Room 208

Elaborate Burn

Posts from #sasamisan

Sasami-san@ganbaranai Episode 1 Conjectures

Meanwhile, Omo tries to unpack what’s going on in SHAFT-land:

Did you just watch Sasami-san@ganbaranai episode 1? Did that make sense? No? I don’t know, but there’s plenty to go on from here, even for someone unfamiliar with the source material like me. But it requires some decompression for someone who isn’t neck-deep in Japanese culture and subcultures.

A lot of it arcs back to Shinto mythology. Surprise!

Remember when SHAFT was constantly running out of money because its staff was seemingly constantly spending it on drugs? Ever since Madoka, it’s been looking like that version of the studio was on its way out. The first episode of Sasami-san@Ganbaranai tells us a different story, though. Turns out the recent lack of hallucination-grade trip material hasn’t been because SHAFT’s kicked its habit – it’s just been saving its cash so that it can buy even more drugs, at bulk prices.