WWW.Working!!; How NOT to make a Spin-Off

WWW.Working!! is a 2016 anime released as a spin-off of Working!!, set in the same world. But it is actually the predecessor to Working!!. It was released as a web comic on the author, Karino Takatsu’s personal website from 2002 to 2013 under the title Web-ban Working!!. It was later published in print in six volumes from 2015 to 2017. It was supposed to be a fresh experience with a new set of characters. But the show as a narrative has a few bumps, which almost got alienated as the theme and fell under the category of boring.

The Plot

Like the previous one, this one has the same premise. The heroine has a problem that needs to be fixed. Here, Miyakoshi Hana has terrible cooking skills and forces others to eat her cooking, in contrast to the other series where Inami Mahiru has the fear of Men and punches them when she runs into them. Around that, there is a wonderful cast of characters, having their own issues and relations. It’s a good concept combined with a light-hearted workplace drama and a slice of life. But the execution got bad and often felt annoying. Characters don’t seem to be doing anything interesting other than annoy each other. There is no driving force or motivation. Time passes really fast without developing anything. Episode 1 was in winter, 2 in spring, 3 in summer & so on. We just see different events at different times of the year without any context or reason such as the Test of Courage in summer and chocolate giving during Valentine’s. We don’t really see relationships forming between the characters over time. It’s just, that the employees got more casual with each other, nothing more, no drama either. Things just happen because the plot needs to happen. What’s more annoying is the involvement of characters that have nothing to do with the main ones. Characters like Saint Valentine (which make no sense) and the bodyguards push the main characters when they don’t have anything else in the story. Sometimes characters do things that are even embarrassing to watch. In the end, half the characters quit Wagnaria, which misses the point of the whole show.

Now, in contrast to the other series, the characters have the motivation and will to resolve their issues. We see developments and relations growing over time. Different characters often cross paths with others. One’s actions sometimes affect others. We even see them doing actual work like a real slice of life anime. In the end, it all works out nicely. All of that has been explained in another review.

The Characters

The characters are the main problem of this show. As mentioned above, some don’t have any motivation. The main character is stoic and boring as they come. He’s facing a life-threatening problem and he just accepted it. Another character is facing the same issue, which he also accepted as if he was a masochist. Some characters act crazy and annoying without any reason whatsoever. They even brought back the Katana girl because the other series had one and I don’t see any other reason why. Some characters have the same hairstyle, so the design is also bad. Some characters don’t even get much attention. Later some other characters show up out of nowhere telling what the main characters have to do, which makes the main ones completely insignificant. In the end, it doesn’t feel like they have accomplished something.

What’s to like

Now, aside from the criticism, some things are handled well. Miyakoshi is always doing something which makes her the focus character in every scene. Things she does make sense. Sometimes her naïve characteristic gets her and others into awkward situations. And she’s cute as well. Other characters that work well are the Muranushi & Adachi pair. Their relationship is given enough care and we see it develops in time. Their looks and behavior match. The decision they make in the end makes sense. Some other characters do fulfill their role but they just didn’t get the proper treatment.

Music

The sound design is pretty good, which is another good point of this series. The sound effects and BGM work well with every scene. It has a comedic & light-hearted vibe that makes the show somewhat enjoyable. The Opening & Ending are also great as always.

Conclusion

Overall thought, It’s an OK show to watch. It doesn’t have to be a 10 out of 10 to enjoy it. Some good moments carry the show, characters that are worth rooting for and cute moments to warm the heart. It gave us what we needed after three seasons. More drama and laughter to the plate in the beloved workplace of Wagnaria.

Trivia

Working!! and WWW.Working!! are set in the same world. Both tell the story around the family restaurant Wagnaria but they are in different branches.
The main character of the other series, Takanashi shows up as a cameo at the beginning of this one.
The managers of the two branches are old friends. This is emphasized since they were both delinquents.
Adachi from this series and Satō from the other one are in the same band in the manga.
The author called the characters of this series “Cat group” and the other one “Dog group”.
WWW.Working!! received an average score of 7.42 in MAL.