ONIMAI: I'm Now Your Sister!

Episodes 8-9

It's funny what a big deal the pervy aspects were in the first few episodes. By episode 9, they're practically nonexistent. Over time, Onimai has transitioned into a mostly relaxing slice-of-life comedy. It's vindicating for those of us who were arguing from the start, "Onimai is more wholesome than you'd think!" That said, a part of me does think that the anime loses some of its unique edge by sanding off its contentious elements.

That may be an ironic thing of me to say when episode 8 included an extended bath scene... But here's the thing. It's tame by anime standards. The scene goes through all the typical beats for a silly fanservice scene, like girls commenting on the size of each other's breasts. The voyeuristic framing from episode 1 is absent here, so it comes across as light-hearted rather than provocative. Mostly, I found myself annoyed by the censorship on Crunchyroll's stream, not because I thought there was much to see underneath the heavy steam, but because the choice of filter combined with the anime's color palette made it difficult to make out anything on the screen at all.

Mahiro's identity crisis takes a back seat in these episodes in favor of simple stories that develop the wider cast. The situations are not unique—episode 8 is about a sleepover, while episode 9 is a combined Christmas and New Year's episode. Asahi and Miyo would probably be more interesting as characters if they were foils for Mahiro instead of just representing the standard anime tropes of "energetic anime girl" and "overly imaginative shipper," but I enjoyed their quirks in these episodes nonetheless. In an amusing twist on her character type, Miyo finds herself completely flustered whenever something even mildly raunchy happens in her presence. Also, Asahi's green dinosaur outfit from the OP is revealed to be her pajamas, completely in-tune with her tastes. Her terrible sleeping posture adds a fun visual gag to the sleepover scenes.

Mahiro's relationship with his sister continues to be the show's heart. Notably, when seeking respite from his occasionally overbearing friends, Mahiro seeks out Mihari to bathe with. Mihari fits into the older sister role almost seamlessly, but it didn't escape my notice that her first impulse after getting drunk is to act clingy toward her "big brother." She's obviously happy that Mahiro can now experience the joys of school and friendship, but I wonder if she really wants to see the reliable older brother she once looked up to return to take care of her. Given how spoiled Mahiro is these days, I doubt that's happening anytime soon.

My favorite part of these episodes was the silent montage during the Christmas segment. It's surprising how long it lasts, but the fact that it's so easy to discern what the characters are feeling clearly demonstrates Onimai's strong character animation. Episode 8 probably had the weakest animation so far, indicating that even Onimai isn't immune to the current COVID wave. However, it was still well above average for a TV anime. These episodes may not have presented the most original ideas on the block, but they still have charm.

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ONIMAI: I'm Now Your Sister! is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.