Watching Akebi-chan no Sailor Fuku means you will see a lot of this sort of shot:
Yes, this is an anime that knows what it likes and one thing it likes is feet. It’s not its only fetish, but it is its most obvious. In general Akebi-chan no Sailor Fuku is obsessed with the ways in which its middle school characters move and act, an obsession taken straight from the source material, the manga by Hiro, which had whole chapters devoted to seeing a character dance. Anime of course has the advantage over manga of actually being able to show movement, but nevertheless the care and attention which it lavished on showing this movement is amazing. This is an anime that knows the appeal of its source material and knows it has to do justice to it. The character designs are spot on and lose none of their uniqueness in the translation from manga to anime, looking like no other slice of moe series. The sheer joy with which Hiro depicts Akebi moving and dancing has been captured perfectly. This isn’t fan service in the usual sense. The shot above may be fetishistic, but not sleazy. There’s a certain innocence to it, as I argued after viewing the first episode.
Consider the high light of that first episode, Akebi trying on her sailor outfit for the first time. There are elements to it that certainly are fetish coded, like her putting on her socks for example. But the overall scene is innocent and infused with the happiness she feels finally wearing the uniform she had waited so long for. There’s no feelings that this was drawn for somebody to get their rocks off to. It is indicative of the series as a whole, which always respects its characters even when (especially when) it focuses on them moving their bodies around. Much more than in many series, the characters act through their bodies as much as through their dialogue. You don’t need words to know what Akebi’s feeling in this scene. It’s this level of quality and attention to detail that made this my favourite series of Winter 2022, together with My Dress-Up Darling. It’s this that elevates it from a regular slice of moe series, when the story itself is as simple as “girls makes friends through the power of her sailor uniform”.
That’s after all what Akebi-chan no Sailor Fuku revolves around, as you might’ve guessed from the title. Akebi-chan has always been obsessed with sailor uniforms ever since her favourite pop idol wore one. That’s why she wanted to join her mother’s old middle school, not realising that the school had already moved on to blazers as its uniform until the opening ceremony. Fortunately for her and her mother’s efforts having made her uniform by hand, the kindly principal allows it as it is technically still the school’s uniform. It immediately makes her stand out in her class and the school, but it’s her personality and charm that really captivates her class mates. Throughout the series she functions as a catalyst, getting involved with a new friend every episode, getting to learn their stories. Week in week out it was a pleasure to see Akebi, who came from a primary school where she was the only pupil in her class, discover the fun in being in a class with your friends, getting to hang out with somebody else than your teacher or younger sister. I’d love to see a second season, if it can keep up the high quality.
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