Chisato is best girl.

This concludes my review of Lycoris Recoil. Thank you.

That was the short version. This is the longer version.

I found out about Lycoris Recoil while browsing a list of upcoming summer anime, which I rarely do. The premise sounded cool enough, and I decided it would be my one show I’d watch this summer (spoilers: I ended up watching three other shows at the same time). The official premise promised “package delivery” and “zombies and giant monster extermination”… I’m not sure if that was cut out of the show during production, or if they were overhyping it due to the fact that it’s an anime original. Needless to say, we got something vastly different, and that’s a relief. With the vast array of fantasy-in-real-life shows out there, I’m glad we got a more grounded and realistic show. One where teenage anime girls can dodge bullets.

Ever since the show started airing, I’ve heard the terms “John Wick, but it’s cute anime girls” and (my personal favourite) “CGDCT: Cute Girls Doing Counter-Terrorism” thrown around a bunch, but that’s only good enough to recruit watchers; it doesn’t really give an accurate picture of what Lycoris Recoil really is… Actually, “Cute Girls Doing Counter-Terrorism” is a pretty apt description of the broad strokes, but it’s missing the beating heart: Chisato Nishikigi, and more specifically, her growing relationship with the straight-laced Takina Inoue.

Chisato is a very atypical protagonist for this kind of show. Yes, she’s insanely good at her job, but instead of killing bad guys, her job is waiting tables at a small cafe. Despite the fact that she got kicked out of the taskforce and now works at a suspiciously named cafe, Chisato is happier to serve customers than to serve justice. She’s an extreme optimist who has seen the horrors of death and came out of it recognizing the value of human life. So, even though she can dodge bullets and shoot with precision aim, she refuses to use live ammo, and will always try to keep the body count as close to zero as possible.

Takina, on the other hand, is a stone-cold assassin who doesn’t hesitate to kill when necessary. She’s impulsive, to the point that she goes against orders to save a member of her squad. This sets up that even though she may not show it on the outside, she certainly cares for the people around her, even if “caring” means firing above your head to kill the enemy. This aspect of her slowly makes its way to the forefront as the friendship between her and Chisato develops.

It’s satisfying to see how people change when they’re around Chisato, or at the very least, how their true natures are revealed. Ex-Lycoris member Takina, her surrogate father and boss Mika, new hire Kurumi, and a swath of regular customers of the cafe LycoReco are all affected by Chisato in a personal way. She doesn’t necessarily undergo a character arc, but characters like her don’t need one to make them compelling. What makes them stand out is how they affect the characters with whom they interact.

And this is all without mentioning the story. It’s a combination of the gang looking for an elusive terrorist and Chisato looking for the man who gave her a purpose. It’s not a masterclass in storytelling, but it’s no slouch. Each episode ranges from fun, bizarre girl time between Takina and Chisato, engaging car chases and shootouts, solving mysteries, or any combination of the three. It’s a good time, and each episode will have you scrambling to watch the next one.

Every voice actor absolutely nails it, the animation is great, and the characters are phenomenal. Lycoris Recoil is absolutely worth your time, and with the positive reception of the show (especially in Japan), here’s hoping for a second season!