Ranked #503

Hidamari Sketch

Hidamari Sketch is sort of a cross between Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight and Lucky Star. One thing is to be sure: all of these titles center around high school girls living their daily lives (although Lucky Star advertises to a more general audience and Manabi Straight focuses a bit more on maturing). What makes Hidamari Sketch a little different though is the way the show comes across. The animators were obviously sort of unique in their thinking. It’s just sort of directed in a different sort of way. One might say arty, even. Which isn’t so much a surprise considering Hidamari Sketch takes place at a art school, Yamabuki Art High School to be exact.

Hidamari Sketch starts off with Yuno, who, mostly, is the protagonist, but mainly it centers around the four high school girls. There’s not so much of a story, as with all the other slice-of-life high school animes. You’ll get many a laugh out of it though, and it has it’s sweet moments as well. Some shoujo-ai is integrated in, mostly with Sae and Hiro, but it’s definitely not extreme, purely fluff, and it sort of depends on how you look at it. It could be just seem as a very caring friendship.

Speaking of the characters, they were all very likeable. Yuno is kind of the typical airhead who wants to do her best, but she seems introverted; Sae is unquestionably shy as well, blushing a lot (mostly due to Hiro’s teasing) but also levelheaded; Hiro is the gentle and sweet of the girls, but what sets her apart is her weight obsession: she’s constantly dieting and worrying about weight; and finally Miyako, certainly the most inimitable of the bunch, and also the most nonsensical. However, you don’t really delve into the characters lives or relationships that much, but that’s because the setting never strays away from the high school (besides the school trip and going shopping) and the Hidamari Apartments. Which is good, really, because it isn’t about their lives completely, it’s about their lives at Hidamari Apartments. You can’t forget their extremely silly teacher, Yoshinoya-sensei, and as she said in an episode, looks like she’s “enternally seventeen”. Seriously, how old is that woman?? Yoshinoya-sensei often dresses in various outfits which she insists, is most certainly not cosplay. Her childish actions provide a few laughs (and she always ends up being scolded by the frail eccentric principal).

The art, though not outstanding, is completely adorable and the animation is very creative. The angles it’s shown at, and the fast switching of the “camera” makes it more interesting. Also, what I really loved, was how they incorporated quirky things real-life photos, or the wiggling of Hiro’s wavy hair. The characters switch into chibi mode a lot, and their regular expressions are already adorable to begin with.

Oh, and I really loved the music. The opening and ending themes were so adorable! They contrast one another: the opening is peppy and chipper, while the ending theme is a little melancholic and has a sweeter, gentler sound to it. The seiyuu were wonderful, too, and all their voices were cute and fit the personality of the character, providing believable displays of vocal range.

You might think this is one of your typical high school girl lolicon sort of show, but I believe it goes beyond that, ranging from the wonderfully done animation to the relaxing feel to the show overall. read more

Hidamari sketch is a wonderful 12 episode slice of life comedy about (SUPRISE!) four high school girls attending an art school. So what makes this show unique from all the other high school comedy's about a group of girls?
Their story may be the same as everyone else,
but their delivery is unlike most other high school
sitcoms you have seen.





When you start watching this show, the first thing you will notice right away is the art style and animation. Its definitely like nothing I've seen before. Well its more like theres two opposing art styles to the show. One is the standard cute chibi loli look (round faces and short stature). The second style is the super simplified look of the first style but taken to a whole new level. Its a little hard to explain but when you watch it you will realize what I mean. On top of that you will notice that the character backgrounds are quite unique as well. They emphasize more on simple single color backgrounds with light patterns. My favorite part of the show was how they used real photos of actual Japanese food and products.

That is another thing you will notice is that this show does a lot of fast camera switching. Basically changing scenes/viewpoints in under 2 seconds. It's long enough to understand what they're showing and what they're joking about, but it's a style that most people might get a little confused at first (i certainly did). This is what makes this show a little more unique than others of the same genre. It's comedy focuses more on one-shot gags more than anything else. While some shows do this once and a while, this show relies heavily on them. One-shot gags are basically telling a joke and showing what they mean real fast and then moving on to the next joke. Its a difficult style to understand since you will have to understand what they're talking about or you'll just waste your time trying to understand the previous joke. The casual anime viewer will most likely be confused more than anything since they're all jokes about Japanese culture, but its also a good way to learn the culture too. The show is also set as a sitcom style, with each episode representing one whole day (and specific day's at that). So you can essentially watch all the episodes in any order.

