One of the first shows I watched to kick off the new anime season is the adaptation of the four-panel manga “パンでPeace!” by Emily. The previous season, a sizable number of anime shorts aired boasting excellent quality and production values, proving this format has plenty of potential to produce great shows, definitely so in the slice-of-life genre where we’ve already seen gems like “Yama no Susume”, “Ooya-san wa Shishunki” or “Wakaba*Girl”.
“Pan de Peace!” made a good start with a first episode that has everything a fluffy, uplifting slice-of-life anime should have, it features endearing girls whose daily life is an idyllic, leisurely utopia of cuteness and fun shenanigans, all rendered in a lovely pastel color palette.
Introducing the main characters and showcasing their fateful meeting on the first day of the new school year, “Pan de Peace!” seems pretty standard and is likely to remain that way throughout the entire series run. Although you could state this show boasts the added gimmick that the girls’ meaningful daily events revolve around pastries and other delicious baked goods, “Pan de Peace!” is likely to remain a standard but nonetheless lovely slice-of-life anime.
In this slice-of-life subgenre, is there really a need for a novel or innovative approach? While it can be welcome to experience anime that offer something positively different or outstanding, a heartwarming and endearing show like “Pan de Peace!” is usually at its best exactly because of those classic slice-of-life traits.
One could fault plenty of overused elements and tropes in most genres, but in slice-of-life anime its classic elements are often its best, most solid traits that offer fans a enjoyable experience, which is undoubtedly what “Pan de Peace!” will do.
You can watch “Pan de Peace!” on Crunchyroll.
