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Summer Time Rendering made its debut alongside other spring 2022 anime, however, the story’s plot quickly set it above its peers. The show features a shadow-based mystery haunting the island of Awajishima – the hometown of Shinpei Ajiro, the story's protagonist. Upon Shinpei's arrival on the island following the death of his friend, he discovers that there is more to her death than he initially perceived. Still, Shinpei brushes off her sister Mio's deductions when she suggests that Ushio, was killed by her doppelganger.
Coupled with the story from the old hunter, Nezu, Shinpei then begins to give the 'shadow sickness' narrative some merit until he is killed by Mio's doppelganger or rather, "Shadow." Surprisingly, instead of dying from the deathly blow, Shinpei goes back in time, starting a death-based time loop. Summer Time Rendering viewers have witnessed Shinpei’s time-manipulation ability throughout the series so far. So how does the ability work?
The Shadow Mystery
Summer Time Rendering is a mystery-laced show lined with unpredictable events and shocking moments. The story reminds fans of Re:Zero due to Shinpei’s time loop and its similarity with Subaru’s Return by Death ability; however, Shinpei’s ability appears to be more complicated than the former. The shadow mystery of the story begins after Mio confronts Shinpei that ‘death by accidental drowning wasn’t the cause of Ushio’s demise. The whole notion sparks a lot of controversies until it is confirmed by Shinpei & Mio's sudden murder by a mysterious being with the exact appearance of Mio. Shinpei watched the 'Shadow’ kill Mio in front of his eyes, but luckily, he got another chance to restart by unconsciously going back to the past.
Using the knowledge he gained from his first death, Shinpei warned Mio ahead of time of the Shadow's real existence so they could work together to defeat the mysterious being. In episode two, Shinpei witnessed the “Shadows” true capability. These "otherworldly" beings kill their victims and use their shadows to transform into their exact appearance – their versions are so similar to the original humans they kill that it's hard to tell them apart without knowing their existence. Unfortunately, even Shinpei’s little knowledge of their existence failed in foiling the Shadows' plans as they killed him again after he discovered their secret.
As usual, Shinpei heads back to the past but decides to do something different this time: trust his friend Sō Hishigata by revealing the whole shadow saga to him. Together with Mio, they come up with a unique term to identify themselves from the Shadows to avoid infiltration. Sadly, their meager plan failed in episode five because, unknown to the trio, the Shadows gain access to their victim’s memories. So, Shinpei’s shadow managed to infiltrate the group without their knowledge. From episode one, the shadows appeared to be sinister beings with a somewhat evil goal that is detrimental to humans on Awajishima. However, the appearance of Ushio’s shadow rocks this assumption.
Acting in ways similar to the original Ushio, viewers begin to wonder whether Shadow Ushio is the real Ushio in shadow form, or maybe the shadow just enjoys playing “Ushio.” Before the episode ends, Summer Time Rendering introduced viewers to a multi-armed shadow, most likely the Shadows' boss, who appeared and contributed to the massacre of the entire inhabitants of Awajishima Island. His rantings hinted at an overall purpose for "Mother," a being they most likely work for, who appeared in the last minutes of episode five. However, despite revealing the Shadow's true form, bosses, and an uncertain objective, the show still begs the question, "Where did the Shadows originate from?" Are they manufactured aberrations, aliens, or supernatural beings?"
Shinpei’s Time Manipulation Ability & Its Possible Potential
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Shinpei's time-warping skill appears to be the highlight of Summer Time Rendering. The perks of this ability was first shown in the brief, one-sided conversation Shinpei first had with Ushio in episode one of the show. However, Shinpei’s ability wasn’t fully shown until he was killed by Mio’s Shadow. After his supposed death, he reappeared on the ship headed towards the island of Awajishima, which he boarded a few days ago. At first, Shinpei decided to brush off his past actions & death as a dream, but after he sees the past repeating itself, he then realizes two facts: he died & he went back to the past.
The return-to-the-past occurrence may have been a fluke or an unnatural phenomenon, but Shinpei's travel to the past after his second death confirmed the ability. However, the ability was still left in the dark until the Shadows first hinted that his ability is connected to his right eye. The four-armed Shadow explained that Shinpei’s right eye was “Mother’s long lost eye,” confirming Shinpei’s supernatural ability & the possibility that Mother is a supernatural being since the time-warping eye once belonged to her. Even Shinpei's shadow wasn't surprised when he absorbed Shinpei's memories and discovered that he time-traveled on two different occasions, so Shinpei’s ability is probably a phenomenon the Shadows are familiar with.
In episode five, Shinpei makes one final discovery: every time he goes back in time, the moment he arrives shifts closer to the future past. For instance, the first time the time travel ability activated, Shinpei found himself on the ship to the island of Awajishima; the next time on the shoreline, and the next on the road. This proves that the ability isn't invincible, and with time, Shinpei will catch up to the moment of the Shadow's reveal and be unable to reverse any action. This was further ascertained by the words of the ghost-like Ushio, who warned him that his time ability has limits and he shouldn't use it much. However, despite the ability's weakness, the time ability is certainly going to foil the shadow's plans.
Possibly, at the end of the show, Shinpei may gain full control of his "right eye" and get rid of the shadows from his timeline. It's a wild guess, but it's possible. Either way, Summer Time Rendering has more in store for viewers' entertainment in the next few episodes.