#they mention carriages but we never see any horses (except in a flashback)

[can-of-pringles]

I wish for a list of all the technology in the Arcane universe. And I don't mean the super scientific Hextech stuff, I mean common appliances(?) And household items.

[thinkingaboutblog]

Meiji Tokyo Renka:  Ep. 1 The Unexpected Strawberry Moon

Anti-climatic kidnapping, unflattering pet names and the most unbelievable high school kids I’ve ever seen. 

Series: Meiji Tokyo Renka Platform: Crunchyroll

So here we are, the start of the project, the start of the series. And I realized while I was browsing Crunchyroll that this series is currently ongoing. So I’ll probably add another series to my watch list once I’ve caught up to this one... 

Anyways, what were my thoughts on this first episode? Well, it’s not the worst episode I’ve seen... but it’s not the best. It’s at best laughably rough.  So what happened? 

After a bumbin’ OP (though not even the most stylish or best ones I’ve heard/seen in this genre alone) we are shown a man in silhouette with a young woman running past him.

Nyoom! 

Our guy in the cape appears to say goodbye, though his lips never move so it’s possible we’re being duped. The next shot is of the same girl in the embrace of another man, for some reason we’re allowed to see him clearly. 

He pats her head and says goodbye as well. The music swells and we get a glimpse of our protagonist... making the dopiest sad face. 

Hold on both my contacts slipped out and I’m not sure who I’m talking to, are you the one with the dead mom ponytail or the one with only one sideburn? 

It’s at this point I realized all the dudes introduced in the OP that weren’t these two guys stood no chance. Which sucks because best boy is neither of these guys. 

Then we wake from the dream and are introduced to our protagonist  Mei Ayazuki, whose entire personality seems to be: sad and alone. But at least she has a personality. The entire scene of her walking home was giving me Magical Girl Site flashbacks and I already wanted off this ride. 

We’re treated to a flashback to some birthday she had as a child. It’s introduced here that Mei loves roast beef, trust me that’s important. It’s also established that Mei has been able to see ghosts for a while. All of her friends think this is weird and shun her despite the fact they are all still of an age to have imaginary friends. 

Why are you weirded out? You’re six, you all still have imaginary friends!

Apparently no one ever in the last ten or so years has found the fact she can talk to spirits cool or interesting and she’s been made into a social pariah... which just strikes me as odd because you’re telling me no one at all would think that was cool? Except for one girl: 

Rest in peace random Background girl, you were the best character in the whole episode.  Anyways Mei continues to be sad and alone for who knows how long, drowning out the sounds of a ghost calling her name over and over again but not saying anything else useful at all. This again will be important later.

Mei wanders into a random street festival in a park for some reason, as far as I can tell Mei is not going anywhere at all. And we’re introduced to this mother fucker: 

This man scalped the gravedigger from Black Butler and is wearing his hair like a wig! 

Monocle man over here basically harasses Mei into getting into his magic box to perform a kidnapping live in front of an enraptured audience. Seriously, as far as we know, Mei never reappears in front of these people this guy is doing a magic show for. I suppose you could assume that she was a plant but that’s a bold assumption to make considering the magician is saying some vaguely ominous things and coerces a girl who clearly is uncomfortable with this into his magic teleportation box.  It’s one episode in and I already hate this guy.  So Mei gets into his box, blacks out and wakes up (after being touched by the ghost hand of mr. kidnapper) in the park, but the festival is all gone and the modern street lamps are replaced with oil lamps, with like real burning fire in them. Totally normal and not at all something she should have noticed. Also her phone simply ceases to function at all, like glitches out and shuts down. If that wasn’t obvious enough Mei then nearly gets killed by a horse-drawn carriage. Out comes red hair from the opening scene and he immediately begins putting his hands all over Mei, like touches her face, her shoulder, her knee... that last one causing her to freak out. He’s confused by her headphones and Mei is still to dumb to understand what happened. 

Then dead mom ponytail guy comes out too. 