What seems to be where all the hard work (aka money) has been put into show is from the choice of voice actors. It's a mix of veteran seiyu's and rookie seiyu's but the outcome of it all comes off perfect since they all sound so insanely cute. From their school principal all the way down to one of the characters little sister's, they all have that air of cuteness in their voice. Even though their character types are very stereotypical of a high school sitcom, I found the characters to be very memorable. They are all drawn very cute, sound cute and act cute, so I found it VERY hard not to like every single one of them. But if i had to choose, the chemistry between Hiro and Sae would have to be my favorite part of the show. But as far as individual characters go, Miyako is my favorite even though I'm not a huge fan of the energetic-type characters.

For a show that sounds like just like another cookie cutter high school sitcom, they try their best to make this show different from the rest. From the story telling to art work, to even the way they tell their jokes its all unique. I definitely recommend this to anyone who love high school sitcoms or who wants some cheap laughs (or lolicon). Unfortunately, casual anime viewers might want to steer clear of this show simply for the Japanese one shot gags. read more

Happiness has a name, and that name is Hidamari Sketch!

If you're a fan of slice of life animes that leave you with a warm fuzzy feeling then look no further! Every episode guarantee to leave you in a euphoric joy! take a peek into the life of some of the most lovable, adorable, and kindhearted characters ever made.

While Hidamari Sketch may not be a fast paced action packed show that usually top the charts, its a slow and steady anime that will never let you down or fail to make you smile :D

Lets start with the beginning! The opening theme song for the first season of Hidamari Sketch is "Sketch Switch" sung by the cast themselves. This catchy smile inducing song mixed with the opening really shows you what you're about to expect 4 girls, art school, living together, and their close knit friendship and their generally carefree view on life.

The first thing that surprised me is the simplicity of the art style, and this by far is not a drawback, if anything its simplicity is what gives it its charm. its unique "wide faced" style really caught my attention on how well it works to both show the feelings and emotions of the characters, as well as knocking you out of your chair in joy :D

The storyline gives you just enough to feel like you're there with them, living at the hidamari apartments going through the'yre hardships and happy times by their sides. you'll want to give Yuno inspiration, toss Miyako a little snack, tell Hiro shes fine the way she is, and tell Sae to hang in there!

And speaking of the characters, I have yet to be introduced to one that I didn't like! Everyone has they're place, from the fun loving childish sensei to the kindhearted chain smoking land lady. The four girls themselves fit perfectly in what I like to call a "cozy family" (there is even a reference to this in the 2nd season) the friends care for each other unconditionally and are always there to support one another in times of need.

But this show isn't without its cons.. :D and my biggest complaint? its far too short! 12 episodes is hardly time to say what needs to be said and to explore what needs to be explored. At the end of each episode you'll be begging for more! It was almost too hard to watch the last episode you'll hate to say goodbye to these girls that you feel such a bond with...

That's where season 2 comes in ^_^
read more

Welcome to one of the most relaxing anime's you have ever watched! I was pleasantly suprised about how this series turned out. I expected it to be an average slice of life with nothing special, and thoroughly enjoyed the series.

Even though the series is slow-paced, its never dull or mlacking in any way. It does exactly what it says on the tin. Each episode follows the trials of our 4 main heroines through the course of a day. That means no magic battles, no mushy romance, just staight up good, enjoyable slice of life, and all the bettter for it. What makes it a winner is its mix of comedy and heartwarming moments. From Hiro's constant worry over her weight, Miyako's obsession with food, Yuno's cutesy whining, Sae and her sister problems and everyones favourite cosplaying teacher, the series continues its run of constant laughs and entertaining views of the lives of these girls. And even though there is very little overriding plot, the development of the characters as they grow, and how the themes develop is a blessing on what could have been a total snorefest.

Animation-wise, you know what your getting into watchinbg a SHAFT series. Limited plot, but visually represented in a beautiful, yet simplisitc way. A perfect blend of bright colours, live-action photography and the pure moe of the characters make watching the show a treat to the eyes. The character's look distinct and cute, and the chibi deformations are used effetively and neither are over the top or underused. The soundtrack may be the shows weakest factor, but its by now means bad. Background music gives a calming effect, and moves elegantly from daft over the top during comedy to gentle, moving pieces when the need arises. The Opener and Ender Songs are perfect examples of this, with Sketch Switch acting as the fun, chirpy happy tune thats so addictive, it gets better every time you listen to it. Mabae Drive, on the other hand, is calm and sweet, perfectly complementing the series' moral and sweeter side.

There is very little to complain about in Hidamari Sketch, as it is a beautifully quaint show. Sure it never hits those comedy/tearjerker highs that other series experience, but what it does, it does extrememly well. Needless to say that the show itself is part of a small niche audience and if you don't like slow slice of life, you wont like this. But I feel You will miss out if you miss this series. Its an underappreciated gem, not helped by the fact that it was released around the same time as another 4 girls at high-school comedy slice of life, namely Lucky Star, which recieved much more critical acclaim being KyoAni (but in my opinion Hidamari Sketch is the better overall series). Watch this show, and it shan't disappoint. read more

Overview:

Well, my friends were always talking about this anime, so I figured I would pick it up and see what all the fuss was about. I wasn't disappointed at all, and if you go into it expecting a typical boring slice-of-life anime, you will probably be pleasantly surprised, at least if you like this type of anime. If not, steer clear of this anime as it is just about the daily lives of some art students. If you don't mind anime about everyday life, though, I think you will enjoy Hidamari Sketch.

