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Zenshu Review: What Happens When an Animator Ends Up In An Isekai?
Crunchyroll's Zenshu is a hilarious new isekai that deconstructs the genre when a female anime director ends up in her favorite fantasy world.
Zenshu is the latest twist in Isekai. You know isekai, the fantasy subgenre where a person from our world ends up in their favorite fantasy world where they know what's going to happen and how everything works and comes to dominate that world through their knowledge to, in effect, God Mode. The hero changes the world to become its big hero. They usually feature a male hero living out his power fantasies, though some series feature a heroine manipulating romantic relationships to stay alive. Zenshu asks, "What would happen if a female anime director ends up living in her favorite fantasy anime series?"
Zenshu – Last Week, An Animator. This Week? A God-Tier Animator!
"FIRST STROKE", the pilot episode is a prelude, all set-up for introducing the heroine of Zenshu before she ends up in the fantasy world of "A Tale of Perishing", the anime that changed her life as a child. We see animation director Natsuko Hirose struggling under the pressure of producing her second project after her indie debut – a take-off and homage to Sailor Moon – earns her industry acclaim and big expectations. She's especially put out by having to make a traditional girl's romance anime, which is a genre she couldn't give a damn about. She's become insufferable at the office with her perfectionism and antisocial nature – she hates people as it is – as she insists on doing everything herself while her staff are too intimidated to say anything. Overworked, over budget, and behind schedule, Natsuko is struck by the news that the director of "A Tale of Persiing" has passed away and chokes to death on bad seafood, as you do. Then the story really starts.
"Zenshu" means "last week," which has multiple means that aren't completely clear yet. Natsuko wakes up in the fantasy world of "A Tale of Perishing" and almost immediately meets the heroes she never got out of her mind since childhood, including knowing the tragic events that are coming that resulted in them all dying and the anime becoming a box office bomb but with a cult following that included her. She discovers her superpower in this world – a magic brush that can bring anything she draws to life that gives her God Mode.
The Heroine is a Messy Jerk, and We're Here for That
What sets Zenshu apart from other isekai stories is apart from being an original series and not adapted from a Light Novel, Natsuko is a messy, entitled, antisocial asshole. She has no regard for other people and is obsessively self-preoccupied. She's unkempt and wears a hoodie like she's still at home and her face is hidden behind her hair like she's Sadako from The Ring because she wants people to stay the hell away from her. Now, she's going to have to deal with people, including the tragic heroes she watched as a child whose deaths broke her heart.
It's in the last moments of "FIRST STROKE" that the core themes of Zenshu start to emerge: Natsuko, the antisocial heroine who's halfway to becoming a hikikomori, or pathological shut-in, (while totally in denial that she is one) must learn to open up and include other people in her life, and also rediscover the creative spark and joy that made her want to become an animator in the first place, which is pretty much the story of every artist. Oh, there's also the bit about healing her childhood wound by using her artistic powers, i.e., drawing and creation, to save the heroes from dying and altering the tragic story. All this in the first episode.
Insider References Galore
Zenshu is also a homage to the animation industry and anime history. Natsuko's first hit anime directly references Sailor Moon. "A Tale of Perishing" is a homage to the many manga and anime stories by pioneer Osamu Tezuka, whose cute, sweet-looking art style and characters only made his many tragic stories even more heartbreaking and traumatizing to any child who watched them. Lovable characters freakin' died, and the world isn't fair! And Tezuka has traumatized at least three whole generations of kids since the 1960s. Even his Astro Boy stories were often incredibly sad.
The opening scene in the real world at Natsuko's animation studio is full of insider detail, including the pressures the staff are under. Several shots of Natsuko looking scary under her hair are a reference to The Ring. Natsuko, knowing "A Tale of Perishing" inside-out, is a commentary and celebration of fandom, the type that inspires geeks to work in the industry. The funniest part of Zenshu is Natsuko immediately figuring out she's in an isekai and lamenting that only pathetic nerds end up in those stories. The giant knight Natsuko creates is a Miyazaki reference, calling on the likes of Naussica In the Valley of the Wind. The portrayal of Natsuko as a messy and flawed but hilarious woman has nuances that female storytellers would know better than most male storytellers, and screenwriter Mitsue Yamazaki and director Kimiko Ueno (who directed the recent acclaimed Netflix reboot of Ranma 1/2) are two of the most respected names in anime now.
All this is a compelling and funny opener, leading to that big climax and reveal at the end. Hopefully the rest of Zenshu lives up to this set-up. It's a parable about rewriting your own story by giving your favorite story a better ending. We only wish we could get a kickass (and hilarious) Magical Girl transformation like Natsuko does when she rediscovers her power. Oh, and it shouldn't be a surprise that the English dub is funnier.
Zenshu is streaming on Crunchyroll.
Zenshu Episode 1: "First Stroke"
8/10
Crunchyroll's Zenshu is a knowing deconstruction and satire of isakai from a female perspective that deconstructs the genre and also pokes fun at the anime industry, tragic fantasies, geekdom but also carries a deeper theme of rediscovering the artistic spark and healing childhood wounds through art.
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