Super Cub Anime Review: How Koguma's World Opens Up

"No parents, no money, no hobbies, no one who I can call friends, or even dreams for the future. That's right, I'm a girl who has nothing."

It's intriguing how, as humans, there is a clear distinction between being alive and actually living. Being alive is biological and can be concretely defined by having a pulse. Actually living life is different. It is the deviation from the simple urges of biology and the pursuit of something that isn't a necessity for our biological functions... or something like that.

At the beginning of Super Cub, Koguma is definitely alive. But that's just about it.

Koguma, the show's nondescript heroine, lives in the rural city of Hokuto in Yamanashi Prefecture. She lives alone, relying on a limited budget to fund her basic needs. She cycles through the mountainous landscape of the area to get to school, and she mainly eats ready-to-eat meals over rice.

The friendless Koguma usually spends her lunch eating alone. She also tends to not heat her lunch as the class microwave usually has a line of users.

By all accounts, Koguma just runs through the cycle. Just an NPC, basically.

This changes when, one day, she is casually passed by this rando on a scooter as she laboriously navigates the terrain of her hometown on her bicycle. Out of character, Koguma visits a motorcycle shop that, curiously, seems to only carry Honda products.

Kawasaki? Yamaha? Suzuki? No? Okay, motorcycle man. It's your shop. I'm sure they're in the back, or the anime just didn't show them.

Anyway, the girl with the limited budget soon realizes that those sweet rides come at a steep price. Forget about the CB series. The cheapest moped Koguma sees is priced at over a hundred thousand yen. Certainly an amount beyond the means of a girl with "no money" like Koguma.

Luckily for her, the dealer is looking to basically give away a used 50cc Honda Super Cub, one of the most iconic motorcycle models in the world. Sure, it has supposedly killed three people. But at ten thousand yen and in good running condition? Koguma rightfully jumps at the chance. And with that, we are introduced to the second most important character in the show.

Koguma sits on the Super Cub for the first time. Notice how the color palette changes. The show constantly uses this to indicate a shift in the mood.

Let me just say, it's wild how easily Koguma got her license. Sure, it's restricted to 50cc scooters... BUT COME ON!

But I digress.

Those first few rides after getting your first vehicle are exciting, albeit terrifying. For the first time, Koguma experiences the cool breeze on her skin as she rides at 20 kph on her Super Cub. But on that same ride, she also gets to experience being overtaken by a rigid container truck—undoubtedly a scary experience for a first-time rider.

After getting home and realizing she needs to get a lock for her new ride, Koguma gets to wield the greatest power vehicle owners have: the freedom of mobility. And on her way to pick up a lock, she also experiences one of the worst fears of vehicle owners—MECHANICAL ISSUES..!

Or did she?

Luckily for Koguma, it isn't a snapped timing chain or something. The little girl just forgot to fill up with fuel.

And this is where Super Cub, the show, expresses what a vehicle can be. 

For most of us, owning a vehicle is simply a means to an end. We bear the burden of fuel, maintenance, registration and insurance for the ease of mobility. But for the girl who has no parents, no money, no hobbies, no person she can call her friend or even dreams for the future, it is more than that.

Koguma always went straight through this intersection on her way to school. Now with the Super Cub, Koguma is empowered to actually turn and visit places just for the ride.

"You can go anywhere. It's a Cub after all."

Super Cub, being the slice-of-life anime that it is, focuses on stories of the mundane—getting an oil change, purchasing gear, adding necessary accessories, and meeting people who share the same interests. Though they may seem like boring activities on paper, for Koguma, they are opportunities to progress.

At school, Koguma meets her classmate, Reiko. In contrast to the unremarkable Koguma, Reiko is a knowledgeable girl who, though reserved in the classroom, becomes very excitable when discussing Cubs. She starts off with an MD90, a heavy-duty Super Cub she bought from the postal service, which she routinely works on in her log cabin.

Reiko broadens Koguma's world of Super Cubs. She hooks her up with a storage box through her connections. She shows Koguma an online marketplace where she can get gear after Koguma opens up about struggling with the wind getting in her eyes when going over 20 kph. Reiko also instills Koguma with a bit of an adventurous spirit. This crazy kid wants to climb Mount Fuji on a Super Cub.

Koguma browsing for helmets, realizing her broke ass can't afford one.

Reiko is not just someone Koguma met because she also rides a Super Cub. Reiko becomes someone Koguma can actually interact with, learn from, and spend time with.

But Koguma is Koguma. Unlike Reiko, who initially would rather brave the winter wind than get a "lame" windshield, Koguma has no qualms about embracing the utilitarian spirit of the Super Cub.

5,000-yen helmet?! Yeah, she's too broke for that. Our girl Koguma strapped goggles around her helmet and called it a day.

"I won't change. I don't want to change. Let's just keep running together."

Koguma and Reiko share a quirky dynamic. Though Reiko is more knowledgeable, she never really seems to be the more influential of the two. During a discussion about their free time on the school trip to Kamakura, Reiko wants to check out a national highway. I assume it's to scout for future rides.

But Koguma's not having it. Koguma isn't going to travel all the way to Kamakura just to stare at a road. She's gonna stuff her face with local delicacies!

But the show's progression is almost comically convenient. Of course Koguma gets sick on the morning of the trip. And of course she gets better after a bit of rest. So what happens? Koguma takes that little Super Cub of hers and travels the roughly 150 kilometers from her home to Kamakura.

And this time, she isn't simply riding somewhere because she needs to get there. Koguma plans her trip herself. She chooses where to take breaks and makes minor detours to see the sights that catch her interest. She eventually even rides on the very road Reiko wanted to check out.

Koguma takes a break along the beachfront. This is certainly different from the mountainous terrain of the landlocked Yamanashi Prefecture.

That's the thing with the Super Cub. Sure, it gave Koguma destinations like the gas station to fuel up or the motorcycle shop to get an oil change. But it also gave her choices.

She could have easily turned Reiko down when she asked her to check out the Super Cub. She could have easily given up after missing the bus for the trip to Kamakura. But both times, she didn't.

The girl who had no parents, no money, no one she could call a friend, and not even a dream for the future also didn't have many choices. The Super Cub gave her those choices.

Super Cub, the show, isn't about giving a girl a world where she can be happy or something like that. It's about giving a girl choices, so she can actually live her life and discover what kind of world she wants to live in.

Another slice of life anime involving the addition of something to the main character's life is With You and the Rain. I wrote about it here: With You and the Rain Anime Review: Finding Magic in a Story With No Goal