Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru (My Dress-Up Darling)

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: Sono Kisekae Ningyou wa Koi wo Suru, KiseKoi

Japanese: その着せ替え人形は恋をする

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Information

Type: TV

Episodes: 12

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: Jan 9, 2022 to Mar 27, 2022

Premiered: Winter 2022

Broadcast: Sundays at 00:00 (JST)

Producers: Aniplex, Square Enix, Movic, Studio Mausu, Tokyo MX, BS11

Licensors: None found, add some

Studios: CloverWorks

Source: Manga

Genre: Romance

Themes: Otaku Culture, School

Demographic: Seinen

Duration: 23 min. per ep.

Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older

Statistics

Score: 8.19¹ (scored by 640,603 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #385²

² based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #143

Members: 1,055,067

Favorites: 20,447

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8.19

Ranked #385Popularity #143Members 1,055,067

Winter 2022TVCloverWorks

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Episodes: /12

PV 2

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Synopsis

High school student Wakana Gojou spends his days perfecting the art of making hina dolls, hoping to eventually reach his grandfather's level of expertise. While his fellow teenagers busy themselves with pop culture, Gojou finds bliss in sewing clothes for his dolls. Nonetheless, he goes to great lengths to keep his unique hobby a secret, as he believes that he would be ridiculed were it revealed.

Enter Marin Kitagawa, an extraordinarily pretty girl whose confidence and poise are in stark contrast to Gojou's meekness. It would defy common sense for the friendless Gojou to mix with the likes of Kitagawa, who is always surrounded by her peers. However, the unimaginable happens when Kitagawa discovers Gojou's prowess with a sewing machine and brightly confesses to him about her own hobby: cosplay. Because her sewing skills are pitiable, she decides to enlist his help.

As Gojou and Kitagawa work together on one cosplay outfit after another, they cannot help but grow close—even though their lives are worlds apart.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Episode Videos

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Related Anime

Adaptation:	Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru
Sequel:	Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru (Zoku-hen)

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Kitagawa, Marin

Main

Suguta, Hina
Japanese

Gojou, Wakana

Main

Ishige, Shouya
Japanese

Inui, Sajuna

Supporting

Tanezaki, Atsumi
Japanese

Inui, Shinju

Supporting

Youmiya, Hina
Japanese

Sugaya, Nowa

Supporting

Takeda Tago, Larissa
Japanese

Gojou, Kaoru

Supporting

Ono, Atsushi
Japanese

Liz

Supporting

Kuno, Misaki
Japanese

Tengeji, Mirai

Supporting

Tange, Sakura
Japanese

Rune

Supporting

Sekine, Akira
Japanese

Kaname

Supporting

Shirai, Yuusuke
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Oowada, Tomoyuki

Producer

Umehara, Shouta

Producer

Nakayama, Nobuhiro

Producer

Hasegawa, Yoshinori

Producer

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Opening Theme

"San San Days (燦々デイズ)" by Spira Spica

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Ending Theme

"Koi no Yukue (恋ノ行方)" by Akari Akase (あかせあかり)

Reviews

Mar 26, 2022

noob2121

Recommended

This review contains minor spoilers.

My Dress-up Darling is the hottest new seasonal anime of Winter 2022. While it was airing, this beat AoT and Demon Slayer in several top anime of the season polls, which goes to show that it's popular and really well-liked. There are many things to love about Dress-up Darling, but at the same time, I don't think it’s perfect.

Well, why is it so well-loved?

The most obvious reason would be the characters, both leads in particular. Marin Kitagawa, the poster girl of this show has been a widespread hit among the community at large. Fanarts of her have been spreading like a ... plague, more and more people were making her their profile pictures, even if you have not heard of My Dress-up Darling, you could not have missed seeing her face. I think the main reason why Marin is so popular is just for her raw energy. She is an outgoing person, and does not hesitate to convey her thoughts or earnest opinions about something on the slightest whim and just cannot hide her feelings, leaving both Gojo and the audience to deal with her idiosyncrasies. Her raw excitement when she sees a character she adores, or her earnest yearning when she went up to Gojo and asked him to make a cosplay outfit. This kind of energy is really contagious, and it spreads to both Gojo and the audience, cheering up both him and us. The community adoration of Marin also stems from how relatable she is. From the smallest things like having 50+ favourite characters, to just her enthusiasm when she puts on her outfit. I’m sure that everyone has felt that feeling of excitement before, and I think Marin perfectly captures the exhilaration that we feel when we are genuinely excited about accomplishing something.

