Place to Place
a review by saulgoodman
a review by saulgoodman
The opening sequence of a cat-natured girl with a soft, piano melody trailing behind, Acchi Kocchi bares its mellow-sweet virtues without a poker face. Detailing the school-life and afterschool shenanigans of Io and Co., the show's poison seeps for relentlessly, numbing pleasure.
Despite the tranquil opening sequence, though, Acchi Kocchi derives much of its relaxing effect from its slapstick. With its colorful cast of the prankster duo Mayoi and Sakaki, moe (through blissful ignorance) character Hime, tsun/kuudere hybrid Tsumiki and the Jack-of-all-trades Io, their distinct personality quirks ensure commonplace shenanigans. The show modestly sticks with the traditional manzai routine, the basis of many of the jokes, but generously rotates the boke and tsukkomi roles between everyone for slight refreshment. Where Mayoi's dysfunctional inventions takes up the helm of one joke, the next one renders her the bewildered straight-man in the face of Tsumiki's superhuman physical prowess, and oft the unfortunate victim of it.
The thin veil of romance between Tsumiki and Io is still one of the most endearing things to bear witness to. Though, it's much more one-sided, making it all the more enticing and ship-worthy. The cat motif often make up both the jokes and intimacy of their relationship, with Tsumiki's (accidental) feline mannerisms striking a nerve within the cat-loving Io. Though, the amusingly diabetic moments aside, there's occasionally a few heartfelt scenes removed of the comedy that makes the romance subtlety pop out.
Inside the cube of a school setting, Acchi Kocchi diligently reuses the subsettings per the invisible guidelines of the school comedy, slice-of-life genre. The afterschool arcade, the summer excursion, friends' homes; nothing sets Acchi Kocchi apart its genre peers largely in this respect and it's appreciated.
For how simple Acchi Kocchi is, there's still consideration behind cultivating its relaxing charm. The background music has subdued heart, taking care to ease the audience with its soft melodies, chirpy tunes and occasionally an upbeat chant in the more action-oriented scenes. The aforementioned opening sequence is one such considerate instance, with a gentle piano accompanying silent shots of the snowed city. Though scarce compared to the comedic ones, the more tranquil scenes of Acchi Kocchi best boast the its calming musical virtue, alone feeling like a mini-therapy session.
Though not quite chibi, the character designs somewhat border around there with their bobbly heads and rather pudgy bodies, which stays true to the original manga designs. Nothing out of the ordinary in this genre, I suppose. For how amusingly skewed some of the characters' personalities are, the VA cast performed well in bringing their caricature-like personas to life. Most notably, Rumi Ookubo's aloof, reserved tone for Tsumiki and Hitomi Nabatame's obnoxiously energetic and dramatic for Mayoi. As an offhand comment, I thought Acchi Kocchi and Lucky Star were set in the same universe years ago because of the similarities between Tsumiki and Konata's designs.
Though not nearly much of a fanatic as Studio SHAFT, the show often uses vectors, arrows and the geometrical likes as indicative transitions to flashbacks and new scenes. Strangely enough, they somewhat contribute to the encompassing relaxation. The bubbly font stylization, the fat and bubbly shapes and occasional chibi character icons pop with subtle cuteness, even if they appear for a split couple seconds. More apparent, though, is the similarly bubbly color design. In scenes removed of scenic backgrounds, there's always bright, vivid colors behind the characters. While not a decisive factor in discussion, I appreciate the care that went into the small details of production/direction.
School life and afterschool shenanigans laid on the table, no hidden hand of distinctness behind it; Acchi Kocchi is modest in its relaxation endeavors. Though distinction can be a virtue when done right, staying true and simple to the craft has always been one. "Generic" has been a term stigmatized to a degree, but seeing Acchi Kocchi execute and utilize settings, situations and a slapstick comedy style I've seen many times over in other shows has been a delight. Rewatching this show after nearly a decade, I can vouch for its timeless relaxing effect. The slice-of-life genre is bountiful with tranquil riches, Acchi Kocchi one of them. Take the time to not necessarily watch this show, but take a breather.
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