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Kit-Tsukasa
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Apr 2 2013 01:44 AM Shirokuma Cafe is based off an ongoing josei, gag manga of the same name. It follows the daily lives of animals and humans living together where the animals can actually speak. The main crew features a polar bear, a penguin, and a panda. The series ran for a whole year consisting of 50 episodes between April 2012 and March 2013. Shirokuma Cafe was simulcasted by CrunchyRoll during its run. Shirokuma Cafe presents itself like a 4koma-like comedy title. While I have no knowledge of the source material, the show is definitely well received among an older generation relative to younger generations. The set up for this show is far from bizarre. In fact, it's a very simple and straightforward show with no real plot, which is certainly not a bad thing. That said, for a comedy title, it's generally bland. Maybe I have stubborn sense of humor but for about 80% of this show, I often found the jokes lame, obvious, or dull. It's lighthearted, but 50 episodes worth along with numerous repetitions really kills many of the "unique" moments that the series could have had. It doesn't help to know that the mangaka also disagreed with some portions of adaptation mid-way through the series.
Art is generally simplistic yet detailed and colorful. Character designs are slightly above average as they really did spend quite a bit of time on the details of each of the animals. Animation is as basic as you could possibly get with little to no inconsistencies. I should note that Studio Pierrot is behind the animation, i.e. the studio behind many big hit titles, including Bleach, Naruto, Kimagure Orange Road, Fushigi Yuugi, GTO, etc... Coming from them, it's a very simple title to animate and of course there are little to no flaws. The most notable errors, however, usually come from long distance shots where the budget seems to have skimped both from an art and animation perspective.
OP themes are generally sub-average though I am very surprised to hear Rie Fu since she rarely does anime titles. Some are memorable but mostly forgettable given the number of better titles over the last year. ED themes fluctuate too much to really be memorable. Most of them are silly animal puns that tie in with the visuals being shown but in terms of long-term memorability, these will be forgotten before long. Background music is filled with a mix of short, simple, and/or fluffy tunes or slightly longer jazz-like pieces. Sound effects are generally forgettable. Seiyuus are mostly experienced ranging from Jun Fukuyama to Aya Endou to Hiroshi Kamiya to Takahiro Sakurai to Kana Hanazawa, etc... Generally speaking the acting is above average for this show. Nothing really to say that's particularly outstanding.
Enjoyment? The show is mostly one shots. Some half episodes are continuations of previous ones but even then, most can be seen as stand alone. Normally I don't have a problem with this as it benefits those trying to preview titles but because of the large amount of repetitiveness across episodes, the material gets old fast. The characters are not really interesting and thereby leaving little to no hook on a weekly basis. It's a nice, light-hearted title to kill time if you need a show to watch in a down season as it's neither terrible nor spectacular but at the same time in an up season, it lacks any sort of thriller-like moments to really keep an audience engaged to want to watch more.
Overall, Shirokuma Cafe is definitely a show not meant for everyone. Action fans obviously should stay away. As for slice-of-life fans, even this show is a toss-up depending on one's expectations. If you're looking for drama or romance, this is the wrong show. Comedy fans may enjoy this depending on the humor they're looking for. Shirokuma Cafe is like Hidamari Sketch in many ways. The former is cute animals doing cute things while the latter is cute girls doing cute things. You could take it one step further and compare it to Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou where you have cute boys doing cute things. That said, it all depends on what you're looking for and Shirokuma Cafe only proves that point in a new dimension. At the most basic level, Shirokuma Cafe is not unique but its presentation and spin on its concept makes the show approachable despite being a 50 episode series. As noted before, Shirokuma Cafe is nowhere near a bad show nor is it a masterpiece. It's different and because it's different, it's not for everyone though I respect and understand those who do enjoy it. Preliminary Score: 5/10
Final Score: 5/10 |
julezia
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| QUOTE (wedora @ Dec 08 2012, 10:58 PM) | Episode 36 brings about an interesting curiosity of mine: is it a cultural thing in Japan to not heat the house and instead use a kotatsu? Seems like a tradition that should have faded with time. Whyyy do they do it still?
