Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I\u2019m feeling a need for some solid stress-relieving shenanigans, and thus feel it\u2019s a perfect time to check back in on Kamiina Botan. Having at this point settled into the peculiarities of dorm life, Kamiina has already forged friendships with her RA Ibuki and post-grad senpai Gujo, drawing together the standoffish inhabitants of her cozy home. Of course, this is Botan Kamiina Fully Blossoms When Drunk, so that process has necessarily involved a fair amount of whiskey, red wine, and sake, alongside some decidedly unsubtle advances from our dear Kamiina.<\/span><\/p>\n Director Takashi Sukuma\u2019s team have so far done an excellent job of bringing Kamiina\u2019s world to life, offering inviting watercolor backdrops and plenty of dynamic character acting. The show has thus been a pleasant watch on the whole, though I\u2019m still hungry for a bit more of a hook, be it through the show\u2019s interrogation of different liquors or perhaps the progression of its central relationships. Drinking as a concept just doesn\u2019t offer as much of an aesthetic payoff as music or dance or exploring the countryside; nonetheless, given the show\u2019s generally exceptional execution, I imagine it\u2019s still got plenty of visual pleasures in store. Let\u2019s not waste any more time then, and get straight to lounging!<\/span><\/p>\n Episode 2<\/strong><\/p>\n We begin with the immediate followup to last episode\u2019s final question, as Gujo offers a bottle of the sake she shared with Kamiina to Ibuki. It\u2019s a little strange to hit these \u201cgroup activities bring us together\u201d slice of life beats in the context of a show about alcohol, which is itself already sorta defined as a social icebreaker. Most activity-centric slice of life shows have to take a minute to demonstrate why their particular activity builds common bonds, but I don\u2019t think anybody\u2019s really disputing that liquor greases a lot of social wheels<\/span><\/p>\n This show\u2019s character art really shines in these mid-distance shots, with no shading and lots of character-rich posing in spite of the lack of detail<\/span><\/p>\n More great character acting and expression work as Gujo fails to make that second leap into \u201clet\u2019s enjoy it together.\u201d Particularly like this composition of her defeated expression reflected in the sake bottle<\/span><\/p>\n Gujo drowns her sorrows in beer and cigarettes<\/span><\/p>\n I think one point of disconnect I have with this show is that it presents the idea of drinking or smoking cigarettes as \u201cnovel\u201d or \u201cuniquely mature,\u201d a framing that itself demonstrates a just-past-adolescence naivete. The characters are playing at being adults in a way I\u2019m not sure is supposed to be so recognizable; the boarding draws special attention to each drink and cigarette, as if these symbols are supposed to be inherently meaningful or exotic<\/span><\/p>\n It could also be that I\u2019m looking for too much precise meaning in moments that are supposed to be savored in aggregate; slice of life productions are about marinating in a specific tone, and that\u2019s something that\u2019s better analyzed from a broader perspective than scene-by-scene<\/span><\/p>\n More of those great, simplified yet character-rich outlines as we return to Kamiina and Gujo searching for a liquor store<\/span><\/p>\n Even the interior backgrounds have a great sense of painted texture to them. A big improvement over sterile digital backdrops<\/span><\/p>\n And yeah, the character art continues to impress with this simplified yet exceedingly character-rich style. No shading, but the precise ways they hold themselves, and even how their clothes either hang off or cling to their bodies, offers a great sense of personality and style<\/span><\/p>\n Again we see their forms reflected in the glass, a natural application of this visual style. Perhaps a recurring motif \u2013 the ways alcohol can reflect or distort our sense of self<\/span><\/p>\n The liquors they\u2019re inspecting reference both Taxi Driver and One Hundred Years of Solitude. It seems our mangaka Hey has good taste in more than just liquor<\/span><\/p>\n The liquor store apparently allows for taste-testing your purchases on the spot<\/span><\/p>\n This show\u2019s humor is more just sorta mild and pleasant than laugh-out-loud funny, but I certainly prefer mild flourishes of humor to outright abrasive ones. And the fluid character art naturally lends itself to solid reaction faces<\/span><\/p>\n God, I love this show\u2019s wobbling character lineart. Feels like as some directors lean more heavily into post-production embellishments, others are embracing a pleasing simplicity of form, like Shiboyugi\u2019s economic yet evocative lineless art<\/span><\/p>\n The gang then share an evening meal together, one of those quintessential not-quite-adult college activities that resonate even without words<\/span><\/p>\n The next day we