Characters, from foreground to back, Kakeru Okikura, Tōko Fukami, Sachi Nagamiya, and in the back, from left to right, Hiro Shirosaki, Yanagi Takayama and Yukinari Imi.
Glasslip is a thirteen-episode anime that began airing in July 2014; it is produced by P. A. Works and directed by Junji Nishimura, and is centered on Tōko Fukami, whose family runs a glass shop in a coastal town. Tōko enjoys relaxing with her friends at the Kazemichi café. During the summer break before their final year at high school, Tōko encounters Kakeru Okikura, a transfer student who claims that voices help him glimpse into the future, which led him to find Tōko and torches off a summer of both hope and heartache.
The anime is available at Crunchyroll
, and manga and light novel adaptations debuted in July and October 2014, respectively.
Glasslip provides examples of:
- Accidental Pervert: Yukinari encounters Tōko and Yanagi, who were undressing after they fell into a stream in episode three.
- Affectionate Nickname: "Yuki" for Yukinari, "Sacchan" for Sachi and "Yana" for Yanagi.
- Airplane of Love: Episode five opens with an airplane flying overhead, followed by a shot of Yanagi and Yukinari riding the train together. Later that episode, Yanagi later confesses to Yukinari, acknowledging beforehand that he likely will not return her feelings.
- All Love Is Unrequited: Nobody's feelings are reciprocated, and even Tōko does not end up with Kakeru.
- Ambiguously Gay:
- It's implied that Sachi harbours romantic feelings for Tōko, although whether or not this holds true remains ambiguous, as Sachi's actual confession in episode ten turns out to be a request to remain friends with Tōko.
- Tōko's younger sister Hina seems to become rather enamored with Yanagi, going so far as to call Yanagi her "five-thirty girl".
- Artistic License – Animal Care: Tōko's sudden desire to keep chickens indoors leads her to ignore convention: for instance, house-training poultry is a process that must begin at an early age and requires a stable environment.
- Bittersweet Ending: Tōko is seen with a positive outlook as her final year of high school starts, but Kakeru is no longer around, and her friends seem to be gradually recovering from the heartbreak that'd occurred during their last summer together.
- Cool Big Sis: Momo is Hiro's older sister and fulfils this role.
- Family Business:
- The Fukami family runs a glass shop, and Tōko herself aspires to become a glass artisan.
- Hiro and Momo work at Kazemichi, a café owned by their grandfather. In addition, Yuki and Yanagi hold part-time jobs here.
- Festival Episode: Episode one opens with a summer festival.
- Happily Married: Tōko's parents and Kakeru's parents, even though his mother is often away from home.
- Hide Your Lesbians: Sachi's confession to Tōko turns into a admission of love to both Tōko and Hiro, with the request to stay friends. This happens in a show in which all the hetero romantic attractions are completely out in the open, invoking this trope.
- In-Series Nickname: Kakeru is often referred to as "David" because of Tōko's first impressions of him.
- Love Confession:
- Yuki confesses to Tōko in the second episode.
- Yanagi confesses to Yuki in the fifth episode
- Sachi appears to deliver one to Tōko, but only to reaffirm their friendship.
- Love Dodecahedron:
- Yanagi likes Yuki, who is in love with Tōko, who seems to be falling for Kakeru, who is strongly hinted to return those feelings.
- Sachi likes Tōko, and she is liked by Hiro.
- Mind Screw: The origin of the future fragments, how people gain the ability to see/hear them, how they work and if they even truly relate to the future (if explained at all) are only explained in the most metaphorical of terms.
- New Transfer Student: Kakeru transfers in to the local high school in his third year.
- Not Blood Siblings: Yanagi and Yukinari.
- No Social Skills: It is clear that some of Kakeru’s isolation is brought about by his lack of aptitude in regards to being tactful when talking to people.
- The Quiet One: Kakeru does not speak very frequently, but appears to be more open towards Tōko..
- Real-Place Background: The town is based on Mikuni, a small seaside town in Japan's Fukui prefecture.
- Scenery Porn: As is typical of anime from P.A. Works, no attention to detail is spared to the town and surrounding landscapes, with a deep blue sea under a vividly coloured sky.
- Shrines and Temples: The local shrine forms the backdrop for some important scenes.
- Signature Headgear: Tōko has butterfly accessory on her hair and Yanagi is usually seen wearing either a red or a greenish-yellow bow in her hair.
