Quarantine has been a pretty surreal time. 100https://64.media.tumblr.com/322bd8d0d39979ab7b87531c06331b62/7539ce8539a0d49bcc/s500x750/72f0caa7c98816505e00ce123c4a422d46e35091.gifv Its bizarre to think that so many of us collectively had our bustling lives come to a screeching halt within the walls of our homes. Waiting out the COVIDstorm its all too easy to feel bored and boxedin with your thoughts. There are certainly worse problems to have but this is a problem nonetheless. I like many others have picked up hobbies to stay preoccupied and sane. What youre reading right now is a product of one of those hobbies and Im happy youre giving this article the time of day Theres something comforting involved in pursuing your passions and an oftignored joy to be had in the small daytoday victories. Super Cub Cub for short is a timely reminder of that very same happiness and how our interests can bring color into our lives. This review will be spoilerfree with a TlDr included towards the end. Enter Koguma The Girl With Nothing. https://i.ur.com/zfNoqPJ.mp4 No family no cash no ambitions. She doesnt even appear to feel blue about the way things are a few tears would at least add color to her monochrome life. The still mundanity of Hokuto City is made evident in Cubs quaint opening minutes drawing us into a world the way Koguma sees it devoid of color. By happenstance she meets a used Honda Super Cub which literally brings vibrance to her vision and a longing like no other. Much of the show is then centered around Kogumas daytoday experiences with her Super Cub. Shes not on the open road alone though and is soon accompanied by the strongwilled motorcycle enthusiast Reiko. Also droppin in towards the end of the season is Shii newlyavid cyclist and aficionado of all things Italy. If what Ive mentioned sounds like a glorified motorcycle commercial Well youd be mostly right. https://i.ur.com/3ZAyhYx.mp4 Someone could feasibly make a drinking game out of everytime a character says This Cub can do anything. Its certainly not the first time a company tiein was this obvious Cub even goes as far as to reference Initial Dhttps://anilist.co/anime/185/InitialD/ with the urban myth surrounding Kogumas ride. But even if this is a case of selling out there are certainly far worse ways going about it. Honda Motor Company reportedly supervised the writing behind Cub ensuring consistent and realistic details that go beyond closeups on the featured motorcycles. Speaking of mechanical eyecandy this series is a visual treat. Pulling back the camera lens from the shows motorbike chassis Cub looks as stunning from afar as it does up close with scenic visuals of Mount Fuji and the surrounding countryside. Also neat is the shows visuals as they relate to Kogumas perspective. Cub transitions between washedout neargrayscale scenes to radiant saturated colors. The whole show acting as a mood light for Koguma is a trick that thankfully never gets old. The series OST is a mix of classical compositions and a handful of original tracks all of which contribute to Cub soothing atmosphere. The cast of characters dont work against this calming background with overthetop performances but complement Cub nicely. Performances are lowkey and avoid moe blob generalizations all while standing out with their own enjoyable personalities. Allinall the world of Cub is as wholesome and relaxing as this season is gonna get. You could say that Cub is yet another case of a Cute Girls Doing Cute Things CGDCT anime about a niche topic and Id be inclined to agree. However that take doesnt fully account for what this series aims to achieve. This chill watch isnt afraid to introduce momentary tonal shifts as seen in an unexpected adventure throughout Episode 5 and a solemn incident in Episode 11. These engaging deviations to the formula are enjoyable in their own right and paint a clearer picture of what Cub is trying to convey: the healing power of hobbies. Cub is a SoL distilled into its purest form. https://i.ur.com/9aTa1OS.mp4 This isnt the kind of show concerned with love triangles or girls running to school with toast in their mouths. Instead this iyashikei has its sole focus on leaving viewers with a healing feeling every episode. To achieve this Cub draws us in with its effective episodic story structure. Each instalment establishes clear needs and patiently shows us the process undertaken to achieve those goals. Obstacles introduced are resolved by the end of each episode and the audience winds up sharing the same satisfaction that our characters do. I know that this observation is hardly revelatory setup and payoff is the most basic writing concept there is. But Cub is noteworthy for how strippeddown its methodology is. With little else to distract us we offer our undivided attention to the lowkey lives of Cubs cast and are rewarded with a cozy reprieve. The characters love for the open road and Italian espressos is all there is and those personal passions exude strongly due to the depth at which those interests are explored. A 50cc in the picturesque Yamanashi Prefecture isnt merely a mode of transportation but a lifestyle. As high school girls there is recreational value to be had in cruising down the highway as the scenic views of Mount Fuji loom in the distance. Of course there are considerations as well which Koguma and her friends need to address in order to continually enjoy their leisurely drives. Plotlines see the girls getting comfortable with their Super Cubs obsessing over Cub trivia learning bike upkeep purchasing affordable accessories taking on odd jobs involving their motorcycles and finding ways to stay warm while riding in winter months. I think Cub captures common bikecentric plights and scenarios with a great deal of accuracy. And biking fans seem to agree judging from thirdparty accounts from communities far more familiar with biking than I amhttps://www.motorbiscuit.com/hondasupercubanimecapturesrealityriding/ we likely have Honda Co. Ltd. to thank for this. Just like how last years Eizouken ni wa Te wo Dasu nahttps://anilist.co/anime/109298/EizoukenniwaTewoDasuna/ was a passionate love letter to the process behind animation Cub wears its heart on its sleeve and makes its love for biking known. Cubs attention to detail and the unflinching trust in said detail to carry the show leads us audience members to enjoy an otherwise unfamiliar interest alongside our girls. Even though most viewers cant tell the difference between a Super Cub and a Vespa the dedication put into demonstrating these girls hobbies still strikes a chord. Koguma Reiko and Shii may share vastly different experiences from ours but the roots of their passions are universal. The desire to achieve a goal and overtaking the objectives that make such a reward even more worthwhile on a personal level. Its cathartic to see those desires realized and Cub emulates that joy with each week. And sure tasks like changing motor oil or delivering documents are tiny and unremarkable from a distance but it is Something. And that means all the world to The Girl With Nothing. Cub is rather narrow in scope and may not appeal to a ton of people. https://i.ur.com/I6vFdgd.mp4 Its the kind of quiet meditative watch that I almost exclusively put on before bed. The calming nature of the show might put you to sleep in the worst way. Half of Cubs character development amounts to our stoic MC eventually picking up sarcasm. Theres nothing all that interesting about window shopping with Koguma at hardware stores and its not the sort of storytelling all audiences would appreciate. My snobby ass might claim that the sophisticated Cub isnt bound by story conventions of a heightened reality but others would probably say that its boring. Something like Yuru Camphttps://anilist.co/anime/98444/YuruCamp/ achieves relatively similar things as Cub while adding a lighthearted comedic presence and entertaining character dynamics. In spite of these elements Yuru is sometimes dismissed as a boring CGDCT and Cub manages to be even more strippeddown. Theres little Cub does to convince audiences that arent already fond of SoLs or the iyashikei genre and I cant sugarcoat the show to argue otherwise. If you happen to enjoy works such as Mushishihttps://anilist.co/anime/457/Mushishi/ and Ariahttps://anilist.co/anime/477/ARIATheANIMATION/ Cub should certainly be high up on your planning list. But if you are foreign to the meditative realm of iyashikei anime I recommend that you try out at least the first two episodes of Cub. At worst its hardly an insulting loss of your time at best you just might stumble across some of the most immaculate vibes in anime this year. Before wrapping up Id like to leave you with some sappy closing thoughts. Its been over a year since I began sharing reviews and Ive enjoyed nearly every second of it. Writing started out as a fun way to kill time and I gradually grew to enjoy articulating my thoughts and experimenting with my craft. Sharing my rants has not only been a rewarding experience in its own right but also a process that helped me open up to the anime community. I didnt exactly have IRL pals keeping me company during the ongoing hyperbolic apocalypse. Making these reviews emboldened me to put myself out there. Being inside my home over the past year I found social circles online that kept my life as lively and fun as its ever been. Amidst the virus this hobby healed me. If you havent already I urge you to find wholesome endeavors of your own and share those interests with others around you. It may seem awkward but theres no shame in trying to enrich your life with activities you enjoy. And heck if your passion is watching anime Cub is certainly a great place to start. TlDr: 100https://64.media.tumblr.com/491c7fd577a0a1706dde41990968e0aa/7539ce8539a0d49b9f/s500x750/e93db7a434972713be23cb122a86ef5708c243ad.gifv Super Cub demonstrates how personal fixations can fix us. Besides the frequent bike trivia persistent throughout the series Cub takes its time to revel in the joy of pursuing hobbies. Set to a calming soundtrack and stunning backdrops of the Yamanashi countryside Cub puts us in the drivers seat through relaxing immersion. Viewers without motorcycles need not be worried about doing their homework before approaching this show as the chill vibes and enjoyment is for everyone. So strap in sit back and enjoy what this open road has to offer. 7/10 STRAY RAMBLINGS SPOILERS: Just wanna quickly shout out azumiiis thread of all the classical compositions used in Cubhttps://anilist.co/forum/thread/32125. The tracks were really calming so if youre feeling bored of LoFi radio playlists on YouTube try giving these songs a shot Kogumas bike has a kill count its practically Devil Z lol. Be scared: 300https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/826224385664483348/846598582320365598/kogumawithdatthangonher.png Didnt get to cover this in the review but seeing Shiis cafe was pretty darn surreal by Cub standards. The show turned into a lesson in interior design for a good 5 minutes I love it. The blend of all that European iconography in a country known for being isolationist kay thats enough musing. I want a German sourdough sandwich. Was definitely not expecting to go from purposely taking the wrong turn on the intersection to scaling Mount FRIGGIN Fuji on a scooter by the 5th episode. What a ride. BEST GIRL: 50https://imagesext1.discordapp.net/external/KADfy4OzGFTwE5QkMDRE5TENwxGKvhzKsso25jVRTA/https/media.discordapp.net/attachments/812152352512540696/834484982578806874/829404789946318929.gif And remember: You meet the nicest people on a Honda. Thanks ed3d 100https://64.media.tumblr.com/e82f06ae03c94b7f741e6e4b685628ab/160b6412aa833d9c15/s540x810/ef3113b2923ec80c96fe786fc9f78870a4f3991b.gifv Thanks for stoppin by After writing all this I could really go for one of Shiis coffees ngl. If you happen to like my verbose rants feel free to check out my other reviewshttps://anilist.co/user/An1meDweeb/reviews for seasons past and present. I also frequently post writeups under my list updates so definitely take a peek if youd like to see me mald over anime as they hit the airwaves. Peace
70 /100
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