Acro Trip

Episode 9

I was worried that “Wannabe Hip Evil” was going to be another miss for Acro Trip because the first half of the episode didn't do much for me. The opening skit about Chrome and Berry Blossom's sleep woes felt like total filler, and the first story, which focused on Chrome's slightly inconvenient wardrobe malfunctions, was a very long and belabored journey to a weak punchline. While the concept of Chrome having to run around an entire city block to try and pull off the “disappearing villain ambush” trick is funny, it's not amusing enough to warrant the time devoted to it. I wasn't even swayed by how cute Chrome's new bear-shaped coat patch is.

Thank the Kuma Kaijins, that the show picks up quite a bit in the episode's second half. I'm already biased towards anything related to those idiotic bears so you can bet that I was laughing at their supposed runaway note, which just says “Beeah Bear Beeaar” over and over. More importantly, is the fact that Chizuko finally got her Magical Evil General transformation! I won't act like the transformation sequence was special, but her new duds are cute. You look at that Tiny Evil Hat and tell me that Chizuko isn't the perfect successor to Chrome's legacy of charming ineptitude.

This is all a lot for Chizuko to process, naturally, which leads to her freaking right the hell out and going magically berserk on everyone, which is what gets Berry Blossom involved. I was rooting for our girl in her first battle against Berry, even if Chizuko didn't do much outside of getting electrocuted into unconsciousness. Given who her mentor is, it wouldn't be right for Chizuko to be any good at fighting the forces of good and Berry got to show off a new move. It's a win-win for all, so far as Chizuko is concerned.

My favorite part of the episode is the end, though, since it gives the Kuma Kaijins their very own little adventure to star in after getting stuck on the train without Chizuko or Chrome. To be honest, I wouldn't have minded if this was just the plot of the entire episode, what with how inherently funny it is to watch those doofus bears do pretty much anything. We even get a nice bit of characterization for the Kumas, since some of them aren't thrilled to have become minions to an evil mastermind, no matter how ineffectual Chrome might be. The guy still loves his lifelong companions and it's genuinely adorable to see him so worked up over their absence. The Kuma Kaijins might be abominations that spit in the face of nature and every physical law known to science, but they're heckin' cute, and that's all the justification I need to give them as much screen time as possible.

Rating:

Acro Trip is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

James is a writer with many thoughts and feelings about anime and other pop-culture, which can also be found on Twitter, his blog, and his podcast.