ANN covers Anime NYC 2023 sponsored by Yen Press and Ize Press!
The first of three “Crunchyroll Premieres” events at Anime NYC 2023 debuted the first episodes of two very different anime: Bartender: God’s Glass and The 7th Time Loop: Villain Enjoys Life carefree when he marries his worst enemy! The former is introduced by one of the show’s producers, while the latter has no introduction—leading to one of the strangest abrupt transitions imaginable.
Bartender: Glass of God
This show has made me thirsty. It’s not even the drink that makes me thirsty (I’m not an alcoholic)—it’s the ice. The animators on this show paid close attention to the carving, placement, and size of each small block or ball of ice. The clips will no doubt be included in the next of those “Ghibli food looks delicious” videos (which are always filled with non-Ghibli anime) to go viral.
I haven’t read the original manga nor seen the anime adaptation before, but I can safely assume that a series that started in 2004 did not introduce Ryu Sasakura by showing him not being able to use a smartphone . My impression is that he’s a friendlier concoction of the Sherlock Holmes type: off-putting when it comes to knowledge unrelated to his work, but when he’s on the job, he’s aware and attentive. everything, mixing perfect drinks thanks to his keen observation of customers..
The story is told from the perspective of Miwa Kurashima and Yukari Higuchi, two hotel workers trying to hire the perfect bartender. They were surprised when Sasakura suddenly passed all the challenges, making all the official candidates for the hotel position confused. While there aren’t fan graphics in the way of Food Wars!, Sasakura’s drink mixing provides an experience that is both vividly transportive and, as the women say, “sexy ”. This episode is very much an introduction, but the love for its subject matter is infectious enough that I’m curious to see where it goes when it premieres in April 2024.
7th Time Loop: The villain enjoys a carefree life while married to his worst enemy!
It’s fun to go from the end of a relaxing iyashikei anime like Bartender to a bloody medieval sword fight. Those expecting something lighter based on other “villain” anime and long titles describing “carefree lives” will be shocked to see that the 7th Time Loop takes action and How difficult is drama? This battle marks the end of Rishe Imgard Wertsner’s 6th cycle through a continuous time loop that takes her back to the day her fiancé, Prince Diedrich, broke off their engagement.
There’s a lot of context for this first episode. throughout, filling in details about Rishe’s first six-loop cycle. Genre tropes provide enough shorthand to read this material at a brisk pace, but I almost wonder if this might have benefited from a twice as long premiere. In each of his past lives, Rishe took on a different occupation before dying in war. In the 7th round, she decides to leave that path completely, using the knowledge she has gained to prevent war and finally live a long and happy life. The episode ends with a surprising twist. I don’t feel embarrassed about revealing it because the title makes it clear: her “worst enemy,” Arnold Hein — the man who killed her in other timelines — proposes to her!
Satoshi Hōno and Ryūnosuke Kasai’s music heightened the drama’s suspense. The animation is mostly impressive except for one puzzling personal aesthetic: everyone’s hair is too shiny. This is an accurate translation of the light novel’s cover, but what’s beautiful in still images is distracting in motion, especially when the characters are shown to be dirty. Minor distractions aside, The 7th Time Loop knows how to keep everyone’s attention and could be one of the fantasy highlights of Winter 2024.