Friday, July 8, 2022

FIF#166-My Dress Up Darling

All his life, Wakana Gojo has dreamed of becoming a Hina Doll Craftsman.  This dream has left him shunned and ostracized by would be friends, who cant understand his fascination with Dolls.  That all changes when Wakana meets Marin Kitagawa.  She’s the prettiest girl in school and just so happens to be a massive Otaku…who wants to cosplay.  When she learns of Wakana’s Doll making skills, Marin asks him to create a costume for her based on one of her favorite Video Game Characters.  While he’s never worked on clothes for a human, Wakana takes on the challenge and thus begins an unexpected romance between the two.
 
I haven’t come across a lot of Anime where cosplay is itself the main focal point, or at least super essential to the plot.  Honestly, I probably wouldntve come across this title if it weren’t for the massive waves it made back in the beginning of 2022, mostly thanks to the girl who has become one of the most lovable (and ironically cosplayed) girls in all of Anime.  As a guy who appretiates cosplay and knows plenty of friends who cosplay often at conventions, I was willing to give an episode of My Dress Up Darling a shot.  Hoooo boy…I might have to continue on with this one…and yeah a lot of it has to do with Marin.
 
You know when people say, “Beautiful girls don’t just fall out of the sky”?  Clearly that was the setup for the arrival of Marin Kitagawa.  She crashes into Wakana’s desk and instantly becomes the main selling point of My Dress Up Darling and not just because she’s a 10/10 gorgeous girl…but she’s genuinely a good one too.  Often Anime is known for taking the super hot girl and making them an instant Tsundere or an antagonist of another female lead character.  Here, Marin is kind, friendly and morally incomparable.  Honestly, she had me at “Making fun of the things people like is not hot.”  That’s certainly not something you hear often from someone so pretty.  A lot of hype has been built up around this girl who could easily be the most perfect and ideal girlfriend an Anime nerd could dream of.  Ok yes, Marin alone is worth sticking around for a few more episodes, just like with Mai Sakurajima in Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai.
 
That said, the story for My Dress Up Darling isn’t bad either.  I feel for Wakana.  In High School I often found myself alone reading Manga and keeping to myself because I didn’t know how people would react to me being into Anime.  It got lonely, so I get where Wakana is coming from, especially with his craft.  I don’t doubt there are plenty of male Doll Makers out there, no craft is gender exclusive.  Translating his skills to working on Cosplay is going to be interesting to say the least.  Wakana knows his craft, giving Marin’s Cosplay a very critical progress report.  Judging from the synopsis above though, clothes for Humans aren’t exactly his forte.  I imagine if he gets to spend more time with Marin, any task or request is worth the long hours of learning.
 
I can easily see My Dress Up Darling becoming a title I might review here at the Gundam Anime Corner one day (2023 even?).  The premise is unique and the lead girl is a one of a kind dream girl who doesn’t show up in Anime that often.  Plus, there’s a lot of heart and honesty in the first episode from Wakana talking about his loneliness to Marin telling Wakana to stand up for himself.  Yeah, I can see why this shows been such a win and while the wait for a Second Season might be a bit, I’d love to see how this first story arc runs and see if the little bit we got of Marin in one episode is just the start of better scenes and fun moments to come.

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