An Anime Review of 'Keep Your Hands of Eizouken!'

This is the most recent project to come from studio Science SARU and director Masaaki Yuasa. The show is based on the currently ongoing manga by Oowara Sumito. Anytime Masaaki Yuasa is involved I pay attention, his previous work has been incredible and following suit this is no different. Though I will admit that this is the first time that I have related so much to one of his works. In fact this may be one of the few times that I have related so much with an anime in general. From the entire cast it is Kanamori that I find a certain kinship with.

The narrative follows three high school girls that live in a fictional city, Asakusa, Mizusaki, and Kanamori. The goal of these three students is to make anime for a living. Asakusa is the imaginative force driving the group, Mizusaki is the artistic figure trying to capture essence, and Kanamori is the one worried about the business side of things. Through the narrative we get to see a lot of the creative hurdles that come about when you are working on the budget of a ham sandwich, when collaborating with others, when working with technical limitations and so much more.

The reason why I find myself relating to this show and Kanamori in particular is because it is the same thing that I am trying to do in a film space. In the past four years, as I have been learning more and more about filmmaking, and animation the feelings, and obstacles that these three girls go through are things that I have experienced. While I am primarily a director, I find myself feeling more from the perspective of Kanamori, and the challenge is to find the balance between the creative and the business while many fall to one or the other.

What I find fantastic is that the show does not portray its chosen field as if it is the best thing to be a part of and that everything is amazing. There is a lot of conflict, there is a lot of compromise, for better or for worse, there are a lot of deadlines, there is a lot of pressure. The creative industry is a tough place to be in, especially when starting out with nothing. Yet despite these challenges they also portray why we continue to strive to be in this industry. The satisfaction that someone has watched your work, the drive to improve, and the love of telling a story.

As it is typical of a Masaaki Yuasa project, the animation is fantastic. It is not what someone would say is typical of anime, however as a result of this the show has a cadence of movement and a level of expressiveness on the frame that would otherwise be missing in many other anime. This makes the contents in the frame visually interesting to look at, and the style has a definitive identity to it that helps it to stand out among the cavalcade of seasonal anime. The cityscape is wonderfully imaginative, with a rich colour palette, and there is energy to even the slightest movement. This style has a personality to it. In addition, the music in this show is fantastic, blending with the visuals of the show seamlessly. Plus, the openings and endings to the show are incredibly entertaining to watch both from a visual standpoint and from a song choice standpoint.

This is an anime that met and exceeded my expectations with regards to its quality and content. As such this is a show that I highly recommend you watch, the narrative is great, the information and depiction of the lives of creatives are on point, the visuals are stunning and the music is stellar. The show is available to watch on Crunchyroll.