Tamon's B-Side

Episode 4

There's something really odd about watching an episode about the protagonists going to a festival—which I'm not sure they ever called a “summer” festival per se, but it certainly has that look and vibe (especially with Tamon having complained about the mosquitos)—whilst a large swath of the US (including where I am) is on the precipice of being blasted by what's currently forecasted to be I'm-so-cold-that-I'm-shivering weather.

Anyway, faced with the possibility that his position as the face of F/ACE isn't as secure as it might've once seemed, Tamon takes Utage to a festival to learn about what love is. And he does find it, yes, but in ways that he didn't seem to expect. Namely, the love he feels for his fans, with an undercurrent of his budding feelings for Utage—which he all but openly proclaims to himself that he has. Given how firm Utage seems right now in her desire to remain a Tamon fangirl and nothing but a Tamon fangirl, the wind is certainly blowing in a direction that suggests that Tamon will be almost certainly the first one to realize what the audience already knows: That he has romantic feelings for Utage.

Speaking of, I'd like to take this moment to appreciate Utage as a protagonist. Making her either the butt of every joke, or trying way too hard to force a romantic relationship between herself and Tamon, feels like low-hanging fruit. But not only is she celebrated in this series, but she herself doesn't seem conscious of being interested in a romantic relationship with Tamon—rather, she's content to stay his loyal fan, and doesn't seem to see herself as worthy of him. Is there still stuff to be unpacked there? Plenty, but that's a bridge we're bound to cross later. Besides, I don't necessarily think that's going to last long. Still, her reasons aside, the fact that she's like this at all is something. By making her not particularly romantically interested in Tamon, whilst also absolutely wanting to remain a loyal fangirl of his, the show gives us an unexpected dichotomy for a series like this—which is to say, a romcom between an oshi and his fangirl.

Meanwhile in the background (literally and figuratively), we have F/ACE member and nepobaby Ouri stalking their little research outing (not that he realizes that's what it is), and it's hard to not see the seeds of a crush being planted. Honestly, for a series as funny and over-the-top as this one has already proven itself to be, I love the prospect of this turning into a reverse harem in which all (or at least most of) the boys of F/ACE are in love with Utage. It would really fit the indulgent, self-insert fanfiction vibe I talked about it having last week, so one can hope. But honestly, even if it doesn't go all the way by giving us every boy crushing on Utage, this series still has more than enough potential material that I don't think it'll matter that much in the grand scheme of things.

Normally this is about the time I'd start commenting on an English dub if only this series had one. But, alas, it doesn't. And I must say, I thought that was pretty unexpected—this isn't exactly Jujutsu Kaisen or Frieren, sure, but I've seen less popular anime (even this very season) get dubs, after all. I can't help but wonder if it has anything to do with the insert music (the F/ACE songs, which I'd be willing to bet we'll hear more of as the series continues)—whether it be more of a licensing issue, a logistics issue, or something else. Still, at the risk of veering into speculation, I'll leave it at that. Suffice to say, I'm both surprised and disappointed that at least as of right now, there's nothing suggesting we're getting a dub for this series—a shame, because there's more than a few really funny and talented English language voice actors who I think would've been great in a series like this.

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Tamon’s B-Side is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.