Glasslip

Having been raised in a family that owns a glass blowing business, Touka Fukami knows first hand how deformed something precious to you can become if you don’t treat it with the utmost care and focus... But up until the summer of her senior year, she's never known just how important that lesson could become to other aspects of her life. Growing up in a quiet, quaint seaside Japanese town, Touka has had the same four friends in her orbit for years, and as much as she cares for each of them, she knows deep in her heart that the clock is ticking against them, and time will eventually drive them apart. As fate would have it, though, Touka winds up having a sudden encounter with a new transfer boy, one she immediately nicknames David, and while she feels increasingly drawn to him by the day, it seems that his very presence may play a role in fracturing her precious friend group faster than she ever could have guessed.

I don’t think it would be unwarranted to call PA Works one of the most consistently high-quality animation studios in Japan. I don’t think I’ve seen a single title from them that didn’t look, at the very least, gorgeous. The visuals were literally the only thing I liked about Another, and Glasslip definitely has production values to match it. Much like everything else I’ve seen from PA Works catalogue, Glasslip has the immersive backgrounds and bright articulate facial expressions that seem like they were inspired by early Kyoto Animation, but without ever having to resort to the runny eggs animation of later Kyoto Animation. Depending where you are in the series, the animation ranges from highly lavish and graceful, to potentially cheap, but directed well enough that it doesn’t ever creep into ugly territory. There’s an element of CGI that occasionally pops up throughout the story, but it complements the 2D designs well enough that it never looks out of place, from the trolley in the beginning to the supernatural effects surrounding Touka’s glassblowing and... Well, abilities.

As beautiful as the animation and artwork may be, the real star of this anime is the design work. Starting with the setting, the cast lives in a charming seaside town that feels consistently rich and immersive, both historical enough to stand out as its own entity and familiar enough that you could imagine every member of the cast spending their lives there. The characters are incredibly easy on the eyes, and while I’ll admit one of them kinda looks a little bland, the rest of them each have their own share of subtle details; From Touka’s innocent looking braids to Sachi’s asymmetrical bob haircut and slightly pale complexion, to Hiro’s slightly off center grin. There’s also a lot of running in this show, seeing how one character runs track and another later starts running alongside him, and despite the anime medium’s long history of just using repeated running cycles to save money, it is thankfully a lot more convincing here, as each step either character takes has a gravity to it.

There’s no English dub, but the music is nice enough. It’s mostly piano ballads, which do feel like a tone-deaf choice in a few scenes, and it proves to be way too loud in others, drowning out the dialogue. This is also one of those few anime where I never skipped the opening or closing themes, not because they were really good... I personally don’t think there’s anything special about them, they’re pretty generic as far as themes are concerned, but because they fit the tone of the series damn near perfectly.

So yeah, the production values are damn near flawless, which isn’t too surprising considering PA Works’ track record, which is a good thing, because beyond that, Glasslip does not have a great reputation.

If you were to poll everyone who has seen this anime, whether in part or in its entirety, and you asked them all to describe the series in one word, the most common answer by far would probably be ‘boring.’ Glasslip is a coming of age slice of life anime, and there is a vocal contingency of anime fans who aren’t particularly intrigued by such fare. Slice of life stories in general are known to be slow moving and plotless with very little actually happening in them, and when you add teenagers to the mix, you will more than likely be setting up a ton of cliched character archetypes and melodrama that can range from pretentious to relatable. There are quite a few shows like this that have managed to find mainstream popularity, even if they don’t land particularly well with critics, but there are also entries in the genre that managed to melt even the most cynical of hearts. Normally, though, these titles have some element to them that works exceptionally well, whether it be an interesting gimmick, a complex and well written cast, a potent sense of humor, or just strong writing in general, so, does Glasslip have all of that?

Well, for the most part, no. It’s not devoid of these qualities, but it is kind of hit and miss. First off, while the characters are very likeable, they’re puddle deep at best. None of them are particularly interesting as individuals, and their most stand out qualities are often related to which other characters they have a crush on. Having said that, the bonds between them do feel real, and the interactions between them... With the exception of a few stiff and/or cringey lines of dialogue here and there... Do feel genuinely familiar. The writing can be funny, and there is a strong sense of comedic timing, but Glasslip is not primarily a comedy, and being funny isn’t really a high priority, although it happens on a serviceable enough basis for brevity in the story. As for the gimmick, well, the protagonist Touko does have visions of the future, and her love interest is a mysterious entity tied to it, but a LOT of viewers consider this to be the weakest part of the series, what with the way this supernatural element is handled, and the frustrating lack of an explanation for any of it.

