How cute are Santas in miniskirts? 450https://i.post.cc/FHNr22wq/1732358343dc8350a46615298dd57f969ab46726fb.jpg A preliminary note that I feel is necessary: Im particularly fond of Aobuta as a work for numerous reasons and I believe it deserves far more recognition than it currently receives. In my view its not easy to find a series capable of consistently delivering excellent interactions between its characters with such a functional chemistry between the male and female leads while also being able often in subtle way to offer insights themes and reflections that I personally find very compelling. As for Santa Claus the secondtolast act of the anime adaptation Id like to talk about it in this short analysis/or review if you prefer. Needless to say there will be spoilers. The Alleged flaws Lets start simple: the first aspect I want to consider is the introduction of new characters into the cast. Innovation can only be a good thing after all one couldnt expect the story to keep moving forward with the same old characters forever no matter how iconic they are otherwise it would have become monotonous. I admit though that at first I was a bit concerned about how all these newcomers and there were quite a few would be handled. But in the end Id say the result was more than respectable. Sure inevitably some characters get less screen time Nodoka Futaba herself Kunimi who while never central remains utterly peripheral and so on but well you cant have everything in life. Rio definitely gets less space compared to previous arcs but her role remains essentially unchanged: the steadfast friend and confidante to young Sakuta. Each of the new characters is handled well: from Uzuki who had already appeared before to Ikumi Sara and Nene. Putting aside the latter for a moment the true trait dunion of the entire season in the guise of Kirishima Tko none of the other three ever feels detached from the story once their respective arcs are over. This clearly shows that every character in this narrative matters and none of them are left behind. Even the enigmatic Mitou Miori whose role seems minor at first glance manages to leave a strong impression during her brief appearances indeed proving crucial for understanding Nenes particular case of the Puberty Syndrome. Another matter: the supposed disappearance of Mai. Its true that in the first part one might get the impression shes given less attention than usual but thats not really the case. Mai is always there shes like an immense shadow looming over the entire story the true driving force behind the events even for Sakuta himself. In the end it will once again be her who finds herself in danger and in need of being saved. Lets also dispel another common misconception which is the idea that Aobuta is a romance anime. Its not at least not primarily. The romantic element is there of course but its only one piece of the puzzle and it has never been the central focus of the work which instead revolves around Sakutas journey as he faces and resolves the various cases that come his way. Its no coincidence that my favorite episode is the tenth the famous confrontation between Mai and Sara where the actress explains why she loves Sakuta and why she settled for him. She tells us plainly openly and so explicitly that even Sara is left bewildered. From my point of view Mai embodies the purest and most genuine form of love: one that doesnt require external approval or validation. She loves Sakuta for who he is or rather for the person he has chosen to become in his life. Its a love built on solid foundations the fruit of a deep spiritual bond and defined by a strong reciprocal connection a wonderful synallagma. A love driven by the desire to create and build something together to be with him because they want to be happy together. Mai shines so brightly that she quite literally outclasses every other character in the show within mere moments. Its an episode so impactful and meaningful that it practically redeems everything else. Having just spoken of the Queen who radiates immense light upon all those around her including us viewers I want to take this opportunity to offer her my genuine praise. For also all the reasons mentioned above Ive come to truly admire Mai from a human standpoint shes truly extraordinary. Find me someone kinder and more considerate than her I doubt its even possible. Naturally shes one of my alltime favorite characters and Id say shes more than earned it based on what weve seen in the series. She is truly an invaluable treasure as well as an enviable girlfriend. 500https://i.post.cc/pX9zmnd6/filtersquality95formatwebp.jpg The New Story Arcs Now lets move on to the narrative proper. I found the university arc that is this second season as a whole to be far more layered intricate and narratively complex than the first classic season. In a word more mature. And that for me was a major source of appreciation. Its a solid narrative one that progresses from arc to arc while maintaining a common thread layered yes but never confusing or hard to follow. The new female leads themselves through their respective arcs bring real variety. With Uzuki the story delves deeply into themes of society from the fear of being different to conformity to the importance of reading between the lines a vital skill in a society like Japans but also the sense of loss as per title A Lost Singer naturally in an existential sense as well as personal growth from