Super Sonico Episode 10
What They Say:
“Super Sonico” debuted as Nitro+’s live mascot girl, and her world will be brought to life in the anime, “SoniAni – SUPER SONICO THE ANIMATION -”!
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Working with a festival motif in the previous episode, we got a bit more fanservice than normal and some awkward moments where it just felt like too much for a series that has been so restrained and dealt with issues so well. This episode takes a different turn from the start though which is pretty cute and welcome as we see how Sonico has a habit of bringing home stray cats and kittens. We know she has a couple there already, but as she brings in this new one, we realize she has quite a few as there are five there, plus the new utterly adorable white kitten. That she bathes with in order to get clean. It’s cute to see how it all unfolds and the way she introduces the new kitten, which she names Rice, to the rest of the cats there and helps the kitten to settle into life in the Sonico household.
This lets the first half of the episode focus a lot on Rice, who is utterly adorable, getting used to things as the other cats suss him out and figure what he’s like. With Sonico crashing hard after one of her usual long days of doing things, it’s fun to see how she gets comfy under the sheets and reacts in her sleep to the noise of the kittens as they interact with each other. Rice is pretty standoffish, which makes sense being the new cat in town, and the way the rest of the cats are kind of surprised by it works nicely. But there’s also the really honest and great moment where, when the alarm goes off in the morning, you see how Sonico is surrounded by all the other cats on the bed. There’s a lot of ritualism involved in how she deals with her days and some utter cuteness in the way the cats nudge her along with her day, all while Rice looks along and realizes he wants to participate as well. Not exactly in the best way though…
While we do get some cute bits with Sonico throughout it, such as how she deals with the cats and the situation in general, most of it is focused on the cats themselves as they cope with the new addition. Rice does settle in and we get a few non-cat montages along the way, including some great Halloween themed costume shoot material, and we once more see how Sonico just goes through her day and does the job with a smile and enjoyment. Naturally, a little drama must fall into the show as well with Rice getting out, which puts Sonico into quite a panic, and as she goes off chasing the other, the rest of the cats do their best to get out and find Rice themselves. Which, while being repetitive, is bloody adorable and cute to see. Both sides of it want Rice back safely and work well towards it. The challenges are cute and while I adore Sonico, the cats really did win me over in this journey towards predictable conclusion.
In Summary:
Super Sonico puts herself in the secondary position for this episode and leaves us with the cats to hold the bag. And to my surprise, the episode works. Largely I find myself unable to enjoy episodes like this since they’re so forced and predictable, and while this one hits those notes, it manages to do it in a surprisingly fun and cute way without the intense drama you might normally get. Essentially, it fits in with the kind of style that the series has dealt with Sonico herself and that allows it to be simply yet surprisingly enjoyable. It shows the kind of family that Sonico has made for herself with the cats she’s rescued and the simple love and adoration each have for each other is, quite simply, sweet.
Grade: B
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment:
Sony KDL70R550A 70″ LED 1080P HDTV, Apple TV via HDMI set to 1080p, Onkyo TX-SR605 Receiver and Panasonic SB-TP20S Multi-Channel Speaker System With 100-Watt Subwoofer.