My favorite SoL series all season was technically a carry-over from last Spring; the Kaguya-sama: Love is War OVA only needed 20 minutes to bring me more enjoyment than any other airing seasonal. Aside from the sleeper-hit Super Cub, we've been pretty short on unadulterated, vanilla wholesomeness. An age-gap LN adaptation with an obnoxiously long title seemed like the furthest thing from my lofty wishes. This pretty petty pessimistic mindset loomed over me as I went into this series. It has certainly given viewers other than myself reasons to give pause and get mad, thanks to material that can be seen as upsetting. But in spite of this series' controversies, I did find myself rather impressed at the refreshing way its taboo themes were addressed. After being surprised, I shaved and wrote a (spoiler-free) review. Let's jump into Higehiro. Feel free to skip ahead to my Tl;Dr if you'd like to go in blind.
Seems standard so far, but things are about to take a rather unexpected turn. The girl goes by Sayu. She's 17, and comes to our middle-aged main character with a strange proposition: give her a place to lodge for the night, and she'll let him have his way with her. The recently-rejected Yoshida, inebriated and in his feelings, refuses this stranger's offer of sex. But much to Sayu's disbelief, he allows her to crash at his place regardless. Higehiro is focused on exploring the circumstances preceding and resulting from this change to Yoshida's and Sayu's living arrangements. Now, this inciting incident could leave you feeling any number of different ways, from abject horror to mere indifference. In any case, we should properly look into the context behind this scenario, in order to understand what Higehiro's deal is.
A middle-aged bachelor living with an underage stranger is bound to set off all kinds of alarms. What's already a dicey situation to take in for Western viewers is compounded by local context; according to statutory laws in Japan, harboring a minor is a criminal offence, regardless of consent. The series' script is very much aware of how Yoshida's actions could be perceived by audiences, and addresses this mistake several times within the show. Heck, the LN author Shimesaba took to Twitter with a disclaimer for the real-life implications involved in Higehiro. When even the author himself is denouncing our main character for committing a literal crime, the warning sign is undeniably clear. What Yoshida does in this situation is dumb, there's no two ways about it. Higehiro fans and haters alike are on the same page here, Yoshida makes a terrible mistake. In his situation, the right thing any sensible adult would have done was to call Child Services, and let the relevant agencies handle this dilemma. But here's my question to those who share that line of thinking: "Would anyone be invested in that story?" Is there any merit to the tale of some drunk dude calling the cops on a minor? Point is, Higehiro's narrative wouldn't be "fixed" through the removal of this controversial decision; if anything, this weird inciting incident is exactly what the story needs in order to communicate its desired message. It can be counter-productive to talk about a show with this "How It Should Have Ended" mentality, even if that story demands a lot from our suspension of disbelief. The question we should be answering isn't whether or not Yoshida is in the right for taking in a homeless minor (he's not,) but what Higehiro tells us as a result of this dodgy writing choice. So let's address just that.
The emotional juggernaut of the franchise, Sayu emerges from her flaws and trauma as the series progresses. Yoshida isn't the first person she had come to for that sexual transaction, but he's the one to help Sayu break out of that vicious cycle. He makes up for his criminal goof by turning out to be one of the more sensible protagonists I've watched recently. He's perceptive of others' actions and acts in their self-interest, with a self-deprecating edge that comes with being a bachelor nearing their thirties. Unlike the bad age-gap show this season^, Higehiro ensures that the older MC never sees Sayu as a romantic prospect. The result is a father/daughter dynamic similar to something you'd find in Usagi Drop. Yoshida acts as a kind-hearted guardian over Sayu, as she learns to cope with the circumstances that first drove her to Yoshida's doorstep. That's not to say that Higehiro plays its age-gap relationship completely safe either. Awkwardness and mild sexual tension between the two is interspersed throughout the show, which I actually find to be quite diegetic. Watching the characters acknowledge their growing intimacy makes this bond feel human, plausible, and quite unlike anything I've ever seen before. This overall niceness isn't limited to our wannabe dad MC, but carries forwards to most of the ensemble cast as well. Airi Gotou, Asami Yuuki and Yuzuha Mishima all have their respective moments to motivate Sayu as she grows out of her destructive habits. Our cast lends strength to a stranger in need, with a degree of openness and optimism that is really refreshing to watch weekly. The pep talks motivating Sayu to confront her deepest fears and embrace life rarely fails to warm my heart. Seeing this broken individual break free from her harmful vices was a rather cathartic experience, amidst the issues we've brought up so far, and the problems we're about to tackle.
One big caveat actually comes with one of the series' strengths: Yoshida's maturity. He doesn't really undergo a character arc in this story, mostly acting as a mentor alongside Sayu. What would have been two ends of an age-gap ends up feeling like half of a missed opportunity, as Yoshida's perspective rarely takes the spotlight from Sayu's growth. I'm unsure if this is an issue present in the source material, or a concession made in order to wrap up the adaptation within a single cour. In any case, this stagnation in character development results in certain stretches of the narrative meandering around similar story beats, especially towards the latter half of Higehiro. The script feels somewhat lost at times, resorting to Mishima delivering stream-of-consciousness rants to our other characters in order to motivate them in vague, inconsequential directions. I'd respect Mishima's efforts to get the plot going, if her obtuse rants didn't make up some of the more obnoxious portions of the show. Speaking of annoying, Higehiro does a pretty poor job with its villains. I refer to them as such since the show refrains from adding nuance or dimensions to their portrayals. Perhaps giving some depth to the figures in Sayu's haunting past would further incriminate Yoshida's actions in the audience's eyes, but it's difficult to take scenes seriously when these goons appear. Probably the biggest issue to take with Higehiro is with its depiction of mature scenes and disturbing themes. Making sure that Yoshida never sexualizes Sayu is key to making sure Higehiro gets to share its intended message. While Yoshida himself doesn't sexualize Sayu, the show does that to its own female protagonist. Some of it feels right within the context of the story, but other instances scream "fan service." Certain explicit shots come out from absolutely nowhere, and disrupt the momentum of otherwise serious scenes. The haphazard direction is largely to blame for these missteps. The director and plenty of staff are newbies, and that inexperience is evident in some distasteful mishaps. There were a couple of moments here executed so poorly that they wound up looking more perverted than other "trashy" shows airing this season^^. Production across the board is largely unremarkable.
Higehiro is a story packed with controversies. There are elements within the series which can spark outrage, but I feel that this series does an adequate job with what it's been given. Looking past the nasty implications behind Higehiro's age-gap premise reveals an earnest drama brimming with optimism. The healing process that results from Yoshida's initial criminal mistake is the show's strongest selling point, and one of the most heartwarming developments found in anime this season. Unfortunately, Higehiro does become hampered by inconsistency in areas of writing and direction. Still, I recommend this watch to those who can handle sensitive content; the hope Higehiro instills in its brightest moments could very well trump its upsetting flaws. 5/10~
Speaking of awards:
And with that, we conclude our breakdown of this pairing's strange encounter. I only hope that our meeting here has yielded good impressions. If you happen to like my verbose rants, feel free to check out my other reviews for seasons past and present. I also frequently post writeups under my list updates, so definitely take a peek if you'd like to see me mald over anime as they hit the airwaves. Peace~
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