Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm

For centuries, it has been man's dream to fly. Because of the Wright Brothers, we finally have the technology to do so, and as such, have been able to soar into the skies, give or take the method. But we have never truly been able to fly by ourselves. But here, we have Aokana, an anime about flying, and the sport that goes along with it known as Flying Circus.

Story: In the world of Aokana, the world has developed special footwear called Grav-shoes, a kind of footwear that allows for the user to utilize anti-graviton particles in order to essentially defy ... gravity and fly. In order to make the idea of Grav-shoes more fun, a new sport known as Flying Circus was developed, creating a brand new activity that one could do with their new shoes. It is here where we meet Kurashina Asuka, a bright and optimistic girl who dreams of soaring in the skies.

At its core, Aokana is centered around Asuka and her journey through the sport of Flying Circus, or FC for short. The show is centered around her and her group of friends in the FC club at her high school, participating in competitions and aiming to become top FC players. So more or less, this is your standard tournament/sports anime that focuses around beating stronger opponents and progressively getting better and better as time goes on, right? Well...no, actually.

Contrary to what the show looks like from the outside, Aokana has a surprisingly deep set of values that it showcases. It really hammers in what it takes to be good at a sport, and the satisfaction of winning when facing someone tough. In fact, the characters are shown to more or less only be fighting the same opponents, completely disregarding a 'stronger challenger approaches' style of story. The anime shows us the true feeling of losing and how heartbreaking it can be, as well as the beauty and satisfaction of winning, all things that you wouldn't see in your generic tournament anime where the protagonist just barrels his/her way through each match without trying and winning every time because he/she is that good. There's genuine feeling when it comes to seeing the growth of these characters and it really made me like this show and want to continue watching. The progression is far better than what I had expected it to be, and I was happy to receive such a surprise.

On the downside though, the show has some issues with some of its presentation. Some aspects of the show feel cliched and everything is tied up with a nice ribbon bow, so the plot is predictable in that regard. Additionally, the show does have quite a lot of moe-affiliated moments where the show does tell you once again "Hey, we're a show with a bunch of cute girls doing some cute stuff", which it is. It takes away from the serious atmosphere a little bit, but for me, it really wasn't really a problem.

Overall, while there were problems and issues with its presentation, Aokana had a message that was far deeper than I thought it would ever have given what it looked like on the outside. The show had good progression and a good mix of good to bad moments that helped improve character growth and, despite its appearance of one guy surrounded by several girls, IS NOT A HAREM! (I know, shocking right? We can have an anime with that kind of character setup WITHOUT having romance! Gasp!)

Overview:
+ Interesting story concept (The sport is simple, but surprisingly complex.)
+ Great message and themes throughout
+ Not a harem despite what we get for a cast
- Has cliched and/or predictable moments that do take some credibility of the show away

Characters: The cast of Aokana isn't particularly big. As mentioned before, the show more or less focuses on a relatively small group of characters where they all fight amongst each other in the sport. There're no "Challenger-kuns" anywhere once the rivals have been established, and the show takes its time to develop its cast.

First, we have our spunky and optimistic main protagonist, Kurashina Asuka. Asuka is the very definition of optimism. Her dream is to soar high in the sky, and most of her lines involve things being "amazing" and being "spectacular" to the point that it's actually somewhat annoying. A somehow gifted natural at FC, Asuka is sort of that 'prodigy' kind of character who gets stuff or is able to do complicated stuff relatively easy in the series, even to the extent that even towards the end, she is able to handle more difficult maneuvers or strategies that would ordinarily taken someone else weeks or even months to accomplish. As a character, she is more of a catalyst for things, as she evokes feelings and aids in the character development for others, without really changing much herself. She does have bouts of sadness and some time dedicated to her recovery after a loss, but she's the type to get back up on her feet quickly, so there's really no worry there.

The people that are interesting are both Mashiro and Misaki, the two other members of the FC club that Asuka belong to. As a senpai loving kouhai and a nyanko respectively, Mashiro and Misaki are more of the characters that project and showcase the quality of what it is to have ups and downs in a sport, as each of them have dedicated time to their characters. These areas of the anime are sections where I think both the message and the anime really shine, because they're both very realistic examples of what it means to participate and try to get really into a sport since both of their mini character arcs are dedicated to resolving their own insecurities and strengthening the qualities that they possess and turning it into in the series' words, "Their own FC", aka, their own style of playing.

If I was to make a complaint, it would have to be geared towards Masaya Hinata, our male character guy. Masaya is a character who really...doesn't have all that much importance in this series. As Aokana was originally a VN before getting adapted, Masaya is the player character and is dictated by the actions of the player. In the anime, Masaya more or less plays a supporting role to the series, which is fine since I'm all for a series with 1 guy and a bunch of girls that isn't a harem series, but they try to give an explanation and time to his backstory and why he decided 'never to fly again' which just ends up being incomplete and very lackluster. It is by far the weakest aspect of the characters by far, which is surprising since the side characters not only get more screentime, but more development than our so-called male protagonist here.

The side characters are definitely a side cast that has more worth to this series than most anime I've seen. Other FC players like Shindou, Inui, and Rika get little moments dedicated to them to add onto the message that the show coaxes in, and Madoka, who is more or less the comedic straight man to everyone (poor Madoka). Point being, there are members of this side cast that deserve mention, and only add to this show since a good number of them actually develop along with the series, if only for a little bit of character development.

Overview:
+ Great character development
+ Good focus on main females and their development
+ Side cast members also get development
- Asuka is a bit too perfect sometimes and gets a bit annoying
- Masaya, the supposed main character, is basically nonexistent to this series

Art: Produced by Gonzo, Aokana boasts a very high quality and whimsical looking style for Aokana. All of the colors have this shimmering bright sheen to them that reflects the sunny and bright feeling that the show evokes, creating this wonderfully colorful show that looks very pleasing to look at. The characters also look very nice in conjunction with the background and move very fluidly in terms of the normal animation fluidity. The artstyle is heavily moe-centered, as the characters, girls in particularly, are drawn in a very cutesy style coupled with some cutely exaggerated moments at a shot at comedy and cute pictures. I say this because there are people that REALLY hate moe, so I just wanted to mention it here.

Another thing that the show has is effects, and lots of them. The grav-shoes create contrails when the fly, and the effects of those are just really stunning to look at. One thing that does bug me about the anime is the fact that they utilize 3-D CGI very often when they're trying to make a flying scene. Using CGI for stuff like this is understandable, since the characters are moving very fast, and the amount of frame per second in order to create something like that would be time consuming to say the least, but the CGI is done in a way that really looks obvious, especially due to the fact that the fluidity of that particular scene looks stranger than it normally is. (Also, there really isn't much fanservice to be had. We get like...1 bath scene or so, and that's about it in the way of fanservice.)

Overview:
+ Really nice artwork
+ Great effects
- CGI wasn't meshed well and stood out easily

Sound: The OST for Aokana is very fitting for the series. The entire OST is more or less performed with airy instruments like the flute, in order to keep up with the theme of flying up and whatnot. The OP "Contrails" is a very vibrant and uplifting piece that fits with the positive, soaring feeling that the characters have when they sprout their wings and lift off. It's a very happy song that while doesn't have a staggeringly large amount of memorable factor to it, it's still a good song.

