For a show that really needs no formal introduction, Working!! picks right up where the previous season left off and continues to exploit Poplar’s (lack of) height and her utter cuteness. By golly, I may have died and gone to moe heaven.
For those unfamiliar with what this series has to offer, Working!! is the second series followup to the hit show of the same name that debuted early last year. Wagnaria is the family restaurant at the front and center of it all, and the day-in, day-out habits of the staff’s interactions with one another is where we get to see the brunt of the hilarity ensue. Each Wagnaria staff-member returns with their quirky antics on display, and we’re reminded once again of why it’s perfectly fine to forgive the fact that there are probably way too many people working shifts at the restaurant during slow times for the sake of seeing the entertaining interactions between all of the characters. For anyone who’s had any restaurant or retail experience, this show should (continue to) make you feel right at home.
While I shouldn’t be surprised that the ending was used to showcase the opening for the second season run, I’ll have to admit that even this season’s opener wasn’t as good as the original. You can’t beat a legion of chibi-Poplar marching to the sounds of those addicting “someone-one-one” lyrics. Flower petals around Yachiyo, Poplar, and Inami? They’re going to have to do better than that to get me to like this season’s OP.
Next week: Poplar declares that she’ll spread love all over the world by making a contract with a certain white-fur magical cat with red eyes. For an entire episode almost completely dedicated to making fun of Poplar’s height and chibi-stature, it did a good job with getting the audience reacquainted with the personality traits of each character in the series. Inami was just as destructive with her androphobia, Yamada is as lazy as ever, Yachiyo apparently continues to admire and make free parfaits for Kyouko, Sato is still easily misunderstood (especially by Yachiyo), Takanshi effortlessly diplays his adoration for all things cute and small, and Souma continues to be the wild card of the group with his subtle schemes to confuse his coworkers with the situations they get themselves into. Seriosly, dried geckos should not help anyone grow taller.
First Impression Rating: 9/10. I’m a sucker for Poplar beat-downs, and this episode was no exception.
Likelihood to Blog: 8/10. Lots of enjoyable scenes, but this one will most likely revert to a short highlight-reel type of episodic blog.
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