Episode 23 of Shirobako, titled “Table Flip Continued,” is currently streaming on Crunchyroll and Hulu for paid subscribers. Free subscribers can watch this same episode six days from now on March 26th. S—t has hit the fan for the people of MusAni because the story boards for the final episode have been rejected, which causes the higher-ups to create a recap episode.
Anime fans should be familiar with recap episodes, which tend to be annoying to watch.
But this does explain the reason that production studios create recap episodes in the first place.
I busted out laughing when Kinoshita was blindfolded and tricked into going back to MusAni to redo the storyboard for the final episode of Third Aerial Girls Squad.
The problems with the final storyboard leads me to believe that Chazawa has been yanking everybody’s chain the whole time. I don’t trust the guy because he comes off as very flippant and untrustworthy for the most part.
I felt that Third Aerial Girls Squad had production problems the entire time because MusAni was constantly denied access to Nogame, the author of the original manga. This points out the importance of having direct and consistent contact between the original mangaka and the production studio, respectively, Nogame and MusAni.
This causes problems because Kinoshita took the liberty of creating an original ending that deviates from the original manga plot, which Nogame didn’t like. Nogame should have expressed that in the beginning, which would have prevented a lot of problems form happening.
It is important to understand that TV and movie adaptations are not always 100-percent accurate. We should take a look at CW’s iZombie and AMC’s The Walking Dead, which are adapted from their comic counterparts. The shows have deviated from their original comic series.
Kinoshita didn’t like the original ending, where Aria refuses to fly against, because it was anti-climatic.
But Daisuke brings up a valid point that you need to get the original creator’s approval and blessing before going forward with production. I understand Nogame’s point because Daisuke mentions working on a previous series adapted from one of the earlier works. I was shocked when Daisuke said that the studio ignored all of the original manga content, which caused the anime to sink in ratings.
It was the studio’s fault, but Nogame got blamed at the end.
This does explain why Nogame could be hesitant about talking with MusAni. He was burned badly by the previous studio with the adaptation of his racing manga.
I had a “holy s—t” moment when Kinoshita finally has a meeting with Yotaka Booksellers, which publishes the original manga. I laughed when higher-ups at Yotaka Booksellers actively tried to put up a resistance against Kinoshita.
The scene between Kinoshita and Tatsuya Hanto made me laugh a bit.
I was surprised when things got downright ridiculous, which I have no problem with, when Kinoshita started bushing out “special moves” on everybody who got in his way.
The fated meeting between Kinoshita and Nogame brought up a valid point, which the latter implies that his manga is still ongoing. It reminds me of Fairy Tail when Lisanna was believed to have been killed, but the anime studio chose to leave that ambiguous. This allowed the original mangaka, Hiro Mashima, to find a way to plausibly bring Lisanna back.
Racer, who was killed in the Oricon Seis arc, was discovered to be a live in the anime. That caused Mashima to bring back Racer in the manga, who joins Crime Sorciere under Jellal’s leadership.
Nogame brought up a valid point about Aria because it is plausible that seeing Catherine’s dead body would shake her core. It is ultimately a creative difference between the original creator and the series director.
They reveal their own personal motivations, which leads to more possibilities.
I had an “oh s—t” moment when Kinoshita revealed that the Yotaka Booksellers editorial staff were giving him the runaround, which Nogame had no idea about. Nogame’s anger and rage was unnerving, which proved my suspicion towards Chazawa.
I laughed when Nogame’s yell was as potent as Kinoshita’s gut strength.
This confirmed my suspicion that Chazawa was ultimately the reason that production of Third Aerial Girls Squad was plagued with problems. I smiled when Tatsuya implied that he was going to fire Chazawa from his post.
This ultimately goes full circle because Shizuka, who was rejected for the part of Catherine, was asked to audition for younger sister Lucy. Shizuka eventually gets her first break, which is the part of Lucy in the anime.
I found this episode to be equally emotional as the final episode of Your Lie In April.
This is perhaps one of the most enjoyable episodes of Shirobako. Watching this episode gave me a firm understanding the importance of proper communication between the manga’s original creator and the series’ director.
I felt that the people of MusAni should have smelled Chazawa’s BS earlier when he kept giving everybody the runaround throughout the second half. It is important to take creative liberties with the manga, but you ultimately have to respect the wishes of the ultimate mangaka. You are representing the production studio, but you are also representing the mangakas and their works as well.
