Space Battleship Tiramisu – Where Are The Desserts?

• Genre: Mecha, adventure, comedy, short, fanservice
• Episodes: 18
• Studio: Gonzo

 

There is no place quite as safe and comfortable for Subaru Ichinose, as the cockpit of his Durandal. A young ace pilot, Subaru has devoted his entire life to his training and now, he can finally put it all to good use on the front lines, as a pilot on board the great battleship Tiramisu. However, life in space comes with its own peculiar challenges. For a young man like Subaru, learning to live alongside his fellow pilots and engineers might prove just as difficult as surviving the constant space battles. Luckily, he can always count on his best friend Cody when things get rough. As long as he has his trusty Durandal, Subaru will not get defeated, no matter what comes his way. Except if he gets distracted by something that is. Kid’s only human…

It’s been a long time since I’ve managed this particular feat. I went into Space Battleship Tiramisu not knowing anything about it at all. The only thing I was expecting was some sort of spaceships and, of course, some tiramisu. Well, this show still managed to be absolutely like nothing I expected.

Space Battleship Tiramisu is a comedic short program. Shorts often are. But I must say, they did a decent jobs on the designs here. The manga actually has a pretty detailed art style and they managed to reproduce it quite well in the anime. For a short program, it was pretty visually impressive.

Now of course, movement is not as expansive or fluid as we’ve seen in full fledged series but it got the job done. Voice acting on the other hand was a bit of a let down. It wasn’t bad by any means. I wouldn’t even had mentioned it at all if this was a different type of show. However, with these types of quick fire, joke and punchline comedies, deliver becomes crucial. And although all the actors did a good job, in my opinion none of them elevated the source material through delivery. I guess it’s a bit unfair of me to expect that of the cast.  I guess I’ve seen (heard) such amazing comedic performances in anime that I’ve become a bit spoiled.

I won’t lie, I’m still not sure what I expected out of this show. I certainly didn’t expect quite so much, uhm, flesh or suggestive humour. I also really thought they would show us at least one tiramisu, or a cake or something…. Nope just all sorts of cleavage (front and back).

Space Battleship Tiramisu is a very childish show. It deals in potty humour and cheap jokes. I got the impression that it was written for (or possibly by) a sexually adventurous grade schooler. The thing is, at times it kind of worked. There’s an art to toilet humour. Some people will always be above such things but I can get a giggle out of it when done right and Space Battleship Tiramisu often pulled it off.

Once again, I appreciated that it wasn’t spiteful or degrading in the pursuit of laughs. The fanservice here is generally equal opportunity as are roasts. Of course some things fall flat. A character simply getting caught with their pants down isn’t going to be funny to an adult…in theory. ‘Cmon, I’m not the only immature one here, am I? Sure, if I,m not in the mood for it, I’m just going to find those sorts of jokes stupid, but once in a while I can laugh along. I have an inner child still!

Besides, Space Battleship Tiramisu does muster up some type of overarching plot as well. And when you strip away all the silly hit or miss jokes from it, it’s actually a pretty decent space opera parody. Tragic deaths and long lost siblings, brought together by mysterious super powers and faithed to become opponents in a battle for control of the universe. It’s exactly the type of stuff old sci fi movies use to relish in, and the type of stuff that made me laugh my behind off as I was watching mystery theater 3000.

Is there such a thing as Mystery Anime Theater 3000? There should be. In fact Space Battleship Tiramisu feels a little like a series trying to make it on purpose in Mystery Anime Theater 3000. Sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t…

As a little aside, the scene of the depressed Durandal really thrilled me for some reason. I just loved the entire body language here. Very Marvin the Paranoid Android.

Let me try to make it easy for you. If you ever think to yourself “cockpit is kind of a funny word”, then you are in the perfect mindset for a few episodes of Space Battleship Tiramisu!

Also, the second season just started airing on Crunchyroll. I’m going to watch it!

Favorite character: Cody (he’s my best friend too)

What this anime taught me: In Japanese it’s pronounced Tiramiss

Never take advice from me, you’ll just end up drunk

Suggested drink: Tiramisu Martini (if you make these, please invite me)

• Every time there’s a double entendre – is it just me?
• Every time anyone strips – take a sip
  • if it’s Subaru – take another
• Every time we see Cody – clap
• Every time anyone says cockpit – giggle
• Every time Subaru flips out – take a sip
• Every time anyone says Durandal – take a sip
• Every time Subaru eats in his Mecha – get a snack
  • if he spills – get some napkins
• Every time there’s a flashback to Earth – take a sip
• Every time Subaru defeats an enemy – cheer
• Every time anyone is just naked – enjoy
• Every time we see a talking pubic hair – understand the type of show you’re watching and take a sip