‘My Dress-Up Darling’ Revels In Infectiously Positive Energy

My Dress-Up Darling was my favorite anime of 2022. Watching Gojo come out of his shell, taking his love for designing hina dolls, and using his skills to create cosplay outfits for popular girl Marin. Their relationship is beyond cute with Marin’s exuberant energy and Gojo’s creative passion being perfectly matched, and make them not a will-they-or-won’t-they, simply when will they (granted the manga ending makes that very clear). With the two episodes I have seen the same strengths that made the first season so great are continuing just as strong.

We are immediately back into their dynamic in episode one with Marin showing an anime to Gojo for a new cosplay outfit she wants. In the process we are seeing a very different anime style than the show we are actually watching. Then Marin explains why she likes the show and the design of the characters, with Gojo taking it in and already thinking about how to make it work. They hang out and deal with the problem of a new design and finding the solutions as well as exploring more aspects of the cosplay experience. In the second episode they meet someone that has a different goal with cosplay. Marin is immediately excited by that and Gojo wants to learn more about how they make their costumes work. There is no judgment or being weirded out, just acceptance and excitement at the new.

This positive energy is a major part of this show’s appeal. One of my favorite examples of that is Marin has a bunch of popular friends but unlike in other shows where they would tease her for spending time with a “loser” like Gojo, they simply accept that she has a new friend. In fact they are thrilled that she has someone to talk about cosplay and anime because they are not interested in it. Marin invites Gojo to go out with her friends without even thinking about it and none of the friends have any problem with it. But when one of her friends asks why he is good with sewing, the trauma of his childhood friend calling him a weirdo for liking hina dolls comes flying back to him. This was something I had actually forgotten about from season one, and seeing him stressed made me want to give him a big hug. But because Marin has good friends something not just nice but affirming happens instead. Which then leads into a great spit-take moment with another friend enquiring about the nature of Gojo and Marin’s relationship.

These two are the show, and the connection they have is obvious, not just to us the fans but to everyone around them. Marin from last season already knows she loves Gojo but isn’t quite ready to reveal it to him, and Gojo is still in the mindset that Marin wouldn’t see him that way and doesn’t even really think about it. He is attracted to her and you can tell if he let himself go there he would date her immediately. Marim is starting to look for signs that he might be interested, or worried that he isn’t interested. (Now Marin needs that hug.) While Gojo is getting more protective of Marin, in ways that show how much he cares about her, we are probably going to have to wait awhile for them to become an item. But that isn’t a concern for me because as they are now is still remarkably fun to watch.

I know this is a concern for some so yes, there are still a lot of “fan service” moments of Marin in revealing outfits (she is a bunny girl for the first two episodes), and I know that bugs some viewers. I always saw it more as part of the humor of Gojo being flustered and not wanting to take advantage of Marin as well as sexy outfits being part of what cosplay can be. It is so ingrained to the core story that to keep it out would, in many ways, not make sense. If it bugs you, then avoid it, but I think it works well with the story being told.

I am incredibly happy this show is back. The positive energy, the creative process we see going into creating these outfits, and just the enjoyment of spending time with these two puts a smile on my face. It is relaxing to watch, it’s funny, and it has you rooting for these two to keep exploring and improving on their passions.

My Dress-Up Darling airs July 5 on Crunchyroll.