Touring After the Apocalypse

Episode 12

So after twelve weeks of (mostly) chill post-apocalyptic touring, it's finally time to say goodbye to both Yoko and Airi. I'm sad to see them go, especially as I'll be surprised if this offbeat show ever gets a second season to continue its journey. As I've mentioned before, I felt it unlikely we'd get any kind of definitive answers about the reason for humanity's disappearance, or any concrete confirmation of our lead characters' true natures, but ultimately that wasn't really what this show was about. Taken as a whole, Touring After the Apocalypse is a slice-of-life/travelogue show at heart, with some post-apocalyptic flavor text to keep things interesting.

In this episode, Yoko and Airi climb a mountain in the fog, which is generally not a recommended activity due to the ease of getting lost. They encounter a fascinating atmospheric phenomenon known as a “Brocken specter,” where the sun casts a rainbow-haloed shadow across the fog, making it look to an observer that they're being stalked by a huge phantom, in fact, their own shadow. In Scottish Gaelic folklore, this is called “Am Fear Liath Mòr,” but is better known as “The Big Grey Man of Ben Macdui.” Creepy folktales about mysterious creatures that inhabit the misty, remote parts of the world have always fascinated me, though in this case, it has a somewhat more mundane origin.

X-Files-esque apparitions aside, most notable this week is a detailed flashback to Yoko and Airi's time in their bunker. Complete with LED window panes that simulate shifting views of the outside world, it was a spacious, multi-floor complex with a bedroom/study area, corridors, washing facilities, and a physical training area complete with a VR setup for animal husbandry and vegetable cultivation. As we already knew, the girls were taught via connected viewscreen by what was probably an AI-generated teacher known as “Big Sis.” Yoko dreamed of traveling outside, but was told that the world wasn't safe for her yet.

It's not clear what changed; perhaps the bunker was merely running out of power, but eventually they were allowed to leave, with their electric Serow motorbike, to explore the beautiful world, empty of people. “Go for us… as far as you can,” requests Big Sis, and present-day Yoko announces she wants to explore the whole world, surprising herself. Has she been programmed with subconscious desires or initiatives? I wonder how she might achieve this? It's not like the Japanese archipelago is only a short swim from mainland Asia; she'd need a reliable, seaworthy ship.

Yoko also briefly wonders about her origins. “Have we always been in the shelter?” Airi responds in the affirmative, yet we're left wondering if she was born there, or grown in a vat, or what? Is she truly the last human? Perhaps we'll never know. Touring After the Apocalypse, the TV show adapts almost up to the end of manga volume 4, with some elements from volume 6. There are 8 volumes published in Japan, so surely there's enough material to produce a second season? At least the manga is receiving an English translation, so fans hungry for more of Yoko and Airi's adventures can find them on the printed page.

I've enjoyed my time with this very beautiful show, especially the sweet interactions between irrepressibly upbeat genki girl Yoko and the more staid Airi. Yoko's sunny smile and lust for life act as a welcome counterpoint to the show's underlying post-civilization melancholia. It's been a consistently well-made production with the occasional, only slightly jarring CG used for the more kinetic motorbike scenes. The lush, verdant landscapes of this empty, crumbling future Japan will remain in my memory for a long time.

Rating:

Touring After the Apocalypse is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

---

Disclosure: Kadokawa World Entertainment (KWE), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, is the majority owner of Anime News Network, LLC. One or more of the companies mentioned in this article are part of the Kadokawa Group of Companies.