Anime 53407 Bartender Kami No Glass Reviews Filter Check 2

"Do you know the meaning of the word 'bartender'? 'Bar' means a perch to rest on, and 'tender' means gentle. So 'bartender' means 'a gentle perch.'"

This is a line from the first episode that sets the premise and the tone of the show, romanticizing bartending as a sophisticated and almost therapeutic vocation. Except that I am pretty sure that is not where the word comes from. A bartender is the person who “tends” the bar, as in “taking care of,” similar to "tending to a patient." This may sound like a strange nitpick, but it encapsulates the show for me.

The show is at its most ... interesting when it “talks shop” and explores the many kinds of cocktails, flavor, technique and bartending philosophies. If this is enough for you, you will have a good time. But in almost all other areas the show is awkward and unsatisfying.

The writing in the bar scenes feels very simplistic for what is supposed to be a conversation between adults about refined tastes and hardships in life. Sasakura, the genius bartender and the main character, explains every single detail about what he is thinking, what he is doing and what he means by it. Nothing is left unsaid or ambiguous so that the customer (and the viewer) can contemplate and interpret. Sasakura speaks more through words rather than through his drinks, which I feel goes against the premise of the show. When he mixes in some trivia and some life lessons, he often comes across as preachy rather than sympathetic. The stories that the customers bring to the table are also straightforward, like a rough day at work or doubts about a career choice. There are no layers to peel back, unusual personalities, or particularly complicated circumstances.

These interactions may be more enjoyable if the characters are charismatic or likable, but that is not the case here. Sasakura is just a “cool guy,” always poker-faced, both at work and outside of work, and he rarely says or does anything that reveals anything about himself. It is revealed in the first episode that he has some eccentric sides to him, but those have not been brought up again. I think his character is intended to be an enigma of sorts, but at the moment he just comes across as dull. Other characters are completely flat and get one-word descriptions like “perfectionist” or “workaholic,” if they are lucky. There seems to be an overarching story about recruiting Sasakura to work at a newly-open bar, but there is not much to it, and little progress has been made.

Unfortunately, not much is going on in the art and animation department, either. The cocktails themselves look nice, but the rest of the art is very bland; the bars look mostly flat and featureless. Characters are not very expressive and barely move, and most scenes unfold with characters sitting still and flapping their mouths. I understand that this show is a drama where people sit down and have drinks, but it does not look like the director is trying to do anything creative here at all.

I have not read the manga or seen the original anime adaptation, but I knew that they were well-regarded, and this show has not met my expectations so far. Going back to the “bartender” quote, I feel similarly about the show itself; it feels mildly pleasant but does not hold up to a closer look. This show is just not doing anything nearly as interesting or “elegant” as the subject matter itself, which makes the little annoyances all the more glaring. If you simply want to see great-looking cocktails, or if you want a calm, relaxing show to chill out to, you may enjoy this show. If you are looking for anything beyond that, I really doubt this show will deliver.

This doesn't feel like the Bartender I know.

In case you're wondering, yes, this anime is a remake/reboot of an anime that came out all the way back in 2006, called Bartender. Why is it getting remade almost an entire 18 years later? Other than how it might be connected to the fact that 18 is the legal drinking age in many countries, it beats me.

I'd heard about this new anime coming out that focused on bars and drinks and all that, and I just had to check out the original. And guess what? I genuinely liked it! I'm not even old enough to drink, ... and tbh, I'm pretty scared of alcohol, but getting to learn about different drinks, their origins, and the struggles of troubled individuals who wander into Eden Hall, all in such a cozy, homey atmosphere, was so refreshing.

So, now that this remake's finally airing, what are my impressions of it? Well, I'm conflicted.

