10 Second Anime - Dagashi Kashi - Episode 1

Translated: Candy Confectionery. Also a pun for "but, but." Kokonotsu aspires to be a mangaka but his father pressures him to take over the family candy store. Hotaru, the daughter of a large candy manufacturer, seeks to recruit Kokonotsu's father to work for her family, but he'll only go if she can convince his son to run the candy store. Season Premiere.

Episode 1 - "Umaibo, Fried Potato and..."

"Coffee Milk Candy, Young Donuts and..."

First Thoughts.

I had been looking forward to this show ever since I saw the announcement for the adaptation of the comedy manga. A large portion of that anticipation came from watching Non Non Biyori recently and hoping to recapture the rural atmosphere of a small town and its candy store. The difference here, is that this show is fanservice oriented gag comedy. The main character is not Kokonotsu the local boy, but actually Hotaru, the girl from the city trying to recruit his father. She's designed to be crazy, funny, sexy and crazy. Yes, I said crazy twice. And that's another parallel with Non Non Biyori: the overdeveloped girl transplanted to the beach countryside is named Hotaru. The first episode definitely grabbed my attention and Hotaru carried the comedy and fanservice all by herself without even trying. I hope the next few episodes can keep up the frantic sexy comedic pace.

Heh.

We've got a premise, but do we need a plot? Hotaru the city girl has found her candy store and her coffee shop, so she's pretty much set. Within a day, she's found lodging, a bike and a rice paddy...

With barely connected events, we need some jarring transitions. De! (Oh man, I miss the first season of Fairy Tail and Happy's transition eye catches).

In some pretty good location setting, a voice message for Kokonotsu from his best friend Tou established what kind of guy Tou is and where their little town is situated.

Hornball? Check. Village just inland from the beach? Check.

Hotaru Force of Nature.

Well, that's if Nature is crazy about candy, with a side helping of crazy.

That's a pretty big coincidence that Hotaru looks exactly like the beautiful heroine in the manga manuscript Kokonotsu is working on. Which makes me wonder if his dad and Hotaru had been colluding behind the scenes. We saw that Mr. Shikada has been reading and offering advice about Kokonotsu's manuscript, so has he been stacking the deck against his son to ensure the 9th heir actually takes over the candy store?

Hotaru Crazy from Sugar Rush?

Hotaru looks to be a very slim attractive young lady who eats a lot of candy and other sweet things. Obviously, one part of her body is storing all those empty calories... But maybe she's so weird from the sugar rush after eating all that candy?

Hotaru Dash!

I'm guessing this signature move of Hotaru's is a way to illustrate her headstrong character and how she confidently rushes into things. Like rushing into moving to a small village to secure the hiring of the famous You Shikada. Like that.

Kindred Spirits.

Hotaru and Mr. Shikada just seemed to click. They shared the same manic energy and ability to jump into non sequitur gags. I think Kokonotsu's dad would fit right in with the Shidare candy company.

Things are going to get rough for Kokonotsu. He's been able to handle his dad's pressure to take over the business, but now it's two against one and one of them looks like his idealized beautiful girlfriend. I love it!

Love Triangle.

Kokonotsu's best friend Tou, who calls him Coconuts (kokonatsu), has a twin sister Saya who has the biggest crush on him.

Even better: her brother totally called her out on it! At least this love is acknowledged by a third party, but it's still not known by the target. Hey, it's only the first episode. We need to milk this for comedy fodder for the whole season. Wait until Saya finds out about who's been fascinating Kokonotsu.

Geh.

With how Hotaru's character has been designed, part of the fanciful comedy needs to find ways to show off that amazing, er, design. Well, a shower scene is always good, but how do we get her in there? Oh, how about having her crash into a rice paddy while trying to figure out whether she won another popsicle? Good enough for me!

Hotaru was a dirty, dirty girl. That long shower helped her out.

It's amazing how these bathroom doors never have working locks...

And now you know Hotaru is crazy. She's got no sense of shame! Introducing herself to family members somehow takes precedent over putting some clothes on. Well, it helps to be proud of her appearance no matter what she's wearing.

Hmm.

I was totally satisfied with this premiere. Kokonotsu was revealed to be a genius candy store salesman. Hotaru was revealed... I'll just say she was revealed. She's like three harem characters rolled into one and poor Saya has to take on the pettanko childhood friend role.

What isn't clear to me yet is how old each of the youngsters are. Are they supposed to be in school, but the narrative caught them during Summer Break? That would make sense and give Hotaru a sense of urgency in convincing Kokonotsu to run the candy store. Just something to pay attention to as I pay attention to Hotaru and all of her antics.