The ED on the other hand is a more toned down song that has a similar soaring feeling to it. But instead of soaring high, the song more or less drifts around and glides. It's not particularly a song that I feel lacks in comparison to its OP. It's not a bad song, but its calm and generic sound really doesn't really do the song any favors for being particularly memorable.

Overview:
+ Good, fitting music
- Not really a memorable OST

Personal Enjoyment: Aokana was that one show this season that out of every show in my watching list I thought would turn out to be a surprisingly good show, a dark horse that was good, but no one would watch. And now, after finishing it, turns out, I was right. It has its flaws and its problems, but honestly? I really think that this was a good show; an unexpectedly good show.

Did I like this anime?

To be honest, I really did. I liked it far more than I thought I would. It's unassumingly cute exterior hides a really deep and meaningful set of themes that was not only well tackled, but really played into why I think that this anime deserves far more attention than it gets. Hell, the OP has the phrase "True Battle comes After Losing", and that could not be more true to what happens in this show, and in real life. Also, flying shoes. Science, get on it.

What didn't I like about this anime?

Ok, I'll be honest, Asuka is a bit irritating. Her constant optimism is a feature of the anime that really doesn't fall, which really isn't a good thing. She sees the bright side of practically everything and doesn't falter which in a sense, clashes with what this show was trying to convey. In addition, Masaya was just NOT used. He had so much potential, and could've really added a lot to the series, but in the end, he was more or less shoved to the side and wasn't really as important as he could've or should've been. (And yes, I know that Asuka IS the main character here. Doesn't mean we couldn't have devoted more focus to Masaya.)

Would I recommend this anime?

Personally, I think that this anime is definitely worth a watch. While it looks all cutesy and moe on the outside (which...it honestly does do a lot, quite a bit actually...), what the show tries to tell us with its themes gives the show far more worth than your seasonal generic moe show. It tells us that enjoying the things we like doing is more important than winning or losing, and that work has to be put into something in order to get better, and it conveys these messages so well! IMO, Aokana is an underrated show from Winter 2016, and despite its flaws, is still worth a watch.

They should really drop the romance tag on this. (EDIT - Not anymore, thanks XEELTom for giving me the heads up! :) )

Quick summary - in a world where people have flying shoes there exists a sport that's called Flying Circus. Basically you touch four poles as fast as you can or you whack the opponent's back or well, you prevent the opponent from doing so. Not really much of a premise there LOL.

This was pretty much a sleeper hit, it was a really outstanding show from start to end considering it was based off a VN. Instead, they dropped the romance and made ... it all about the sport and the girls, which was a very good approach. Character development was surprisingly well done.

All in all, if you are looking for a light hearted sport anime, this should fill that palate of yours.

It's a whole new anime story...new ideas. In this anime,it's all about flying which makes it more interesting as they compete for the champion title. Other than that, man all those new design and stuffs really makes me want to live in Japan.

Sound:
The sound had nothing wrong. It fused with it vey well especially when they are in a dog fight! The voice actress and actor had a nice voice. It's very clear.The sound of the sea breeze and the wind is quite spot on when putting on earphones which is quite good.

Design and graphics:
A lot of kawai school girls with their newly designed ... outfit for competition and it's quite catchy XD.Graphics are impressive of the waves and the character's expression of how serious they are during competition so there's nothing wrong with it.

At first it's gonna be not so bored since it's the introduction. Then, everything went fired up. Starts to get exciting, mind blown like WOW!!

All I want to say that is Go and watch it!

I found Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm strangely intriguing as I watched everything unfold. It really turned into a sports anime of sorts as all the action focused around their sport of choice FC or Flying Circus. Flying circus is about people dog fighting with these special gravity shoes that allow people to fly around at high speeds.

I think people will like the anime due to peoples fascination with flying around. And these people can surely zip around. Even tho it does take a second to get rolling into the main action. I found myself enjoying it. Give it a chance and it ... might grow on you. Can't help, but root for the flying fish.

Stunning artwork, Average plot, great sound, overall an anime worth your time if you're not too picky.

Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm revolves around a character who was intrigued with FC(Flying circus). So, she took up the so called sport and the plot pretty much revolves around how she got through all adversities to be an amazing FC player. Extra factors like having a coach who used to be one of the best players but quit due to personal reasons, becoming friends with the Best player of FC and more just adds up the entertaining factor to this anime.

This anime gives a very upbeat ... vibe, vibrant colours and great sound.
To put it simply, it has a simple plot but the visuals and sound make up for the most of it, which makes it pretty much a decent anime for 2016.

Extras: There's no romance at all for this anime. The summary is a little bit misleading.

Cheers!

Read the fucking Visual Novel.

I watched this solely because the source material is my favourite visual novel. And good lord does this disappoint. It completely ruins the story beats that the vn has, makes the fight scenes look ridiculous through CGI (apart from the last one thankfully) and ruins the art-style of the vn.

For the first point, the story beats being ruined:
The show takes story beats from different routes but really fails to mesh them together well, even introducing some that weren't there and literally contradict the ones present in the visual novel. Furthermore the ones that are there that still make ... sense are often so quickly disregarded and pushed aside its aggravating. The pacing too, is insane, the show needed another 12 episodes to fit the current content into a much better pace (I understand adapting a 30 hour vn route into anime can be difficult but still).

For the second point, the fight scenes:
The fight scenes or rather FC scenes most of the time look ridiculous due to the CGI being incredibly apparent and most of the time coming off as stiff and looking inhuman. When in contrast to the visual novel, these FC scenes sure are composed of stills but you can really feel the motion and force behind the movement of each the characters, how an animated piece of media conveys movement worse than a vn is beyond me.

For the last point of the art:
The visual novel has one of the most gorgeous art-styles I can think of, and what does the anime get? At best shoddily traced CGs from the vn and at worst some awful proportions on characters, awkward looking faces where character's eyes are too far apart and even unnecessary reusing of frames (due to what I can only guess was budget).

To see my favourite visual novel being handled like this is sad to say the least. But at least I can go out of my way here to say, don't watch this, read the visual novel instead. It is available on Nekonyan's website and Steam (where it often goes on sale) for PC and also on Nintendo Switch (and PS4 but a censored version).

Short review.

Cookiezi brought me to this anime, so i couldnt resist watching it.

From the start to beginning I was thrilled, not to mention that they literally got me with the feeling, that flying can be something beautiful and this Anime makes it look more fun and more thrilling.

The Story was the worst part of the anime. It was very fast paced and many plotholes or even many important part, that would have make the story more exciting weren't animated. You dont get the feeling of something interesting and watch it merely because you somehow enjoy it how awesome it looks how they ... fly and how the principle of "their" flying is.

The music was fine, nothing special or from heaven door, but atleast you can say that this was enough to make it an enjoyable anime.

You have too many characters to develop, yet only 12 episodes to animate. It's sad, since it could have been one of the top 150 contenders with a rating with 8~, but the budget was not enough. One the fatal weakpoints from becoming an actual good anime, since it lacks real development plus the very fast pacing.

In the End, it is an enjoyable anime and you can watch it with a smile in your face. But dont expect too much from it and do not try to find logical aspects in it. It already stops with "people flying and having a competition in it".

7/10

This series is rated lower than it deserves partly because many have judged the anime too quickly and dropped it since. Also, due to this, there are many lowly rated reviews for this anime. However, I'll be delivering my take on this anime.

Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm - The REAL Proper Review

Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm is an anime that could have had the potential to be a really great anime but was plagued by its origin. "Eroge" & "Visual Novel" Lets take a deeper look why it meets its demise when compared other animes of the season.

Most anime are adapted & ... serialized from its manga counterpart. Manga are usually known & recognized for its deep plot/content. Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm on the other hand is adapted from its visual novel known for its eroge. Most visual novels serving its "eroge" purposes have little to no real plot by default. Furthermore, its "sports" focus further reduce its chances for any deep plot to come by.

However with Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm, I think they have done pretty well despite being a "sports" anime. It's actually deeper than it seems and gets better at later episodes.


Story - 6/10

Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm revolves around a sports called "Flying Circus" The goal of the sports, by flying through the use of Grav shoes, is to score points by touching its buoys in sequence "1,2,3,4" or scoring a hit on the opponent's back. Or so it seems... This is when the real plot begins to surface.

Do not JUDGE its plot before Episode 7, because that's where it really showed how deep it really is.

When you love & know something so well, for example in a game, (In this case, FC) then all of a sudden, someone new just came & destroyed your concept of that. You become afraid, because the very thing you are so familiar & close to, becomes something you no longer understand.

That's what Misaki felt. FC became something "dark".

All these while, FC to her, was about touching buoy or hitting each other's back. A simple and fun sport. But Inui broke that concept. Instead of playing the game, she intensely pressures the opponent by restricting & denying whatever her opponent tries to do. It becomes a mental sports and makes you feel inferior & powerless. That's the "beauty" Inui and Saki sought. However, Asuka, being that carefree girl, may not fully understand the "dark" Misaki began to see. To Asuka, it is an exciting new territory of the game. But Misaki became afraid of FC, became afraid of Asuka. She could not accept how Asuka could think that way.


Art - 6/10

Brilliant & Radiant. This anime is just beautiful to look at.


Sound - 8/10

One of the best anime's OST I've heard in a while. If you actually listen closely, you will notice. One example I can give is in Episode 6.

Listen closely to the OST:
05:04 to 06:02.
16:22 to 17:47.
17:47 to 19:45.


Character - 6/10

I love the contrast between Asuka and Misaki's mindset. As I've explained earlier.

Masaya Hinata is your secretive hidden ace badass. He is shown to be rather highly intelligent.
Asuka Kurashina is your slightly clueless clumsy cute female MC with innate potential in FC that she doesn't really know about.
Misaki Tobisawai is strong female character that is also smart. Realizing the "dark" in FC.
Mashiro Arisaka is your kawaii little loli with cute obsession with Misaki.
Aoi Kagami is your ultimate hidden ace triumph card that you hope she would just come out and whoop everyone's ass.


Enjoyment - 6/10

I really like all the characters. There's a good variety in personalities and good comedy. I like seeing Asuka's sillyness, Mashiro's cute obsession with Misaki. Hinata & Kagami being the hidden badass retired aces.


Overall - 6/10

Honestly, I really enjoyed this anime despite being poorly received by the community. A good mix of comedy, action with its beautiful art, amazing OSTs. Would definitely recommend to give this series a try and watch till the very end.

This is my first review on Internet so I hope I write this well.

Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm is a awesome piece of work made by sprite and ruined by those who animated it. Only the people who actually played this godly game can understand this frustration.
The Story is about Asuka, a girl who moved to Kunashima due to her father's transfer and later comes across a sports called "Flying Circus" which uses GraShuu (A type of shoes which uses anti-graviton particle to make you fly) and then joins the "Kunahama FC Club" together with a classmate and a kouhai.

Story 6/10. The Story presented ... in the anime is completely different from how it really is. Getting from beginning, It was just Masaya alone who finds Asuka searching for her house keys. Also, it was him alone who uses the co-op system of the shoes to help Asuka get to the school on time. The terminal which is shown outside the school, is actually inside the building. (So if someone uses the Grashuu then he/she doesn't have to go all the way to cross the main gate). Misaki actually meets Asuka for the first time in the classroom. Masaya never knew that Mashiro family runs the Udon Shop untill Mashiro injures herself during the practice. It was Masaya alone Aoi-sensei asks to be the instructor for her flying lessons. Also It was just Masaya and Asuka who finds Satouin-san and Shion-senpai having an argument over the "in" letter plus Masaya actually doesn't see Asuka do the "Air Kick Turn" for the first time, as he closes his eyes not able to see her figure falling into the sea after the fail attempt to target Satouin -san's back, also it was Satoiun-san herself who explain about FC to Asuka. After the match Buchou bugs Masaya for like a week or so to join the club, and in the end, getting asked by sensei and convinced by asuka he finally decides to join the club. Also it was not Madoka but Masaya who takes the three of them to the Shirase-san's FC Shop. Though the story of the "Anime Adaptation" deserves 2, I gave it 6 just because it takes few points, just a few points from the original series.

Art 6/10 - As expected of the art of these days anime's. It's well made. I have nothing to say about that.

Sound 7/10 - As the "anime adaptation" mixed few BGM from the VN, it's quite good to the ears. Plus the OP/ED are made quite well as well (Not as good as the VN's though)

Character 6/10 - Aside Masaya, how they portrayed the characters in the anime are pretty much how they're like in the VN.

Enjoyment 2/10 - Just after watching the first two episodes of the anime, I raised the white flag, as I didn't wanted the headache I got from those two episodes to effect the surroundings.

Overall 4/10 - I do know that the visual novel and light novels adaptations are pretty much like that and I don't wanna see the rest of the 10 episodes to prove that.
A piece of advice, if you know how to read Japanese then please play the game, I ensure you that it's 500 times better than the anime, but if you don't know how to read, then just wait for the English Translation to finish and then try it.

I watched the first episode and I was absolutely hooked!!!! This anime is one of the best animes I have ever watched! The character development is really good, and the supporting characters get more screen time then other animes. The main characters are so cute, and the plot line is fun, enticing, and suspenseful!

* A Small Synopsis *
Kurashina Asuka comes back to Kuma Island which is part of on of the 4 islands that allow 'Grav-shoes' as a method of transportation. She has absolutely no idea that on these 4 islands, she can accomplish her #1 dream: To have the ability to fly. ... After meeting, Masaya and Misaki (Her mentors) , she joins this club which is very active in the sport called "Flying Circus" a.k.a. 'FC'. Watch the anime to find out what happens next in Asuka's journey !

I'm sorry, but this is a horrible anime and an even worse adaptation. In terms of the adaptation, everything has been changed and it's extremely rushed to the point that battles only show 1-2 points scored and then just cut to the end with the final score... Not only that but they changed the main character. Yup, the main character of the visual novel and his background story that drives the game is practically non-existent in the anime. At first, it seems like they decided to make Asuka the main character, but then they just bounce around and don't seem to focus on anyone at ... all while making Masaya (the original protagonist of the VN's) just a very small background character. Asuka seems like a reasonable choice for the protagonist since she's the rising star of the sport, but instead they dont focus much on her either. Rushing through the story and not focusing on a character makes everyone bland and boring. None of the characters are developed enough through the anime and there are major contrasts in their character between the VN and the anime.