Gojo is NOT an audience’s insert. I was of this sentiment when the show first started airing. I genuinely believed that this anime was nothing more than “Loner, introverted, average-looking dude with no friends meets cute, popular and outgoing girl that everyone will simp for”. Well, thankfully I was proven wrong. Gojo is a realistic character, he has a passion for making hina dolls, and i think this is where My Dress-up Darling shines the most. It captures what having a passion looks like really well in both Marin and Gojo. Gojo's attention to detail to the level of near-obsession and his perfectionist yet intimate standards of "beauty" is something I can personally relate to, and I'm sure literally anyone that is fervent about a hobby can also see themselves to varying extents in Gojo. He is still flawed in his work, he can't draw faces well, largely due to his lack of social interaction, because no one is perfect at anything, there will always be room for improvement.

I think the two leads bounce off each other really well. The saying “opposites attract” fits really well here. Gojo is introverted, and Marin helps him break out of his shell. Marin can’t make cosplay outfits, despite wanting to cosplay characters, and Gojo helps realise that passion for her. Marin is eccentric and somewhat impulsive, whereas Gojo is more grounded, which does help them in a lot of situations. It makes for an enjoyable dynamic as they complement each other really well, and they cover for the other’s flaws.

The visuals. Cloverworks thankfully did not disappoint with this, and it did not end up in total disaster like some of their previous works. The quality here is better than 90% of other seasonal anime, it’s more than enough for a slice of life show like My Dress-up Darling. The artist for the manga should be given some credit too, the designs of all of Marin’s cosplay outfits, barring one, look absolutely amazing. My personal favourites are Liz the succubus and Black Lobelia, they remind me of Krul Tepes from Owari no Seraph and Lena from 86 respectively, two characters that I like a lot.

I think a largely overlooked reason that it is so beloved is because many people, myself included, agree with the themes and the overall message of the narrative. It is not subtle at all with its intent of preaching the message “Don’t be ashamed of liking whatever you want”. It’s something that surely everyone can agree with. Back in the days when anime was not as popular as it is today, and it even still happens today, it’s not uncommon for anime fans to be ostracised by others on the sole basis for liking anime, and I think this show speaks to them on a personal level. It’s refreshing, and it’s always uplifting to have one’s hobbies validated, no matter how weird it may be perceived to be.

One more thing that I really want to appreciate is how much My Dress-up Darling covers cosplay. Personally, I was never into cosplay, it was always a very foreign idea to me. My preconceived idea of cosplay was really just "People spend money and order an outfit, they wear that outfit and they show off." While I respected the hobby, I never understood the appeal of it. My Dress-up Darling was my first real exposure to cosplay and while cosplay will still never be my thing, it really changed how I looked at it. However, now i do understand and appreciate the effort, the attention to detail and the pains that the outfit makers have to go through in order to create the perfect outfit to represent the character

Now, clearly from the score, I also have some criticism to lobby here, and now I'll explain why some people may not like this show, and the gripes that I personally have.

The characters. Wait, wasn’t I just gushing about how good the characters were? Well, let’s start with Marin, while parts of her personality are relatable, she’s an unrealistic character. No sane person, no matter how whimsical or capricious, would stalk a dude that they have just met and barge into his house, uninvited. No sane person, no matter how whimsical or capricious, would accidentally rent a love hotel and mistake it for a photography studio. Her outright stupidity at times is used as a plot device to get them into the situation that the author wants when there is no other seamless way to do it. It makes some of the funny moments feel really convenient. As for Gojo, he comes off as a typical, generic nice guy romcom protagonist in the first few episodes, it was only later on when i started to really like him, not to mention, his “sad” backstory in order to get the audience to sympathise with him and justify his introvertedness comes out of nowhere, when we barely know the guy. It can seem manipulative, and I really didn't buy this introductory episode. I unfortunately could not empathise with him as an introverted loner, and I ended up liking Gojo for other reasons.

