Adachi to Shimamura | First Impressions

Time for the long awaited First Impressions post for the anime, Adachi to Shimamura.

Somewhere in the school at noon, one might hear the sound of two girls playing table tennis together as they wait for time to pass by.
As if by fate, two students—Sakura Adachi and Hougetsu Shimamura—stumble upon each other on the second floor of the school gymnasium. As they gradually foster a budding friendship, their feelings for one another only become more ambiguous. Growing closer by the day, the two must learn to navigate their contrasting personalities as well as determine the depth of their affection for each other.
The nature of this relationship gradually shifts when one of them starts to develop feelings beyond the boundaries of a platonic relationship. Even so, Adachi and Shimamura must realize if forming a bond stronger than friendship will bring them closer or tear them apart.
Written by MAL Rewrite of MyAnimeList.net

The synopsis is essentially what this anime is all about. Genred as a Slice of Life, Romance, School, and Shoujo Ai; in case you didn’t already know. I also think it’s one of the very few Shoujo Ai‘s if not, the only one to air during the 2020 season (Not sure on that myself, but it sure feels like it). If you’re an anime watcher who have from time-to-time watched a Shoujo Ai here and there, then you’ve probably been skeptical about the genre as a whole because typically they aren’t too good.

That being said, there have been several Shoujo Ai‘s that I’ve enjoyed like, Sakura Trick, Yagate Kimi ni Naru and Yuru Yuri (even though I consider that more to be a Slice of Life, Comedy). I knew what to expect and what I was getting myself into prior to watching. So I did what everyone does whenever they watch an anime they’ve never heard of, you go in with low expectations and hope it impresses.

Now that I am four episodes into the anime, I can safely say that it has impressed me thus far. As I’ve previously mentioned, the synopsis basically tells you what it is, it’s about Adachi and Shimamura. Two individuals with contrasting personalities, forming a friendship which came from them skipping class simply because they do not like school (something we can relate to sometimes). I’ve mentioned this before in one of my blog posts, that although both Shimamura and Adachi carry different personalities, more often than not they feel like they’re two sides of the same coin. There similarities between the two, they are more alike than they are different. Our protagonists share the same sort of vibe, with regard to not really fitting in, wanting to be by themselves, not having someone to relate to, having insecurities, the list can go on and on. In essence they are high schoolers trying to figure themselves out while also trying to sort through an array of emotions.

That’s why I think Adachi and Shimamura work really well together because they’re both going through the same sort of thing; because of that they’re able to find comfort with each other. It is because of that comfortability they feel with another that draws them closer and closer to one another. Each episode I’ve seen has gradually progressed their friendship, they’re a lot closer now than they were in episode one. They also have a better understanding of each other and their feelings too.

Another thing that impressed me about this anime was the art style. It’s something different which is something that I always like as a watcher. The use of bright colours looks nice, furthermore, I love how the eyes are shaped, they really grab your attention. Not to mention the scenes that are animated whenever one character is in deep thought, is absolutely stunning. It sort of reminds me of 3-Gatsu no Lion, something I mention in my most recent ‘Episode Review’. Whatever the character is thinking, the feelings they are experiencing is accompanied by an animation and scene that suits what the feelings and thoughts the character is faced with. Furthermore, just like 3-Gatsu no Lion, a lot of the story is told not through interactions between the characters of the anime, but through the thoughts and self reflections of both Adachi and Shimamura. That type of story telling is something I adore, especially when they’re done to a style similar to 3-Gatsu no Lion. So in that regard, story wise it’s an A+ in my books.

I’m looking forward to seeing how Adachi’s and Shimamura’s friendship grows and what they’ll discover next about themselves. Adachi to Shimamura has left a very good first impression on me.