Experiencing this made me realize something about the mental state of my life and trends in this specific anime watching zeitgeist. While anime has been part of my life as early as my infancy, I took a break from its trends and popularity boom during the mid 2000’s and re-entered the scene during 2010. Call it a ever so slightly educated guess or completely reading trends incorrectly but the overwhelming trend of harems that budded, blossomed, and wilted in the 2010’s, in my mind, was just a sign of the times of the newer generation of anime watchers being pulled in to the escapist fantasies they provide. The younger audience, especially the light novel scene, probably found a bunch of new viewers from this period. But now that time has passed, people grew out of their phases and a newer trend of isekai has taken its place for the new audience or the old guard who still remain attracted to the usual trends.
So what the hell am I rambling on about? Well the people who watched those seasonal harems are all grown up now, it has been quite some time since those days, and while it isn’t as widespread as the isekai craze, I’ve noticed some smaller trends popping up in some manga about a different style of escapism. Those kids are grown up now, and so am I, it’s been a decade. There’s a bit more to life now than just pure escapist fantasies and maybe all we need now in our adulthood is a bit of help. Actually, a lot of help
I actually remember reading Senko-san a year or two ago before the adaptation was announced and remembered having a decent enough time before either negligence to check back for updates or diminishing interest since the formula is predictable. This small trend of completely overworked salaryman being assisted by a supernatural cohabitant is an appealing one with the incredibly relatable feeling of just being tired from work. Watching these series will elicit two reactions, maybe both at the same time: Just fawning over how cute Senko is and then dying on the inside knowing that life will never be this good.
It’s not that not difficult of a formula to grasp which leaves very little to talk about since this is mostly here to be a comfortable viewing experience balancing out Nakano hellish expectations at work with the few hours of comfort he finds in Senko’s efforts to help his stress away. The overall “plot” of Senko’s mission seems like an assignment with no real end so as long as Nakano is employed with where he is so I have no idea what those foxes are thinking. Hellish workplace conditions will always remain as they are, and a relaxing home environment can only do so much, they’re two different things. The point about Senko helping out Nakano due to his ancestors helping her probably could use a bit more elucidation but even then, that’s an easy concept to grasp too.
Really, there’s not much else to talk about other than how you interpret the pampering Nakano gets, either with envious despair or just pure heartwarming comfort, it’s up to the viewer on how they enjoy this because it’s a simple watch without needing to think about anything else other than what’s presented. Even in comparing it to the manga, which I hardly remember anymore, I feel that Senko’s cuteness is a bit diminished due to how hard they’re trying to sell said cuteness in the opening and ending themes. They’re fun tunes but I think Senko’s cuteness shines with her regular attitude just fine, trying to overdo an a given aspect only works to either complement it or diminish it and in this occasion, it’s the latter. Despite my attempts at trying to locate an insightful evolution of tropes to appeal to an aging audience, the simple observation only speaks of the growing pains of hormone addled teens becoming working adults and replacing the need for multiple girls chasing after them to just one girl looking after their them, which I guess is simply the natural progression of things. I’ll stop pretending to be smart now, the show is about a cute fox wife-mom looking after you, who wouldn’t want that easy life?
Lair of the Idle 