Folks, I am very happy to be returning to Girls’ Last Tour! The show’s first episode was equal parts charming slice of life, and, er, I guess more contemplative slice of life? It was essentially a post-apocalyptic travelogue, a subgenre that actually boasts a whole bunch of top-tier anime. Kemono Friends and Kemurikusa both fall in a similar space, while both Haibane Renmei and Sound of the Sky, though they don’t have a specific focus on journeying, capture a similar combination of warm slice of life contrasted against a majestic yet fading larger world.
Slice of life and post-apocalyptic despair might not seem like a natural combination, but the pairing actually makes a lot of sense to me. There are no longer any battles to fight in these worlds – whatever some action hero might have been able to accomplish, their deeds are no longer relevant, as the world has already arrived at its end. Instead, those who survive must focus on what they still have – and in any world, the one thing a broken civilization can’t take from us is each other. In a world gone to ruin, the comfort we can provide each other becomes all that much more crucial, and a natural symbol of how human kindness is ultimately undefeatable. Even in a world in decay, two people can still care about each other, and find comfort in each other’s presence.
Resonant premise aside, Girls’ Last Tour is also just a lovely aesthetic object in its own right, full of evocative backgrounds and tied together with incredibly precise sound design. Let’s see what adventures these girls get up to in episode two!