Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai

Introduction

One of the things that continues to surprise me with anime is just how much content can be packed into such a short time. Many of the most memorable moments to come out of anime are not the resolutions to hundred-episode shounen rivalries, but short, self-contained arcs that say their piece and move on.

Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai is a collection of such arcs. The series comes in easily digestible bundles of 3 episodes that can be enjoyed relatively independently of each other. There is overarching development in the relationship of the main couple, but it often takes a backseat to the current problem at hand.

What makes Bunny Girl notable is that it never wastes time. It always keeps sight of exactly what it's trying to say and delivers a solid conclusion for every character. It manages to create a level of emotional investment comparable to shows twice its length. And it makes powerful statements using the bare minimum number of actions or words.

Synopsis

The plot of Bunny Girl is completely lifted from the Monogatari series. There is a massive difference in presentation, but the similarities are too common to ignore. Protagonist Sakuta Azusagawa lives apart from his parents with his little sister Kaede. He has remarkably few friends at school, and no social life to speak of.

Each month or so in the chronology, he encounters a new female character with some identity crisis. These problems manifest themselves in the physical world as supernaturally unexplainable phenomena. The nature of these occurrences, dubbed "puberty syndrome," often correlate directly to the problem itself.

For example, those with conflicted or dissociative identities may see themselves as another person entirely. In such cases, puberty syndrome acts by creating a new person who behaves identically to the original. Bodies and minds are swapped, duplicated, and replaced until Sakuta can get to the root cause of their stress and help alleviate it.

Often, the girls would prefer to run away from their problems and abandon the life they led before to prevent the pain of confronting their innermost conflicts. For one reason or another, it's always Sakuta that becomes embroiled in such situations. Fortunately, his own past experiences with puberty syndrome and utterly stoic mindset equip him fantastically to play psychiatrist.

Strengths

I, doubtlessly alongside many others, was introduced to this series through the interesting choice of title and cover art. This has proved misleading, but is not necessarily a bad thing, as you may not be expecting the journey this series will take you on, thus increasing the impact of certain scenes when they occur.

Speaking of certain scenes, this is definitely a show that excels in highlights. Each character arc lasts a maximum of three episodes, and with so many characters to get through in such a short time, each has to make a lasting impact. Each arc ends with a memorable confrontation of the girl with her problem, and watching each agonizing to accept their regrets before puberty syndrome takes its hold is never an insipid matter.

While not primarily a romance, the relationship between Sakuta and his girlfriend Mai Sakurajima develops nicely at a consistent pace throughout the show. There is some expected teasing of the viewer, but like many other facts of Bunny Girl, its titular character does not waste time with trivialities. Her feelings towards Sakuta are obvious and reciprocated, to the point that it almost seems off that the main love interest is not a tsundere type.

The only real omnipresence throughout the show is Sakuta, and on my first viewing I never thought too much of him. After all, it feels like we get a new one of these shows every year, and I always just assumed he was quiet and uncaring like Oreki Houtarou or Hachiman Hikigaya. How wrong I was.

Upon closer inspection, Sakuta carries the series with his unflinchingly relatable morality and perfect mastery of the high school social system. After an unfortunate manifestation of puberty syndrome branded him an outcast from his peers, and being forced to care for Kaede alone at such a young age, Sakuta matured near-instantaneously.

He avoids the trap of similar protagonists who become jaded and pessimistic, separating from and ultimately forgetting what meaningful pursuits are in life. Sakuta never loses sight of his values, and his encouraging wit and quiet optimism serve to naturally inspire the afflicted girls without a heavy reliance on "protagonist powers."

Sakuta is always there when someone needs him, a stable rock in a whirling storm of emotions as his friends are dragged into self-acceptance just as he was before. He understands the importance of responsibility in life, as a brother, boyfriend, and human being. He prioritizes those around him but realizes when to put himself first, and overall serves as a truly inspiring person to look up to in all aspects of a successful life.

Weaknesses

Bunny Girl's biggest problem is its most obvious one. The girl-of-the-week formula that the show is based on is one that most anime fans will already be intimately familiar with. On top of this, the manifestations of puberty syndrome are terribly bland, consisting almost exclusively of body-swapping in some form or another.

While not actively detracting from the show, the music could have been utilized much better. The background music, while a standout strength in many other shows of similar composition, is barely present and entirely pedestrian. Especially egregious is the opening song, a poorly chosen track that often grates on the atmosphere that the show works so hard to establish.

Conclusion

Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai is entirely inseparable from its comparisons. The plot is just so unanimous with the genre that it appears in that it is easy to get washed away with the tide of shows that tried to ride on the coattails of Monogatari's success.

Fortunately, I think Bunny Girl is the most successful attempt yet at replicating this formula. While Monogatari presented its harem girls in a surreal and fantastical setting, this latest iteration finds more success in a grounded sense of realism.

I did not mention any of the girls specifically in this review because (other than the obvious intent to avoid spoilers) I don't find them particularly relevant. They make up the majority of the plot but ultimately, as I said above, this show deals in highlights. The moments of quiet resolution, after tears have been shed and relationships repaired anew, are when Sakuta sees the fruits of his labor and all his struggles are justified.

Just as this series deals with the self-acceptance of its characters, it is important for every viewer to accept this series as what it is: not a blatant ripoff of what came before, but a newly imagined take on a classic recipe. In my eyes, Bunny Girl is a welcome improvement and an example for yet greater shows to follow.