Laid-back Night Life – First Impressions on Insomniacs After School

Kimi wa Hōkago Insomunia or Insomniacs After School is a manga series authored by Makoto Ojiro and adapted into anime in Spring 2023 by studio Liden Films. It started airing on Apr 11 and 3 episodes have aired so far. It’s about two highschoolers who have insomnia and are the oddballs in their class due to their behaviors. They meet in an unconventional way in the abandoned astronomy club of the school trying to find a quiet place to sleep during the day when everyone’s preparing for the school festival. Then they started seeing each other and hanging out at night, exploring the town, and decide to revive the astronomy club. Now this may sound like Call of the Night but this manga started before that.

The Appeal of Insomniacs After School

The two main characters Nakami Ganta stumbles and Magari Isaki form a weird friendship two explore the nighttime. Nakami is grumpy, feels as though he’s the victim & blames everyone. Magari is a loner but an enthusiast. They open up to each other about their personal issues and kind of liberate themselves from their insecurities. They realized the beauty of the night sky and decided to explore that too. They live in the city of Nanao which has a lot of watery places such as canals, lake, etc. The sky feels vast and open there. The night sky mixed with the reflection in the water and the way clouds form make this a chilling sight to behold. The part of the town they live in isn’t jam-packed with tall buildings, so it feels a lot more liberating to be around. Their short expedition in the first episode addressed all that. When the sun rises warming everything up, it’s time to call it a night.

The visuals and artstyle are great just like other modern titles out there. Everything looks sharp and vibrant. The night scenery feels dazzling and surreal. The overall vibe is pretty mundane. But the occasional burst outs by the characters really get me. Like when Magari turns on her phone’s flashlight on Nakami’s face and a cat randomly eats from the school nurse’s sandwich then she freaks out, it’s all light-hearted fun.

It’s way off from Call of the Night

As I said, Insomniacs After School manga came before Call of the Night and the two tackle different aspects. It isn’t too far-fetched that people would compare the two due to having the same premise. One is about going to school & spending some after-time there, the other one is about skipping school. One is in a small town and exploring the night sky, and the other is in a big city with skyscrapers and enjoying the nightlife. Though Insomniacs After School isn’t as exciting as Call of the Night with all the insanity, but sometimes, the mundane things can be enjoyed just as much as exciting ones. It’s inspiring in one way and doesn’t get too ridiculous. It’s just another highschool anime with it’s own little charm.