Medium Anime (11 episodes), sub available on Crunchyroll and dub available on Funimation; there are side materials that are spottily translated but aren't necessary for understanding. I recommend the light novels for people interested in additional insight into the characters, both novels have been officially translated and are available digitally on Kindle, Google Books, etc.
Summary Three teenage boys are given the opportunity to wish for anything they want, but only if they turn into kappa and fight enemies for the exiled prince of the Kappa Kingdom. After each successful fight, they are forced to connect with each other by sharing their deepest, most shameful secrets.
Each boy is struggling to connect to someone they care about and the show explores themes of love and desire, communication, sexuality, and friendship.
Content Warnings Non-explicit sexual content, mainly between adult characters (a few quick scenes involving dubious consent) and some sexual references involving the middle school-aged characters. Varying levels of unhealthy relationships such as some implied emotional abuse between siblings and concerns about infidelity. Character death and violence, including minor scenes of police brutality. Some non-explicit references to suicidal thoughts.
Why I Like It I'm a big Ikuhara fan and Sarazanmai is a great example of his strengths. Every character is complicated and flawed while being sympathetic and enjoyable. The show manages to explore their development and relationships in a short amount of time. It also explores sexuality and same-sex relationships in a thoughtful and (imo) relatable way; specifically, there is a canon m/m couple and a canon gay main character. And of course, deliciously complicated sibling relationships.
I could go on! The animation is beautiful, the music is addicting, and so on. If you're interested in any of the things I discussed above, I highly recommend giving it a try. Oh, and a tip: always watch past the ending credits! There are important, plot-related scenes after the ending theme.
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Sarazanmai
Date: 2020-08-19 01:26 am (UTC)Sarazanmai
Medium
Anime (11 episodes), sub available on Crunchyroll and dub available on Funimation; there are side materials that are spottily translated but aren't necessary for understanding. I recommend the light novels for people interested in additional insight into the characters, both novels have been officially translated and are available digitally on Kindle, Google Books, etc.
Summary
Three teenage boys are given the opportunity to wish for anything they want, but only if they turn into kappa and fight enemies for the exiled prince of the Kappa Kingdom. After each successful fight, they are forced to connect with each other by sharing their deepest, most shameful secrets.
Each boy is struggling to connect to someone they care about and the show explores themes of love and desire, communication, sexuality, and friendship.
Content Warnings
Non-explicit sexual content, mainly between adult characters (a few quick scenes involving dubious consent) and some sexual references involving the middle school-aged characters. Varying levels of unhealthy relationships such as some implied emotional abuse between siblings and concerns about infidelity. Character death and violence, including minor scenes of police brutality. Some non-explicit references to suicidal thoughts.
Why I Like It
I'm a big Ikuhara fan and Sarazanmai is a great example of his strengths. Every character is complicated and flawed while being sympathetic and enjoyable. The show manages to explore their development and relationships in a short amount of time. It also explores sexuality and same-sex relationships in a thoughtful and (imo) relatable way; specifically, there is a canon m/m couple and a canon gay main character. And of course, deliciously complicated sibling relationships.
I could go on! The animation is beautiful, the music is addicting, and so on. If you're interested in any of the things I discussed above, I highly recommend giving it a try. Oh, and a tip: always watch past the ending credits! There are important, plot-related scenes after the ending theme.