There’s this all saying that “opposites attract”, and after seeing the first episode with Gen-san and Kusano-san, I see how that can be true. By that, I mean the harder Gen-san tries to go solo, the more committed Kusano-san is to her Solo Camping for Two idea.
Solo Camping for Two is a slice-of-life anime that’s all about the recreational activity that is camping. The show revolves around Gen Kinokura, a solo camper veteran who adores the great outdoors and the solitude that comes with it. An unexpected meeting with first-time solo camper, Shizuku Kusano, marks the beginning of an odd new partnership where the experienced Gen teaches Kusano the ways of the solo camper.
A big thanks to Crunchyroll for providing Sirus Gaming an early screener of the first episode of Solo Camping for Two.
The episode begins with Gen Kinokura taking a solo bus ride to the camping grounds far away from the city. From here we get to know about Gen-san a little more. He loves going on these excursions to get away from the hussle and bussle of city life and recalibrate himself while appreciating the natural world.
When he gets to the camp grounds, he quickly sets up his tent and enthusiastically starts preparing to light a fire. This is where the show goes out of its way to showcase camping tips, as long as you don’t mind the “quick notes” version of explanations, similar to how cooking methods are explained in Food Wars. I kind of like the way they go about these bite-sized pieces of information. Small enough to be informative but not too detailed that you need to start overthinking stuff.
Seeing as there is no one around for miles, Gen decides to go around the main area one last time before settling in for the night. Little did he know, he would spend the rest of the night with unexpected company.
When Gen walks back to his campsite, he is greeted by a surprising sight, a half-clothed woman had somehow stumbled upon his camp drying herself in front of his fire. Confusion occurs and one clumsy action leds to an awkward introduction. Ok, I did not expect that there would be some ecchi stuff involved but here we are. Don’t get me wrong, it’s very minor and the emphasis was on the fact that someone unexpected turned out out of nowhere, instead of the focus being on Shizuku’s… assets.
Anyways, Shizuku apologies for putting Gen into the awkward situation. Gen now demands that Shizuku leave immediately. But there’s only one catch. Shizuku, in her hurried state, forgot to bring everything but a lot of food. This puts Gen into a more awkward situation, he can’t just turn her away now. He’ll have to bear with it until everything get sorted out in the morning.
I mentioned earlier that Shizuku brought food with her on the trip there. Well, as an apology for putting Gen into a tough spot, she decides to cook them dinner – beer can chicken. This dish is something our solo camper always dreamed of making. But he couldn’t. And this young woman is casually making one with no problems. In the end, Gen is so grateful for the food that his facial expressions went all silly. They spent the rest of the night in relative silence with each of them telling the other why camping is so enjoyable to them. Around this time, Shizuku pitches the idea of Gen teaching her how to solo camp. And thus, the “Solo Camping for Two” group activity was proposed.
“This sky was supposed to be all mine.”
This is the part of the episode where get our second bit of trivia. Here we are taught the importance of tents. Kusano-san is now comfortably sleeping inside Gen’s tent, while Gen-san braves the freezing elements outside in little more than a sleeping bag.
The next morning, Shizuku wakes up to find Gen all cacooned up in his lawn chair. She felt bad about using the tent for herself and then goes off to cook up breakfast. He whips up a clam tomato risotto using ingredients from the convenience store. They both have breakfast and coffee together.
Before leaving the camp grounds, Shizuku pitches her “Solo camping for Two” idea once more. This time, Gen reluctanly agrees. I can’t really say why he actually agreed to the idea. But I guess we wouldn’t have a show if he didn’t.
Alright. Let’s wrap this up.
This whole “will they, won’t they” thing is what’s going to be a major determining factor if I watch the entire season or not. If I’m going to be honest, I don’t mind it so much provided it doesn’t take away too much from the camping focus. My only concern is that the next episodes will devolve into a series of skits that ultimately lead nowhere. That’s what I’m afraid is going to happen.
Regardless, this is a good start to the series. It’s a slow burn with some excitable moments here and there. If we get more tidbits of information and some entertaining moments, I will definitely stick around a little while longer.
New episodes will be shown every Thursday for the rest of the season.
