Rooori!Hmm? Where’s the fire, Ricchan?There aren’t any yuri, this season, are there?Hmm… I think there’s Otherside Picnic, maybe? But I’m not too sure about that one. I haven’t read the original and I’m not sure I was getting that vibe from the first episode.*pout* Boooo.Ahaha. I figured that wouldn’t please you.*reading a magazine* She’s insatiable since Yagate Kimi ni Naru (Bloom Into You) ended.Oh. Riles. You were here?She’s been trying to fill that void every season but nothing’s really been doin’ it for her. Well, there was the one show last season that came pretty close.Ah! Adachi to Shimamura! I just finished watching it a second time!Heeeh? Without me, this time? That’s so unfair Ririii~Oh! Sorry! I’m sorry! You really liked it too, right? Then… um… Ah! I know! We can all talk about it together!Eh?! All?! Why am I being dragged into this?!
Adachi to Shimamura
*sigh* So, in case you haven’t been paying attention, my sister loves yuri anime. Like… loves them.Right! Meanwhile, my sister is a total Fujo-!AHEM! And you can probably guess why, too.Hihi~With that in mind, I don’t think I’ve ever seen one speak to her the way that Yagate Kimi ni Naru did. But last season was… different. When Adachi to Shimamura came out, sis was all over it. Like… she made sure it was the first thing she watched, from week to week.Yup! And I had a lot of fun with it!Saaame~ It wound up being my favorite show of the season, actually.Hmmm… I dunno if I’d say it got that far with me, though. It was good, but I don’t think it held me the same way Bloom Into You did. Oh! But I’m getting ahead of myself! So, here’s the rundown! It’s the story of two girls – Adachi Sakura and Shimamura Hougetsu – and the budding relationship that forms between them after they meet while skipping class. And it’s really exactly that simple. There’s not a lot else going on in the story. At least not anything with any real rhyme or reason. Most of it revolves around the two of them figuring out their emotions while they continue to hang around one another.Hm… I’d actually say it’s more about Adachi reckoning with her feelings while Shimamura’s busy figuring hers out by reflecting on the relationship.Fair. The series is a lot less direct than Yagate Kimi ni Naru. There’s no real plot thread that runs throughout the entire show. The closest thing there is to that would be Adachi constantly trying to cook up ways to spend time with Shimamura.And it’s adorable! She’s a lovable little dork, and it’s perfect! It reminds me so much of Riri trying to cling to me like a lost lil puppy after we met!Heh?! You said you’d stop making fun of me over that, Roriii!Ahaha, but I caaan’t! You were so cute!Well, at least it ain’t me, this time…A-anyway, the show spends a lot of time in the characters’ heads. Adachi figures out that she likes Shimamura, pretty early on. But she’s a socially awkward loner who doesn’t really know how to deal with people. So when she starts to form that relationship, she struggles with what she feels like she should do in order to pursue it.Right. Shimamura is different, though. She’s more socially active, though you probably don’t want to confuse that with her being a social butterfly. It’s something a little more… melancholic. See, she’s kind of… numb? No, that’s not the word. I dunno. She doesn’t get attached to people easily because she’s someone who just rides the current of life.It’s a strange feeling. But one I’m pretty familiar with. Everything around her feeling so hollow. At one point she has this line I reeeally liked, talking about how she just goes along with her humdrum daily routine and drifts through the day, coming to a place she has no attachment to, having totally vapid non-versations with her “artificial friends.” That term. It’s so good. Artificial friends. Ah. People can be so… inauthentic. And vague.…Dude…Uh… Rori?Hmmm? Ahaha! Whoops! Not you girls, you’re great! Don’t let me worry you!Er… so, all that’s great, of course. I really liked that! It’s a really character-driven story, sure about a budding kinda-sorta romance, but also just about human connections in general. Adachi is that one relationship that gives Shimamura’s world definition. She can see colors when she’s with Adachi. The white noise of dull conversation becomes crystal clear. She smiles more around Adachi. She laughs. And all that does is make Adachi fall for her even more and try even harder to be by her side!That kind of cause-and-effect thing is pretty sweet. But… what was it holding this one back, then?Hm?You ultimately didn’t like it as much as Yagate Kimi ni Naru, right?Oh. Nope! Hmmmm… I think it was because that one was specifically about love and the concept of love? At the end of the day, this didn’t feel like it was about love, so much as it decided to focus on a sorta-kinda semi-romantic relationship. The subtext is there and Shimamura’s probably going to keep growing closer to Adachi until they part ways or end up together. And I do like how the two of them sort of complete the other, in a way. But Touko and Yuu were just… they were so good together! And I loved all the commentary on what “love” even is to different people! And the way it plays with the idea of how media can impact a person’s perception of what love is.I’d also maybe submit that Yagate Kimi ni Naru is a more fluid story, overall. There is one plot thread woven throughout the entire thing.Right. The play. Yeah, that’s a pretty big thing that’s brought up pretty early on. This doesn’t have that. And it leads to the “story” feeling more like just a series of events. Which would maybe be fine, but I think it impacts the pacing a little. All that quiet contemplation works really well there because the story still feels like it’s moving, the whole time. But here all that contemplation does feel like it slows things down a little too much for a series that’s not pushing towards any particular point.Yeah. I also didn’t really “get” what they were trying to do with Yashiro.Oh. Good. I’m not the only one.Same~Anyway, I enjoyed it overall. But it still hasn’t scratched that itch.Uh, sis, I think you’re honestly just… better off waiting for a potential second season of that one, at this point.I can’t! There HAS to be another one out there that hooks me like Bloom did! Something that speaks to me the same way this one spoke to Rori!Aww, no worries, Ricchan! Well, I’m sure we can all find it together~Oi. This “all” business is getting out of hand, i’nnit?Oh! So what did you guys think of it?Eh? Me? Well, it was fine, I guess. I’d have liked a little more stuff to be going on, I guess. But it wasn’t bad. I’d maybe just call it Junk Food.Plus Ultra, of course~Mmm… I think I can call it Junk Food too.Well, what about all you readers, out there? Let us know, down below.Don’t forget to give our little chat a like! And follow the Blog, if you don’t already! The YouTube channel too, if you would~Oh! And Follow Rori on all our official Twitter and Instagram!You know the drill, from here.I’m Rila, signing off!I’m Riley, bowin’ out!Rori-desu! Ja ne!Thanks for Reading!Keep up the Awesome!And, as always~STAY TOON’D!
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