youthful illusions to the harsh reality of adulthood. All this is explored within just three episodes of Uzukis arc which is why I consider it a small flower blooming in the desert a tiny gem in its own right because the number of themes it manages to address all reflective and significant makes for a bold attempt and one that is on the whole well executed. Indeed Uzukis existential malaise is really the result of a series of circumstances and situations accumulating over time. 500https://i.post.cc/zDk8TdyT/Screenshot1639.png Next comes Akagis arc which in truth carries more weight than one might initially think. Akagi is in a certain sense the opposite of Sakuta or rather Sakuta succeeded where she failed. Unlike her he managed to move beyond his past not without hardship of course but he did it rebuild his life and move forward toward the future. Akagis dilemma is precisely this: she longs to make a clean break with her past to overcome it yet paradoxically she finds herself ever more mired in it. If Uzukis arc explores the social world with clear reference to Japanese dynamics then Akagis deals with another major topos of the Japanese society: the weight of failure Akagi failed to help Sakuta when she had the chance and the crushing pressure of not living up to the expectations others and society placed upon her having not fulfilled her role as class representative properly. Later we learn that Akagi has also failed in life itself whether in getting into university or becoming the adult she aspired to be culminating in a powerful desire for escapism that ultimately leads to the swap between her two selves. 500https://i.post.cc/Vsh4Zw0v/EP18005.jpg If Akagi is the opposite of Sakuta then Sara is the nemesis of Mai. Whereas Mai represents a mature and genuine kind of love Sara is the quintessential immature teenager with a rather superficial understanding of what she believes love to be. For her its more of a status symbol something by which one can be judged or even a source of pride in front of others. Her arc is quite interesting though because at its core shes simply searching for an answer to her questions: What is love? What does it mean to love someone? And how often especially at that age and even in real life do we mistake one feeling for another? How often do we realize that what we thought was love was in truth affection admiration or perhaps a reflection of how others perceive us in something that we cant truly control? And again how often do we think were in love when in reality its lust driving us? What Sara believes to be love is in fact nothing of the sort precisely because in all her relationships shes done nothing but impose her own will on her partners. Whats missing is the synallagma I mentioned earlier in reference to Mai Sara on the contrary represents onesidedness. Or perhaps more than that lust itself since she seems to take delight in playing with others hearts only to discard them afterward remember the teacher for instance?. And finally Nene the trait dunion of the entire series. Her suffering too is the result of an accumulation of circumstances: the unexpected return of Mai which stripped her of attention and status the envy of those around her as Miori points out and once again failure this time in her career. Fueled by dreams and convinced she had real potential Nene finds herself stranded once job offers start to dry up. This is her true burden: perceiving herself as a loser worthless despite desperately wanting recognition a foolish idealist who thought she had everything it takes only to fail. This state of utter misery drives her to reject her own identity as Iwamizawa Nene who now has nothing left and to create a new one as Kirishima Tko. In the finale were struck by a major twist: it turns out Nene wasnt the only one who wanted to become Tko: she was merely one among many caught up in the phenomenon. The person we believed to be the mastermind behind it all is in fact just part of a much larger project. 500https://i.post.cc/435Rpyd3/5560929041251669473671308414448609888958799n.jpg All 4 heroines in these wonderful oils on canvas Nothing Is Left to Chance If theres one aspect of this work that absolutely drives me crazy in the best way its its meticulous attention to detail and Id add its tendency to play a little with the viewer. Ill give some practical examples to clarify what I mean. Lets think back to the new cases of Puberty Syndrome affecting the female leads in this season. Two of them in particular bear strong similarities to cases weve already seen before: for instance Akagi finds herself in a situation almost identical to Sakutas in Knapsack Kid with two versions of herself switching places between worlds. And yet while Sakutas exchange lasted only a few days at most Akagis persists for several months before reaching a resolution. A very similar case applies to Nene whose condition closely resembles Mais at the beginning of the story no one can perceive her presence anymore she becomes invisible to others memories of her gradually fade and so on. The difference however lies in the progression: Mais situation lasted roughly a couple of weeks at most whereas Nenes extends for nearly an entire year. Her case in fact is presented from the start as far more severe. This ties directly back to the concept deeply embedded in the series iconic first ending theme Fukashigi no Karte . The term karte a loanword taken directly from German has a very