Sometimes I will look through the seasonal list and not pick up a show because it didn’t look all too interesting, only to get it recommended to me later. Kowloon Generic Romance was one of those shows because, honestly, the premise didn’t seem all that interesting. Something about romance and real estate made for an unenticing synopsis; however, I was told that this would be the sleeper hit of the season, so I checked out the first episode. Did I waste my time?
Let’s go!
First Episode Synopsis
Kujirai and Kudou work at a real estate office in the city of Kowloon. Kowloon is, for lack of a better term, a slum; however, people call it home, and many feel that there is something nostalgic about the city. Despite that, things take a bit of a weird turn when these floating devices seem to be keeping tabs on everything and everyone. A news broadcast refers to it as Generic Terra, which has the ability to back up the memories of all human beings, making even eternal youth and immortality a reality.
Remember that because this is important.
After the little dose of sci-fi, the episode becomes a standard slice-of-life romance. Kudou is pretty forward and outgoing, albeit incompetent at his job. He even pushes Kujirai aside to clock in before her, making her late! As an apology, he invites her out to lunch, and this is where the two of them begin to talk and get to know each other a little more. The more they hang out, the more Kujirai begins to realize that she’s falling in love with Kudou.
He takes her to a little hole-in-the-wall café to get some tea. It makes a great impression on Kujirai (despite being accidentally referred to as Kudou’s girlfriend) that she wants to come back; however, she can’t find it again. Later, Kudou has to go take care of something and leaves in a hurry. Kujirai finds a photograph of him and his old girlfriend, but there’s something awfully strange about the photograph. Suddenly, she remembers where the café is and heads back there, but when she does, the waiter talks about Kujirai already being engaged to Kudou. We see the background glitching out as it hits us… Generic Terra rewrote her memories, but why?
Worth Watching?
YES – Okay, this is going to be the sleeper hit of the Spring anime season. There are so many good things happening in this first episode.
First, you have the animation. This is almost (and in some cases rivals) movie-level quality. The opening sequence alone is masterful. The opening theme, along with the animation, is also top-notch; however, it’s the atmosphere of the anime that forces your brain to forget that you’re looking at great animation because it absorbs you into this world.
From the comedic moments between Kudou and Kujirai, to the overall sound effects and backgrounds that paint a dystopian city, to the intrigue of the Generic Terra system and why the show keeps cutting to it, to the natural love that blooms between our two main characters, right down to the bombshell ending that straight-up tells you ‘sorry, this isn’t the romance series you thought it was going to be.’ That heavy sci-fi twist at the end put an incredible spin on an already incredible first episode. That classic false sense of security right before the bomb drops, even though the show flat-out tells you to your face what the swerve at the end is going to be, but the storytelling and character work is so good that you forget it even said anything three minutes into the episode.
When an anime can flat out tell you the plot, make you forget, and STILL surprise you in the end, you know you have something good on your hands.
