The Rolling Girls is an original anime from the 2015 winter season by Studio Wit (yeah, those fuckers that did Attack on Titan, you know the one), written by Yasuyuki Muto and directed by Kotomi Deai. Set after the fictional “Great Tokyo War” when most of Japan’s political elites disappeared, the country split up into independent city-states, competing with each other in territorial disputes. But amp that shit up to eleven, because there are also these magical stone things that apparently give people referred to as “Bests” (mosa) superhuman reflexes and strength. The result?
Lots of colorful explosions. Like, lots of them. They will blow your mind.Anyway, due to a variety of circumstances in the first two episodes, main character Nozomi Moritomo ends up traveling around Japan in place of her town Tokorozawa’s Best Maccha Green as a substitute peace negotiator, but it’s revealed pretty quickly that she’s terrible at her job. Accompanying her are old friends/new comrades (?) Yukina Kosaka, Ai Hibiki, and Chiaya Misono, who are also pretty terrible at it, given that the four of them really have no authority whatsoever. While this may be resolved with time and things have found a way to work out alright in the end so far, they really serve as a device to explore Rolling Girls’ world, which through two-episode mini-arcs has already offered plenty of unique places and people to dig into. A rollercoaster hostage situation? Check. A cosplaying girl named Thunderoad trying to save her city from terrorists? Check. Fish-shaped lightning rod artisans angry with racing motorbikers because they can’t decide on a name for their region? Check that shit. Geishas vs. punk rockers vs. thugs in a battle for who the fuck knows what? You want it, Rolling Girls has got it, and it’s got it in beautiful watercolory sceneryporn splendor.
The silliness in this show is inherent and while there are occasional derpy gags, the majority of it is just so goofy by nature that you can’t help but have a smile plastered on your face the whole time. It’s one of the few shows in the past couple years to make me legitimately laugh out loud multiple times per episode. There’s also a pleasant lack of fanservice, really honing in on the human nature of all this eccentricity. Oh, and the OP and ED are actually covers of songs by the 1980’s punk rock band The Blue Hearts. Long story short, The Rolling Girls is about its newly independent places as much as it is its newly independent people, and the show is without a doubt already one of my favorites, easily the most underrated show airing this season. Give it a go.
Ganba-fuckin’-re.also R.I.P. Crocodile-san. We miss you.
