Eromanga Sensei

Episode 3

After her introduction in the previous episode, Eromanga Sensei's third episode gives some formal focus to rival author Elf Yamada. After another botched attempt by Megumi to coax Sagiri outside, Masamune ends up investigating the old house next door, only to discover that Elf has just moved in. He gets to know her better (including her bizarre habit of nude piano playing) and spends a couple of days bantering with her over their competitive writing, particularly with regards to who will get to work with Eromanga Sensei.

Elf's debut last episode made her borderline insufferable; there wasn't much to her character beyond 'stuck-up successful light-novel author'. This episode tries to add more tics to her characterization, apparently in the interest of depth, but while these extra facets prevent her from grating so much, she's still just not terribly interesting in terms of personality. Virtually everything she does either leads or follows her yelling at Masamune about how great she is. Admittedly, there's some amusement value to her as a parodic version of a self-important otaku living the ultimate dream (I have to wonder if there's some author-self-parody in there), but the show needs to step up and justify her existence in a more dramatic fashion, or it risks her devolving into pure irritation.

The series also confirms that it's not shy about doubling down on truly odd character tics. Last episode saw middle-schooler Megumi's out-of-nowhere dick fixation, and this week we're "treated" to Elf Yamada's nudist tendencies. Her actual naked segment is rather brief and not that salaciously framed (it's more an instance of comedic nudity than sexualized fanservice), but just like Megumi's outburst last episode, it's still terribly abrupt. Your mileage will vary on whether or not the prolonged discussion of the virtues of nudity that follows is funny. At the very least, I do find the point this bit seems to be making amusing; that these authors who include so much nakedness in their stories might have a deeper fixation on nudity in their own lives. It's an entertaining indictment of an element we've been desensitized to through so much dumb anime. Of course, given that Eromanga Sensei itself has already included plenty of fanservice, it might not be one to throw stones.

Other than that wholly unexpected detour, what works about this episode is how the time it devotes to Masamune's interactions with Elf informs his writing habits. The authoring portion of the show has thus far been the strongest, so sticking close with that element this week makes Elf and Masamune's discussions more interesting, even if you still find her annoying or just plain weird. For all of Elf's haughtiness, she seems to genuinely want to produce quality stories; her desire to co-opt Eromanga Sensei seems to stem from her desire to generate the best possible product, rather than any petty grudge against Masamune. That's something respectable, so far. It's also interesting that she regards her writing as a "hobby," as opposed to the job Masamune has been forced to make his work. Her status as a foil to Masamune is clear and effective, which only exacerbates her need to become a better character moving forward.

The contrast in their work ethics is also interesting. Elf is very much the eccentric creator, moving into a new house on a whim after her work got adapted into anime, entertaining her nudist predilections under the guise of using that element in her book, and only actually writing when she feels fully motivated. Masamune admonishes her harshly for this last one, contrasting with the absurd, giant-manuscript-producing work ethic we saw him posses in the first episode. While you might expect her status as his rival to let the narrative paint him in the right in this situation, the show surprisingly goes a different way with this conflict. The second episode saw Masamune's stack of submissions get summarily rejected, and Elf calls out his failure by asserting that a workmanlike submission of so much material written without passion is no substitute for something the author truly wants to write, produced in the heat of a driven moment. It's a subversive narrative decision for a series like this that does a good job of setting Masamune up for some needed development in the future.

There were other little things that worked in this episode, including some comedy courtesy of Elf's rapid-fire goofiness. Her naked interlude results in some good comedic moments, and the funniest part of the whole episode was her jog next door to check the family nameplate on Masamune's house (followed by her literally going in reverse to get back). Sagiri had a diminished presence in this episode, but she contributed another highlight when Masamune peeked next door to see her enthusiastically performing one of her drawing livestreams. It's an adorable, well-animated moment that sells one of the most likable aspects of Sagiri's characterization. Finally, Masamune's brief struggles of trying to reconcile his rivalry with Elf despite fanboying over the novels she writes made for some entertaining interludes.

For all the things this episode does right, Eromanga Sensei still has plenty of the same problems. There's a rather tasteless scene early on, where the camera suddenly lingers on Sagiri's butt and her exposed stomach in a suggestive pose with Masamune, at which point he also decides to bring up the possibility of Sagiri having a crush on him. She also reacts with violent jealousy at her big brother spending any time with Elf. I understand little-sister-love fanservice is one of the selling points of this series, but it hasn't done a particularly good job of anything in the story with that element yet, so throwing quick bones in that direction just sticks out as a distraction. Sagiri's plenty cute as a character already (the ending theme shows that much), so we don't need the show unnecessarily fetishizing her when there's no real reason for it.

The show also runs into pacing issues again. The varied conversations between Masamune and Elf work well, but the final segment at the end (despite some interest stemming from comparing the authors' writing styles) feels tacked on and leaves the episode feeling bloated, like it runs just a little too long. The way it abruptly cuts off into the end of the episode just underlines this aspect, feeling like a jump to credits just as we'd started a new chapter. I'm not sure exactly how Eromanga Sensei is planning to adapt its source material, but the show would be well-served to find a more even rhythm.

Those problems have definitely lessened from the first episode though, as Eromanga Sensei succeeds by playing to its strengths this week. It looks like Masamune and Elf Yamada's authorial butting of heads will be directly continued next week, and given how well it worked here, I can only hope it continues in that direction, while mitigating its other bad habits.

Rating: B

Eromanga Sensei is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.