Genre – Comedy Anime
Series Total Runtime – 5 Hours 3 Minutes
Spoilers – Yes

Bought for the title alone, I had not heard of this work before acquiring it. There is no dub, but the subtitles work quite well. From the opening of the first episode, we find that our main characters are a Shrine Maiden, and the Elf who lives at the shrine. Said Elf, playing the role of shrine deity, is over six hundred years old, but has become addicted to video games, manga, and anime. With the city having enveloped the shrine, the modern day is visible in every direction. The Elf has no divine powers but does have a few bits of magic. The shrine subsists on offerings from the community. The Shrine Maiden takes their duties far more seriously than the Elf, despite still being a high school student. Unlike a lot of other shows, the fact that there’s an elf in the shrine is no secret. She got summoned from another world by the Shrine Maiden’s ancestors and just stuck around.

While the Shrine Maiden is trying to think of a way to get the Elf to go out and talk to the community some more, we cut back to the Elf painting miniatures. Gunplay with the serial numbers filed off. When the Shrine Maiden brings her little sister around, the Elf is terrified of meeting somebody new. The degree of crippling social anxiety is beyond that of any introvert I’ve met. Probably because they’re holed up inside. The Shrine Maiden persists in trying to talk the Elf into going outside. This only leads to an argument. The Shrine Maiden runs off to a park to reflect. This does get the Elf to emerge out of concern, but she has an anxiety attack once she’s reassured the Shrine Maiden is all right.

Having set up the situation in the first episode, let’s see if something happens. The second episode starts with the Elf still too nervous to even compliment the Shrine Maiden’s little sister on her food. After the credits we find the Elf is sinking funds into blind boxes for “Frog Tanks” and having no luck getting the one she wants. I’m not convinced the shrine is flush with cash. Unfortunately for the Elf’s social anxiety, the Shrine Maiden’s childhood friend follows her into the shrine. During the conversation it is revealed that the Elf has been borrowing money from the Shrine Maiden, who, mind you, doesn’t actually have a paying job, just whatever form of allowance she got.

While there’s not much plot so far, I am enjoying the low-stakes character-driven show. The most serious rift is about food. The Shrine Maiden eventually uses this to coax the Elf into leaving the shrine to go to a restaurant. It turns out to be more expensive than anticipated as the stinger for the episode. I get that the slice of lifestyle might not interest some people. But every so often, it is what is called for. There is a marked contrast between episodes of this sort appearing as filler, and where the character interplay without high stakes is the point. A quarter of the way through the series and the cast is limited to the Elf, the Shrime Maiden, her little sister, and the childhood friend. There are recurring side characters, but they have smaller parts and simpler characterization.

It isn’t until episode four that we get introduced to a second Elf from Osaka. This one is smaller, appearing more childlike, but of similar age to the one we’ve been following. Her associate shares the same title as the Shrine Maiden but has a character design that implies a guy. I’m uncertain at this point, as Japanese names don’t help me figure that part out a lot. We do find out Osaka Elf was summoned by a different faction from the warring states prior to the establishment of the Tokugowa Shogunate. She’s come by to settle some ongoing contest between them for the past four centuries. It’s a game of tic tac toe. As is the nature of the game, they draw again.

Dialog eventually confirms that the Osaka associate is in fact a girl, just dressing androgynously. The mention that the Shrine Maiden’s grandfather had run off with unexpected business to avoid the Osaka Elf reminded me that he’s been mentioned but never appeared on screen. This does lead to another realization. Every character who has had lines of dialog has been female. I hadn’t noticed overtly because there was no dissonance about people like the Amazin* delivery girl, the restaurant manager, or the old storekeeper being women. Before that observation gives the wrong idea, this is not a fanservice anime. Everyone appears as one would expect ordinary people to dress. Conversely, it is also not something made for modern audiences. The cast just happens to be more feminine.

*They use recognizable but trademark distinct company names for legal reasons.

With the elves and glowing motes of spirits she uses as messengers, I do start to ask why there doesn’t appear to be more interest in investigating the magic that has been demonstrated to work in this version of Japan. Everything is “Modern day but we added elves and their spirit messengers.” Since the summoning clearly worked twice or thrice, and there’s proof of another world out there, I’d imagine it’d be the subject of intense curiosity. Instead, it’s just not mentioned.

In terms of the structure of the show, most episodes are actually split into two semi-related, half-size episodes. Since most of the plot ideas won’t survive being stretched out to a full episode, this is only to the show’s benefit. But it does mean that going beat by beat through all twelve episodes is a bit pointless, since it would just be easier to watch it.

In Episode seven we finally see a guy with a speaking line – an unnamed fish wholesaler. I only mention it because once I spot a detail like that, it sticks in my head. It’s not something that you get hit over the head with. I’m probably being hypersensitive from other media sources. The truth is, without plot summaries, there’s only so much to talk about. I did find one thing. When the Elf compares current day to the past, it is always Edo period during the tenure of Ieyasu Tokugawa. Not in the 400 years afterward, nor anything from the two hundred years she lived in her original world. I get that there was stability (some might even say stagnation) until the Meiji Restoration, but even a recluse would have noticed other time periods. But at this point I’m being nitpicky for the sake of something to write. I’m just trying to put text on the page for as long as the show keeps playing, which will not give you the best results. So I’m going to wrap this up.

It’s episodic, zero stakes, and just simple fun. I’m glad I stumbled onto it.

Oh, one more thing – Why did the Sengoku warlords even summon these elves who end up living in shrines?

🤔