Merry Christmas to all! 2020 is a year of so many bad things, but Giantbomb finally hosting an anime forum is something I have comfort in. It so happened that this is the year I found 5 things suitable for the so-called most wonderful time of the year. Thanks a lot, Lockdown. So I’m going to share my watch list of anime episodes and movie during Christmas time here.
Whether it’s the mean Ebenzer Scrooge with his town in A Christmas Carlo, the nice George Bailey with his friends in It’s A Wonderful Life, or the a little mean and inherentlyp nice John McClane with his wife Holly in Die Hard, a good Christmas story is always about someone find connection with others regardless the media form or genre. The following 5 pieces made in a foreign island are no different on that regard and I hope you all would find enjoyment there like I did.
1.Is the Order Rabbit? Episode 11 and Is the Order Rabbit? Bloom Episode 11
First, something fresh off the press as the 11th episode of Is the Order Rabbit? Bloom just aired the weekend before time of writing. Is the Order Rabbit? is a comic adaption about high school girls working in cafe as barista, waitresses and occasionally bakers or cooks. It centers around high schooler Cocoa and middle schooler Chino. The latter also happens to be the heiress to Rabbit House, the cafe they work in.
The show is generally a wholesome slice of life comedy, the cute girls doing cute and hilarious things kind. The first series in 2014 had its penultimate episode being about a Christmas party. The third series dubbed Bloom this year is about the year after and reaches Christmas time again in the penultimate episode. It’s heart-warming to see friends gathering in the cafe for Christmas twice in a roll. A family friend piece to share with whoever you are with.
2 .Laid-back Camp Episode 11 and 12
Now a shift in scenery, but not much in tune and genre. As one of Jeff Gerstmann’s new favorites, Laid-back Camp is about high school girls living around Mountain Fuji, going out camping and just hanging out. Even though it fell into the same slice of life comedy territory, Laid-back Camp serves as a nice change of pace from Is the Order Rabbit with its outdoor setting.
The last 2 episodes of this 2018 comic adaption is about those girls with going out camping during Christmas. The creators behind the show regathered this trip important enough to have a scene from it as tune setting in the beginning of episode one. With the second season airing in January, 2021, this Christmas is the perfect time to watch those 2 episodes as reminders. As for newcomers of this show, if Jeff “Anime Equals Hardcore Pornography” Gerstmann put aside his prejudice for this, then isn’t it worth a shot?
Nisekoi : Episode 3 and 4
Moving from friends hanging out to child trying to reconnect with their estranged parent. The 3rd and 4th episode of Nisekoi’s second series are all about a boy trying to get his girlfriend to finally really talk to her mum before Christmas. Or maybe it’s the other way around.
During the past 5 years since those episodes aired, I find them to be a fitting companion piece to my yearly Christmas viewing of Die Hard. Despite being in different genres, both are about connecting with estranged family member. Those 2 episode also hinted at some mysteries Nisekoi comic series would resolve but might not ever see the light of the day in animated form. But standing on their own, the emotional arc they put the audience through is worth seeing out of the context.
4. Today’s Menu for Emiya Family Episode 12
Before the feature length recommendation, here is a short and quick one. Today’s Menu for Emiya Family is a spin-off from the Dark Fantasy visual novel and smart phone RPG game series dubbed Fate. Among many of the series’ beloved character designs, its crowning jewel being Saber, basically King Arthur but a pretty little blonde girl. In fact those designs are so beloved, the audience would rather see them in slice of life context rather than the series’ usual cosmic horror ones. Thus Today’s Menu for Emiya Family as a comic about good food and easy life, among many others, was put out into this world.
Back in 2018, this comic got a rather unusual animated adaption. 13 under 15 minutes long episodes was produced and released monthly, with the December episode being unmistakably about a Christmas dinner party. This animated episode is also a little bit larger than life compared to others with its comedic car stunt scene. Three female characters also get new costumes, pretty dresses suitable for high end parties. Merchandising potential is important for that industry after all. As a whole, it’s still wholesome fun to share with family. I highly recommend it for family viewing over more grim dark Fate series entries like tv series Zero or Heaven’s Feel movie trilogy. Shut your door, while viewing those please.
5. Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha the Movie 2nd A’s
As mentioned before I have yearly Christmas viewings of Die Hard, certainly not just to see John McClane finally talked to his wife, but to enjoy as an action movie. I wouldn’t write too much about it here since it’s live-action. Instead, after all the slice of life comedies, here is a larger-than-life animated action movie with a mouthful for a title and a third act set entirely on Christmas Eve.
Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha series is more or less the Lethal Weapon of magical girl genre. The titular character Nanoha is someone new to the world of magic like Riggs to the world of policing and just as reckless. Her not sure if it reads as queer coded partner or flat out queer love interest Fate is mild-mannered and has to deal with family issues like Murtaugh. Both this second movie and the 13 episodes long second tv series it’s based on takes place in the month of December and reach the crescendo on the 24th. I would have recommended the tv episodes, but those are 15 years old and include severe problematic parts like child-molesting cat girls. Thankful they are cut from the movie just to streamline the plot.
Despite this being a sequel, I would recommend it as an entrance point to the series. This is when the titular character and sweet Fate finally get to know each other, not in the biblical sense I may add, while they spend the first movie or tv series just to meet each other. With the December till Christmas time frame this sequel is basically original Lethal Weapon without Fridging, a trope I found harder to put up with by the seconds. A fitting Christmas treat to enjoy alone or with like minded individuals. Contents warning, most of those characters are 9 in the story and there is cartoon violence done to them, you might not want show this to most of your family.
So those are what I saw or intend to see this Christmas. You all are welcome to share yours below.
P.S. If you are from Japan, sorry about calling your country “foreign island”. I’m Chinese and this is intended for English speaking audience, this figure of speech seems fitting on that regard.
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