witness an argument between two of our other dormmates, Yaeka and Akane. Apparently Akane called Yaeka an airhead<\/span><\/p>\n A slice of life staple, but I still appreciate that our cast actually have fashion senses rather than costumes. Akane favors cozy, warm, and somewhat more androgynous outfits, while Yaeka trends towards dresses that accentuate her generally youthful features. Their preferences emphasize their sort of \u201cprince and princess\u201d visual dynamic, echoing the contrast of characters like Sound! Euphonium\u2019s Natsuki and Yuuko<\/span><\/p>\n We learn that Akane and Yaeka are third-years and generally inseparable, as the gang heads off to scenic Nagatoro<\/span><\/p>\n Nice pink-hued color palette for Nagatoro station, seemingly building off the station roof. I appreciate how each location is given its own distinct color palette identity, like the cozy browns of the liquor store earlier<\/span><\/p>\n I assume these backgrounds are based on photographs that were then painted over? They look too uneven to be outright altered photography<\/span><\/p>\n Their journey revels in the simple pleasures: walking the streets of a new town, admiring distinct feats of architecture or advertising, chatting idly about whatever comes to mind. The good stuff \u2013 the lived substance of life, the things slice of life productions are uniquely well-positioned to celebrate relative to more narrative-driven (and thus almost necessarily more unrealistic) fiction<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cHard to believe this still counts as greater Tokyo.\u201d Tokyo really is a wonder. I\u2019d love to just ride the trains through the contours of its endless sub-cities<\/span><\/p>\n The group settle in for some beers on the banks of a lazy river. More of those quintessential young adult moments, with the idea of a group outing lent a thrilling new allure through your hard-won freedom<\/span><\/p>\n Ibuki once again refrains from drinking with others<\/span><\/p>\n Yaeka reveals that she used to go on solo excursions, and was delighted to find a kindred spirit in Akane. However, having recently acquired her motorcycle license, she feels betrayed that Akane refuses to ride behind her<\/span><\/p>\n Kamiina helpfully points out that you\u2019re not actually allowed to ride double until a year after getting your license. That seems like a very sensible policy!<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d rather it just be the two of us.\u201d Kamiina continues to be a preposterously horny drunk<\/span><\/p>\n More tremendously fluid character animation as Kamiina bounces around Ibuki. It\u2019s all quite technically impressive stuff, though I wish it was in service of something more significant. This show might just be too mild for my tastes<\/span><\/p>\n Ibuki then takes Kamiina to a boutique where you can drink while you shop. As Ibuki says, quite a crafty way to get customers to be more liberal with their purchases<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cBe careful not to spill any on those clothes.\u201d That does seem like the fatal flaw of such an establishment<\/span><\/p>\n And Done<\/strong><\/p>\n Well, that was certainly a peaceful and pleasant excursion, but I\u2019m still uncertain this one has enough going on to grab me. I quite like the aesthetic in general \u2013 softly brushed and neatly color-coordinated backgrounds, distinct yet uncluttered character art, and lots of impressive character acting flourishes. But nothing about Kamiina or her companions has really gripped me in terms of characterization, and liquor continues to be an awkward substitute for the more compelling slice of life fascinations, offering little but a chance for Kamiina to get all up in Ibuki\u2019s business. A gentle and well-executed production, but I feel it\u2019ll either need to expand on its topics of interest or dig deeper into its characters to keep me invested.<\/span><\/p>\n This\u00a0article\u00a0was\u00a0mad<\/a><\/em>e possible by reader support<\/a>. Thank you all for\u00a0all that you do.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I\u2019m feeling a need for some solid stress-relieving shenanigans, and thus feel it\u2019s a perfect time to check back in on Kamiina Botan. Having at this point settled into the peculiarities of dorm life, Kamiina has already forged friendships with her RA Ibuki and post-grad […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":361043,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12036],"tags":[182404,13211,182403],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-361042","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-anime","tag-botan","tag-episode","tag-kamiina"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wrongeverytime.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/April29114336.jpg?resize=584%2C329&ssl=1\")
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<\/p>\nRelated<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"