I am finally back with another anime recommendation that comes with free rant near the end. Last weekend was too busy for me and I had to catch up to my seasonal watch list so I had to put off writing articles, but I finally caught up and cleared another series off my watch list while I'm at it.
Today I would be talking about Servant x Service, a show that has a dubious title but I promise that it is completely safe for everyone (I mean it). Well then let's get down to it!
Servant x Service
Genres: Slice of Life, Comedy, Seinen
This is one of the rare anime shows that is set on a workplace in contrast to the usual school oriented ones. I can't come up with many title that are comparable to this, but the closest one would be last season's Wotakoi. That may as well be the reason why I decided to watch this in the first place, it is rather refreshing to see a more mature approach on romance in anime.
Servant x Service follows the life of 3 new civil servants, Lucy Yamagami, Yutaka Hasebe and Saya Miyoshi as well as their senior coworkers Taishi Ichimiya and Megumi Chihaya as they experience the daily life struggles of serving the citizens while balancing office romance at the same time.
I can somehow relate to these characters since I also worked as a civil servant for a year, well maybe except the office romance part, but having been in the same position as them I can feel where they are coming from so some of their jokes are more effective on me personally. Speaking of jokes this show is guaranteed to make you laugh hard each episode, civil servant or not, so brace yourself for it.
However as the show progressed the work aspect was sidelined a bit to give way to the character interactions and relationship building. I don't mind though, the story is the least of the reason why I stayed on this show after all, in fact I don't remember having any real plot aside from the grudge that Lucy has on another civil servant that is really trivial. So let's skip the story and just go straight to the characters.
I love all the characters in the series, they are a fun group and their distinct personalities creates a powerful dynamic for their comedy to hit the spot. As working adults, their problems are relatable so I felt more attachment to them. (Turn back now if you don't want to get spoiled since this is basically what the show is about).
I will start with my favorite one, Megumi Chihaya. She is a senior coworker of Lucy Yamagami and a cosplayer. The reason she actually applied for the job is because she can easily attend events because their office is near the venue. She wears a deadpan expression most of the time but revs up whenever cosplaying is concerned. She has a cute side but is often on a passive-aggressive mode because of her boyfriend, Taishi Ichimiya's denseness and self depreciating personality. Her savagery while maintaining her poker face gets me every time that's why she instantly became my favorite one.
Next is Taishi Ichimiya. He is the type of guy that loves to apologize for anything and everything and always feel inferior, a gutless person to make it simple. Well it is not like he has no redeeming quality, he is a kind and responsible guy that supports his family in his father's stead. This is the quality that has earned him the affection of Megumi, but in the long run his nature is getting in the way of their relationship because he doesn't take initiative in his relationship with Megumi, making the latter take the lead most of the time.
We're done with the seniors now let's start with the new bloods, first up is Saya Miyoshi. She's a little bit in the shy category and has a problem earlier on the series because of her inexperience working. She got over her beginner's slump over time and eventually built a strong connection with her clients especially the elderly Tanaka and Tohko Ichimiya, Taishi's little sister. Despite her modesty, she has problems with expressing her thoughts. Even when she means no harm, the way she puts them into words, most of the time, ends up hurting others that's why she rarely assert her opinions anymore. This is a case of kindness that hurts (but man, she really wrecks people with her kindness lol).
Then we have the main of the mains, Lucy Yamagami and Yutaka Hasebe. I would like to talk about these two as a pair (though they didn't get together by the end of the series, yet) because their contradicting personalities compliments each other really well. Lucy is the hard working, straight laced type that is a bit naive and Yutaka is the carefree guy but is really good at anything if he put his mind into it. Even though Yutaka appears goofy most of the time, he also has his own share of problems because people around him expects him to accomplish great things.
Their relationship is a well grounded one. Though it started with Yutaka teasing Lucy because he is having a hard time obtaining her contact information, their relationship hit a turning point when Lucy uttered words that Yutaka yearns for and that is one of the most realistic way of falling in love I have seen portrayed in an anime show. It is neither a love at first sight nor "he/ she is kind, I think I am falling in love" kind of romance it is about "I finally found someone that understands me" kind of romance. Maybe it is just my bias but I couldn't ask for a better way for their relationship to set sail. Below is the scene I am talking about by the way, so spoil yourself more than you already have lol.
Well I do have a reason for putting it there, I would stray a bit from the show and talk a little about my own life because those words are actually the words I live by and I loved how they tackled the matter. Not to blow my own horn I was a consistent honor student from elementary to college and I even represented the school on various occasions. That was good and all but as time passes the expectation only gets higher and higher that led me to the realization that expectations can never be fulfilled. So somewhere along the way I stopped caring about competing and just focused on doing what I want.
However even after graduating I am still plagued by the same thing. I took a time off from work and enjoyed my life for a little bit and many said that I was wasting my time. Some are even saying that I should pursue higher education, they are all pushing me to go even further but no one really get me. I am not trying to be the best, I am just trying to live the best that I can on my own way. That is the reason why I loved this show, those words struck me deep, it felt like it is a validation of what I have been doing all this time and it feels so good to see that even in a work of fiction like this one.
End of rant.
I guess that's it for this one. If you love character driven shows that punches you in the guts with relatable comedic remarks then I highly recommend this one. Though the romance is a bit on the light side, the occasional sweet moments will put a smile on your face. The opening is also too dang catchy that it is still playing in my head as I write this one.
That's all and see you again on my next rant post.
Ciao~