Content Warning: Nudity
What’s it about? Kaitase Kazuhiro likes one thing and one thing only: sleeping. Why? Because his dreams transport him to another world where he has thrilling adventures with a cute elf girl. But not all adventures end well: when he ends up facing off against a dragon and finds himself out of the frying pan and into a beast’s fire, Kazuhiro wakes up to find that the world of reality has been permanently changed…
Have you ever wondered what the fae of yore would be like in the 21st century? Would they pop into McDonald’s and marvel at the crispness of a french fry? Would they wander our emptying malls, haunting storefronts with mysterious names like “Forever 21” or “Sephora” or even the sacred arboreal eatery “Rainforest Cafe”? Would they ride our non-speaking birds to other countries, ride our steel horses that harness electricity, gasp at the interior of a Subaru from the late 90s, wonder at the way that Target never has enough lines open to service the people?
Well…this isn’t that, but it’s at least tangential.
Welcome to Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf!, a premiere that posits the question, “What if Elves liked conspicuous consumption?” If you’ve ever pondered that, then read on: this premier might just be for you!
Episode 1, “Good Morning, Ms. Elf,” starts off with an elf that could rival all silver-haired anime elves: a young woman, comely by fantasy standards I guess. Still, there’s a story before she comes to Japan, and it starts with Kazuhiro, a young office worker who likes to sleep because it takes him away from his daily life, which is rather boring. Prioritizing leaving work on time over promotions, he’s a simple man, heading to sleep at 7:30 PM in order to send himself to another world where life feels worth living. It is, in a way, a fascinating look at dissociation, though don’t get your hopes up: this story isn’t about that at all.
In this other world, Kazuhiro is surrounded by swordplay and magic, myth and legend. He is, effectively, in an isekai of his own control, though for him, this dreamscape feels more real than his actual life in Japan. And of course, in the tradition of Japanese boys and men going to a vague European world, he has a companion: Ms. Elf, a.k.a Mariabelle or Marie. What’s immediately clear is that they’ve known each other for a long time, adventuring around and finding their way together through the world. Today, their adventures take them to a series of ruins where their adventure goes from good to bad very, very quickly.
Only…it results in Marie ended up in Japan instead of just within the realm of Kazuhiro’s dreams.
Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf! is yet another entry in the “Adult Men Isekai” sub-genre that’s come about, taking Japanese men in their twenties to forties out of their humdrum lives and into a world of fantasy and freedom. The twist here is that instead of sending Kazuhiro to, it sends Marie from, resulting in an elf living in modern day Japan.
Recently, I’ve come to appreciate the better entries of this specific type of story, series where the point is finding happiness and breaking free of society; stories where you watch someone leave behind overwork and life stress to enjoy cooking with fantasy beasts of working for the Demon Lord, who definitely has a good insurance plan.
Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf!…isn’t that. It’s not really trying to be deep or have anything poignant to say about Marie ending up in Japan or Kazuhiro’s seemingly maladaptive dreaming taken to a fantastical extreme: at least not yet. I can’t say if it’ll ever dig deeper because really, I think what you see is what you get. This is a cute slice of life reverse isekai that plays with traveling back and forth between worlds.
It’s also clear that this is the start of an adult (not mature, just actual adults) oddball romance between two adults, though it’s not clarified how old Marie is. We can only assume (and hope) from the partial nudity and multiple shots of her butt that she’s the age of maturity for both Japan and Elves. It’s harder still to tell because she sports very youthful clothes in the premiere, further muddying the age gap between herself and Kazuhiro. Still, it’s clear that this is angling to be a romance intertwined with fantasy and comedy derived from the dissonance of an elf riding in a car or hearing the chime of a bike bell. And I think that’s okay: not everything has to break new ground.
While not bad, this is ultimately your perfectly fine premiere, nestled in that C+ space that we need to fill out seasons. And I don’t say that to belittle this series: I think there’s room for perfectly fine anime that don’t nudge up against my desire to dissect and think deeper about the series I watch.
If you’ve heard me on podcasts, you’ll know that analyzing things is something I’ve done, publicly, for years. But while I love breaking things down and getting into the nitty-gritty, I don’t think I am someone capable of always doing that. I frequently do it, but sometimes, I like to turn off my mind and just enjoy a series for what it is. Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf! is a series I could do that with, if I were interested enough. I’m not sure I am yet, but I am willing to kick this series around long enough to find out.
My suggestion? Give this a try and see if you like where it’s telegraphing its story. I think it’s probably going to stay the course and be about a fish out of water elf enjoying Japanese food, a new world, and adventures with Kazuhiro in the other world, but I always love seeing what other people think.
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