Super Cub

There are many anime these days telling stories about self-discoveries. I'm talking about a type of show where a protagonist would undergo a dramatic change after meeting new people, experiencing new events, and changes themselves. Super Cub's main protagonist Koguma is one such character, a lonely girl who takes up a Honda Super Cub and begins her own journey. Watching Super Cub is much more than just following a girl's life and her bike. Let's remember that Koguma is very lonely and starts out the show friendless with no income, friends, or even a future. A person like this would need to set a serious pathto build their own future if they even want to live in real life. Her physical appearance is also lacking and can be labeled as an 'invisible kid' in class. So in essence, Koguma is often in the background and it's up to herself to stand out. It's a lot harder than it sounds as she has a repressed personality, one who even has difficulty speaking openly to others. The first few episodes shows that Koguma's social skills needs improvement but deep at heart, she is a friendly person. She just lacks friends. Luckily, fate allow her to meet new people such as Reiko. In sharp contrast to Koguma, Reiko stands out in class as a beautiful girl and easily opens up to others. With a decent knowledge about Cubs, she forges a bond with Koguma through their similar interests. At first, Koguma also has trouble opening up to her but as the series verges on, they build a strong friendship. It's important to note that Koguma's own confidence begins to bloom after meeting Reiko. It's the type of relatable interaction you can discover in anime and in real life. Through their relationship, Koguma is able to interact with others and discover herself in ways she didn't even realize. With that in mind, you should know that Koguma and Reiko's character bond is among the most important in the show. Joining them is Shii Eniwa, a shy girl who meets both Koguma and Reiko with their shared interest in Cubs. Unlike Koguma however, she has a future planned out with a dream to open a bakery shop. Together, these three are the heart and soul of this slice of life anime. With every episode, we follow their everyday life adventures and discover what they learn. It's interesting to note that even as as slice of life, the anime contains a somber and lonely tone in the beginning of the anime. The first episode is especially noticable for the silence and slow pacing. It's almost an iconic representation of Koguma's personality, being alone in the world and without friends. After forging friendships with Reiko and Shii, the anime begins to brighten more and develops a more charming mood of elegance. As it should, Super Cub knows what it's doing when telling its stories. Even as as slice of life, the show has a deeper and real meaning when showing how lonely life can be when you have no friends or connections. Koguma's life is an example of what a person would be like in real life if they remained friendless. It's thanks to discovering herself and friends that she becomes much more confident. But I won't lie. Anime like this doesn't have much of a linear storytelling or deep plot. Even as a complex as seems at times, Super Cub remains fundamentally a simple slice of life show. Every episode shows what these characters goes through in the way we live our own lives. It's very straightforward and remains realistic throughout every episode. A prominent element included into this show is the Cubs, where we get to see how the show's bikes functions. Every episode features these bikes and in the beginning, we also get to see how they are maintained on and off the road. Unlike some anime about bikes, this show doesn't include sports competitions or rivalries. It's quite the opposite as the characters all share a common interest and it's what bought them together in the first place. Sometimes, the show may feel like an advertisment for selling a brand but deep down, Super Cub is relatively a simple show that anyone can enjoy If you got the impression of a somber show in the beginning, then I don't blame you. The first few episodes has a gloomy feel that represents Koguma's loneliness. In fact, I think the director and producers managed to capture the essence of her character through the show's unique artwork. It has a gray-like style of imagery and backgrounds stands out as static as her character moves with her bike. Koguma's character expressions is also noticable that undergoes changes with each episode. As I mentioned before, this anime adapts a character's self discovery and the artwork brings its themes to life. Almost every season, there's that one show where we tend to overlook and forget easily. Super Cub may not be a mainstream anime but I dare say this is a dark horse of 2021. By that definition, the series knew exactly what it had in mind and followed a roadmap to show what a character journey and self discovery is about. Add in the bikes and we have this unique slice of life, one that may be somber at first, but is a reality check of how people can adapt and change.

