We are more than halfway through the anime summer season, and City The Animation maintains its solid record of creative storytelling. Thanks to the introduction of a new character, the anime offered more insight into City’s neighbors’ stories.
As always, I’ll focus on the episode’s highlights and the key plot points. Because yes, subtly but surely, the plot is moving forward if you pay attention to the details!
Matsuri and Ecchan’s Last Summer
After Episode 6’s finale, the anime left us melancholic: Matsuri and Ecchan will have to part ways. These dear friends will eventually say goodbye, but luckily for the audience, not until the summer ends. While the whole situation could feel “sad”, City balances the tone with a new gag between the two.
So far, Matsuri and Ecchan’s developments are the most heartwarming. We have seen them taking the lead in their own gag scenes while also having fun around City. Now that they have decided to have a memorable summer until Ecchan leaves for England, the anime tells the audience (in a subtle manner) to continue enjoying their adventures.
A goodbye is part of life, too, not the end.
Don’t Miss the Subtle Details!
Seven episodes in, City continues to expand its colorful cast, giving us plenty to speculate about, which also means it’s time to comment on some curious details about them!
In particular, we should thank Kuratake, owner of City’s Barber Shop. If you thought you already saw all possible quirky traits, you are mistaken: Kuratake gives free shortcuts, which leads his regulars to give him quirky items instead of money. However, all the stuff he receives ends up having great value in the antique shop.
For example, we learn that the Editor in Chief of City’s Magazine was a famous mangaka in the past, and the manga he gives in exchange for the shortcut sells remarkably well. We even learn that Ecchan’s Pumpkin Head idea of Episode 6 came in fact from Kuratake, as she’s one of his top regulars.
Yet his number 1 regular is Chef Makabe. He has been delivering weird antiques, which sell at a high price in the antique shop! And in case you didn’t notice before: those antiques have been appearing in Makabe’s restaurant since Episode 1.
Is this just another gag? The anime has a solid record of connecting dots. While something may appear random or just for fun at first, it probably will be important for a later development. Episode 7 itself is a good example of this: Yamabushi saves Wako from a baseball that injured his hand, which created the need to replace him with Chef Makabe, and thanks to Makabe’s failure to make good fried rice, gave us the cheering up scene.
One gag through another, a web of stories intersecting with each other unfolds: that’s City‘s best appeal.
The Protagonists Daily Life
What about Nagumo, Niikura, and Wako? Our dear trio keeps living together in their eccentric manner. Even if they fight—at least Nagumo and Niikura, while Wako is in their own world—, you can enjoy the chemistry between them.
And they are also the winners of Episode 7’s best animation sequence: Niikura’s night snack. Niikura wants to enjoy their secret night snack, so she delivers a funny monologue while she starts…eating raw instant noodles in the kitchen. Not happy with that, she turns on her bike, and a crazy ride to the ramen shop begins.
Niikura’s night ride scene will be memorable for sure. In a combination of unexpected narrative, amazing voice acting, and fluid animation, KyoAni’s impeccable work surprises even the studio most devoted fans. I certainly didn’t expect so much care for a “minor moment”—the central gag was about Niikura and her ramen secret passion—, which adds to my appreciation of the result.
What surprises will Episode 8 give us? I’m looking forward to it!
City the Animation is streaming on Prime Video, where all the images are from.
©Keiichi Arawi, Kodansha/CITY THE ANIMATION Production Committee
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