Honestly, at this point, put on some girl fetish shows. At the time, I thought they were generally lacking in the artistry of what television anime were coming to be–completely lacking in any kind of meaningful character writing or thematic purpose, but at least located within a specific niche of fetish-driven content, proudly offering no reason or incentive for actual critics and art enthusiasts to engage with them. They are worthless but also harmless; a clear reflection of a particular subculture’s fetish for their difficulties connecting with the opposite sex, nothing more, nothing less.
I’m wrong. Dear reader, I was so, so wrong.
Even the original OreImo is actually more worthy of ridicule than proud softcore porn like Kiss x Sis. At least Kiss x Sis knows what it is and doesn’t pretend to have anything to say about love or life. OreImo offers a much more serious sin when trying to communicate with his audience, claiming that the world is completely intellectually meaningless and that psychological development does not like the development of otaku geekiness is a culture worth dedicating your life to. A philosophy that should have been overdeveloped or at least understood as myopic, can instead become your guiding star, your lens for interacting with the world at large. Kiss x Sis is the informed indulgence of a personal fetishist; OreImo is a gilded invitation to the Neverland of eternal youth.
We have witnessed the consequences of Neverland becoming the immigrant home of a generation of would-be writers. Ignoring the insignificant instructive influence of professional editors, they took to the internet, creating the animated fantasies of our current age out of fear and fetish, stereotypes RPGs are popular and especially the scandalous doujinshi. From the ashes of the sister-worship era rose the great phoenix of the slave-worship era, merging with the defeated, alleviating the isolation of isekai dramas to create the story has completely abandoned engagement with the world. And now, their followers are clamoring for major confirmation, wondering how many steps they’ve taken since Kiss x Sis, or in what direction those questionable steps have taken them.
I’m glad I don’t review anime by season anymore, quite frankly. There are only so many times I can write “this work reflects a fundamental inability to interact with people who are not like its author and the proud assertion of that shortcoming as a kind of victory some philosophy” before I get tired of sweeping the sand by the beach, fully aware my words are reaching similarly aware or willfully deaf ears. How should I refrain from criticizing the techniques instead of the content? What profession? The script is amateurish, the characters lack interiority beyond what the author feels or half-remembers about Dragon Quest, and any feats of animation dedicated to realizing these stories are merely the polish and decoration of a particularly toxic piece of trash.
Honestly, I wish this was a more complicated situation. It would be more interesting if the current wave of fetish-affirming media actually had some important themes, something that really fascinates me. Bakemonogatari is fascinating, often in ways that make you keep an eye out for anyone not affected by the anime’s particular promiscuity, and I love it! I love the ambiguity of engaging with complex works that reveal the heart of the creator, in all their beauty and messiness. But the thing is, Nisio Isin could write and think, and engage in both at the same time even in the midst of his most passionate works. He’s witty, insightful, and cares deeply about people—not just his own interests as expressed by the characters around him, but also the diverse, endless complexities of people. others, whom his protagonists cannot hope to understand. And what Isin doesn’t understand, he wants—that is Monogatari’s great hope, that we can understand each other and ourselves little by little.
The current era of slave fantasy is largely fueled by creators who can’t write, and moreover can’t really think but just vomit. There is no attempt to express the infinite beauty of language in their prose, and no curiosity about the interiority of others in their stories. You look at their story and only see their author, because that’s all their author can see. For audiences who also see themselves in those authors, I argue that such an example is a source of authenticity; for anyone beyond that sense of claustrophobia, such stories provide just a familiar, repetitive character study and nothing more. I have researched this character. I have gauged its passion and contours, and I have seen exactly how far its empathy and ambition can stretch. I’m sick of watching it.
Given the modern state of seasonal production, it’s actually a relief to return to the proud, harmless notoriety of Kiss x Sis. This OVA knows what it is and doesn’t pretend to be something more. There is no great truth of humanity said to be hidden in later visions, no attempt is made to pretend that passion is somehow the seed of insight. No one would have told me its feeble gestures towards characterization despite being a character study worthy of intellectual engagement. No one will be mad if I say it’s trash, because trash is happiness.
And you know what? Kiss x Sis is absolutely adorable trash. It’s self-aware enough to know its premise is absurd, and uses that self-awareness to lighten the tone of its passion, inviting the audience to participate in a harmless animated fantasy. Its characters seem to enjoy spending time with each other, and their conversations actually turn and turn, guided by the guilt-reducing drive of their extremely progressive sisters. protagonist. Everyone involved seems to genuinely enjoy sex, which goes beyond what you can say about the predatory, seemingly vengeful ethos displayed in the majority of modern isekai. Sex isn’t something you demand from another person – it should be a joyfully shared experience, and Kiss x Sis embodies that joy in every passionate aspect.
Honestly, compared to the bitter, often overtly transactional nature of its sexuality as presented in some modern shows, the fantasies of Kiss x Sis seem almost pure. Girls in Santa suits singing about how much they love you, occasional underwear, surprise kisses—these are really no more scandalous than Love Hina, reflecting an era that sexual intimacy is longed for but not considered a number is precisely what the protagonist is denied. Modern fantasies often cannot help but betray the philosophical underpinnings of their sexual fantasies, the feeling that something is wrong in the world and that there is only one strong, unabashedly predatory man can only reaffirm the correct social order. There’s nothing like that in Kiss x Sis – just a guy floundering through passionate adventures with two sisters who really, really like him.
So yeah, the second episode of Kiss x Sis mostly plays out like that, with the Santa Suit leading to an accidental hangover and then an extended peeing adventure that’s sure to make Satisfies all water sports enthusiasts. The animation is limited and the show relies heavily on slow-mo moves to further expand what animation exists, but the character art is consistent and reasonably expressive. I can now see that my astute readers were right about the particular fantasy conveyed here—this is a sister-worship, in which the soothing certainty of a friend Girl will never leave you is interwoven with the saying “I will take care of you”. you” the attraction of being pampered by a confident older woman. It’s all surreptitiously sexy and utterly harmless, reflecting its desire for scandalous intimacy in audiences who may be as innocently sexually curious as the characters. its main object. Porn is under no obligation to say anything of substance, and honestly, that’s usually for the best. We all have our fantasies – feel free to indulge them, but don’t let them define you.
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