I'm
still trying to figure out if Mysterious
Girlfriend X is
an elaborately executed anime about sexual fetishes. I've cringed
many times at the sight of our characters swapping globs of viscous
saliva with each other. Let me be clear: nobody kissed in this anime,
but instead they exchanged phlegm-like wads of spit by poking into
each other's mouths. Whoever came up with the premise to this story
must be a really, really strange dude. He's also innovative, morphing
conventional ecchi and
school drama into an anime that's mighty sophisticated.
Tsubaki
happens upon Urabe, a recent transfer student, as she is napping on
her desk after school. He wakes her up and she leaves for home.
Tsubaki notices she left behind a puddle of drool on her desk, and
he's compelled to dip his finger in and taste it. He grows ill soon
after, and Urabe figures out why: Tsubaki is lovesick for her and
craves her saliva. She agrees to go out with him, and every day after
school she offers him a finger loaded with her slimy, sweet drool.
The
viscous fluid motif has to be symbolic of overflowing sexual tension.
The show's intro sequence is full of flowing honey and lemons, and
flowers in the show are always blooming and releasing succulent
nectar. In one episode Tsubaki dreams that Urabe is in a Playboy
bunny costume, pounding away at a bucket full of milky fluid. The
fluid eventually morphs into smaller, naked Urabe figures that
envelop him; I can only guess he was having a wet dream. The fact
that Mysterious
Girlfriend X never
explicitly addresses sexuality might be disappointing to those who
prefer blatant ecchi or
silly harem flirtations, but fortunately, replacement for sexual
activities wasn't the only purpose the saliva served.
Those
who saw James Cameron's Avatar should
remember that the Na'vi could communicate using weird tendrils that
interlaced. The saliva in Mysterious
Girlfriend X works
the same way, giving Tsubaki and Urabe a bizarre way to express their
innermost feelings and thoughts. It can also transmit physical
injuries. For a hopeless romantic like myself, being able to convey
wordless notions sounds like it would solve all relationship
problems, not only between couples but for people all over the world.
But don't expect me to swap spit with anyone anytime soon.
The
show was produced by Hoods Entertainment, which is only three years
old. From what I can gather, they've only worked on
explicit ecchi shows.
The animation in Mysterious
Girlfriend X was
good, nothing spectacular. The character designs could have been done
better, because almost all of the characters had the same googly eyes
and short hair. The music was satisfactory, adding a humorous and
often circus-like eeriness to the anime, as if to underscore the
absurdity of the show's premise.
Truthfully,
I loved this show. It is a strong deviation from the
formulaic ecchi so
many of my peers complain about nowadays. The characters are quirky
but adorable, recalling a storytelling mode closer to independent
hipster films starring actors like Michael Cera or Emma Stone.
Urabe's tsundere tendencies
combined with Tsubaki's sexual desperation means that relationship
progression is slow and confusing at best. Things don't end with a
violent battle, a heartbreaking separation or a fiery sexual embrace.
Our characters don't ever kiss during the series. At the end of the
anime, they haven't developed into incredibly mature people who will
set out to change the world. They simply love each other a little
more than they did before.
Try
not to get too grossed out...
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