Free! -Dive to the Future-

Episodes 1-2

It's hard to believe that it's been five years since a 30-second clip about some handsome swimmers inspired a whole new fandom. There was fan art, fan fiction, and even a fan-made visual novel all based on the proto-concept that would eventually be revealed as Free! - Iwatobi Swim Club. Fans fell in love with only the barest of material, but now as the franchise enters its third season, there's such an embarrassment of canon to process that it's difficult to keep it all straight.

The first two episodes of Free! Dive to the Future are certainly not for beginners. Instead, they seem to reward viewers who have voraciously devoured every bit of Free! made available so far. Aside from a cast that has tripled in size since season one, this season constantly winks at the viewer with regular references to things they may or may not remember, like Haru's camel ride from the club's desert-themed promo video in Free! -Take Your Marks-.

However, that puts those of us in North America at a disadvantage. We've had access to the first two TV series and we even got a brief screening of the OVA-turned-movie Free! -Take Your Marks-, but High Speed! -Free! Starting Days-, the movie that makes up the bulk of the third season's inspiration, isn't here yet. Though Funimation is in the process of dubbing it for a late 2018 Blu-ray release, I'm going to have to accept that my reviews of this show will almost certainly miss some of the most important callbacks.

Or will they? Though there are many less-than-familiar faces, this season is filling us in where it counts. We meet Ikuya, who I just barely know from a cameo in the OVA, and quickly get up to speed on his personality, which is even moodier and more reserved than Haru's. The recap-focused flashback in the second episode feels like the beginning of his story, refreshing fans on the details and introducing the uninitiated to his quirks. The first two episodes queue through introductions to characters we remember clearly, or just a little, or not at all. I am hesitant to say whether anyone we meet is really appearing for the first time in season three because there's just so much of Free! now. With Haru and Makoto at college, the rest of the team back at Iwatobi, Rin in Sydney, and so many more swimmers to meet, there are a lot of plotlines in play now. Scene after scene of introductions and establishing action may feel a little slow, but I could use the hand-holding right now.

And in the midst of all this table-setting, there are glimpses of the magic that makes Free! so beloved. Character interactions are motivated by emotion, peppered with humor, and visually depicted to great effect—bringing back the literal parallels between Haru and Rin. There are some stunning visual moments like the flashback in which Haru and Ikuya, their feet dangling in a star-spangled pool, wish on shooting stars. Then there's a sunset moment in which Haru and Ikuya encounter one another on a city bridge, a symbol for their lives connecting once again. And as always, the dynamically sculpted water that centers the show is a character in its own right—it can be placid or playful or dangerous, depending on what the plot demands.

Right now, watching Free! Dive to the Future is a little like taking a test when I haven't studied the material. I'm sure I'm missing some minor details, but at the same time, it's all coming back to me from years ago. After all, before Free! first aired, fans were able to enjoy its aesthetic to the fullest even before it even had a name.

Rating: B

Free! Dive to the Future is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Lauren writes about geek careers at Otaku Journalist.