Looking for something to fill that Yuru Camp/Non-non Biyori sized hole in your heart? Look no further, Super Cub is your answer. Super Cub is not only arguably the best motor scooter ad ever made, it’s a damn good anime and is one of the hidden gems of a loaded season. I watch everything every season, so despite having no expectations for Super Cub, I went in with an open mind. From episode one, I was blown away by just how mesmerising this series is. It’s such a simple concept. Girl with no friends or family going through depression decides to try out a Super Cubscooter. Falls in love with riding a scooter and uses it to explore her prefecture. Yet, Super Cub’s quality lies within its simplicity. Reiko’s inner development is paralleled by the literal development of her scooter. As it grows, so does she. It’s a really beautiful metaphor that keeps the show grounded, yet impactful. Just like Yuru Camp and other CGDCT shows, there’s not a whole lot of plot going on. While there are some recurring plot-lines, overall the series aims to showcase the characters’ development through their daily activities. This should not come as a surprise, as this is the CGDCT norm. I really was shocked by how much I came to like this show. While Yuru Camp interested me with camping and outdoors-y activities, I’m not a scooter or motorcycle person to really care about that. Yet, I found myself drawn to Super Cub due to its loveable characters and their growth. By 4-5 episodes in, I was really concerned for the MC and just wanted the best for her. One of the more interesting aspects of the show for me was the use of CGI. For a slice of life show, I thought the series relied a little heavily on it at times. For really simple shots like characters riding their scooters or even just walking around, the studio used CGI. Personally, I don’t think CGI ever looks good, so that’s one downside artistically. Other than that, I loved the art style and the more muted colour palette used by the studio. They make use of this as part of the narrative, by having the first episode start off really gray and then gradually adding more colours into subsequent episodes. A perfect example of colour as a storytelling technique as it reflects the MCs interior struggles. The character designs themselves are actually quite unique and I must say I like them quite a bit. Make no mistake, while I used Yuru Camp as an introductory comparison, Super Cub is very much its own show, and one very much worth watching. If you enjoy slice of life or CGDCT shows, this is a must watch. It brings all the traditional aspects together in a rather unique way. Certainly one of the most memorable shows of Spring 2021. Super Cub gets 9 oil changes out of 10.

Super Cub is an Honda advertisement effort to sell those shiny and useless motorcycles, and it does a good job about it! First of all, I'm not being paid from Honda for this review, so I'm going to be completely impartial about it. Honda is a great company and I have the most respect out of their employees, so if you work for Honda I tell you, have a good life. Now, going into the review, Super Cub features a glooming teenager called Koguma, whose life is as boring and middle of the pack as it can be. Koguma have no parents, money or friends atthe start, which the later is not surprising at all because she probably have some high into the spectrum autism as we can see later in the series. Her life got better when she got her Super Cub, since her life could start to take some colour (Like literally, everytime they wanted to show us that she felt good they changed the colours. That gimmick was alright at the start, then it got annoying as fuck) The art of this anime is ok, the characters are somehow normal which I like, they look like they would be an extra in your favorite action anime, that's the point i guess. The CGI usage is somehow cheap, I have no problem with CGI honestly, the time reduction that it gives is extremely worth it so I have no desire to talk shit about it. The only problem is that it broke the continuity of the scene many times, since the models and the drawings didnt feature the same features (Like ground and shit, whatever). The music was alright too, the usage of classical music like the change of colors got old very fast for me, hearing i dont know who because im a shitty ignorant behind a motorcycle motor was extremely jarring too, but who cares The main problem of this anime is then the interactios between of characters. The plot, as it is a slice of life, shouldnt be an issue. Koguma travels, buys some dumbass equipment and then her life get better. Not something to worry about. The problem is then how those characters act besides the cubs. You have Reiko and Shii, the other two characters, and while Reiko is a charming and engaging characters that synchronize with the deep into the spectrum Koguma, I don't see the same in Shii. There is no reason for Shii to keep Koguma and Reiko near them, the purpose of her is to sell us the Cub, and then when she got introduced the ad levels of bullshit got so high that it was unbearable. In my honesty, Shii would have served better as a contraposition of Koguma and Reiko obsession, not as someone who wants to get into their own frequency. That way we would get out of the monotonous tone that this had. The problem is that she doesnt, and she doesnt because this is an ad. I won't say anything about episode 5 and 11 because they were clearly subject of brain damage writing That would be it. If you want something calm to watch, watch this. Skip episode 5 to not get mad because it is also almost pointless, and turn your brain off in episode 11 to have a better day. The only salvageable aspect of this is that it was a good ad, so I will give it a 4 out of 10 for the execution

