© はっとりみつる／SQUARE ENIX・「綺麗にしてもらえますか。」製作委員会

Well, folks, it’s not every day that an episode of anime kicks things off by having its lead possibly overdose on pills, but here we are. Granted, the tone here isn’t harrowing at all, and we later find out that a night at the bar led to Kinme taking a bit too much turmeric instead of a more lethal concoction. Still, though, holy hot damn. What a wild way to start the new entry into your chillaxed laundry anime. It mostly exists as an unnecessary dash of spiciness. For better or worse, it certainly got my attention.

The rest of the episode is just okay despite its dramatic bang of a start. When Kinme wakes up from her turmeric-induced sleep, she hastily goes back to work and thus has the show going through the usual bouts. She tidies up the shop and does laundry, then delivers sales ads and laundry to people, all while finding time to say hello to the nice old woman down the street. I guess she probably needs to take the day off after that turmeric episode. After all, the episode is literally called “Closed All Day Today.” But maybe her daily grind is a better judge here than I.

One thing I really enjoyed, however, is this episode’s score. I think now that I’m on the series’s third episode, I can feel Wash It All Away’s simple arrangements start to grow on me. A lot of the tracks here take on an archetypally symphonic timbre, with quiet little piano plinks and folksy strings meshing well with the narrative’s pacing and the environments Kinme wanders through. There is a very warm glow emitting from every note, even if the pieces themselves are a bit formless. What can I say? I’m a sucker for a good tune.

The style and direction continue to be tranquil without having much in the way of pizazz. There’s a bit more fan service this time around, from the eyecatches to an awkward scene where Kinme jumps over a puddle in a very awkward fashion. Unlike in the first episode, Kinme actually enjoys some nighttime festival fun when she runs into a squad of kids practicing their drum performance for the summer festival. A serene scene where Kinme enjoys herself on the roof is nicely punctuated by more soft piano plinks of the anime’s soundtrack. A new character appears out of nowhere seconds before the episode officially ends. Maybe she’s a part of Kinme’s amnesiac past? We’ll see.

This is a passable enough third episode. It is a bit of a slog to see Kinme work on her day off, especially since there’s no sense of liveliness or fun to be found in her daily regimen here. The atmosphere is still relaxing enough for me to vibe with, and Kinme is still a likeable enough protagonist despite her plainness. Wash It All Away may not have much to write home about so far, but there’s just enough to keep me coming back.

**Rating: **

• Wash It All Away is currently streaming on Crunchyroll. *