Anime So... This is drugs, right? -- City: The Animation

[Waffles's iconWaffles]

I don't really watch much of anything these days.

I feel that, if I'm gonna be in front of a screen anyway, I may as well get some sort of interactivity out of it.

However, it only took reading the summary to City: The Animation once to get me excited — I mean, look at this:

"Midori is in a bit of a bind. She is in debt, and her landlady is trying to shake her down for unpaid rent. Her best friend refuses to loan her cash since she’s wised up to her tricks. Maybe some bullying would help. Or a bit of petty theft? Neither is sustainable. Maybe getting a job would settle things… But working means less time for fun adventures in the big city…".

I was beyond hyped when I read that because it felt both oddly relatable and extremely fun... And it was! But, as I soon discovered, this series just likes its curveballs and it throws them so confidently that you can't help but admire them.

For example: I really thought I was gonna love Midori, but it's her friends who kept me engaged throughout the whole thing.

Midori is absolutely great, but suffers from — what I like to call — "Main Character Syndrome", meaning that all her hijinks seem to be volunteered rather than random, but that makes the aforementioned friends all the better because you get the distinct impression that they are dragged into whatever trouble Midori is in, which enhances the whole thing.

The sometimes-sweet, but often violent and always stressed Niikura and the eternally clueless Wako make me laugh so hard whenever they are on screen that they just steal the show entirely.

I also really like Eri and Matsuri, the middle school (?) friends who are so in love with their friendship that literally anything is a go with them, no matter how chaotic, silly or unfeasible their plans are. I love it. I have always felt that friendship is not explored enough in media, and seeing one so pure is kind of a treat.

I also like how the nicest guy on Earth is in town and is not above (or oblivious to) all the chaos unfolding around him, just being too good-natured to actually call any of it out... And that works really well because he's always being targeted by this one girl who lives for rewarding good actions, sending her butler to capture him over and over again — it's silly, but it works in the short bursts the show presents it.

The only thing I truly don't like about the world of City (hah) is the skits featuring the manga artists — I didn't find any of them either fun or interesting and it's a shame that they are featured so often when stuff like the twins who argue about everything, the football team that knows they suck (but try really hard anyway) and the teacher so chill that he doesn't mind when thirty dumb kids hijack his class and cheat in plain sight are much stronger in general.

Like I said, I like a lot about this show (especially how everyone looks like Harvest Moon characters), but I can only stomach one episode at a time due to how crazy the whole thing is... It drains me while reliably making me laugh out loud.

There's also something that I'm convinced was pure trolling on the part of the director... In episode 5 they permanently split the screen and make you follow every named character around at the same time, as if saying: "So, you like the city, huh? Well, have fun keeping track of it all! Fucker!" XD

I really didn't think I was going to start 2026 with a banger, yet here we are.

Enjoy!

 

[Jayonnaise6105 Jayonnaise6105]

Have you seen Nichijou, per chance? It's another very fun anime from the same person who created City. Similar premise, similar insanity. It's one of my favourites :)

 

[Waffles's iconWaffles]

Have you seen Nichijou, per chance? It's another very fun anime from the same person who created City. Similar premise, similar insanity. It's one of my favourites :)
View attachment 142542

I haven't, actually! Been meaning to for a while.

 

[kbcinharoxa]

Wow, it’s been a long time since I last watched anime… is this my back pain talking? (just kidding XD)
From what I’ve read, it actually sounds really interesting. I don’t really have anything else to add to this post, except to ask: any more recommendations for MyAnimeList?
Because damn, you really hyped me up to watch this :P
It feels like the kind of anime I’d watch on some random afternoon, just like Toradora… man, I miss Toradora.

 

[RanmyakuIchi's icon RanmyakuIchi RanmyakuIchi]

I really need to find the time to watch this, Nichijou is one of my favorite anime's of all time.

 

[Bakuma1997]

Nichijou is already a fever dream enhanced by some "flour", haven't seen it aside of some shorts, i really have to see it, this scene sold it to me

 

[CheesyExplosive]

I don't really watch much of anything these days.

I feel that, if I'm gonna be in front of a screen anyway, I may as well get some sort of interactivity out of it.

However, it only took reading the summary to City: The Animation once to get me excited — I mean, look at this:



I was beyond hyped when I read that because it felt both oddly relatable and extremely fun... And it was! But, as I soon discovered, this series just likes its curveballs and it throws them so confidently that you can't help but admire them.

For example: I really thought I was gonna love Midori, but it's her friends who kept me engaged throughout the whole thing.

Midori is absolutely great, but suffers from — what I like to call — "Main Character Syndrome", meaning that all her hijinks seem to be volunteered rather than random, but that makes the aforementioned friends all the better because you get the distinct impression that they are dragged into whatever trouble Midori is in, which enhances the whole thing.

The sometimes-sweet, but often violent and always stressed Niikura and the eternally clueless Wako make me laugh so hard whenever they are on screen that they just steal the show entirely.

I also really like Eri and Matsuri, the middle school (?) friends who are so in love with their friendship that literally anything is a go with them, no matter how chaotic, silly or unfeasible their plans are. I love it. I have always felt that friendship is not explored enough in media, and seeing one so pure is kind of a treat.

I also like how the nicest guy on Earth is in town and is not above (or oblivious to) all the chaos unfolding around him, just being too good-natured to actually call any of it out... And that works really well because he's always being targeted by this one girl who lives for rewarding good actions, sending her butler to capture him over and over again — it's silly, but it works in the short bursts the show presents it.

The only thing I truly don't like about the world of City (hah) is the skits featuring the manga artists — I didn't find any of them either fun or interesting and it's a shame that they are featured so often when stuff like the twins who argue about everything, the football team that knows they suck (but try really hard anyway) and the teacher so chill that he doesn't mind when thirty dumb kids hijack his class and cheat in plain sight are much stronger in general.

Like I said, I like a lot about this show (especially how everyone looks like Harvest Moon characters), but I can only stomach one episode at a time due to how crazy the whole thing is... It drains me while reliably making me laugh out loud.

There's also something that I'm convinced was pure trolling on the part of the director... In episode 5 they permanently split the screen and make you follow every named character around at the same time, as if saying: "So, you like the city, huh? Well, have fun keeping track of it all! Fucker!" XD

I really didn't think I was going to start 2026 with a banger, yet here we are.

Enjoy!

yep.... they have consumed meth. moving on!!!

 

[VampireLord1024VampireLord1024's icon]

Nichijou is already a fever dream enhanced by some "flour", haven't seen it aside of some shorts, i really have to see it, this scene sold it to me

I did watch the anime when it was airing last Summer and it was really the only anime that I looked forward to watching, as I read all of the chapters that came out, minus the newer chapters once the manga resumed publication, (but I did read all of those ones too as of earlier today). I really do like the opening of the anime. I was most interested in watching the main three Mont Blanc trio, Niikura, Midori and Wako, but I liked this scene of Eri & Matsuri as well as in the English dub, (some may remember me posting that one picture of Eri with her cheeseburger a few months ago on my profile).

Another scene that I liked a lot was Niikura's late night ramen snacking, (the English dub made it funnier, at least to me).

 

[Waffles's iconWaffles]

I'm normally not one to gosh about pieces of media... But when a show has my favorite character getting properly high on food for five straight minutes while narrating the whole thing, then I know I'm in the right place.