Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Did we want a Minato Shouji Coin Laundry season two? Hell, yeah! Did it turn out to be what fans expected? That’s highly debatable. While leads Minato and Shin are still quite adorable around each other, their relationship is stuck in an agonizing limbo due to Minato’s low self-esteem issues and weirdness about their age gap. Why agree to date someone if you are going to continue treating them like a friend or even worse – a child? Sure, Minato and Shin’s interactions are often funny and cute as the creators intend them to be, but oftentimes Minato is unintentionally cruel and unreasonably self-preserving.
Read: Minato Shouji Coin Laundry Season 1 Review for recap.
Directed by Kawasaki Ryo, Kitagawa Hitomi, season two of “Minato Shouji Coin Laundry” sees Kusakawa Takuya and Nishikagi Sho reprise their roles as the insecure but cute Minato and persuasive younger Shintaro respectively. This new season comprising 12 episodes follows slow developments in their love story, while Minato is still running his grandfather’s laundry shop and Shin is now a first year medical student. There’s also the continued sub-plot about Shin’s friend Asuka (Oku Tomoya) facing his own relationship troubles with the older Hiiragi (Inaba Yu).
While the Asuka-Hiiragi sub-plot wasn’t amusing enough in the first season, Oku Tomoya as the enthusiastic and playful Asuka was my favorite character this edition. The actor endearingly captures Asuka’s boyish charm, and it’s his scenes that really light up this otherwise slow season. Despite his mock jealousy over Minato and Shin’s relationship, Asuka is also their biggest cheerleader, always encouraging the couple to fight for each other. He is an more dedicated lovestruck youngster, burning the midnight oil to study because the nerdy Hiiragi agrees to go on a date with him only if he scores “A” grades in his entrance exams.
The cinematography is just as cozy and warm as season one, and the ambient-heavy background music blends well with the laid-back storytelling. For example, most episodes begin with the chirping of birds and a character doing something domestic, like Minato sweeping his shop or getting back from buying groceries. The piano interludes throughout the runtime continue to add a comical and light-hearted tone to the series.
Kusakawa Takuya is entertaining as Minato, but the character can be frustrating. While Minato’s initial reluctance to date a much younger Shin made sense, his continued mawkish attitude after agreeing to be in a relationship stopped being funny. For example, the couple starts to live together, but Minato refuses to share a room with Shin and even draws up a line at one point and asks him to stay on his side. The creators should’ve either tweaked the script or provided viewers with a better reason for Minato’s distant behavior instead of a simple “I love him too much” excuse. If it weren’t for Shin’s incredible patience, the relationship wouldn’t have lasted for more than a few months.
Despite its exaggerated characters, “Minato Shouji Coin Laundry Season 2” maintains a realistic “slice of life” feel, offering an enjoyable viewing experience until a ludicrous twist in episode 10. Shin has an accident, resulting in partial memory loss, and the romantic-comedy tone takes a downturn in the final two episodes. This plot twist may remind viewers of the Japanese series “Jack O’Frost,” which had memory loss as a crucial trope and had far more romantic moments in its six episodes than “Minato Shouji Coin Laundry” does in 24!
The season finale only focuses on how Minato and Shin iron out their relationship problems and all other characters are virtually forgotten. While the series ends on a positive emotional note and also leaves a lot of scope for another season, it was far too long for the little story it had to offer. Regardless, it’s still a decent watch for those who enjoyed season one.
Rating: 6 on 10.
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