English Dub Review: A Couple of Cuckoos: “Walls Are There to be Overcome!!”

Overview: Nagi (Nicholas Andrew Louie) helps Erika (Lindsay Sheppard) study for her test or else she will be forced to move out of their house by her parents. Later, he and Sachi (Bryn Apprill) work the festival with Hiro (Amanda Lee) on the verge of discovering a long hidden truth. 

Our Take: It’s sergeant Nagi to the rescue with his cosplaying commander, Erika, asking for help in order to pass a test or her parents will make her move out. If Erika has not already charmed the hell out of you, there is no way you can not love her after how adorably scatterbrained and horrendous she is at studying. What makes it all the more funny is Nagi losing his mind and having a meltdown through the entire ordeal of trying to help her. 

When Erika begins to get discouraged in her ability and resigns herself to her fate, it focuses on how Nagi has come to love living at the house. However, even more than that, it creates a beautifully warm moment with him inevitably helping her in his bossy angry way, being charmed when realizing her grit to study and fight back, not submitting to her parents. With Erika passing, they celebrate with a festival, which opens a whole other can of worms.

Nagi and Sachi working their parents’ food stall for the festival highlights their adorable team family spirit they have. Sachi, at long last, finally meets Hiro, who is attending the festival and asks out Nagi. This creates some good tension in her jealousy over her date with him. However, it also gets the truth out in the open when Sachi and Erika run into Hiro and she is puzzled by Erika calling Sachi her sister. This will, of course, lead her to unravel the lie woven by Nagi, which will complicate their relationship further. However, it will probably also bring them closer together and they will be able to relate to what few can in having an arranged marriage.