One day, three second-year middle school students — Kazuki Yasaka, Toi Kuji, and Enta Jinai — meet a kappa-like creature named Keppi, who is the self-proclaimed heir to the throne of Kappa Kingdom. Keppi forcibly takes the students’ shirikodama (a mythical organ kappa steal through a person’s anus) and they are transformed into kappa. Keppi informs them, “If you want to return to your former selves, you need to connect in ‘that way’ and you must bring me the shirikodama of zombies.” At the same time, two policemen, Reo Niiboshi and Mabu Akutsu, try to do something at the police box where they are stationed. – ANN
Streaming: Crunchyroll and Funimation
Episodes: 11
Source: Original
Episode Summary: In Asakusa, images of the Kappa yokai abound. But little did Kazuki, Toi, and later Enta suspect that the golden kappa statue within the local shrine housed inside it a real, live kappa. After running into Kazuki again by accident, Toi’s violent defense of his own illegal activities knocks the statue off its base; when they return to the scene of the crime later on, Prince Keppi of the Kappa Kingdom appears before them in a poof of purple smoke. When the boys mistakenly refer to Keppi as a frog, he punishes them by stealing their shirikodama (an organ in the anus housing human desires) and turning them (and later Enta) into kappa.
Their ticket back to humanity relies on their ability to team up and steal the shirikodama of zombies – poor humans consumed by their own artificially-augmented desires. The only catch is that, once doing so, the three boys’ own deep, dark secrets are revealed to one-another. As the trio completes the Sarazanmai, Kazuki’s secret is thrust out into the open. This is embarrassing, but could this be a way for him to seek the connections he desires?
Impressions: My output for first episode reviews this season was greatly delayed (as I’m sure many of you may have noticed), and I must admit that it was mostly because of this series. I’m a big Kunihiko Ikuhara fan; he’s a director whose anime craft and storytelling style is fascinating to me. Others in his fan base tend to be exceedingly passionate and willing to discuss his series in excruciating detail, even before the first episode arrives – seriously, the chatter each time a new PV appeared was pretty amazing. This presents a bit of an issue for people like me who tend to complete things more slowly – by the time I get around to actually watching episodes, I’ve already seen them go by in meme form several times on Twitter. I actually watched this episode the week that it was released, hoping to avoid being tainted by any major spoilers. The side effect of this was that I was so captivated by the episode that I suddenly didn’t feel like watching anything else.
I’m the type of person who leaves my favorite foods on the plate until I’ve eaten the rest of the meal, so that I can enjoy it completely after having anticipated the treat. Likewise, my philosophy is that, if I eat the dessert first, the main course ends up looking profoundly less appealing. Unsurprisingly, the same concept holds true for anime; once I’d watched the episode I’d been looking forward to the most, I stopped caring about everything else because I realized would likely not be able to compete. It’s a ridiculous predicament to find oneself in, that’s for sure.
Much like Ikuhara’s other work, this series seems to be a combination of the examination of various social issues coupled with some kind of framing legend or bit of folklore. The first episode is splattered with bright colors, visual symbols, and gaudy imagery that gives the impression that the series (and its creator) might simply be in love with its own weirdness. In fact, I seem to recall those sorts of accusations being levied at Ikuhara’s previous project, Yuri Kuma Arashi. At times there’s a feeling that the director is just trying to get a rise out of us weirdos in the audience, and in some cases he admittedly succeeds.
The thing is, for all its glorious weirdness, esoteric mythology, and ass humor, I feel like this episode is hiding something very special in its back pocket. I tend to identify as neo-pagan, and one concept that’s very important to that type of belief system is that of the ritual. Rituals are repetitive actions, movements, and vocalizations that help practitioners achieve a certain desirable mental state. It’s not always the specific movements that are important, only the fact that their sameness triggers the mind to switch gears and focus. Ikuhara is a master of the ritual as it appears in anime. All his series contain some sort of transformation (or transportation) segment, and while it might seem like a waste of time to watch Utena march up the staircase to the dueling arena in almost every episode of the show, or to watch as two lascivious human-bears lap honey from a dewy blooming “flower,” what these memorable and repetitive moments do is prepare our minds to focus on what small things are different in each incarnation (and you thought Endless Eight was pointless!). Its in these moments that Ikuhara grips us by the shirt collar and tears our innocent little hearts out.
As the kappa-boys battle against the box zombie (a remarkable creature with a very bondage-informed design), it’s easy to get caught up in the goofy visual gags, the silly songs, and the weird, overt nudity. And I think really that’s a big part of the fun of this episode, as the serious emotional subjects looming in the background never overshadow this episode’s humorous tone. But as the kappas gulp down the zombie’s shirikodama (which is literally emblazoned with the word “butt” and drips with slimy goo), suddenly stuff gets real; we learn about the secret Kazuki’s been hiding, and then start to suspect that Enta has a few secrets to tell. The boys have been carrying around boxes – literal burdens that have a symbolic emotional component. I love how this all suddenly clicks; I could feel myself coming to these realizations and my heart suddenly began to ache for these characters, who we’ve barely even met.
The issue with this is that I’m sure many people will catch wind of all the butt stuff, uncomfortable sexuality, and just general weirdness of this episode and not want to have anything further to do with it. This used to bother me a lot, because to me Ikuhara’s ability to distill complicated social issues down and clothe them in ridiculousness is something I consider to be a skill. I’ve seen plenty of people accuse his series of “weirdness for weirdness’ sake” and “not being deep,” and to me those sorts of things sound like people giving up on something that means a great deal to me as an anime fan. But I think I finally get it; the bombastic tone, bright colors, and complicated themes as they’re juxtaposed next to one-another are uncomfortable, and discomfort-as-entertainment is a concept that many people aren’t interested in.
This is one of those rare opportunities where I feel like saying this next phrase isn’t the cop-out it would usually be – this series is definitely not going to be appealing to everyone. People who like Ikuhara’s avant-garde approach to creating anime are likely already knee-deep into this series, and people who dislike it are right to keep away, as nothing about this episode seems any different or more restrained than his previous work. It’s people who are new to the fandom who I hope will take this weird mish-mash of personal anecdotes and glowing praise and give the series a try. All I can really guarantee is that this will be a wild, weird ride, and hopefully also an emotionally fulfilling one. For me, the promise is more than enough.
Pros: Carries on the tradition of Ikuhara’s weirdness, as well as his ability to combine humor with serious character beats. The entire episode is beautiful and colorful.
Cons: The weird, butt-focused imagery is likely to drive a lot of people away.
Grade: A-