work that goes into it.

My only real issue is in the setup for the episode, itself. I thought we were done with the student council thing. By all rights, it seemed like that aspect of the show’s arc was over after their last encounter. It left off as if the next problem would be something looming over them that was far larger than the student council in some way. And that only becomes more troubling when taken into consideration the shift made by the president. While she came across as just cold and dismissive before, suddenly she’s transparently and cartoonishly evil. It’s weird.

I mean was she just not hugged enough as a child?

The student council plot was already the weakest point of the series overall, and bringing it back feels like an odd choice when it seemed like they’d moved beyond that. I’d have been perfectly fine just watching the club commit to whatever antics they had in mind for the week. But maybe this will go somewhere. There are yet far more questions the series raises that I feel could be more interesting, such as the deal with Minoa’s father, and whatever is up with that closet in the club room. Let alone the talking cat. But it’s possible some if not all of these things will tie in with the student council bit in some way. And if that’s the case, it’ll hopefully be satisfying overall.

Still, the series continues its reign as a definitely entertaining inclusion to the season, slightly hindered by a less than stellar narrative. But it’s maintained its ability to deliver on clever humor and engaging characters to compensate for that weakness. There’s still plenty to discover, I think, so I can’t be overly hard on things like that, anyway. I’ve yet to really have a particularly difficult time Recommending this show. It’s just a lot of fun. But if you’d prefer a different kind of fun, we’ve got plenty of reviews and recaps for you to consider.

“Sooo? Whataya say?”

Meanwhile, Anime Gataris Simulcasts on Crunchyroll, Sundays at 10:00am EST.