On terms of it being an anime, it still sucks. It is so rushed, especially the battle scenes, awesome VN fights only last like 30 seconds and are quite underwhelming. For example, Asuka pulls off an awesome move, but instead of using flashy art and intense music to show just how significant it is, they just focus on different characters saying wow. That brings on another point, the battle music is also way too calm and doesn't create any kind of tension. Speaking of tension, since the show is so rushed, there is zero build up to their opponents which leads to the battle itself having no real impact, meaning or gratification when the good guys do something great.

The story is non-existent... seriously it feels like there is none which is pretty incredible because the VN has so many different story options they could have gone with. Overall, it's a bit boring. The lack of story direction and rush through the VN content just makes it very confusing because it cuts out most of the major interactions between characters and the things that promote their growth.

I can't recommend this anime. Even if you haven't played the VN, you will be disappointed because it's just a bad anime in general. Do yourself a favor and just play the game. It's easily 100x better than this letdown.

Since this anime was one of the highlights of the animes I've watched this season, I guess it would be right to write a review.

Even though the story used common characters (air head, childhood friend?) and the story was predictable, it was quite fun to watch in my perspective. The progression of the protagonists was always interesting to see and there were definitely some surprises for me while I watched the anime. You can definitely tell it's a sport anime while watching but it sometimes just lacks the seriousness that's usually expected. Whilst not the best art style I've ever seen, it looked quite nice ... and I enjoyed watching how the FC matches went.

Nice anime overall.

(NOTICE 1°: Recommend to watch the anime first before reading this review)
(NOTICE 2°: This review is in English and Spanish)

--REVIEW IN ENGLISH--

‘’Look at the sky, don't avert your eyes, the answer lies there’’
That's what the visual novel taught me.

(NOTICE: Visual Novel Reader / Player)
Yes, as it says above, this review is focused from the point of view of adaptation of a visual novel, so it will have two parts, how good anime is and the other side of the coin, how well adapted to anime is it, both points individually, so here we go.
...
(NOTICE: Sorry if my English is bad)

1. REVIEW OF THE ANIME

History 7/10

The story is good and simple (A sports club, how much fun it is to fly and the freedom it brings, friendships, winning or losing, although what really matters is having fun, etc.) throughout the episodes it shows an entertaining story and the last episode complements the: "What really matters is having fun."

Still, it's not spared from script holes or things characters say and then contradict themself, but we'll talk about that in the character section.

Art 5/10

Well...the backgrounds look good, the character design is good but the good animation is not constant if not non-existent and in certain parts the characters look amorphous, yes, the CG in the encounters makes them much more enjoyable in sight.

Sound 8/10

The soundtrack is very good especially since the composition is made by Elements Garden, the same ones who composed the original BGM of the visual novel.

Character 5/10

1. Asuka Kurashina: a good character, being the fun and positive of the group. Her development is good since she starts out well, but she ends up falling and then in the final episode she shows that she is the root of: ‘’What really matters is having fun’’.

2. Misaki Tobisawa: a character with low energy but when he dedicates himself to something he gives everything of himself, being the first to go through the conflict of: "If I don't have fun why do I keep flying?" so then she stops flying, although she then takes it back, to give everything of herself but this time having fun.
Asuka and Misaki are the main protagonists of this story.

3. Masaya Hinata: character who contributes almost nothing to the story until the last episodes.

4. Mashiro Arisaka: good character, with good development, but little screen time ...... Misaki-senpaaai!!!!!!!

5. Rika Ichinose: character with potential, but disappears after the fourth episode.

6. Madoka Aoyagi: ...Comic Relief.

7. Shion Aoyagi: a man who loves speed.

8. Reiko Satou: ...is Satou-in by the way, writer.

9. Shindou Kazunari: the best Skywalker in Japan.

10. Saki Inui and Irina Avalon: the antagonists of the story, although Irina is the most obsessed with her perfect FC, and then ends up redeeming herself. Acceptable antagonists for a sports anime.

11. Aoi Kagami: Masaya Hinata's mentor, only contributes to the plot at the end of the anime.

Enjoyment 6/10

An anime to pass the time, although you have to wait for it to get interesting.

Overall 7/10

An entertaining anime, funny characters, fascinating encounters, very good soundtrack, '' good '' animation, script holes, acceptable character development and a good message: '' What really matters is having fun '' (yes, I know, I have already repeated this three times) and how amazing it is to give everything you have.

If you have time and want to have a good time, watch this anime, yes, do not expect an incredible story or memorable characters, it is worth it because it is entertaining especially because of the encounters and the message it gives: ‘’What really matters is having fun’’...fourth and last time I say it.

If you read this, I appreciate that you took the time to read my review of this anime, see you later or below if you read the part of the visual novel, sayonara.

The anime review ends here, if you wonder why I wrote so little about the characters I suggest you keep scrolling down to read the lost potential of this anime adaptation in the review from the visual novel point of view, if you wish.

(NOTICE: Review taking into account the visual novel, read this if you have played the game or if you simply want to know more)

2. ADAPTATION TO ANIME OF THE VISUAL NOVEL

Well now I will talk about how good adaptation it is, I will be taking into account the points of the anime part to compare it with the visual novel and see if it has coherence.

In order not to make this longer, I will be comparing only the story and the characters, without spoilers of course.

-Story-

The story in the visual novel reaches the summer tournament from here you are presented with the decisions to enter any of the 4 heroine routes that the game has, so having clarified this, let's continue.

Since the anime begins, we are already shown that it will not follow any of the existing routes since our protagonist in the game, Masaya Hinata, here has no love interaction with any of the heroines and is put in the secondary role. As we advance in the episodes, we are also shown how the routes of the heroines are mixed, which makes the character development totally original and inconsistent with that of the visual novel, although it has events that happen in the game, in the anime no longer they have coherence or they are left without any feeling for not following the original script from the beginning.

In the anime we are shown that Asuka and Misaki will be in charge of being the protagonists since Mashiro and Rika (the other heroines in the game) are also put in the secondary role, with Mashiro being the one who is always behind Misaki, and Rika set aside, but we'll talk about this in the next section, characters.

-Characters-

I do not want to spoil anything about the history and development of the characters so I will not go into details I will only say how the anime differ from the visual novel.

-Protagonist and Heroines-

1. Masaya Hinata (Protagonist): well, they just put him aside in the anime, but in the visual novel his development on each heroine route makes him one of the most realistic protagonists I have ever seen.

2. Asuka Kurashina (Heroine): her development is completely opposite to that of the game since she is the simplest heroine but the one that brings the most changes with her as at the end of her route, he brings a revolution to the world of FC and is the root from: "What really matters is having fun."

3. Misaki Tobisawa (Heroine): the heroine with the conflict of: ''If I don't have fun, why do I keep flying?'' since, believing to have '' talent '', but not being able to improve, she collapses, stopping practicing FC to be able to find the value of her effort, thus achieving it at the end of her journey where his frustration turns into fun.

4. Mashiro Arisaka (Heroine): the frustration and the desire to be better make her one of the heroines who strives the most to improve without having even a '' talent '' to lean on, reaching from 0 to 100 giving everything of herself.

5. Rika Ichinose (Heroine): the honor student, having a serious personality and not being able to show her true self, is one of the heroines who remains stagnant and cannot improve until she gets to know Masaya in order to show how far she can go being herself.

-Support characters-

1. Aoi Kagami: a role model for Masaya and his mentor, the connection they have shown how important they are to each other.