The fanservice. I hate to be that guy who comes off as “the fanservice hater”, because I do not hate fanservice in general. However, I do dislike the fanservice in My Dress-up Darling. In ep 2, for example, Gojo was clearly uncomfortable with Marin when she stripped to get him to “take her measurements”. The scene was clearly contrived for fanservice, and when it's at the expense of someone’s dignity, it does not sit well with me. The love hotel in ep 11 once again was contrived to provide the usual romcom hijinks. Once again, Gojo, the voice of reason, was against the idea of them, being minors, spending time in a love hotel. However, Marin replied with “yeah, if you’re normies”, and then pulled out the sunk cost fallacy argument, which is just really helpful in assuaging these kinds of concerns. This “fanservice” that the show has does not add much enjoyment to it for me. On the contrary, it can be annoying at times and I really think this show could have done without the fanservice.

Overall, I think My Dress-up Darling was a really enjoyable ride, and it was something I looked forward to watching every week. However, it’s far from perfect, and there were parts of it that hampered an otherwise amazing show. While I'm willing to overlook most of the flaws and i think the show is good for the most part, I would ABSOLUTELY NEVER feel safe recommending this to the average person, for obvious reasons.

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Mar 26, 2022

HellLyter

Mixed Feelings

I welcome you to the latest installment of...WAIFU WARS!!!

A recent phenomenon where current popular anime are often completely spearheaded by one girl. Nothing else, such as an insightful plot or having a non generic protagonist, matters in the face of this one girl. Creators think, "How can I sell my work and get it recognized by the public?" And the answer they arrive at is really quite simple.

People. Want. Waifus.

There are multiple varieties of anime that could potentially fit this mold, so I'll give you some of the bigger names that I believe really exemplify the Waifu Wars mentality. The prequels to My Dress ... Up Darling if you will. We have...

Takagi-San, The Forehead Menace

Uzaki-Chan, Attack of the Big Ol' Boobies

Nagatoro-San, Revenge of the Tanned Bully

But now another contender has entered the ring. And her name is Marin, A New Waifu.

So I don't really know what just came over me there, but, uhh...let's get into the review! I'm going to keep it brief since as I alluded to, anime of this nature are very basic at their core. My Dress Up Darling remains consistently stalwart in its lighthearted themes and direction throughout, and me going over the specifics and delving deep into them honestly seems unnecessary...and will save you the pain of reading a boring essay from me. You're welcome. This show is very comfy in nature, and from my perspective, whether or not you enjoy it entirely boils down to two things: Your affinity for Slice of Life styled shows and your enjoyment of the characters...particularly Marin the waifu, the selling point of the entire series.

As you've probably guessed from seeing my score, My Dress Up Darling, while I find to be fine, simply didn't pass this criteria for me. Slice of Life really isn't a preferred genre of mine, though that's not to say that I'm always automatically dismissive of such shows. Like this anime, Nagatoro-San also primarily focuses on the regular lives and laid-back antics of some students, yet the presentation and delivery just captivated me more. I respect My Dress Up Darling's author for taking a more original approach in terms of the interests of the two protagonists and how they come together because of them. Gojo being a Hina Doll maker and enthusiast and Marin being an avid cosplayer and...gasp...'NERD', was neat. Though it felt like after that was established, not really much else was done in developing both them and the scenarios they engaged in. It was cute how Marin went from completely cool around Gojo to a little blushy-blush after starting to fall for him, but that was honestly it. I mean the entire first half of the anime alone was focused solely on Gojo making an outfit for Marin. Yes, multiple things were shown throughout this episodic process such as how hardworking Gojo is and the extraordinary detail that the animators put into showing Marin's boob physics, butt checks, sweaty body, and more (I'm sure they worked very hard to try and get the viewers hard). Yet by the end of it, I couldn't help but think "that was it?" Yes, it's a simple and easygoing anime by design, but I personally wanted more out of it.

