Bean Counter Episode 3 Review - One-Side Love For Now
There are a few things I really like about Bean Counter as a whole. First off, I do like that the leads have the same hair color. Anime and manga has this tendency where they make the leads have different hair colors in order to distinguish them. However, there are rare cases where the leads in a romance or even a non-romance story would have the same hair color. I think this is the first BL I’ve seen where the leads have the same hair color.
Also, I find it cute that this episode is mostly Aresh taking care of Seiichiro and he’s falling for him because of that. I think this is the first time where Aresh gets to truly know Seiichiro as a person. While he understands that Sei is a workaholic, he also understands the merits and demerits of knowing how to do your work. Sei is obsessed with working because he likes things being in order. Aresh never cared much for paperwork and knowing the importance of finance, he actually looks at paperwork for the first time, showing that Sei’s work ethic does have some positive outcomes.
Aresh is totally into him as he understands what Sei likes and dislikes in regards to eating habits. The fact that he’s willing to kiss him without second thoughts does show that he likes him a lot, but he’s not expressive. Also, it was so hilarious to see him upset over the fact that Sei isn’t into younger people as he is 22 and Sei is 30. Aresh, Orjef and I are rooting for you.
Though, there is one person who is appreciative of Sei’s efforts and that is Kamil. I did read the source material and I always found him a bit suspicious. The fact that he’s now on first name basis with Seiichiro is definitely going to tick Aresh’s buttons.
Yua has screen time in this episode. Her interactions with Norbert were so funny in that Norbert believed Japan was a country full of moving roads and people didn’t walk. Though, I did wish that they added in the firecracker and bungee jumping references. That part was funny. Still, it was funny seeing Norbert’s face when he learned that one of Sei’s “lies” was truth—which would be that girls in their world would wear skirts that go above their knees. He’s only 18, so he’s just a horny teenager. Still, I did feel a bit bad that Yua was about to heal Seiichiro but didn’t realize that he isn’t resistant towards magicules. I do wish that the communication between them would be a bit better as they are each other’s only connection to Earth. But, it makes sense as Yua is only a kid and Sei couldn’t be bothered.
Though, that one valet of Yua’s is annoying. I hated him. Why would he accuse Seiichiro of stalking Yua? I’m sure Yua would have explained that they had no prior relationship and were just strangers that met, yet he’s the one disobeying her words.
And speaking of annoyances, I feel like the anime took out a lot of small details that would’ve helped liven up the episode a bit more. Like, in the manga, Sei was shown to be a picky eater and wanted to give some of the vegetables that he didn’t like to Norbert, showing off a childish side that isn’t shown much in the anime. Sei also talks back to Aresh a lot, especially at the scene where he is taken away from the general store by him. Maybe it’s the voice direction, but it does feel as if anime Sei is a lot calmer than manga Sei, whom I’m more familiar with.
Kamil is voiced by Hiroki Tochi, who voiced Heiter in Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Pantherlily in Fairy Tail and Baek Yoonho from Solo Leveling. I think the voice suits him a lot. Yua is voiced by Yuna Kamakura, who has been in two DEEN-produced BLs; she voiced Sasaki’s sister Satoko from Sasaki and Miyano and also Yuki’s mother from Tadaima, Okaeri. It’s probably intentional as the director of both animes is also the director of this one. Kamakura has good range if she’s able to voice an older woman in one anime and a young girl in this one. I honestly think she should get more roles; she’s very underrated as I enjoyed her as Ghost Girl from Yugioh VRAINS. Orjef is voiced by Kazuyuki Okitsu who voiced Zantetsu from Blue Lock; he’s also a BL regular, so it was surprising when I saw him in the cast list.
Overall, I did like the growing relationship between Sei and Aresh. Aresh is definitely possessive of him and is interested in him romantically, but it’s going to take a while for Sei to reciprocate. Let’s all root for them. Let me know your thoughts on this episode.
Isekai Office Worker Episode 8 Review - More Plot, Less Romance
I know this isn’t the best quality in terms of BL adaptation, but I’m someone who enjoys something even with the flaws. One thing I like about Bean Counter/Isekai Office Worker is that it focuses a lot on stuff that isn’t romance related. This episode is more plot-based, if anything.
It seems that no one in this world does their jobs properly as Bishop Mateus and the person in charge of accounting are still away. This is a bit suspicious, so Sei is doing all he can to figure things out. I like that he’s gathering information about the history behind the church and what some of their customs are from the people around him. Norbert is very knowledgeable about the church as he gives Sei a lot of information like how the people are more familiarized with the Church rather than the royal palace. The church is also functioned by nobles and priests are essentially people from wealthy upbringing. Because of that, it does seem as if the church funds are manipulated by the rich. This is definitely the reason why Kamil sent Sei on this mission. There definitely is some sort of corruption going on behind the scenes if the important people are away on the day Sei arrived. The church is also a place where they take in orphaned kids with no place to go like Selio. Some of the kids don’t have favorable opinions of the higher-class and civil servants, hence why Sei is often treated with animosity by the church boys.
It was funny to see how crazy Siegvold can be when it comes to Abran. He’s like the religious version of Ist in terms of passion. Sei’s reactions to Siegvold believing that Abran is testing him was hilarious. I do feel bad because he doesn’t feel like a corrupt guy. He probably has no idea what’s going on behind the scenes of the place he works at and has no idea what Sei has been through as he’s not blessed with divine powers like Yua.
Speaking of Yua, it made me happy to see her talking about how she goes to the church to heal the injured and help out. Like I mentioned before, I never thought Yua was annoying. She’s going through her own character development and it’s so good to see. I’m sure that as a teenager girl, the thought of being needed by others is definitely heartwarming. It’s also helping her learn responsibility. I do remember the mention of the Holy Maiden two generations before Yua and how she became a nun in the church after fulfilling her duties. In a way, I feel kind of bad that that Holy Maiden never really got to go back home. In a way, Yua is lucky that Sei’s trying to absolve the system so that she can be the last one for good.
Though, because of Yua spending time at the church, her relationship with Prince Julius is growing distant. That’s mainly his fault though. He doesn’t see Yua as a person and only as the Holy Maiden. It’s evident with how he believed Yua is from a noble family when she’s just a commoner. He is possessive of her, but doesn’t go out of his way to see the deeper aspects of her. He’s like a red flag version of Aresh in a way. While Aresh is also possessive of Sei, it’s also because he understands his loneliness and is trying to make it so that Sei doesn’t feel homesick and lonely. Julius’s smothering is bothering Yua. Also, poor Sei, he’s essentially roped as mediator by Makovska. Why do people think he’d be great at relationship advice when he himself is terrible at romance?
All of the romance stuff with Aresh is essentially at the end. It was funny to see Aresh asking what Sei was plotting when he was greeting him. Aresh, be glad Sei is making effort to reciprocate your feelings. Heck, he even knows how to flip Sei’s switch by asking him if he wants to see documents. My favorite moment between the two definitely was Aresh scolding Sei for not finishing his food—he’s the younger one.
The best part about this episode was seeing Ist and hearing him blabber. According to a bonus content on the official Twitter page, his voice actor actually said all of those “pera, pera” continuously. I commend Torashima for that. Anyways, it was nice to see a lot of the side characters show up in this episode. Let me know your thoughts on this one!