*This review contains some spoilers* For the first time ever, I felt compelled to write a review for an anime that has just finished airing. For somebody like myself who just doesn't do this sort of thing, it speaks volumes to how either brilliant and memorable the experience was or the exact opposite, an incredibly off-putting and/or insulting viewing . Unfortunately, I am of the latter for this series. Super Cub. What I was initially hyped for turned out to be one of the most soulless watches I've had, coupled with shameful advertisements of a product throughout the show. For a slice of life anime to reallyshine bright, IMO, it generally comes down to a couple of major things. That is the setting of the anime and especially the characters driving it. Super Cub failed pretty miserably in both these aspects. An insipid, uninspiring experience. Super Cub is set in some small bland rural town, actually no, that's not entirely right. Super Cub is set in some small bland rural town schools bike parking lot. That's better. I guess there are a few scenes where they show off the insane capabilities of the Super Cub whilst driving 35 mph through town (exciting) and even venture out further a couple times, but the vast majority of our viewing experience is severely limited to a minor few places where nothing interesting happens (her school, her home, etc). A rural setting can be great by the way, hell, I really enjoyed Non Non Biyori. That anime has a wonderful cast to compliment the setting though, and oh boy, we cannot say the same here. The main Female MC (Koguma) has to be one of the worst MCs I've ever had the displeasure of watching. The "story" follows an independent (well, codependent with her stupid Cub later on, as she seemingly can't live properly without it) young Highschool girl who has no family or friends to speak of. She is very stoic and standoffish by nature, a girl of few words. The first few episodes actually do a decent job in developing her character further as she meets her first real friend resulting in her slowly but surely breaking down her walls she's put up, but for some reason her personality and development stagnates and she continues to be this quite unpleasant, unfriendly person in the later episodes. There are scenes where you just want to scream at this moron for not understanding and acting accordingly to the situations that she's in (episode 11 for example where time is of the essence). And I've heard the excuses to her actions "oh, she's from a rural town, they aren't used to social interactions that much", lol I'm from a rural town as well buddy, I can socialize just fine. Terrible scapegoat. If I'm being honest, she comes across as mentally ill, but nothing of the sort is explored, her mind, her past, etc. Who the hell wants all that in a cutesy slice of life anyway? It would defeat the purpose entirely. Next we have Reiko, an energetic girl who befriends MC thanks to their mutual interest in riding Super Cubs. She just so happens to be extremely knowledgeable about all things bikes and teaches the MC the ways of the Cub. Best part of the anime right there, the little teacher/student thing they had going on, the small info dumps on how to clean/maintain your bike, the bike parts that came with it, the extra parts that were sought after etc. Pretty interesting overall, it did remind me of Yuru Camp (that's where the comparisons start and finish for me there lmao). To finish of the trio of young bike enthusiasts, we have Shii-chan who is sadly ultimately used as a plot device to further advertise the Cub. Scenes are set up in place for this entirely. A cute shy girl who is relegated to play the damsel in distress trope. Very one dimensional and lacking in any originality whatsoever. The art was alright, different, but tolerable. Pretty bog standard for your anime in 2021. The color palette and character designs were ugly mind you. The sound was probably the best part of the anime, the OSTs fit very well with most situations and were generally very easy on the ears. A plus there. And now to my main gripe with this show. There are examples of Honda's advertising throughout this series, it's not exactly difficult to notice. And it wears on you after the umpteenth time. Where it differs from other anime that advertise product is that it's much more "in your face" and with more frequency to boot. What I thought was truly the most shameful scene though was when MC's friend rides her push bike down some trail, slips and ends in a small stream/river and seemingly can't get up and calls MC to come get her. MC takes her sweet time and screws around with the poor girl, even slapping the crap outta her, finally chucks her in the front basket of the Super Cub (very dangerous) and drives off. A very idiotic scene that should have never happened in the first place, but it's the script that gets me the most... "Don't thank me, thank the Cub" and other cheesy/horrible dialogue that went with it. "My Super Cub is on it's way" Oh, thank the Heavens and the Gods for the almighty Super Cub, hallelujah! What she's pretty much saying is "this wouldn't have happened if you didn't have this amazing vehicle with you, idiot". I'm surprised she never broke the 4th wall and literally told us, the viewers, to hurry up and go buy one already. They're only $2500 USD brand spanking new!!! You won't regret it!!! Shii Chan sure didn't, as expected, she bought one the next episode. Overall, a somber experience. One of the worst offenses an anime can make is to simply be boring. And that's what this is. If you're boring a massive slice of life fan, then something is wrong here. Couple it with the two paragraphs above and you have my least favorite anime of the season.

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