No luck. That’s how Sasaki Tsunehiro’s life goes. He’s in heavy debt that keeps accumulating, spending his days in a rut playing Pachinko, and apparently, sometimes attempting suicide. Most devastating though, is that he has a terminal illness that leaves him only about two years to live. Depressed but with a tiny bit of fighting spirit left, Hiro finds himself on the run from a trio of loansharks when suddenly he falls into a bay. This is when his luck starts to change. Rescued by a group of friends—led by the friendly Takaaki and the serious Hana—who are out at sea to fish, Hiro joins them on their late-night expedition and manages to discover just a little about why fishing is special. But will fishing be the thing—as Hana wonders—to change his life?
Episode one of Negative Positive Angler takes a little time to get into gear, but once it does, it ends up being a pretty good catch! Why? Because there seems to be heart to this story and most of the characters are already very lovable, though the protagonist is hard to love so far. Maybe that’s why the story feels slow going at first, since he’s the heavy focus of the first fifteen minutes, complaining (rightfully so) about his terrible life and then running from the (cute?!) loansharks. But once the fishing begins, the series lights up quite literally, with the night eventually turning to dawn and morning, brightening up the landscape and showing more vivid animation than it had through the first half; the daylight also, of course, expresses some hope for Hiro. This opening episode doesn’t feel heavy-handed, which is perfect for a series that is so obviously about second chances, using fishing as an analogy for how to live life. It is smooth and lovely. And I can’t get enough of the passionate Hana (neither can Hiro!) or the positive and kind Takaaki. The rest of the fishers seem like a fun group too. I’m glad I tried this show—I’ll definitely be headed out to fish with them again next week!
Negative Positive Angler can be streamed on Crunchyroll.
“Episode one of Negative Positive Angler takes a little time to get into gear, but once it does, it ends up being a pretty good catch!” Bravo 😆
Too easy. The puns were just jumping in the net for this one. 🎣
[…] Read More […]
I’ll have you know early morning puns are illegal, but I laughed, so I’ll let you off the hook…