The spectre of the cabbage scene hangs eternally over anime.
Impressions:
Dramas aren’t really my thing, and this is certainly… dramatic. I will say that it ended better than it began. The last few minutes actually had a bit of emotion that the rest of the episode was badly lacking, both in outburst form, and in the awkwardness of focusing on something weird as a coping mechanism trying to ground oneself. Still quite heavy handed with the whole desert metaphor, and the speech about how much she hated everybody and cared nothing for her, but wouldn’t let… uh… society? be cruel to her niece didn’t make any real sense nor was it built up to in any way by showing the issues the family apparently had, but some effort was made.
I’m not sure I’d say the same for the fifteen minutes that came before it though. The problem with the perpetually stunned anime character that acts like a deer in headlights, numbly narrating everything that happens in front of them, is that’s the default for dramas. Was she actually alone and had no friends or other family? It sort of insinuates that, but she’s also texting on her phone to friends at the start while happily singing pop songs, so we already know that’s not true and our first impressions are her just being an awkward regular girl. So when she acts the exact same later and it tries to claim now she’s traumatized, there’s no contrast to make that convincing. This is where it probably needed to be more on the nose to show she was trying to cope and struggling like that mermaid show last season did better instead of simply being Every Anime Drama Girl Since 1995™.
Regardless, can’t say I’m eager to watch more, nor would I expect it to win over any non-drama converts. Neither character is particularly compelling, and I only expect them to blithely observe each other with the occasional outburst about how they care in a general fashion because it’s the right thing to do. Inoffensive, especially compared to certain other things, but not engaging for me.
