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How I Attended An All-Guy's MixerSynopsisTokiwa is a male college student who, along with his buddies Asagi and Hagi, gets invited by a female college classmate, named Suou, to attend a mixer; but when the boys arrive, it seems like there are three "guys" there. They're actually Suou (in male drag) and her fellow "Drag Kings" from the bar she works at, named Fuji and Kohaku. ReviewAs I said somewhere else, there's "good" trash, and there's "bad" trash. This, I found, one of the better "trash" animes. The character designs are just lazy, though come to think of it it may make the audience's suspension-of-disbelief easier for the proposition that the girls, just by dressing in men's clothes (and maybe wearing wigs), effectively impersonate men. (The reviewer has only attended a few drag shows, and the one "drag king" he's seen made much more effort to present as the male stereotype. The girls here, in contrast, are trying for the bishonen ("pretty boy") appearance, and most of their bar's clientele are women.) Our six cast members eventually do sort out into three pairings, as follows: Fuji and Asagi: Fuji mainly confines herself to the bartender task at their "drag king" bar, rather than working the tables. She's of the seemingly emotionless sort, and writes and draws yaoi doujinshi on the side. Asagi, on the other hand, is described in the show as having the personality of a golden retriever: cheerful, energetic, and, ABOVE ALL, eager to please. He's a bit dimmer than most golden retrievers, though. Fuji has him help her with her doujinshi efforts- posing for reference photos (as Narumi had Hirotaka do in Wotakoi), covering for her booth at the comics convention, even inking her doujinshi panels. (Though she's careful to do the ones with steamy BL scenes herself- I wasn't sure if he was REALLY being effectively kept in the dark by her, though.) For the record, I thought her more attractive with glasses (which she doesn't wear when she's working at the bar.) Suou and Tokiwa: Suou is, as noted, a classmate of Tokiwa's, and while she sometimes shows up at school as female (that's how he initially knew her, as noted), she also sometimes shows up in male drag, and in THAT persona she has a considerable female following, dubbed "The Prince". Among "The Prince's" fangirls, Suou's hanging out with Tokiwa prompts both jealousy, AND speculation that "The Prince" might be gay or bi. While Tokiwa seems to lack major personality quirks, Suou is a master (mistress?) of suave flirtation- just enough to create some sexual tension. Her dialogue- and her vocal performance- were to my mind the best things in the show. I could believe her as a drag king "host". And, finally, there's Hagi and Kohaku. Hagi is another of those characters (like Zenitsu in Demon Slayer) who would be much more likeable if his volume dials were turned down several notches, and with some quiet, reflective moments inserted. Hagi's particular obsession (which he goes on and on about, in extended, near hysterical, rants) is that he can't decide if he likes Kohaku better in her stag, or in her femme, modes, leading to the twin absurdities of (1) wondering if he's actually gay, and (2) feeling he's somehow "cheating" if he likes both of her personas. Someone needs to point out that since the "two" people he likes are the SAME person, THERE'S NO ACTUAL ISSUE HERE. AT ALL. He can't really articulate his feelings to HER, though, and, for Kohaku's part, she can't seem to figure out his feelings about her, despite their being rather obvious in his behavior. Kohaku's a pretty amiable character, but their relationship is the rockiest one, almost purely due to the fact that Hagi's an idiot. The Recs feature women who are pressed into service as "male" hosts. Seriously, if Hagi were a little more thoughtful (and MUCH more sedate), I could have gone 3 stars here. — Allen Moody Recommended Audience: HiDive says TV-14. There's alcohol consumption of course (well, the female characters do work IN A BAR.) Mature situations I guess too. But very little fanservice; most of the time we see the ladies, they're dressed as men. Version(s) Viewed: Review Status: Full (12/12) How I Attended An All-Guy's Mixer © 2024 Nana Aokawa/Square Enix/How I Attended An All-Guy's Mixer Production Committee |
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