The premise is simple enough. A golem takes on the fatherly role of a young, presumably orphaned, human child and seeks to return her to the rest of human civilization. There is a sense of urgency as to why, which plays out further in the anime. To avoid spoilers, I won't go into details here, but you know that there's an inevitable separation coming, and so I expected a tearjerker.
But the anime just never reached that height of emotion for me. These more emotional, mature moments were spliced in maybe once an episode within the anime, but it never felt like enough, and the impact never felt strong. In Episode 12, there was that scene near the end where I was FINALLY about to feel something, but then the conflict was resolved, and everyone was assumed to get their happy ending in that moment. Not that I like suffering, but where is the heartwrenching scenes and deep sorrow I was promised that was hinted at from the beginning? That scene was the first time I felt like our characters were reaching into their emotions, and it ALMOST hit the mark, but then there were still some things left unsaid! I was honestly angry that I did not have a good cry by the end of this series. Because I think what this anime truly does do well is build on that father-daughter relationship, but it never uses it to its full potential, and that is upsetting to me. I understand this anime is based off a web manga, and I have not done enough research to know how many chapters were adapted, but by God, I wish I felt something more than just disappointment by the end.
Besides the relationship between Somali and the golem, the rest of this anime felt weak. The worldbuilding is only slightly explained. There are mini adventures thrown in that basically consist of Somali getting into normal childlike trouble. And then there are just some scenes that grow incredibly dark. The tone of this anime was incredibly strange, transitioning quickly from lighthearted scenes of childlike wonder to pretty gruesome stuff. And above all, these last few episodes managed to throw in a pretty cliche message about "prejudice against non-humans," which, if maybe fleshed out more, could have been more impactful, but it just felt like an overused trope to me in the moment.
Somali leans more to the side of an annoying child for me, and I know that's just how children work, and it may stem from the fact that I'm just not a huge fan of children in general, but oftentimes, her cute moments were overshadowed by her constant tantrums and childlike antics that repeatedly got her into trouble. Her voice is incredibly pitchy and sometimes a pain to listen to as well, especially during scenes where she is upset or overly excited. Again, this is probably a personal bias. I think it is always hard to represent children that are not annoying in media, and while I didn't hate Somali, I think she could have been a tad less annoying.
The artwork is certainly good. The background work is aesthetically pleasing, for sure. I enjoy the opening, but that CGI ending? Not my favorite, by any means.
Overall, Somali is just...average at best. I really had to force myself to finish this anime, and as I stated, it had the potential to really tug on the heartstrings and share some pretty meaningful messages, but I think it just needed some more time for the world and characters to be fleshed out to really do so. I did not expect this anime to be a masterpiece by any means going into it, but I had hoped for better. There are definitely some better winter anime out there, and I suggest giving those a try instead (*cough cough* Eizouken and Dorohedoro are some good ones, if you're looking for recommendations.)