We are nine minutes into the episode and this guy is already done with everything. Mei’s heart goes doki doki at the sight of him but this anime can't-fool me, I already know she chooses the guy with Loki from Kamigami’s hair. You showed it to me in the opening scene anime! This shot happens and I lose my fucking shit: 

Thirdwheeling much?

Then Mei just gets into the carriage with these two total strangers, and they also kidnap her. This girl is 2/2 for just getting into random people’s forms of transportation. Also green hair refers to red hair’d guy as Ougai-san. 

So as it turns out Mei hasn’t just been transported to a historical time period (something surprisingly common in this genre) but also has the other genre staple of being amnesiac. The guys decide the best way to help her is to introduce themselves: 

So Red hair guy says he’s Mori Rintaro but we already heard him get called Ousai-san by the other dude so I’m onto him! He says he’s an Army Sugreon. A likely story. 

The other guy is Hishida Syunso and he would be the best character in this anime if we weren’t introduced to a few more characters later on. Also if I had any knowledge of Japanese history these names would probably start clicking. 

Anyways as it turns out the ghost that’s been doing nothing but calling Mei’s name tells her name and she tells the guys. How convenient! 

So the guys take Mei to a ball held in the honor of the Russian prince, which definitely sounds like a good idea, considering what she’s wearing. Her knees are even showing! We’re given a shot of the Russian prince who is definetly in on this harem of dudes but doesn’t get properly introduced this episode. 

Then some of the worst Dialogue I’ve had the misfortune of hearing is spoken aloud. Mori calls Mei, little Squirrel. And here’s where I die again. It’s the most unflattering pet name I think I’ve ever heard. Mei has done nothing to earn it. Flower or princess or kitten all would have worked to endear me to this princely type character, that’s my usual preferred archetype in this genre after all, but little squirrel? 

Anyways a waiter walks past with a plate of roast beef and Mei being weirdly obsessed causes hijinks to ensue, which is how our cast of secondary dudes get’s introduced. Mei knocks the plate out of the waiter’s hand, which is then caught by Kyouka Izumi:

I promise you the bunny is important, no I am not kidding. 

Who then immediately tosses it away because it turns out he’s a massive germaphobe and also an asshole.  The plate is then caught by Otojirou Kawakami, who I literally do not remember a single thing about aside from the fact he’s a stage actor: 

Mei mentions the rabbit on Izumi’s shoulders and we learn that not everyone can see it, which somehow means she gets roped into discussing ghosts which brings the best boy out of the woodwork.

You can’t tell in this image but this man has heterochromia and it is glorious.

Yakumo Koizumi, as it turns out, has a special fascination with ghosts and he gets so very very excited when people bring it up. He’s also an author and secretly princely. He is a dork and I love him. 

Mei spots Gravedigger hair in the crowd and runs after him. Then he exposits the plot of the show to her. God I hate him. 

Then he magics the lights out and a fox ghost shows up, Mei chases it through the ball as it wreaks terror and bunny boy Izumi also goes after it and we’re introduced to the most ridiculous boy yet. 

This man is pointing his corporeal real world sword at a small adorable fox ghost and I wish I were kidding.  This man is Gorou Fujita and he threatens the fox. Mei jumps in front of his sword, the lights turn back on, everyone is confused and Gorou then points his sword at Mei because he’s just that guy.  Then Mori grabs hold of Mei, lifts her to her feet and Gourou calls him Mori Ougai... so I guess that mystery is solved. Then he tells Gorou not to threaten his fiancee, Mei. And I am screaming at my monitor about how he’s known her for literally 2 hours. 

So that’s a good sign. She says sarcastically, already regretting the life choices that brought her to watching a pretty anime boy claim a young high school girl against her will. 

And it pretty much ends there. Mori has just claimed Mei as his own in front of a ballroom full of people and Mei has been left flabbergasted by his declaration and I silently plead that this anime doesn’t have one of the characters lock her in a cage “for her protection” because I can already see it heading that direction.