All Hail Lord Chikuwa!
- Episodes : 12
- Genre : Action, Sci-fi
- Airing Date : October 2018 - December 2018
- Studios : DandeLion Animation Studio, Jumonji
Contains Spoilers
Akanesasu Shoujo Introduction and Story
Asuka is a bit of a unique girl. She lives in a city and is a member of the Crystal Radio Club. The members believe that if they pray to a specific god during an exact point during the day at a specific tree with a radio–you guessed it–set to an exact frequency, the god, Lord Chikuwa, will grant them access to things unknown and unseen. When the girls do try out the ritual for themselves, it seems like nothing happens, until they look up and realize they are in some sort of yellow glowing world of ruin. Monsters attack, one thing leads to another and a superhero comes and fights to save the girls. It is then that everything surrounding their reality comes crashing down. Their world is one of infinite that exist across different dimensions and incarnations. Not only that, but a terrifying organization known as Twilight wants to take down everyone and everything in each world. Bit by bit, the girls go on a journey to discover who they are and what their lives mean to themselves and each other. Ultimately, a sacrifice has to be made but someone will have to do it… but who?
1. Unique Story
We get a wide berth of anime from cringe, to meh, to okay, to good to captivating, each and every season. Some seasons lean more towards one end of the spectrum than others, but needless to say, Akaknesau Shoujo was somewhere between okay and good. Sure there were issues, but the idea of jet setting off to parallel worlds where you not only confront yourself and grow, but also do so while fighting evil and gaining superpowers makes things super interesting and keeps it fresh. Thankfully, too, the worlds all have their own unique backgrounds making nothing too droll.
2. What. Is. This. Setup?
We said it before on this site, but this anime sounds like a bunch of old men got together, got wasted, reminisced about schoolgirl uniforms, chikuwa (admittedly, this is quite delicious), and of all things, magical girls, cassettes, and cassette players, and said “young people don’t appreciate anything these days! Let’s make something that will show them how superior the items of our times were!” and while they failed at that aspect, they certainly made an anime unique. You have a main character who is obsessed with Chikuwa and wants to learn how to make miso paste in her future and a group of girls who transform into magical girls that look NOTHING LIKE EACH OTHER. Still, it makes for a great watch.
1. Deus Ex Machina Ending
Deus Ex Machina or God from the machine is where a story suddenly gets resolved so quickly and so abruptly that it feels contrite. While we did enjoy Akanesasu Shoujo, the ending was quite messy. So we have Asuka just agree to go with the emissary of Twilight as if that is going to fix everything and then surprise surprise, it was young Asuka from another world! Not only do we learn that she too, is searching for her brother, she has not and cannot find him across all of the dimensions and worlds that she has been to. So then there is an obscenely long monologue about her telling her backstory to teenager Asuka, and then they go on to search for him and that’s it. Like Asuka’s “sacrifice” saves the day even though, it’s not a sacrifice but rather a rush job to wrap things up.
2. Drugs Might Help?
We here at Honey’s Anime do not condone illicit drug use, however, some might just help make this show somewhat believable. A main character obsessed with fish cakes–that’s what chikuwa are–doesn’t really come across as believable. Not to mention, too, the girls look nothing like each other when they transform. It’s just one giant clash of ideas, especially when the girls go to Mia’s Wild Wild West World...
3. Seriouska’s Death
This has been an emerging trend in anime recently where death, or horrible things like rape, are used as some sort of storytelling method that is crucial or critical to the story itself. To be honest, Seriouska’s death wasn’t necessary, especially considering that Asuka gained no powers other than her sword. It was a snapback to reality that Twilight was some horrible organization, but that was really about it. It just soured the rest of the story throughout, and while it did not ruin it, we were left with sexy Yuu, so we should have at least gotten Seriouska as well. Maybe she wasn’t fanservicey enough and that’s why they decided that she would get the chop.
Final Thoughts
We may have torn it to shreds in our sections above, but overall, Akanesasu Shoujo was good. It was just not something that we would have desired towards the end. While it was not bad, it did what it tried to do, which was be an original anime. What are your thoughts on the series? Be sure to let us know down below. Till next time!
Author: Nagareboshi