2. Madoka Aoyagi: manager of the group and a character who always cares about her friends.

3. Shion Aoyagi: a man with a great spirit, if it weren't for him the FC club wouldn't exist.

4. Reiko Satou: despite being an ojou-sama, she is a character who cares about her companions and friends, thus being a source of resolution for Masaya and the Heroines.

5. Shindou Kazunari: a character who shows great passion for what he practices, thus being another source of support for Masaya and the Heroines.

-Antagonists-

1. Saki Inui: A person of few words who just wanted to find someone to have fun flying with her.
2. Irina Avalon: the mastermind behind the ''Bird Cage'', in the anime she redeems herself, but in the game, she simply accepts the fact of having enjoyed the show and then says that one day she will show them her real FC.
Both Saki and Irina are well built antagonists with just the same motivations and desires as everyone else.

-Conclusion-

The adaptation is not bad, but it does not manage to convey the same feeling as the visual novel, the heroines who are the source of everything in the game, in the anime they are not developed correctly and the protagonist who is the connection between the different routes, is non-existent in the adaptation.

In my opinion, having an original script, the message they want to convey throughout the anime, especially in the final episode, is only the 20% of what the visual novel actually transmits to you.

If you want to see how beautiful this story is and the message it wants to convey, I recommend you give the visual novel a try, you will not regret it, I gave it a chance and I can say from the bottom of my heart that it was beautiful to have done it...

Well, this writing ends here, if you got this far, I thank you from the bottom of my heart, I hope I have helped you with my opinion and have opened an opportunity for you to play the visual novel.

Now I say goodbye, I thank you for having read me and have a good day, I hope to meet again, matta ne...

‘’A story of girls flying through the sky and experiencing love’’

AOKANA, 2016...


--RESEÑA EN ESPAÑOL--

(AVISO: Recomendable ver el anime antes de leer esta reseña)

‘’Mira al cielo, no apartes la mirada, la respuesta yace ahí’’
Eso es lo que me enseño la novela visual.

(AVISO: Lector/Jugador de la novela visual)
Si, como dice arriba, esta reseña está enfocada desde el punto de vista de adaptación de novela visual, así que tendrá dos partes, que tan buen anime es y el otro lado de la moneda, que tan bien adaptada a anime esta, ambos puntos individualmente, así que aquí vamos.

1. RESEÑA DEL ANIME

Historia 7/10

La historia es buena y simple (Un club de deporte, lo divertido que es volar y la libertad que trae consigo, las amistades, ganar o perder, aunque lo que en verdad importa es divertirse, etc.) a lo largo de los episodios logra mostrar una historia entretenida y el último episodio complementa el: ''Lo que importa en realidad es divertirse''.
Aun así, no se salva de agujeros de guión o cosas que los personajes dicen y luego se contradicen, pero de eso hablaremos en la sección de personajes.

Arte 5/10

Bueno...los fondos se ven bien, el diseño de personajes es bueno pero la buena animación no es constante por no decir inexistente y en ciertas partes los personajes se ven amorfos, eso sí, el CG en los encuentros los hace mucho más disfrutables a la vista.

Sonido 8/10

El soundtrack es muy bueno especialmente porque la composición está hecha por Elements Garden los mismos que compusieron el BGM original de la novela visual.

Personajes 5/10

1. Asuka Kurashina: un buen personaje, siendo la divertida y la positiva del grupo. Su desarrollo es bueno ya que empieza bien, pero termina cayendo para luego al episodio final demostrar que es la raíz de: ''Lo que importa en realidad es divertirse''.

2. Misaki Tobisawa: un personaje de poca energía pero que cuando se dedica a algo lo da todo de sí mismo, siendo la primera que pasa por el conflicto de: ''Si no me divierto por qué sigo volando?''. Para luego dejar de volar, aunque luego lo retoma, para dar todo de sí misma pero esta vez divirtiéndose.
Asuka y Misaki son las protagonistas principales de esta historia.

3. Masaya Hinata: personaje que no aporta casi nada a la historia hasta los últimos episodios.

4. Mashiro Arisaka: buen personaje, con buen desarrollo, pero poco tiempo en pantalla......Misaki-senpaaai!!!!!!!

5. Rika Ichinose: personaje con potencial, pero desaparece después del cuarto episodio.

6. Madoka Aoyagi: ...Alivio Cómico.

7. Shion Aoyagi: un hombre que ama la velocidad.

8. Reiko Satou: ...es Satou-in por cierto, escritor.

9. Shindou Kazunari: el mejor Skywalker en Japón.

10. Saki Inui e Irina Avalon: las antagonistas de la historia, aunque es Irina la más obsesionada con su FC perfecto, para luego terminar redimiéndose. Antagonistas aceptables para un anime de deporte.

11. Aoi Kagami: mentora de Masaya Hinata, recién aporta a la trama al final del anime.

Disfrute 6/10

Un anime para pasar el rato, aunque hay que esperar para que se ponga interesante.

Overall 7/10
Un anime entretenido, personajes divertidos, encuentros fascinantes, muy buen soundtrack, ''buena'' animación, agujeros de guión, desarrollo de personajes aceptable y un buen mensaje: ''Lo que importa en realidad es divertirse'' (si lo sé, ya he repetido esto tres veces) y lo increíble que es dar todo de ti.

Si tienes tiempo y quieres pasar un buen rato mira este anime, eso sí, no esperes una historia increíble ni personajes memorables, vale la pena porque es entretenido especialmente por los encuentros y el mensaje que da: ''Lo que importa en realidad es divertirse'' ...cuarta vez que lo digo y última.

Si lees esto te agradezco que te tomaras el tiempo de leer mi reseña de este anime, nos vemos luego o más abajo si lees la parte de la novela visual, sayonara.

Aquí acaba la reseña del anime, si te preguntas porque escribí tan poco acerca de los personajes te sugiero que sigas bajando para leer el potencial perdido de esta adaptación a anime en la reseña desde el punto de vista de la novela visual, si deseas.

(AVISO: Reseña tomando en cuenta el material de origen, ósea la novela visual, lee esto si has jugado la novela o si simplemente quieres saber más)

2. ADAPTACION A ANIME DE LA NOVELA VISUAL

Bueno ahora hablare de que tan buena adaptación es, estaré tomando en cuenta los puntos de la parte de anime para compararlo con la novela visual y ver si tiene coherencia.

Para no hacer esto más largo estaré comparando solo la historia y los personajes, sin spoilers claro.

-Historia-

La historia en la novela visual llega hasta el torneo de verano a partir de aquí se te presentan las decisiones para entrar en cualquiera de las 4 rutas de heroínas que tiene el juego así que habiendo aclarado esto prosigamos.

Desde que empieza el anime ya se nos muestra que no seguirá ninguna de las rutas existentes ya que nuestro protagonista en el juego, Masaya Hinata, aquí no tiene interacción amorosa con ninguna de las heroínas y es relevado a personaje secundario por no decir eliminado. Al avanzar en los episodios también se nos muestra como las rutas de las heroínas están mezcladas lo que hace que el desarrollo de personajes sea totalmente original e iconsistente al de la novela visual, aunque tiene sucesos que pasan en el juego, en el anime ya no tienen coherencia o se quedan sin sentimiento alguno por no seguir el guión original desde el principio.

