Sparrow's Hotel

It took me longer to write this review than to watch this series. I cannot imagine this series being expanded to a full length 26 episode series. And that's why it works! No need to explore these characters it's like an ongoing SNL sketch and the fact that it doesn't promise to be or try to be anything more is where the entertainment value lies. That's the charm. Comedies tend to over exert themselves or run to the well one too many times. This was a refreshing comedy that took its premise and jogged with it. Now there will be those who cry misogyny give ... it a one and try to make you feel bad for watching it. but they can sod off. It's a great diversion, it's funny and it's not long enough to leave a lasting impression so watch it and move on.

Sparrow's Hotel is a fun, fast-paced romp that gives off this atmosphere of something that should have aired on Adult Swim- sharp, witty, fast-paced, and absurd. The story is built upon a strong premise with a lot of iterative potential- a group of people working in a hotel, each one with quirks and oddities that set them apart from one another. Namely, you have Satou, a femme fatale former assassin who uses her proficiency for violence to protect the hotel from troublemakers. Though she is pretty funny, I actually prefer the rest of the cast, like the petite yet business-minded Tamaki Shiokawa, her obsessive older ... brother simply named Shiokawa, the inept internal company spy Yuu, or Misono, the longsuffering part-timer. Each episode covers a kind of story that could only really be told in the context of running a hotel, and provides comedy at a nice pace from start to finish. My favorite episode of the whole run was Episode 9, where they host a con, and have to navigate the chaos that inherently comes with such a venture.

Next, the art is a strange beast. At first, it looks like genuine garbage, as though it was put together in flash or something, given that it looked flat, stilted, and amateurish. However, by episode 7, when they change the OP, and Misono inexplicably becomes blonde, the whole art style suddenly changes, and the production values shoot through the roof. The whole thing all of a sudden looks so crisp and professional, and it uses this bizarre improvement to the full extent of its potential, making for a second half that is far superior to the first.

The sound has a more consistent quality throughout, with good pacing and a sense of how to match the energy of a given moment, with music that is good yet not distracting.

The characters are the real strong point of this anime, however, as the cast feels like it has such natural chemistry despite the whole show only being about 36 minutes total. Of them, my favorites are definitely Tamaki Shiokawa, the dedicated manager of Sparrow's Hotel, and Misono, the withdrawn yet witty part-timer who is more often than not stunned by the absurdity of the things that go on at his place of work. Shiokawa is great as a kind of central point between the whole cast, and her capability to control the situation when contrasted with her stature makes her witty retorts all the more funny in context. Meanwhile, Misono is a normal guy that only wants to get through his shifts, but he regardless finds himself caught up in the antics at hand, and even finds that these people he works with are his only real friends- once again, it is the contrast he represents that elevates his comedy. Overall, even with the issues it has with production for the first half, Sparrow's Hotel is a fun romp of an anime that's well worth the minimal time investment required to watch it.