Smoking Behind the Supermarket – Really Looking Forward to This

Article at a glance:

• So yeah, this is a romance anime with an actual adult cast, and honestly we don’t get enough of those.
• The smoking thing isn’t there to look cool, it’s basically a coping mechanism for surviving a soul-crushing job, and if you’ve ever had a dead-end job yourself, this is gonna hit way closer to home than you’d expect.
• Also wild that this whole thing started as the author just posting a chapter on Twitter for fun, and now it’s an anime.

So I decided to check out a few chapters of Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You in anticipation of the anime. And to no one’s surprise, I really enjoyed it. So I wanted to talk about it a little more. See, we don’t usually get a romance anime with adult protagonists like this. But when we do, say something like Wotakoi, it usually turns out to be really good. I appreciate the maturity and the natural slow-burn nature that comes from an adult cast in a romance anime.

So you know, let’s talk about it in a bit more detail. I don’t wanna info dump right in the first paragraph. Don’t worry, the article will be completely spoiler-free. I want as many people as possible to go blind into this story. Because it’s worth it, this is just here to sell you on the upcoming anime. So let’s get started.

What makes Smoking Behind a Supermarket Different from a Typical Romance Anime?

First and foremost, despite the title, the manga never once glorifies smoking as cool or sexy. It is very clear that smoking is a dangerous vice that actively drains your life. But why do it anyway? For countless people across the world, a smoke break is a way to pause their overwhelming work life. I think everyone has a few people like that in their office. The series portrays smoking as an escape from something arguably worse. I think by this point we all know that the work culture in Japan is not very good, and to Sasaki, a smoke break is an emotional crutch he needs just to stay sane.

And speaking of Sasaki, he’s not an average adult; he’s a 45-year-old salaryman who thinks that he has failed in life and basically that he will be working till the end of time. And believe me, as someone who doesn’t work the best real-life job, that hits way too close to home. Granted, I am twenty years younger than him, but I still know what it feels like to work a dead-end job. Writing these articles or playing games is my escape. So just that background alone gives Sasaki a lot of substance to work with, and I am very interested in seeing where his character development goes by the end of the season.

And you know it is through smoking that Sasaki and Tayama slowly connect over time. I would like to speak more on Tayama, but again, it is better if people go in blind and get surprised by the identity reveal like I was early in the manga.

By the way, I did not know that the author just dropped the first chapter of this manga on Twitter, and then it just blew up from there. Crazy that something that started as just a Twitter thing is now getting an anime. So that alone should tell you how strong the word of mouth was for this manga.

That is all for now

But yeah, as I said, I really look forward to seeing where the story goes. Smoking Behind the Supermarket should be a fun anime, and I think you should give it a chance. With that said, though, I will take my leave here. See ya!

Also, check out my review for Classroom of the Elite Season 4 here!