Shirobako | Episode 13 (2nd cour premiere) | TFP Review
EmperorBrandon: A number of interesting things in the new opening. There’s a decent amount of cuteness with exhausted Aoi (and seeing this episode, we know she’s going to be so with her many added responsibilities now) getting a lollipop from Yano, Ema with a cute animator friend, and apparently highlights girl is good friends with glasses girl from the new key visual. Too bad Shizuka doesn’t have a seiyuu girl friend with her. Speaking of Shizuka, though, she just happens to have an audition for the show Musani is doing next. I’d be surprised if she doesn’t actually get a role this time. The main group of girls might be all coming together in some way on this one. Another interesting thing I notice a second time with the OP is seeing Midori with Shimeji the scriptwriter. Might be a hint of going beyond her volunteer plane research?
It’s neat how we’re already getting in pretty deep with the particular issues that come up with doing an adaptation.
bctaris: I loved every second of that.
I felt like the show was hitting its stride and that’s what it seems like. Having established all the concepts and roles of the people involved in this sort of thing so well last cour, throwing in all of this new information, and shaking jobs up, worked better than I would have thought (laying the groundwork in the last couple episodes of first cour that this would be Musashino’s next project helped), and, in fact, made the whole episode pretty exciting. I love the seeming naturalness of Aoi getting bumped up to Desk, and the crash course Watanabe gives her, and us, about what’s involved in that. (And you get the sense why the next step up for Aoi is in fact Watanabe’s slightly less stressful mahjong-playing line producer job.) (Also, curious tidbit there that maybe I just missed earlier in the show: Takanashi has only been a production assistant a month longer than Aoi. Well, that puts things in perspective.) It’s just plain fun following along with Aoi as she gets so intimately involved with being the person who gets this show made, not just playing one small part.
As EB mentions, I also liked the suggestion of the OP, followed with the scene at the museum of the writer complementing Aoi’s “researcher”, that Midori might find a curious but not altogether unusual backdoor into the business. A good researcher is indeed hard to find. You also have to wonder, with the suggestion made a couple times in the episode that there is “a lot of CG” in this new show, if Misa won’t also find a way in just because they need the manpower.
And go, Shizuka!
EyeOfPain: The way they’ve been able to make almost all the characters grow and develop in their roles, and still feel like a natural progression is one of the things I love about Shirobako, and this episode didn’t disappoint. Of course, Tarou is still going at his own pace.
There was a big deal made about the character designer, but I don’t remember any mention of a mechanical designer, which, given the content, seems like it would be a large job. But maybe it’s rolled into Shimoyanagi’s work on CG.
One thing I don’t think I’ve seen brought up was the fact that Watanabe (I believe) clearly stated that auditions wouldn’t be held until February, but requests had already been sent out to Aka Oni Pro for voice actors. Something about that timeline doesn’t seem to jive for me, so I wonder if Zuka’s audition is going to be for an OVA or manga exclusive episode, and not the TV series that Musani is working on.
bctaris: I thought that was odd too, until I realized that what simply happened is that the story jumped ahead a little bit, possibly covering two or three weeks of stuff there with Aoi and crew researching and in meetings. (Just Iguchi doing the character designs would have taken more than a week, I imagine. And there was obviously a jump from Midori asking to do research and a scene or two later of Kinoshita having already read it by the time they go to the museum.) The whole cour probably has to cover at least ten months of time until this show airs, if not more; a month in every episode may not be unusual as this goes on.
Other stuff I thought of, while I’m here… Looking at the OP again, Misa does seem to be working on plane stuff, or the guy behind her certainly is. And I had forgotten about the meeting with Aoi and Kinoshita with that prospective art director, and the actually interesting conversation about clouds. That’s another important position in making these shows, and one I’m always keen on, so I’m happy to see that introduced.
I also can’t help thinking again about Shirobako‘s director, Mizushima, explaining awhile back that Takanashi is based on himself when he was a lowly PA, with the character’s belief that he would simply be promoted to director of all positions just because he loves Aerial Girls so much.
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kijakusai: The name of the mangaka of The 3rd Girls’ Squadron is ‘Nogame Take***’.
So, probably he is modelled on Nogami (GirlPan, StPan) Takeshi. The art style of The 3rd Girls’ Squadron is similar to that of Nogami Takeshi.
Nogami Takeshi also illustrates a series of books in which girls learn about tanks at a military school.
The publishing company Yotaka Shobō may be modelled on publisher Akita Shoten. Akita Shoten publishes Sailor Suit and Heavy Tank and Shiden-kai no Maki by Nogami Takeshi.
Hitsugi Amachi: I was getting a strong GaruPan vibe from what brief glimpses we saw of “Third Aerial Girls Squad.” Now it makes it that much more certain.
bctaris: I almost took that whole scene as a dig at the fecklessness of manga publishers and editors when dealing with animation studios. You have to wonder if Mizushima has been in real life meetings like that. Watanabe was so worried about how the publisher and the mangaka would react to changes in only staff on the show, let alone story, and they hardly seemed to care.
Pretty neat, too, that Mizushima is sort of re-creating Girls und Panzer, but with fighter jets.
kijakusai: So, that manga editor is a new Takanashi-troublemaker?
Hitsugi Amachi: To me, he seemed more like a Maeno-type. Completely oblivious to anyone and anything but himself…and more than likely to cause trouble in the future because of his fecklessness.
kijakusai: あー、『野崎くん』のね from Nozaki-kun。 Thank you for telling me a different viewpoint. ^_^
The ‘Mitsu’ part of Maeno’s given name is written as ‘蜜’ (honey), and it connotes his superficial ‘sweetness’.
The stylistic feel of Chazawa’s wording suggests that he is a frivolous person. When I think how things will go about the new project of Musashino Animation, a thrill caused by the existence of manga editor Chazawa is bad for my heart.
