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This is a slice of life series that seemingly combines a somewhat atypical premise with a theme or topic that I’m fond of, so it became instantly interesting for me to check out. The second one is childcare, as in, an adult character seeing their life changing because they start to take care of a child, in the likes of Aishiteruze Baby, Usagi Drop, Kotaro Lives Alone or something like that, or so I assumed, but since the kid in this series is a teenager and not a child, that dynamic is different than the one from those shows.
And although some aspects of the everyday life of Makio, the adult of the story, do change, you don’t feel like living with another person really changed her life all that much, which to be fair it was also the case in all the aforementioned series. I mean she and some other characters do mention how much of a responsibility and change for her it means to take her niece in, but the viewer never really feels it all that much.
The other aspect is grief, which I don’t remember being explored in anime all that much. There are shows about the afterlife, but most focus on, well, people living a second life after dying, rather than how the left behind are affected. There are also series where the topic is part of the themes but maybe for one or few episodes, and not the core element in it. Off the top of my head I can name Bimbou Shimai Monogatari and perhaps Tsuma Shougakusei ni Naru, which I haven't watched yet, as examples that feature the element to some extent, but not many more titles.
Regarding this, I have to recognize that the beginning of the anime is a bit weird, given the personality and lifestyle of Makio, as well as her previous relationship with her sister, you ask yourself why would she take her niece in. And Asa also seems very indifferent after losing her parents and being left alone, although that is dealt with eventually and gradually within the show.
Indeed, a good portion of the initial episodes is about Asa coming to terms with her loss, introspecting about her feelings regarding the tragedy, her previous life with her family, and finding the right words to express herself about both what happened and just her feelings in general.
And I said initial episodes because, although the theme is present, it’s not like it is explored that deeply or seriously, as the tone is for the most part that of a common slice of life, with some comedy mixed in. Eventually, the topic mutates into something else, as Asa questions her relationship with her family and even if they loved her at all, which transforms into her wanting to start to live her life her own way, find out what she wants for herself, despite what others might think about it.
One could even say that that ends up becoming the main theme of the show, as we also follow the other characters introspecting about their relationships and paths in life and how they got there, and how happy or not they are with that. We see Makio fighting with her sister, the latter being explored more than what was shown on her really bad initial impression and how she felt about not being able to achieve what she wanted in life, Makio’s ex thinking about his mental health and clashing with his father, he and the lawyer defying social machismo, Asa’s friend, Emily, accepting being a lesbian, and more stuff.
Which means that, with this theme, we get more character fleshing as we explore the feelings and backdrops of the characters, but I also have to point out how the plot develops more typically than it seemed at first, and the initial topic seems to have been lost somewhere down the line. The series stopped being about grief and became a coming of age and self discovery show, which is fine but far more typical, common and well not as interesting in my opinion.
As for characterization, even if the characters are fleshed out, there’s no strong development for anybody, which makes sense because most of the cast is adult and have normal lives, so it’s not like they are going to have a mind-blowing revelation or change that might impact them in any particular way. Asa is the one that gets most of the focus in that regard, and although you can see her slowly wanting things on her own and finding how to express herself; I wouldn’t say she changes much from beginning to end.
As for the conclusion, it clearly skipped some content and used a big time skip, while at the same time featured an in-story narration to deliver a meta message to the audience. A bit weird and doesn’t feel entirely complete, but it’s fine, and hey, it’s a slice of life series that actually ends, how about that?
Audiovisually the anime is very polished, the artwork was done with a lot of care, the character designs are simple but do stand out by not having typical looks, although they do have some classic noitamina feel to them. The backgrounds are pretty, the motions are ok though nothing special, and even though there are not that many special effects to speak of, the directing changing locations and times during conversations to convey different feelings and characters introspecting can make entire conversational scenes far more dynamic. There are also some visual metaphors at times to reflect what the characters are saying or thinking, like Asa’s desert, Makio’s wandering through passages of her novels, or Asa looking at a void, representing her heart and connection with her mother through a journal in her mind.
The music and sound effects are relaxed and fitting, the opening and ending are calmed jpop songs and kind of beautiful. The voice acting is mostly mature and normal, in a non-typically anime kind of way, so it was a nice touch, and it’s particularly impressive from Asa’s seiyuu in her debut role, being able to convey her different feelings, moods and singing parts just fine. Also there were some appreciated quiet moments. All in all the audio complements very well with the visuals in making what would normally be a typical slice of life story, into something that at times can have quite the atmosphere.
In all, if you’re looking for a slice of life story, Ikoku Nikki might provide a good, relaxed but also a bit of an emotional time. It has an interesting premise, although it changes into something more typical, a decent, kind of looked into cast, good visuals and directing, and although it’s mostly relaxed, it can also feature its fair share of emotional yet not exaggerated nor manipulative moments about forging your way in your life and coming to terms with losing someone in it. I wouldn’t say it’s amazing nor that rewatchable or anything, but I found it to be a well made slice of life show, and the only title I liked from its season.
6/10