Now, writing a preliminary review having only watched three episodes so far is kind of unfair in my eyes now, but WHAT THE HELL happened???? Nothing seems very comforting anymore and nothing is interesting. It just feels like some sort of odd ASMR instead, because the inside of the bar is so much more goddamn quiet, it's literally almost unnerving. The 2006 Bartender was one of those anime where it was soothing, and even lulled me to sleep a few times (because it was so chill, not because it was dead boring), but I just felt so oddly alert during every moment inside the bar in this one, and this feeling is strengthened even more by how off the characters and their dialogue seems, and the new sort of personality they gave Sasakura, our lovely bartender. It's like they made him so much more of a goofy idiot than actually mature and collected. Like, okay, maybe he regains himself when he's bartending, but there's still that lingering new aura around him that I just find so unfitting of him, and that really disrupts the already off-putting atmosphere.

I'm glad they didn't take the core aspects of Bartender away, though at least not yet. It still seems to have the same formula of a stressed-out drinker coming in for a drink, and having their worries completely washed away by Sasakura's exquisite skills in creating the perfect drink for any individual. Sometimes there's a bit of drama, sometimes it's just that smooth-rolling, straightforward experience. This time, though, there seems to be a goal of trying to get Sasakura to work at a bar, specifically on the top floor of a building. The problem is, he has a fear of heights, and refuses every time he is asked. This is an example of how they made him kind of dumb, but hey, there's a little underlying goal there. But I want my Gary Sue ikemen Sasakura Ryuu in perfect form!!!!

I'm not really liking this new adaptation of Bartender so far, but I'm not necessarily hating it either. It's got its unwanted changes in there, but it's not like it's a completely different anime. I'm holding on to hope that by chance this new adaptation could turn in a good direction soon, but that's gonna be a wait. Maybe I might write a complete review once this has finished airing, going over it in more detail, but who knows.

Thank you for reading my review.

This is one of those types of anime that focuses on moments of exposition about some topic, drinks and beverages, and the bartending role in this case, while trying to create some kind of story around those moments of exposition, and i don't think it worked, actually most of those animes don't work, unless they don't make it all about exposition, and this one failed miserably at that.

There are lots of anime that do this kind of formula in interesting ways, and several other that commit the same mistake. Mostly often they over focus on the exposition topic, being food, science, etc; and leave it ... lacking in any other aspect of story, character development and world building, creating some repetitive routines and becoming stale and boring very fast.

A big one that does this well it's Doctor Stone, having its moments of exposition, but relying on the actual now and then of the story, even when focused on the scientific development. Another great one is Paripi Koumei, aka "Ya Boy Kongming!", related to the topics of music/entertainment shows management, mixed with an strategist of the 3 kingdoms era helping a young star on her career; A last good one is Thermae Romae Novae, even tho it wasn't that well received, it focuses on the comedy and overreaction of the main protagonist when dealing with modern designs and architecture of Thermas, without creating long moments of tedious explanation and talking.

That all said, Bartender: Kami no Glass still have another great problem, it lacks emotion. Almost every character feels stale and lacks the proper facial expression for the scenes and moments they are acting in, that's an even bigger problem when the anime already don't have an interesting hook in the story, and the exposition about drinks and bartending don't do that well of a work when mixed in with the story.

The mystery of who could enter next in Isekay Shokudou, and the overreaction when people ate things in Shokugeki no Souma did a better work, even when getting strongly repetitive and stale, feeling a lot more immersive and interesting than the boring inexpressive way that this anime does this formula, all because of the characters personality and the general aura of these shows, this is even more ironic when the Bartender says something about "your drink lacking personality". Just a Mid Class disappointment...

After watching the first episode I immediately fell for the show's charm and atmosphere so I started reading the manga right after the first episode.
Only after reading it have I realised that this adaptation doesn't follow it at all, I quite liked the short story-esque with an overarching plot in the background formula that the manga had, and this creative liberty of the studio to create a more connected story just doesn't sit right with me.
Until it is done airing I can't really recommend it to someone that liked the source material, but I also can't say that the show is awful for an ... anime only.