Story:

The story is the only category I really subtracted a bit from. The story is a typical bunch of girls live together, become friends, and go to school deal, but this is really what you should expect in this type of anime. The story doesn't disappoint, but it doesn't redefine the anime genre either. Despite this, I thought it was good.

Art:

The art style is honestly one of the main reasons I decided to watch this anime. You can't really make an anime about an art school and have bad art. That just wouldn't work well. The art style in this is very unique, unlike anything I've seen before, at least one of the art styles in this anime is. There's a typical Japanese anime realistic looking style which they use a lot and isn't really unique, and also a super deformed almost chibi-looking art style which is very cute and each character has an extremely wide face. The art style was wonderful, in my opinion. I won't ramble on any more about how great it is, but I really liked this aspect of the series.

Sound:

This anime has a VERY catchy opening theme and perhaps a not-so-catchy ending theme, but they are pretty good. It gets you in the mood for the anime and does its job well. I also found the music in the preview for the next episode to be very relaxing for some reason and it fits the "everyday life" theme well. The characters all sound very cute. The sound is creative and used well.

Character:

Well, there are quite some odd characters in this series. Most of them tend to be flat (one-sided, don't change much), but that's exactly what I enjoyed about them. The characters were so predictable in their actions you could almost imagine what they would do in any scenario: Yunocchi worries about lots of stuff, Miyako eats anything available, Hiro worries excessively about her weight, and Sae worries about writing stories and her sister. How each character is so one-sided they seem like they have infinite sides to them somehow is what made me like the characters. They are very enjoyable to watch interacting with each other. They tend to be very simple characters, but all of them are cute in their own way.

Enjoyment:

I highly enjoyed this anime and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys slice-of-life anime. I never got bored with it and never paused for very long to stop watching. It is a very fun series, in my opinion. If you enjoy anime of this type, you will probably enjoy this series.

Overall:

I rated it a 10 simply because it's just about the best everyday anime I have seen. You may or may not like it as much as I did, but I mostly found this to be an excellent show. I tend to rate things higher than most people do, but I really thought this series was great. So, if you haven't seen it yet and like slice-of-life anime, I would recommend watching it sometime. read more

It was my boyfriend who first introduced me to hidamari sketch, and we watched the first few episodes together. i found from episode to episode they didn't make much sense. it took me a while to really appreciate it for what it was.

it was fun, it wasn't trying to be anything, not serious or too funny, or to sweet. and it wasn't even trying to tell a fully plotted story either. what they focused on most was the interactions between the characters in the setting. And it really showed in the quality.

Hidamari sketch, and it's second season hidamari sketchx365 encompass almost two years of time withinthe anime. each episode opens with a date, and after watching enough, you can see where it lies in the timeline. one of the fun points is watching an episode and there's a gem of a hint hidden somewhere in there, and you don't think of it much until perhaps 5 episodes later when it's earlier in the timeline and it's explined, and it seems all that much funnier to you becuase they had that forsight. sometimes jokes aren't revealed untilthe second season.

hidamari can be a lazy anime, there isn't action or real conflict, it really is a slice of life fluff anime. but i find lately that's what's the most fun. you can burn out on watching the drama filled, harem sutffed, or action packed animes, but a nice fluff is always welcome. especially for cuddling up in bed or on the couch.

the characters are quite funy and each bring something special to the group dynamic. and even the supporting cast shows enough of itself to really find a place.

i would liken this anime to azumanga daioh, but, lighter.

All in all very enjoyable, and just. Fun. read more

I want to live in Hidamarisou.

More than any other slice-of-life I've seen, I want to live this perfect life. Yes, this is a perfect life kind of slice-of-life: everybody's always happy, they live on their own and go to a high school for art, and they do fun things even when things look boring.

Now the story...uh...who cares about plot, it's basically a direct feed of happiness and sunshine into your head. I grew rainbows out of my eyes after watching this. And no that's not painful. It feels warm and fuzzy.

I absolutely love how SHAFT does anime, really, and this is no different. In fact, I think this is the pinnacle of SHAFT's distinct artsy style--and it's quite fitting, taken the art theme of the whole thing. That, coupled with the unique random stretched-out face thing (you'll get what I mean if you don't already), makes the art especially memorable.

So basically, if you are feeling sad for whatever reason, this is a perfect way to turn your frown upside-down ^___________^ read more