Shirobako: Collection 2

“Shirobako” (literally, “white box,” an old VHS-technology reference) is a rather esoteric Japanese anime TV series about…the Japanese anime TV series business. In this second season follow-up, five female former classmates from a high-school anime club are now working in the industry, but mostly at Musashino, an unglamorous studio that once went bankrupt. The chance to take on a popular franchise—Aerial Girls Squad, a series about a team of young women piloting fighter planes—means a career break, but it also tests the heroines' talents for management, producing quality artwork, and coaxing grumpy old veteran illustrators and dubbing specialists back to the production line. Once one accepts the genre cliché that the lead characters are perky females (none looking remotely Japanese), Shirobako offers a grounded-in-reality look behind the scenes, with lots of talky production meetings, casting sessions, and anime conversation about creative integrity. Still, it's hard to resist the nostalgic charm when the ensemble explores the vaults of the old studio and gazes upon vintage painted cels of cartoons that are now all done on computer. Hardcore otaku will enjoy the insider minutiae and references to actual anime shows, personalities, and issues, but this will have less appeal for casual anime viewers. Compiling the final 12 episodes from 2014 in separate DVD and Blu-ray editions, rated TV-PG, and presented in Japanese with English subtitles, this is a strong optional purchase. (C. Cassady)