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I found the answer to that on wikipedia
| QUOTE | | Most Japanese housing is not insulated to the same degree as a western domicile and does not have central heating, thus relying primarily on space heating. Heating is expensive because of the lack of insulation and the draftiness of housing. A kotatsu is a relatively inexpensive way to stay warm in the winter, as the futons trap the warm air. This is also the time of the year where many activities take place around the kotatsu, such as eating, reading, watching television, and socializing.[10] Families may choose to concentrate their activity to this one area of the house in order to save on energy costs.[11] In the summer, the blanket may be removed, and the kotatsu can be used as a normal table. |
Lol I think penguin's VA does have a good singing voice generally, just not in that penguin voice
The latest ED is sung by the sloth's VA. I don't think it's too bad but the imagery is a bit odd... that's true.
I liked the latest episode a lot, it's funny how Polar Bear goes out of his way to get on Grizzly's nerves, but as you see at the end he actually does care and it's sweet |
wedora
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Dec 8 2012 10:58 PM Episode 36 brings about an interesting curiosity of mine: is it a cultural thing in Japan to not heat the house and instead use a kotatsu? Seems like a tradition that should have faded with time. Whyyy do they do it still? This show is a nice and relaxing, has a good feel to it that lets you finish up a night and go to sleep content. I do miss the grizzly ED though. The new one with ep36 is a kinda creepy with the kids in animal costumes. I think every one of them has been OK except the penguin one, dude needs to never sing again. |
Killer_Ossi
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Oct 23 2012 06:15 AM Yep that was a good ep, but I didnt like how Shirokumas team has won. I dont know about Penguin sometimes hes really funny but at times he can be really annoying, especially when hes talking about his seven girlfriends and lost his guts because of that. I dont like Pandas sister much, the same with Rin Rin the both steal time for better characters. Like Sasako. Shes beautiful, funny and goes along with all the fun. |
julezia
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Oct 22 2012 11:47 PM I like the Llama a lot too He has such a random personality at times, loved it when he donned the panda costume and he's always so sad that everyone passes by without noticing him at the zoo I also really like penguin because he makes a great tsukkomi and panda's little sister is really darn cute when she gushes over Handa. The sloth and turtle race was epic, and both of them always get a laugh out of me whenever they appear. I would like to see more of the carnivores too, maybe we'll get to see the grizzly bar gang more often in future episodes. I loved the baseball game ep because we were able to see all the animals together. |
Killer_Ossi
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Oct 22 2012 07:03 PM Yep its one of the few shows I watch as soon as Ive downloaded it. It would be really great if they showed us more about the carnivores or more of my favorite characters, lama and sloth. |
julezia
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Oct 22 2012 11:13 AM I was watching this show yesterday and thinking that I should be more like Panda... he's so easygoing, applying to jobs he knows nothing about and getting promoted to CEO lmao. I laughed so hard when Penguin tried the same tactic and failed.... poor guy he just can't get the same breaks as Panda does. This show is still going strong, imo. it provides me with weekly relaxation and good laughs. |
ginsengsamurai
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Jul 26 2012 07:15 AM This is a light hearted silly anime. I love it! |
Kit-Tsukasa
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| QUOTE (ginsengsamurai @ Jul 07 2012, 01:22 PM) | | My question basically was: are all the releases through Fansub.tv for this anime without English subs or am I clicking the wrong link? |
They should be all English. Occasionally the tracker will pick up unwanted strays but usually the system will detect it. In the case of Shirokuma Cafe, I believe we don't actually host the file on site since it is simulcasted on Crunchyroll so any of the links are likely redirecting you to other sites.
If you don't see a section titled Download with an option to choose "Use Scheduler" or "Use Download Manager," it means Fansub TV doesn't actually host the files.
Stuff under Torrents or the Community Pulse section are hosted by other sites. As this feature is still being fine tuned, we cannot 100% guarantee the files are accurate or will always work. Also, as we don't actually sub anything, we cannot guarantee that the files you download actually contain subs. |
ginsengsamurai
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Jul 8 2012 05:01 AM I don't know if my response got to you. Just realized there is a message system at FS.tv . Regardless, thanks for the info and the links. |
