Proof that Dadaism is not only alive and well
Ah, Osomatsu-san. Proof that Dadaism is not only alive and well, but that people are willing to throw a huge budget behind it as well.
Osomatsu-san has always been a hard show to define. It doesn’t fit nicely into any category. It’s like trying to fit a dodecahedron into a square peg, to make a terrible metaphor. The show has elements of slice-of-life shows, screwball comedies, romance anime, cerebral social satire, body horror, and about a million other subgenres that you would not expect from a show that sells itself as a reboot of the extremely tame Osomatsu-kun, a black-and-white anime from the ‘60s.
Anyway, following up on the very popular 1st season in 2016, the 2nd season of Osomatsu starts much like the 1st season. That is to say: the episode goes nowhere in spectacular fashion. Uncertainty and directionlessness in life are at the heart of the Osomatsu franchise, and this episode uses that uncertainty to provide two different glimpses as to what the show might evolve into over the course of the second season. The first half shows a future that is delightfully self-aware, where the Osomatsu sextuplets have grown fat and grotesque off their previous success, whereas the second half showcases what might happen if the six worked hard and matured into “proper” anime characters. This second half is where the episode shines. Replete with a staggering demonstration of mixed media talent, the show gives each of the six Matsu brothers individual art styles, including 3D and live action and sprinkles in some side-splittingly hilarious commentary on what it means to be a “proper” anime (funny precisely because of how close to home it hits).
Ultimately, both visions go nowhere and leave the Matsu sextuplets much as they were last time and much as they will ever be hence: lazy, directionless losers, each more loveable than the last because of how horrifically dorky they all are. With a strong OP and a (probably expensive) stop-motion ED, Osomatsu-san Season 2 seems to pick up seamlessly from where the first season left off. The future looks bright for the six loveable losers, but the real test will be to see what shenanigans they can get into from here on out.
