While there have been a number of fantastic shows over this past year, summer’s anime-original show, Lycoris Recoil, still outshines almost all of them with the force of its unparalleled main character. Together with the cafe setting, there was no other show I waited for more as each week passed.
Nishikigi Chisato took the screen with force and captured my attention wholly from start to finish. While still a high school student, she displayed a varied outlook on life that belied her young years. Normally, this would feel a bit out of place, but her early brush with death explains the maturity. Behind every goofy laugh and smile lies a deep appreciation for her sheer ability to live and experience all that life has to offer. This inner balance extends beyond just herself to her readings of others. She senses what others leave unsaid and respects their feelings no matter how they may differ or oppose hers. And if you think she’s enchanted me, look no further than the supposed villains of Lycoris Recoil, who can’t help but interact with her when they should be exchanging bullets.
Just as enchanting as Chisato’s character is the cafe in which this story is set, LycoReco. Stained glass adorns windows on every wall of the building, and the raised floor and intimate seating provide a cozy atmosphere that even the most popular restaurants wish they could emulate. There is no doubt in my mind that were this to be a real location, I’d be a regular customer. One of my biggest gripes during the airing of this show was the distinct lack of setting art—predictably, most featured Chisato and Takina. I would have loved a variety of moody cafe scenes devoid of characters to use as desktop wallpapers and alongside quiet background music.
12 Days Blog Participants:
Anime B&B 
Yeah, full agreement here. The whole gang at LycoReco was almost as much fun as the relationship between Chisato and Takina. It is rather rare to see an action flick where characters were so well formed and appealing! I still think about EP 4 where we watch our pair actually create a friendship in such a realistic fashion. The Aquarium was just the Cat’s Meow and almost a writer’s lesson in how one goes about actually telling the story.
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Lycoreco is a great example of me living the characters so much that I almost overlook issues I have with the main story itself!
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Like dodging bullets in real time or RPG going off next to the bad guy’s head and the next day he only has a couple of bandages. Or running around on high-rise piping. But I love the characters so much, that doesn’t really matter. I am there for Chisato, Takina, and LycoReco, and all the other characters. Reality doesn’t matter if you can accept Elves, Fairies, Spirits, Youkai, Mordor, magic rings, faster than light travel, time travel, immortality, and sentient robots.
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Ha! I more was referring to the whole secret security service the Lycoris and boys (forget what they’re called) do, basically child soldiers with really no choice in the matter. Majima addresses the problem but nothing actually changes at the end after all is said and done. But yes, anime physics are anime physics and I wouldn’t change a thing about that 😉
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The LilyBells which is another secret exterminate group which has authority over the DA.
The world building leaves a lot on the table. Who makes the decision to exterminate the DA, and then just as suddenly rescinds it? The entire Alan group goes completely unexplained. Is Shinji working his own agenda or is he a full agent of Alan? Shinji actually comes across as basically being insane. Rip out my good heart, install Chisato’s, and then force her to kill me. OK I suppose so. Like I said I was in Lycoris for Chisato, Takina, and LycoReco not for the lore of the story. I don’t think the writer really cared about the world, or its physics.
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