You know who might really like this show? Banba from Princess Jellyfish. Or maybe not, since it can't seem to decide if it wants to be a flat-out train otaku show or if it would rather reach a broader audience by throwing in anime staples like
A) man-hating girl who loves guns
B) clumsy busty girl
C)guy who eats a lot and is kind of dumb
D) blank slate nice guy hero
The basic premise of this infomercial disguised as entertainment is that high school students looking to join Japan Railway (JR) for work after graduation are offered the opportunity to see if they're suited for it through a work-study program. This entails a month of classes followed by practical training. Naoto (D) is one such aspiring railway worker. On his way to the first class he bumps into (A) Sakurai, who immediately denounces him as a pervert for a situation beyond his control and (B) Haruka, who causes it and blushes a lot. In class the three of them are thrust together, along with Iwaizumi, and they become a de facto team. We as viewers get to thrill at them shoveling coal into a steam engine, learn what the letters in front of a train name mean, and memorize the train schedules out of Tokyo Station as they pursue purse snatchers.
It's not so much that Rail Wars! is dull as it is such a blatant attempt to make a railway job appealing to the audience. It's like watching a recruitment video that someone tried to dress up, and while it does have its moments, they're so obviously trying to entice us that they fall a bit flat. There's also the issue of the fact that they are all calculated to appeal to specific viewers: random fanservice, thugs with knives who dribble in their evil glee, a girl who kicks butt, some attempts at humor...basically Rail Wars! looks like it cobbled together tropes from different genres and tried to make a go of it. If you really like trains, the JR, or are just hurting for shots of busty girls running while their breasts defy physics, it may be worth checking this out, but otherwise, you may as well just go turn on the TV at 3 am and let someone try and sell you a carpet cleaner.
