[Anime Review] Onimai Episode 1: "The Disconnect Between Brother and Sister" Onii-chan wa Oshimai!

Hello, this is Akko-P.
This time, I will be sharing my thoughts on the first episode of the Winter 2023 anime, "Onii-chan wa Oshimai!".

※Please be aware that this contains spoilers.

《A Controversial Work Finally Begins》

I had barely checked any of the Winter 2023 anime, but this was the only one I decided I wanted to watch, so I looked into it beforehand.

My personal preferences usually center around genres like "moe," "beautiful girls," "slice-of-life," and "yuri." In that sense, I thought this work would probably be fine, but on the other hand, I felt a bit of distance toward the "gender-bending in fiction" genre.

No matter how cute they look, if their heart isn't that of a girl, it just doesn't resonate with me as yuri.

"A man getting in the way of yuri"—once it looks like that, I immediately feel a sense of distance.

《The Sincerity of the Depiction Inspires Trust》

That said, after watching the first episode, I thought, "This is made quite sincerely."

The animation, direction, and script are all high-level. And you can feel the spirit of trying to elevate the "gender-bending comedy" genre into a solid entertainment drama without resorting to cheap laughs.

To borrow Pompo-san's words,

《It's cooler to move people with a silly movie than to move them with a tear-jerker》

—I felt that this work truly embodies that.

《Lines That Step Into Reality》

At the beginning, Mahiro, who has just finished gender-bending, says, "I feel kind of sluggish..." This is a depiction of feeling physical fatigue in response to the rapid changes in their body.

You can catch a glimpse of their stance of trying to maintain a sense of reality rather than just settling for a complete fantasy setting.

Also, regarding the bathroom scene, it wasn't direct, and I was impressed by how it was crafted to evoke the viewer's imagination.

《Mihari's Intensity and Kindness》

Mahiro's younger sister, Mihari. While she has a forceful side—"drugging her brother to rehabilitate him from being a NEET"—her love for her brother seeps through in every word and action.

The way she handles small things with care and her consideration for Mahiro are all directed with great attention to detail.

Because of that, the "inferiority complex and sense of distance" that Mahiro felt toward Mihari resonate not just as simple jealousy, but as an ambivalence toward his love for his sister.

"The Intersection of Emotions"

The dynamic of an older brother feeling inferior to his perfect, high-achieving younger sister is a classic trope, but this work carefully layers "gaze" and "realization" onto it.

The image of Mihari as seen from Mahiro's perspective, and the cut—perhaps from a sports festival—where she smiles and says, "I did it, big brother. Thanks for cheering for me," was a brilliant scene where the pain of inferiority as an older brother and the feeling of being proud of his sister intersected.

"Is Big Brother Finished? Or..."

Mahiro has been completely "overtaken by his younger sister" in both body and status. Is his life as an older brother truly "finished"?

How will he recover from here?

Of course, the plot could go in the direction of him "becoming a girl in both body and mind," and that in itself would be a sublimation of a certain fetishism.

But this work probably isn't aiming for just that.

It also looks like it is "trying to depict the recovery of the heart while taking the form of a light moe anime."

"A First Episode That Raised Expectations"

While there were depictions of fetishism, there was no discomfort; rather, it carefully prepared an "entrance to a sincere drama."

It was a first episode that made me look forward to watching more.

This was Akko-P.