En el anime se nos muestra que Asuka y Misaki serán las encargadas de llevar el protagonismo ya que Mashiro y Rika (las otras heroínas en el juego) son también puestas en el papel secundario, siendo Mashiro la que está siempre detrás de Misaki, y Rika dejada de lado, pero bueno hablaremos de esto en la sección que sigue, personajes.

-Personajes-

No quiero spoilear nada acerca de la historia y desarrollo de los personajes así que no entrare en detalles solo diré como se diferencian los del anime con los de la novela visual.

-Protagonista y Heroínas-

1. Masaya Hinata (Protagonista): bueno, simplemente lo dejaron de lado en el anime, pero en la novela visual su desarrollo en cada ruta de heroína lo hacen uno de los protagonistas más realistas que he visto.

2. Asuka Kurashina (Heroína): el desarrollo que tiene es completamente opuesto al del juego ya que es la heroína mas simple pero la que trae más cambios consigo como al final de su ruta que trae una revolución al mundo del FC y es la raíz de: ‘’Lo que importa en verdad es divertirse’’.

3. Misaki Tobisawa (Heroína): la heroína con el conflicto de: ‘’Si no me divierto por qué sigo volando?’’ ya que, al creer tener ‘’talento’’, pero no poder mejorar se desmorona, dejando de practicar FC para poder encontrar el valor de su esfuerzo, lográndolo así al final de su ruta donde su frustración se convierte en diversión.

4. Mashiro Arisaka (Heroína): la frustración y el deseo de ser mejor la convierten en una de las heroínas que más se esfuerza por mejorar sin tener ni un ‘’talento’’ en el que apoyarse, llegando de 0 a 100 dando todo de sí misma.

5. Rika Ichinose (Heroína): la estudiante sobresaliente, al tener una personalidad seria y no poder mostrar su verdadero ser, es una de las heroínas que se queda estancada y no puede mejorar hasta que llega a conocer a Masaya para así demostrar cuán lejos puede llegar al ser ella misma.

-Personajes de apoyo-

1. Aoi Kagami: una figura a seguir para Masaya y mentora del mismo, la conexión que tienen demuestra que tan importante es el uno para el otro.

2. Madoka Aoyagi: manager del grupo y un personaje que siempre esta pendiente de sus amigos.

3. Shion Aoyagi: un hombre con un gran espíritu, de no ser por el no existiría el club de FC.

4. Reiko Satou: a pesar de una ojou-sama es un personaje que se preocupa por sus compañeros y amigos, siendo así una fuente de resolución para Masaya y las Heroínas.

5. Shindou Kazunari: un personaje que demuestra una gran pasión por lo que practica, siendo así otra fuente de apoyo para Masaya y las Heroínas.

-Antagonistas-

1. Saki Inui: una persona de pocas palabras que solo quería encontrar a alguien que se divierta volando con ella.

2. Irina Avalon: la mente maestra detrás de la ‘’Bird Cage’’, en el anime se redime, pero en el juego simplemente acepta el hecho de haber disfrutado el espectáculo para luego decir que algún día les mostrara su verdadero FC.
Ambas, Saki e Irina son antagonistas bien construidas con motivaciones y deseos igual que los demás.

-Conclusión-
La adaptación no es mala, pero no logra transmitir el mismo sentimiento que la novela visual, las heroínas que son la fuente de todo en el juego, en el anime no son desarrolladas correctamente y el protagonista que es la conexión entre las diferentes rutas, es inexistente en la adaptación.

En mi opinión al ser un guión original el mensaje que quiere transmitir a lo largo del anime especialmente en el episodio final es solo el 20% de lo que te llega a transmitir en verdad la novela visual.

Si quieres ver lo hermosa que es esta historia y el mensaje que quiere transmitir, te recomiendo le des una oportunidad a la novela visual, no te arrepentirás, yo le di una oportunidad y puedo decir desde el fondo de mi corazón que fue hermoso haberlo hecho…

Bueno, aquí termina este escrito, si llegaste hasta aquí te lo agradezco de corazón, espero haberte ayudado con mi opinión y haber abierto una oportunidad para que juegues la novela visual.

Ahora sí me despido, te agradezco por haberme leído y que tengas buen día, espero poder encontrarnos nuevamente, matta ne…

''Una historia de chicas surcando el cielo y experimentando el amor''

AOKANA, 2016…

This was an anime that anyone who watched the first 2 episodes would have expected to be bad. I, for example, did not have high hopes. My girlfriend and I decided to watch it weekly as she was very excited about it and after the second episode, I wanted stop. At that point there was nothing overtly impressive about the show other than maybe the art, of which I felt at the time was wasted on a story like this. I whined to her about how the artistic world(island) it took place in looked so stunning, and it was wasted on this random anime. If ... I were to have rated this anime after the first two episodes, I probably would of given it a 4.

But, having finished the whole thing(to meet my special other's demands), I have to say, I have no regrets. I can even go back to the first two episodes and enjoy them now. This anime is genuinely good, it won't seem it at first, but once the story picks up, you'll be pleasantly surprised. The concept is actually very interesting and unique, the art is fantastic, and the story, while a little predictable, is very compelling. If you are out of "MUST WATCH" animes at the moment, I fullheartedly recommend this one.

So, Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm is about a sport called FC- Flying Circus is where 2 players, 1 vs 1 fight in the air at high speed, and gain points by touching buoys that are scattered in the air or by touching the enemy's back.

Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm is a special anime, I have yet to see a speical like this.
The sports focus also gives the satisfaction as it was Action, even though it doesn't have action is it.
Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm doesn't have any nudity, Ecchi or sexual moments, also called "Fanservice"- None.

It focuses on the FC itself, ... and less on the side, which is great, and can make the plot go on smoothly and well.
The story didn't have much of complication, it was basically their training, development, matches and tournaments, which were exciting matches, colorful and bright.
I don't remember the sound being something special, the Opening song was pretty catchy and fun to hear, but nothing else.

Characters develpoed there well, they had the times which they were at their best, and a bit when they weren't, but most of the anime was in a good spirit.
Also, the characters were really funny, and got well together (Some anime has the inside fights in a group, this anime doesn't really have that, besides a small time when they envyed each other).

The "bad" charaters weren't "evil" or so, they were pretty fine, and understandble, and people can also like them.

This anime is absolutely underrated, and I enjoyed watching that very much, It's light, and goes with a free spirit (No depressing or "feelings" scenes)
*In addition, no romance*

I rated everything 8/10- Story, Art, Sound, Character and Enjoyment.
In short, special anime, that you don't see around every day, and is recommended. Fits to everybody. :)

NOTE: This review may contain spoilers!

Story 8/10: The anime has interesting moments to see the characters' skills as a FC player as they grow and continue to improve themselves & as a team. They get to compete against various FC players from different schools.

Characters 8/10: Asuka is a newcomer to the school and the sport. She is also considered to be an underdog in the anime. Masaya is team's coach and understands the rules of FC. Mashiro is a young, talented player in FC and really loves Misaki. Misaki is an experienced player in FC. She is not a morning person and loves Udon! ... Madoka is the manager of the team. She is also caring and younger sister of Shion. Shion is captain of the team, and in his senior year. He is very passionate and experienced FC player, and is brother of Madoka.

Enjoyment 9/10: I wish Flying Circus became an official sport (especially for the Olympics)! Personally, this is not like any other sport animes you would typically see. The anime has a great animation and sound. I really enjoy watching the opening; it gives an insight to what the viewers can expect.

