Karen's Anime Blog

I like the premise of My Dress-Up Darling: it combines the cultures of New and Old Japan in a clever way, and it’s a funny romcom on top of that. Gojo, traditional dollmaker turned cosplay creator, is one of the most lovable male leads in romance. How much of that is the writing, and how much is due to voice actor Shoya Ishige’s sympathetic performance, I could not tell you. Does it matter? It works.

I have to say, Clover Works did a great job with this second season premiere. When I was going through and taking screenshots, it felt like I could pause the show anywhere and get a good shot, because it was so well storyboarded.

The second season starts with an animated sequence that looks like something out of Studio Trigger; I actually thought I had somehow clicked on the second season of Panty and Stocking With Garterbelt by accident (which would have been impressive, since it’s not out yet). It’s actually “We’re the Tsukiyono Company!”, a show-within-a-show about a bunch of bumbling (but very hot) lady assassins. Marin has taken a liking to bunny girl Arisu, because “everyone loves bunnies.” Marin waxes poetic about about how the classics, like the bunny girl suit, never go out of style; Gojo interprets that as meaning there will always be a place for his traditional Japanese dolls. Awww.

If I didn’t know better I’d think the presence of bunny girls was a reference to a certain other Clover Works series…..

Gojo is psyched to work on Arisu’s costume, so Marin offers him a stick of Pocky– except, she sticks it in her mouth and invites him to bite the other side. He’s way too shy for that, so she just eats it herself. I’m not the biggest fan of Pocky– it’s good, but I’d rather have cookies most of the time– but I have to admit, they present a unique opportunity to mess with your crush.

Next Saturday: Gojo has sent Marin a message to come over to his house, and she is flustered; is he inviting her over for a date? No, of course not- he just needs to show her the problem with the costume. Comically, the bust won’t stay up, it keeps flopping down. Marin suggests that they use clear straps to hold up the bust area, so it’s off to the fabric store they go.

To make the Anti-Gravity Bosom, Gojo must transform into his final form: Gojo Prime.

At the store, Gojo shows his drawing schematics of the bunny suit to a clerk. The clerk, an older guy, is confused and thinks that Gojo is planning to wear it himself. In a touching little moment, the clerk ponders how we are in a new age now and people can wear whatever they want, and gosh-darnit, he’s going to support that. Then Marin comes back from the bathroom and the guy realizes his mistake and apologizes to Gojo. Actually, I would have liked the scene better if he hadn’t apologized- what is there to feel bad about?

Fabric Clerk imparts that they can use boning, like a corset, to keep the top from falling down. Marin hears this and is actually disappointed that she won’t have a wardrobe malfunction. I think she was thinking of losing her top in front of Gojo might be the only way to get him to address the elephant in the room. Anyway, Gojo has a moment of self-loathing for forgetting about the boning thing, and Fabric Clerk tells him to “Enjoy your mistakes.” Good life advice from My Dress-Up Darling.

We skip ahead to the outfit being completed. Marin tries it on, but it’s so high-cut, her panties are sticking out. Gojo nearly loses his mind.

This shot was totally necessary from a narrative perspective. Honest.

The duo head out to a studio, Studio Macaron Night, and it’s got great casino-like backgrounds for their photo shoot. Marin has solved the jutting-out-panties problem: she’s wearing skin-colored tights under the costume, so her panty lines don’t show. For Gojo this is still showing too much skin and he loses his mind a little bit again.

“By the way, isn’t it funny that we’re doing this and we’re both 15 years old? My Mom has no idea where I am now, hahah.“

The shoot is a big success, and we move ahead to a Halloween party at a karaoke place with some cosplay buds. Marin asked Gojo to cosplay, so– hilariously– he’s just wearing a giant bunny suit. Well, they kind of match. Marin customizes her bunny girl outfit with fishnet tights, because I know you were waiting for a hosiery update. Gojo starts to doubt if he really belongs here with the cool kids, and I feel for him; he’s growing from his partnership with Marin, but self-doubt doesn’t go away that quickly.

One of the guys present asks if Gojo does Marin’s make-up, which makes him flash back to a painful memory where a girl called him “creepy” for doing girly things. Fortunately, one of the dudes points out that there’s nothing wrong with men doing make-up, and crisis is averted. It’s amazing how a bad memory from grade school can mess with you your whole life; once, when I was in third-grade, a boy said I was fat, and it kicked off a lifetime of body image issues. The irony is, I wasn’t overweight at the time AT ALL.

Who needs you, Mean Flashback Girl? How dare you call Gojo fat, I mean creepy.

Gojo is processing that the insult that he’s spent his entire life trying to block out maybe wasn’t super accurate, when Marin’s friend Nowa asks Gojo if he and Marin are dating. Gojo loses his drink, and we are done with the season opener.

I hope we continue to see Gojo questioning his assumptions about his role in society, and maybe he can even work up to dating Marin. She clearly wants to date him, but he needs to come out of his shell a bit more first. I’m hoping we at least get a date before the season finale. See you next Dress-Up time.