When Supernatural Battles Became Commonplace

Episodes 1 - 3

Poor, poor Jurai just can't catch a break. He's devoted the majority of his teenage existence to the possibility that he might suddenly develop superpowers. He spends every day practicing his dramatic “containing the evil power within my arm” routine, much to the annoyance of his friends in the Literature Club. Of course, when Jurai and the other four club members really do develop superpowers, his is the only lame one: the ability to summon a dark, lukewarm ball of fire. As someone who spent many a middle school lunch period discussing world domination with a motley crew of friends, I can't help but feel bad for the guy.

When Supernatural Battles Became Commonplace takes the all too common premise of teenagers with superpowers and proceeds to have a spectacular amount of fun with it. Each episode is an unrelenting barrage of clever, self-aware jokes that embrace the tropes of the genre even as the show pokes fun at them. There's an immediate chemistry amongst the lead characters that many shows spend entire seasons struggling to develop. Character humor and sight gags are both executed well, and the series is careful not to lean too heavily on any one joke.

Part of the reason the show works so well is due to the amount of thought goes into its humor. Rather than simply mocking the more absurd elements of the genre, When Supernatural Battles Became Commonplace takes a genuine interest in its cast. Their reactions to suddenly gaining incredible powers are amusing, but they're also believable. It's easy to relate to them as they mess around with their newfound abilities and argue over the importance of a cool nickname. As the fireballs and punchlines fly, each member of the Literature Club gets a chance to grow beyond his or her comedic role.

That character development pays off when the series starts to add moments of drama to the mix. When a poorly worded letter leads student council president Mirei to develop a one-sided crush on Jurai, the natural assumption is that their non-relationship will become a running joke. Instead, Jurai owns up to his mistake and takes action to clear things up. Instead of watching a tired joke wear out its welcome over the course of multiple episodes, we get a surprisingly touching moment. The most recent episode suggests that this bit of drama was more than just a fluke, and that more emotional conflict lies ahead.

The only thing that worries me is the potential for the show to get too ambitious for its own good. It's a fun, clever comedy, but it seems keen on the idea of becoming something more. That's the sort of goal that can make a good series great, but it can also cause a series to lose sight of what made it appealing in the first place. Studio Trigger has made this leap successfully in the past, and I really hope they can do it again. Things look promising for now, as solid execution has been on full display in these early episodes.

As it stands, When Supernatural Battles Became Commonplace is a great deal of fun. If that's all it amounts to, it'll still be an easy show to recommend. If it manages to evolve into something more, it has the potential to compete with this season's heavy hitters. I'm not sure where it's going, but I look forward to finding out.

Rating: B+

When Supernatural Battles Became Commonplace is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Paul Jensen also covers anime and manga at SharkPuppet.com.