Thoughts on Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru

This is actually not my first exposure to this particular story. Back in 2019 or so, I started reading the parent manga upon recommendation of a blog commenter. Sometime afterwards, I dropped it and wrote my thoughts on what I had read up to that point (which I now find a tad overly cynical). The ultimate reason for its abandonment came through a meandering plot that didn’t seem to be going anywhere, not necessarily for a lack of quality. As such, the anime adaptation was always tempting to me.

After getting completely movie’d up for all of March, I had an urge to settle down with something more “nostalgic.” I remembered this anime existed and decided on a whim to give it a shot, not totally confident I would make it through its entirety. Remarkably, I found that it’s actually just as charming as I remember its manga form being… and just as unnecessarily horny!

Copy-Paste Synopsis

“High schooler Wakana Gojou cares about one thing: making Hina dolls. With nobody to share his obsession, he has trouble finding friends—or even holding conversation. But after the school’s most popular girl, Marin Kitagawa, reveals a secret of her own, he discovers a new purpose for his sewing skills. Together, they’ll make her cosplay dreams come true!”

– AniList

Actual Review

In Japanese media, there are levels of what constitutes as an “ecchi.” There are ecchi series such as Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru, which displays a moderate amount of sexual fan service on an episodic basis. There are also ecchi series such as Highschool of the Dead, which is almost so comically sexually charged that it borders on softcore porn. These two series are both ecchi, but one is far less egregious in its sexualization of female characters that it’s almost excusable.

This might make it seem like I’m trying to justify Sono Bisque Doll’s liberal use of skinship. I’m not. On the contrary, I will be criticizing it fairly soon. I only wished to make a disclosure that just because it’s marked as “ecchi” doesn’t mean that is its main priority with the story. There are a decent amount of elements at play that make this a simultaneously fulfilling and frustrating viewing.

Back to the gratuitous amount of near-naked women. This series is not shy about displaying its teenage characters in all of their “glory.” To some extent, the idea of cosplay justifies the constant nature of changing scenes and emphasis on skin. That comes with the territory. It becomes something more vile when the characters behave in a way that comes across as a cheeky way for the author to take advantage of their physical attractiveness.

Take Marin, the star attraction and cosplay extraordinaire of the story. She adores characters from things she likes and wants to cosplay them. That’s fine. She also happens to be physically gifted with model-like qualities. That’s a little far-fetched, but all right. She also really enjoys playing eroge games and talking about how cool “boobs” are and fawning over how cute these scantily clad characters in her games/TV shows are. C’mon. It’s not subtle.

It ends up hurting the validity of the story when it’s so clearly presenting a side-show of getting bozos excited on top of engaging this wholesome story about chasing your dreams. It would be one thing if the sexual energy was used to some end (as it does in certain episodes to progress the romantic relationship of the leads), but oftentimes it’s just there for kicks. Doesn’t help that it also sexualizes middle school girls—extra ick.

Enough of the problematic junk; what is this series’ worth? Where does it shine? For me, it comes in two forms: characters and fragments of the story.

I really like the angle of putting your all into your work for the sake of others. This is such a relatable aspect to me that I don’t think many other series hammer down quite as earnestly. Gojou as a person is like a scared turtle, always hiding in his proverbial shell. Yet it’s his ambition and drive, fueled by his love of Hina dolls (which is relatively prevalent throughout, thankfully), that makes him more than just “Main male character.” He grows throughout (though minimally).

Marin, too, despite her clearly dubious lines and antics, grows over the course of the series. Seeing her bond with Gojou grow is equally as interesting, even if fairly quick and essentially wish-fulfillment. These two people together allow the story to go wherever it may wish to. There’s a scene in the latter half of the series where the two take an impromptu trip to a beach. Nothing of much importance occurs there, but the two share a cute moment in the water that became one of my favorite parts of the series. I don’t even care about cosplay, I just like seeing these two bond.

And this relationship works, for the most part, because they provide for one another in realistic (enough) circumstances. Gojou works with the materials to have Marin cosplay, which benefits her because she can cosplay and benefits him because he can practice his sewing skills for his dolls. They both bounce off of one another personally, too, with Marin acting as a gateway to the “Real world” while Gojou… well, he just supports her morally. Not much he can do in his position.

If it wasn’t for the fact that Marin (and others) are exploited for their attractiveness and a somewhat uneven “point” to the cosplay angle, I would actually recommend this without question. Unfortunately, the prior two detriments are sufficient enough to really weigh it down. There are flashes of reason to exist within, a genuine attempt at making a cute story that inspires and encourages. Alas, they are but flashes, in a series that flashes the audience far more than necessary.

Conclusion

Really wish this wasn’t so horny. All the eye-roll-inducing scenes cut, it would still be a fairly fun (and much shorter) series. Watch it for Gojou and Marin, two people who rely on one another in a near-equal exchange. Gojou ends up being a little too good at making cosplay, but hey, how else are we gonna get the hot girl to look hot in other hot outfits as quickly as possible? Ugh.

The rating for this title and all others can be found on MyAnimeList.

For more anime reviews, check out the associated archive.

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Thank you for your time. Have a great rest of your day.