Moyashimon Returns – 7

Is it just me or are the microbes that follow Sawaki around just, like, rude dicks to him or something?

Moyashimon Returns – 6

As with any massive social gathering where its members share some similar attributes, a herd mentality develops.  Such a phenomenon develops because certain actions, behaviors, and ideas cause other, more impressionable members, to be influenced into acting, behaving, or thinking in a certain way.  Provided that Sawaki, Yuuki, and Oikawa are freshmen entering into this bizarre college, their fresh and untainted perspective allows for an examination and critique into herd mentalities among these seemingly psychopathic young adults at a simple agricultural university.

Moyashimon Returns – 5, Dog Days’ (S2) – 5, Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita – 6

Returning home after a lengthy vacation always means a pile of responsibilities waiting for you, in addition to the even larger pile of anime that needs to be watched.  Because of this, among other oddities and obligations, let’s revisit the episodes from the previous week and see what significant or interesting events ensued.

Moyashimon Returns – 4

The results of intoxication are a diverse variety.  Every person responds to alcoholic beverages differently with the consequences ranging from a jovial drunken ruckus, to an impatient, irrational hot-head, to even a quiet, sedating stupor.  The portrayal of drunkenness in media recognizes these states but goes a step further and casts them through various lenses to illustrate it as either positive, negative, humorous, or however it wants us to interpret this inebriated behavior.  Given the content and characters in Moyashimon Returns, examples of intoxication have been used and reused time and time again for numerous purposes and with extensively different outcomes.  How do these states of drunkenness and their portrayals figure into the grand plan of Moyashimon Returns?

Moyashimon Returns – 3

Moyashimon, an anime illustrating the various events of a group of students in at an agricultural university, has progressed in a fashion parallel to the experiences that many of us receive as undergraduates.  That is, both journeys begin with a comprehensive and unrestricted scope providing ample opportunity for students to sample the extensiveness of college which eventually leads to an eventual focus and dedication to a specific specialization to which the student commits themselves to.  Moyashimon has mirrored this pattern well with the original season detailing a general campus story while the sequel, Moyashimon Returns, has emphasized the students working and learning within Professor Itsuki’s lab.  And not only in terms of content of the anime, too, but this theme of transitioning from breadth to depth can be seen in terms of storytelling and other mechanics of this anime.

Moyashimon Returns – 2

If I were to quiz you on what Acetobacter aceti does, would you remember what we learned from Moyashimon?  What about Aspergillus sojae?  Instead, what if I provided a picture of one of our characterized microbe friends, or perhaps a short video clip demonstrating its voice and personality?  Would you remember then?

Moyashimon Returns – 1

Within every anime, a guide is present.  Whether it is a kindly narrator assisting the audience by explaining fundamental concepts regarding the setting and historical events or a learned character providing clarification or even enlightenment to the protagonist as a means of indirectly communicating to the audience, guides exist for which to educate the audience.  As Moyashimon covers various scholarly subjects in depth and detail, ranging from microbiology to fermentology to even agricultural engineering and political economics, there needs to be someone who can lend a hand to the audience and help them understand the basics of the situation so they are able to understand and appreciate the dialogue and message without being lost to the difference between Koikuchi soy sauce and Kijouyuu soy sauce.  But what’s unique and extremely advantageous about Moyashimon is that this role of guide is divided between two separate entities. Splitting the duty of guide between Professor Itsuki and the main microbe, Aspergillus oryzae, allows Moyashimon to preserve its current pacing and characterization while also educating the audience and creating an experience that is both informative and entertaining.