specific meaning in Japanese: it refers to medical charts the patient records. Literally the cases weve just considered could be seen as similar charts that is cases sharing a common root but differing in other respects such as the progression of the illness. Yet the genetic basis remains the same. 450https://i.post.cc/63rc845y/20251005210430.jpg The resemblance between Mai and Nene in this clinical case is emphasized right from the start in this delightful return to the past. Or consider for instance Uzukis quip about rabbits on the Moon a reference both to the Moon Rabbit of East Asian folklore but also to her own name. Another example: at the end of episode four the object we see falling is a lantern during her arc Akagi is associated with the figure of Florence Nightingale who was famously known as The Lady with the Lamp. This shows how truly nothing in this work is left to chance. Its a story thought through from every possible angle. The series also loves to scatter clues here and there inviting the viewer to piece things together. In this sense even the revelation that Takumi was Nenes boyfriend comes as a delightful surprise though once again the anime had already given us the means to figure it out. We already knew the boy was from Hokkaido when Santa Clauss true identity and origin are finally revealed the pieces were all there to connect. Even the most seemingly insignificant detail can suddenly become crucial. Kirishima Tko: A Strangely Popular Singer Even in Reality The decision to bring the singer Kirishima Tko and her music into the real world was absolutely brilliant. It draws the viewer deeper into the story almost as if we ourselves were part of it. I find this concept ingenious because it creates a sort of double narrative track with the story unfolding on two parallel yet interconnected levels. Moreover her songs carry strong narrative significance. In total were presented with four tracks one per arc. Each not only marks and punctuates its respective storyline but also reflects it thematically. In order: Social World obviously tied to Uzuki Hilbert Space referring to the second parallel reality thus Akagi I Need You expressing Saras urgent need to always have someone by her side and finally Someone representing Nenes desire to find someone anyone who can acknowledge her worth and I would add truly perceive her. From this thoughtful and consistent perspective even the songs themselves appear deliberate and narratively meaningful further enriching and beautifying the final result. Quality and Visuals The last point Id like to address concerns the overall quality of the adaptation and its visuals. The style of Aobuta remains fundamentally the same strictly speaking but when it comes to the graphics thats where I think Santa Claus falters the most. In my opinion the visual quality is too uneven and inconsistent alternating between episodes that look solid and others that feel noticeably weaker with less attention to detail and nearly nonexistent animation. And thats truly a shame especially because other aspects like the closeup shots which are always clean and wellrendered are handled with great care. This fluctuation in quality unfortunately affects even the final episode which fails to deliver the impact I was hoping for narratively as well to be honest there are a couple of things that I personally would have handled differently. Despite this small stumble at the end however nothing detracts from what the series has accomplished so far nor from what was achieved previously. Still its hard not to feel a sense of regret: its painfully clear that compared to other productions the studio was working on during the same season this one was treated like the last wheel of the wagon and deprived of even a minimal but muchneeded improvement in visual quality. And thats regrettable not only because the series deserves more on its own merits but also considering todays standards where the overall quality of major anime productions tends to keep raising the bar. For me the artistic peak is reached in the ending visuals which feature excellent art direction and a softer more diffuse linework that beautifully enhances the character designs. The series also continues Aobutas tradition in which at the end of each arc the ending song is performed by the voice actress of that arcs heroine with the exception of the final episode that features a combined version sung by all four female leads. Finally in this last ending titled Suiheisen wa Boku no Furukizu the various heroines appear to be watching a projection of their memories on a screen and in front of which they are sitting as if it were a genuine psychoanalytic session that could represent a symbolic staging of their own subconscious. Fukashigi no Karte remains undoubtedly iconic but this one too performs its role admirably. https://www..com/watch?v=PHsikAwYGYY This is the aforementioned ending in a version where all four of its variations one for each arc are compared. 500https://i.post.cc/L6PmWH55/GwQAXXuWAAAELos.jpg Let me finally include this image as well. I couldnt possibly end this discussion without adding it. I honestly think its one of the best moments in the entire season not only because of the delightful surprise it gives us but also for how charming it is. Besides Mai looks really good with glasses they suit her well. And its this innocent Mai at the wheel who extends her greetings to the prospective reader.