I was interested in ATRI on a whim; haven’t played the visual novel but I heard good things about it. I was also kind of hoping that the show would be a throwback of sorts. Some of my old favorite anime from high school are visual novel adaptations and visual novels being a source for anime has died out over the years. Watching this show does make me feel nostalgic in a way. It’s hard to explain but the premise and just the overall vibe of this show feels reminiscent of the visual novel adaptations from back in the day.
ATRI takes place in a future where our world has been struck by a huge rise in sea levels (so us in a few years). As a result, several cities have been flooded and humanity is forced to live on what little land remains for the time being. The main protagonist of the show, Natsuki Ikaruga (Kensho Ono) is a teenage boy who has lost one of his legs to an accident, resulting in him using a failing prosthetic. With the self-proclaimed debt collector named Catherine (Yoko Hikasa), Natsuki uses a submarine to rummage through the former home of his recently deceased grandmother, to find a treasure the two of them can sell for a good price. To his astonishment, Natsuki discovers an android girl named Atri (Hikaru Akao).
Although Atri is not what Natsuki and Catherine expected to find, they learn that she would fetch a high price so their plan to make some money remains the same. Natsuki’s childhood friend Kamishiro Minamo (Minami Takahashi) is against the idea but her opposition falls on deaf ears. Atri requests that Natsuki hold off on selling her so that she can fulfill the final order to given to her by his grandmother though she apparently has forgotten what that order actually is. As you might expect, Natsuki’s conscience makes him think twice about selling Atri. He does need the money to pay off a debt and replace his prosthetic leg but he also begins to treat Atri as human over the course of the first episode. At the end of the episode, Natsuki agrees to let Atri go with Catherine, who will go look for a buyer, but he immediately resets it. Just when he thinks he lost Atri, the girl returns to his side, promising to be his “leg” for the time being.
The first episode is mostly setup but I’d be lying if I said it didn’t draw me in. I particularly like Atri as a character, her limited understanding of human emotions gives her a sort of innocence that I find compelling and it contrasts nicely with Natsuki’s weariness. I’m also curious about Natsuki’s own past. The show is a bit vague about what exactly caused him to lose a leg and it’s implied that Atri is the one who saved Natsuki during the accident. It’s also clear from one scene that there’s a complicated relationship between him and his grandmother.
Not sure where the other characters fit in. I can see Catherine being a side character but I don’t know how Kamishiro fits in. I imagine in the game, she’s a secondary heroine with her own route but I vaguely heard the game is pretty short so that doesn’t seem likely to me. It’s possible that the show is squarely focused on the two main characters. Admittedly, that would work well within the single cour the show will apparently be running for.
My one concern with the show is that it’s kind of easy to guess where it might ultimately go. I can just see the romance budding between Natsuki and Atri and the show aiming it to be a very emotional story. It’s of course too early to say and to be fair, even if the main narrative is predictable, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll be bad. I don’t know if I’ll stick around long enough to find out but I find the premiere to be pretty decent so I’ll watch a little bit more.
Watch ATRI -MY Dear Moments- on Crunchyroll
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