Overall 8.5/10: This anime is one of my favourites. It is definitely the one you should watch. Seeing the characters taking on the sport inspires and motivates you to try it as well. It can also motivate the viewers (especially the ones involved in sports) to never give up and to keep on trying. You can relate to the characters for the hardships they have endured and the lessons they have learned in the anime. I hope there is a season 2 in the future.

In an alternate world anti-gravity shoes are commonplace worldwide that allows the user to fly around in the sky practically. Thus came the creation of a game called ‘Flying Circus’ Asuka Kurashina is a transfer student who has no idea about anti-gravity shoes. After being introduced to the anti-gravity shoes and the sport ‘Flying Circus’ by Hinata Masaya and Misaki Tobisawa, Asuka then decides to join the ‘Flying Circus’ club bringing about its revival.

Now I’ll be the first to admit it, I didn’t think this anime was going to go anywhere and the subject of flying was going to be a small plot point ... whilst the series focusses on the romance aspects and such. Boy… was I wrong.


Story:
The story focusses on our main heroine Asuka Kurashina and her progression in the Flying circus team and we have the inclusion of other characters from Kunahama academy and their progression within the sport.

Initially the show starts off in what I perceived to be a stereotypical romance/harem anime. Asuka meets Hinata on the beach and helps her out. The anime however decides not to take the romantic route and focusses entirely on the sports aspect of the anime.

Story progression was steady throughout the show and I only feel that the rushed ending was the let-down for me. However what surprised me was that the show made me feel that some romantic elements were going to be included, but shifted focus away from what was in the visual novel, which in my opinion was a fantastic call.

Romance elements can distract the story of an anime unless that is the central theme. However being a sports anime the focus was entirely on the development of their skills and the determination of the characters to fight for the sport that they love.


Characters:
Asuka Kurashina is a ditsy and adorable girl who had aspirations of soaring through the skies as a child. When introduced to grav-shoes, Asuka initially struggles to use them and with the assistance of Hinata and Misaki, Asuka learns how to fly properly and after being persuaded to join the flying circus club Asuka’s skills in flying and as an all-rounder player excel greatly. Asuka’s relationships with other members in the group is solid and especially with Misaki which I will delve into.

Misaki Tobisawa is a stern and energetic girl who is personally my favourite character in the show. It was after introducing Asuka to flying circus that Misaki would try competing in the sport again. I felt Misaki’s development as a character was really tested after being beaten Kazunari Shindō. I really loved how the show goes about portraying the change in desire after losing to someone else and witnessing someone else better than you.

The last mentionable character is Hinata Masaya who is the coach of the flying circus team. Hinata acts as a mentor for Asuka and the others to help improve their game. Masaya is a lesser character in the anime in comparison to being the main protagonist of the visual novel.


Art:
Studio Gonzo does yet again a great job of animating this series, the use of 3D was apparent in some episodes, but I didn’t find it particularly distracting. Colours were vibrant, but character designs were nothing special if I’m honest.


Sound:
The sound was very good for the series. I haven’t listened to the OST yet, but particularly during the flying circus matches It was heavy with excitement and anticipation. The sound tracks did a good job to get me invested in the intense sports battles. "A-gain" by Ray was an excellent ending song for the anime and accompanied by the visuals of Asuka and Misaki highlighting the two’s close friendship and rivalry made it very enjoyable.


Final Verdict:
I was quite sure this anime would end up being another stereotypical adaptation of a romance visual novel and I was honestly quite surprised with the final product. Let’s get this straight Aokana is a sports anime, something I didn’t realize since old reliable Wikipedia branded It as a romance. When stripped away of its romantic elements you do have yourself an enjoyable show to watch. That doesn’t however mean it’s a justifiable show to recommend.

The anime started off quite slow actually. I also felt that there are a lot of other sports anime out there that could do equally as much justice as Aokana did, but just a difference in sports. I can see how the appeal of flying through the skies can make can the show an attractive proposition and to integrate a sport into this was a very good idea, to which I give the Reiko Yoshida applause.

The silly moments provided comedic relief weren’t anything too amusing and at times Misaki’s use of cat speech like ‘Nya’ can be annoying, though I'm just nit-picking the little things.


Overall I found this Aokana to be a very nice show about competitive flying sports. I recommend this to fans of sports anime looking for alternative sports to basketball or tennis. Those looking for romance elements won’t find any here, so scoot along.

I give Aokana a 7 out of 10 and a recommendation of trying the first four episodes. If you don’t like it then move on to something else after that.

Alternative recommendations for this are Ro-Kyu-Bu! A basketball anime with cutesy girls who aim to become better basketball players… Yeah... Sorry guys I don’t watch a lot of sports anime can’t find much else to compare this to if im honest.

Lastly I suggest trying a visual novel called. ‘If my heart had wings’ vastly different in terms of story as a group of highschoolers set out building a glider to soar through the open skies. It came to mind when i watched Aokana. If you like visual novels check it out.

Thanks for reading guys. Have a nice day!

Ao No Kanata No Four Rhythm was adapted from a VN so before the show aired, most people (including me) all assumed that there would be romance in this show. Turns out Studio Gonzo decided to go the different path by choosing the slice-of-life path. This caused some -- if not -- most people to dislike the show but not me. I thought this was an average relaxing slice-of-life show and that's it.


[Story]: (7/10)
In a world where flying is as simple as riding a bicycle, Four Rhythm Across the Blue is set in a world where people can take to the skies by using ... a technology called "Grav-shoes" which allows the wearer to fly to the skies. Aside from simple transportation, people also use these shoes in a competition called FC (Flying Circus). To score points, they either touch buoys floating above the ocean, or their opponent's backs.

I was really hyped for this series when I first heard about it back in October of last year. I was like "Flying Circus?, Drama and Romance?! Hell yeah, I'm watching this series". It was my most anticipated series of Winter 2016. Fast forward to January when the show started airing, my hype slowly died down after the 3rd or so episode. What slowly killed the hype for me? Lack of romance. If I wasn't expecting Romance in the beginning then I would have probably enjoyed this show a lot more I did right now.

There wasn't really anything interesting that occurred in the first half in terms of story. It's basically just an introduction to the characters, how the Flying Circus works which is surprisingly more complex than I thought it would be and a few Flying Circus matches which is so fun to watch because there was barely any still shots and it's all smooth and consistent. I want to talk more about the FC's rules. At first, I thought it would just be a simple race or touching the opponent's back to score a point but turns out there's more rules embedded in FC. It actually wasn't until the 2nd half where I completely understood how FC works. You know, just like Basketball. Simple yet somewhat complex if you're a beginner.

Now, the 2nd half, where the actual story begins. I wouldn't say the 2nd half is where the show redeemed itself but I can say that it's better than the first half. Basically, the 2nd half focuses on a certain someone introducing a new play style to FC which is honestly a dick move except it's a smart strategy Remember when Basketball didn't have those 24 second shot clock? That's how I'll explain the new play style. Since this is a non-spoiler review, I won't explain it in detail. Even with the new "innovative" play style introduced, it shows us how Asuka will never give up on FC and how she's still going to have fun playing FC

Last thing that I want to talk about is the comedy. The way they handled the show's comedy is horrible. Four Rhythm's comedy is a hit or miss and for the most part, it's a miss. There are a few hits though but like I said, the miss outweighs the amount of hits. For example, whenever Asuka show's her ditzy/clumsy side; instead of me laughing, I was annoyed. By the way, this is coming from a guy who has a thing for ditzy female characters. I think they're funny but there was something about Asuka's ditziness that didn't translate into "hahaha" but rather, into "agh, her annoying side".