Personally, I don’t think this subplot was mishandled. I think it was represented in a very specific way for a very specific reason, but before I get into that, I need to make two statements; First, obviously, spoilers ahead. Second, saying a story is deep, or that it’s about something, isn’t necessarily a mark of quality. When I posted my review of Serial Experiments Lain two years ago, I was called out in condescending fashion by fans of the show who accused me of not understanding it, or just not trying to understand it. I responded by telling them the same thing I said in my review... I don’t CARE what the series is about, because I don’t care about Lain, and I don’t care about the plot surrounding her. I’m sure it has some brilliant statements to make, but if the writing on the surface isn’t grabbing me, then I have no reason to look below. Hell, even if I did understand it, that doesn’t guarantee I’d like it. I know exactly what Darling in the Franxx was trying to say... Credit where it’s due, Franxx did a superb job executing it’s message, but guess what? Darling in the Franxx is still terrible, and everything it has to say is also terrible.

So, when I say that I think Glasslip has some depth, and it’s about something, and it has something to say, I’m not trying to scold you for finding the series boring. You have every right to find it boring, even if you DO wind up seeing what I’m seeing. And I’m not saying it’s a perfect show either... Hell, it features one particular LGBT storyline that ends in a hilariously disappointing cop-out, and I have no idea why David is able to speak to clones of himself, but I do believe there is one really strong theme throughout the series, and in my opinion, it does justify the supernatural element of Touka’s character arc... And that theme is the fear and anxiety over change.

This series takes place during the last summer that this small, tightly knit friend group is ever going to enjoy before they graduate high school, and then probably split up, go to different colleges and ultimately go their separate ways, and they’re all processing this. The various love confessions aren’t inspired by genuine romantic attraction, they’re born from a desperate attempt to hold onto something precious from this stage of their lives before it’s too late. Maybe it’s just me, but I felt a constant ambience of oppression throughout the story, where these characters feel repressed and out of place... Like they’re right at the precipice of becoming the people they were meant to be, but their friend group... And their small, picturesque seaside town... Are holding them back from doing so, and deep down, they’re all scared to take the first step. The entire reason David is here, whether he knows it or not, is to drive a wedge into their group and give them the push they need to venture out into their futures.

As for Touka’s abilities, I obviously can’t say this for certain, because I’m not the creator of the series and I don’t want to put words in the author’s mouth, but I don’t think they’re real, I think they’re purely metaphorical for her anxiety over the changes happening before her eyes. She sees ‘fragments of the future’ because she’s desperately trying to figure out what the consequences of every decision she makes will be, because she’s terrified of letting her friends drift apart and she’s feeling especially sensitive about protecting them. Visions of snow symbolize her fear of the end of summer. And here’s the real spoiler part: When it turns out that the future fragments she’s seeing are actually from an alternate reality, this is a metaphor for her finally acknowledging that her visions of the future are literally not real, and she’s worrying about things she can’t control, and when she tosses away those glass beads with David, it’s because she’s finally decided to let go and embrace the inevitable. Nothing lasts forever, not even the best of friends. Nobody can control the future, but no matter what happens, the precious memories from your past will stay with you for the rest of your life.

Now, I’m guessing some of you got through that paragraph and think I’m completely off base, and that I’m wrong, and that I’m just pulling all of that out of my ass to justify my enjoyment of a boring anime. Well, I would argue that by the rules of Death of the Author, audience interpretation is just as valid as authorial intent, but aside from that, yeah. You’re right. I like this show a lot, and while that entire spiel about it having depth and themes and stuff may have been extracted directly from the depths of my rectal cavity, that doesn’t change the fact that I still see it, and I still find it emotionally satisfying. I don’t care how flimsy my interpretation of the series may be, I still enjoy coming back to it. I don’t care how shallow the characters may be, I still find them exceptionally well designed and likeable. I don’t care how boring the series is, I think its totally valid to find boring media pleasant and engaging. And yes, I like the fact that they use chickens to symbolize the status of the friend group, that’s just adorkable. I like Glasslip.

Glasslip is available from Sentai Filmworks, but the original light novel is not.

Remember at the end of my In Another World with my Smartphone review, I stated that while I personally found that series boring and lacking in substance, I also completely understood if it was somebody’s comfy show? I feel like I’m on the other end of that sentiment with Glasslip. It’s a show a lot of people find boring and empty, but it’s easily one of MY comfy shows. It has its share of problems, and I’m not going to say anybody’s wrong for not being able to get over them, but I just personally don’t mind them as much. My enjoyment of this anime doesn’t necessarily make it not boring, at least in an objective sense, and I do see where a lot of the negative reactions to it are coming from, I just personally think it’s worth going into with some patience. I’d recommend it to anybody who just sat through something extra shitty and needs an easy, pleasant little palette cleanser to wash the taste out of their mouths, or to anybody who just doesn’t mind watching paint dry once in a while.

I give Glasslip a 6/10.