Now on to the characters themselves. There really isn't much to say about our hero Gojo. I do like how he's portrayed as a sort of yes man due to his lack of social interaction, but not much else is done with him besides frequently describing his passion for Hina Dolls. He just really embodies the "nice guy" trope. The side cast is incredibly limited, but they do elevate the show. I liked Sajuna Inui and honestly thought she was the most entertaining character in the show despite her limited screen time. Let's hope the author gives her more exposure down the line instead of completely removing her from the story in the foreseeable future!

But now, we finally get to core of My Dress Up Darling. Marin. So I'll get straight to the point. She's too perfect. She's a colorful, captivating person. She has a perfect body despite her terrible eating habits. She's into things that most people watching this anime probably like. She's perfectly fine with showing off her body. And most importantly, she's ALWAYS kind and understanding. Does anyone else see how this is a problem? I feel like this anime can be considered a RomCom, and the key element of this genre is showing how flawed characters come together to grow, yet I'm not feeling that at all with this. Marin is such an ideal girl that it's boring. Let me give a comparison to my favorite RomCom, Toradora. The heroine Taiga is a small girl with scruffy, brown hair. While cute, she's definitely no ideal beauty. She has serious communication problems and violent tendencies due to parental neglect and social awkwardness. There are other components to her, but she really isn't painted in that great of a light at the beginning of the anime. And I adore her so much more in every way than Marin, who was practically written for the sole purpose of being adored by the audience immediately upon her introduction. That's because my enjoyment of Taiga was EARNED through her excellent growth as a person in addition to her evolving relationships throughout the show. I didn't really have an idea what a Tsundere was before watching Toradora, yet it became one of my favorite character tropes primarily thanks to Taiga.

Meanwhile, Marin just doesn't have anything like this. She's a fun girl, sure. And she doesn't necessarily need to be more flawed, I just wish she was given more to work with. ANYTHING to work with.

I'll quickly go over some technical aspects. You can tell that the majority of the animation budget went into Marin's body (the animators are most definitely men/women of culture) but CloverWorks still did a decent job overall, especially with the usage of some different animation styles and the sheer expressiveness of the cast. I'll probably get some flack for this, but while I found Marin's voice actress to be good, the voice itself just didn't fit with the character for me. Also, several insert tracks stood out to me for the wrong reasons due to not personally being a fan of the compositions, such as the one that plays sometimes when Marin is being "silly".

Well, My Dress Up Darling really isn't for me. It's mildly entertaining and I did smile here and there, but I wanted a lot more out of it. If you like Marin's character and just enjoy more relaxing anime in general, than you'll definitely like this more than me. That's all I got. I'll see you later for the next installment of Waifu Wars!

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Mar 26, 2022

Space_Boyfriend

Not Recommended

I cannot emphasize this enough, but My Dress-Up Darling is an ECCHI rom-com. Forget the synopsis about the interesting life of a cosplayer and doll-maker respectively, this is a terrible high school slice of life with some of the worst ecchi sequences I have ever seen. I would like to preface at the beginning of this review that My Dress-Up Darling has become one of my most hated anime. Admittedly, that doesn’t excuse me from just trashing the show entirely, so I will still try to be as objective as I can, since this review is meant for potential viewers.

I’ve seen many shows and movies ...

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Poll: Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Stark700 - Jan 8, 2022	394 replies	by twzter »» Apr 17, 1:29 PM
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My Dress-Up Darling: An Interview with the Director, Part 1

*My Dress-Up Darling* has sold over 8million copies, with a hit anime in Winter 2022 and a sequel in the way. It's about cosplay-loving Marin and Wakana, an aspiring doll craftsman. Fans were captivated by the slow-burning love and the realistic cosplay. We got the details from the director.

by Febri

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