'Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san' Is an Effectively Entertaining Short-Form Anime Series

Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san is, as far as I can remember, the very first short-form anime series (i.e. the length of each episode is just half of a usual anime episode) I’ve ever seen.  I picked it up midway through my fall 2018 anime watching because it was being hyped as an uproarious comedy show, and I was intrigued of its zany premise.

The manga this anime is based from is about its author Honda’s (most likely a pseudonym) days working as an employee in a bookstore that sells manga, American comics, and the like.  Of course, there’s a bit of satirical liberties and exaggerations involved in telling these anecdotes, which is apparent first and foremost from how Honda and his workmates are cartoonishly illustrated – Honda is a human skeleton, while his workmates are wearing masks or headgears that fully cover their heads.

Nevertheless, there’s always the sense of relatability to it.  The audience gets the impression that the bite-sized plotlines (usually two per episode) are mostly inspired by real-life persons and occurrences.  It’s just the social situations and awkward feelings it references are painfully reminiscent of our own interpersonal interactions, whether in a work or non-work setting.

In addition, it’s basically an inside look on the manga selling industry in Japan.  So, it’s fascinating and informative in this sense.  It’s also amusing when real-life manga titles are referenced.  It censors itself when these titles are mentioned, but this is done so lightly that it’s obvious what manga title it’s talking about.

I like this show.  However, I don’t agree with the hype I got that it’s extremely funny.  It’s charmingly humorous, yes; I had a good amount of chuckles.  But I can’t remember ever busting a gut laughing.  It’s no Grand Blue.

Lastly, on a side note, its OP’s riff reminds me a lot of Red Hot Chili Pepper’s “By the Way.”  That’s why, sometimes, I don’t skip watching the OP.

All in all, Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san is the least of all the new anime series of fall 2018 that I’ve watched.  Not that it’s bad; the others are just better.  Nevertheless, as far as its medium goes, it’s certainly effective in entertaining.