If the show is going to have a second season then it's immediately going into my watch list because the final episode is the best episode that I have ever seen in Four Rhythm. Thought, it's a shame because it wasn't enough to save this series. The dogfight scene was just so amazing and Asuka's determination is one of the best that I've seen from her. Asuka was so close to being my favourite character in the series but that spot goes to someone else.
______________________________________________________________
[Art/Animation]: (10/10)
The Animation is simply beautiful. It completely fits with wherever the show is set and it looks so relaxing. It looks like they live in an island to me. The character designs are also amazing and if you look at the cover, you'll see Asuka's side boob. Yea..you'll see more of them side boobs in the 2nd half of the series. I already said this above and I'll say it again. The Dogfighting scenes are great..They're just so engaging and once a match ends, you'll want to watch more Flying Circus matches. There's also barely any still shots which makes the matches more exciting to watch.
______________________________________________________________
[Sound]: (9/10)
When I first heard the soundtrack that was playing in the PV, I knew that the show's soundtrack will be great and I guess I was right. The Dogfighting battle themes is where the soundtrack excels and every time I hear it, it gives me goosebumps and it makes the matches more exciting to watch. Now the OP and ED theme song(s)

The OP theme song is "Contrail ~Kiseki~" by Mami Kawada and the ED theme songs are "a-gain" by Ray and "Kimi Toita Sora" by Ray. I love Mami Kawada but I feel like this is, by far, her weakest song. It's not a bad song or anything and I didn't hate it but compared to her other songs, this is her weakest song. Four Rhythm's (VN version) OP "Wings of Courage", which was also sung by Mami Kawada, is 10 times better. Though, I'm glad they played "Wings of Courage" in the final episode during the final FC match. For the ED, Ray delivers again with her beautiful singing voice. If you've heard her previous songs then the ED theme song should sound similar to Nagi no Asuka's OP and Ano Natsu De Matteru OVA's OP.
______________________________________________________________
[Characters]: (7.5/10)
Take a look at the character's list and guess who the main character of the series is. If you think it's Masaya Hinata then you're dead wrong because he's basically a non-existent main character. He didn't have any serious role in the series other than training Asuka how to fly. Hell, he "didn't" even fly nor did he participate in any of the FC matches. He feels more like a side character to me. Though, they did explain in the show why Masaya doesn't participate in the FC anymore but it still bothered me that he's the supposed main character but all he was doing is coaching Asuka. If the series were to get a second season and Masaya flies again because Asuka inspired him to play in FC again then I will forgive Masaya's non-existent MC role here.

The character that felt like an actual Main Character is Asuka Kurashina. Not only does she get more character development than Masaya but she also gets more screentime than Masaya. Honestly, I love Asuka's character because of her passion in FC and her determination to never give up. Due to her determination, she manages to do (and master) a special move that is supposedly hard to do. At the first half, she's a ditzy, clumsy character who barely knows how to fly but in the second half, she's more of a strong female character who chased her passion and never gave up on FC even though she was horrible at flying. In the second half, she manages not only to fly but also master the special move.

The 2nd character that also felt like an actual MC than Masaya is Misaki Tobisawa. At first, I honestly did not like her because of her cliched personality. She loves to sleep and eat and the fact that she puts a "nya" at the end of her sentences is the sole reason why I didn't like her in the first half. However, in the 2nd half, I began to like her character and she became my most favourite character in the series. It's mostly because of her character development in the 2nd half.
______________________________________________________________
[Enjoyment]: (7.8/10)
Even though the show suffers from lack of romance and there's minimal drama in the series, I still enjoyed the series because of the FC matches and Asuka and Misaki's character in the 2nd half which was a lot better when they were first introduced.
______________________________________________________________
[VERDICT]
"Ao No Kanata No Four Rhythm" or "Four Rhythm Across the Blue" in English could have been something great if they stuck with the VN and made this series a 2 cour but instead what we got is an average/decent slice-of-life show about Flying Circus. If you're looking for a relaxing slice-of-life show that focuses on a fictional sport then this is for you. If you're looking for romance however, then I don't recommend this anime. You're better off playing the Visual Novel.

[OVERALL]: (7.5/10)


Pros:
+Relaxing Slice of Life show that's about a fictional sport
+FC matches are exciting to watch
+Outstanding Animation
+Great Soundtrack, most of it are battle themes that plays during FC
+Asuka's determination and passion in FC is what makes her a likable character
+Great and Exciting Ending

Cons:
-Gonzo deciding not to adapt the romance element from the source material.
-Comedy is mostly a miss
-Asuka's personality was annoying for the first 3-4 episodes

''True battle comes after losing.'' (Spoilers)

When I first watched the first episode I thought ''Wow, that was interesting and pretty bad at the same time. But just try not to drop it.'' I'm glad I didn't. This anime covered its bad parts and has become a lot better since the first episode. But still it has issues. They added drama and character developments in it but still with romance, better art and exciting music it could even deserve 9 out of 10.

Story: 7.5/10

The story is about a girl who always wanted to fly, luckily there is a invention that makes people fly : Flying ... Shoes. That girl moves to an island(?) and starts using that shoes. But she can't fly well so her new friends start teaching her how to fly. Her dreams came true! What a happy story... Anyway, the main plot is about an interesting sport called Flying Circus (FC) and she starts being into it (long story... Watch the first episode and you'll understand). Then she and her friends start doing FC, the male character becomes their coach/director and they want to go to tournaments. Yeah story is going like that. Actually what matters about the story is matches. Who is going to win and what kind of cool moves and strategies is s/he going to use?
I don't like the characters that so OP and wins every match from ep 1 to final, so this anime is not like that. In the first episode main character couldn't even fly stable. My only hope from the story was that (characters improve their skills) and it happened. And I liked the final. And they expressed their main idea well in the final. ''True battle comes after losing.'' (Well, a lot of losing) and you should have fun while you are trying to win.
The plot is classic sport or slice of life plot and it's interesting enough to continue so 7/10 is a fair score.

Art: 7/10

I generally didn't like the character designs but the match scenes and flying effects are really cool.

Sound: 7/10

I don't like the OP or ED so much but OSTs are actually good and relaxing.

Characters: 7/10

These kind of animes characters and enjoyment is much more important than story. ''But the characters are the worst part of this anime. They should've made the characters interesting. Even better art (character designs) would make them more interesting.'' I said when I first wrote this review. I still think it is one of the worst parts of this anime but when I kept watching I found the characters really interesting. They tried all characters to develop (which I liked) but it could be a lot better. Few episodes, the main focus was on the characters but not matches. We saw Misaki's real feels about the FC, Asuka and the ''FC King''. And Asuka was one of the most developed characters I've seen. The episode when she fell into the sea and she lost and she cried. Maybe the only time this anime used drama but it was good. The main problem is the male character. He is just directing the girls. 2 or 3 minutes we saw him flying but it surely wasn't enough.

Enjoyment: 7/10

At first it's really boring but I started to enjoy it after mid-season. Generally the match scenes are really enjoyable. You usually know who's gonna win but the tricks are really cool. But the main problem about the enjoyment is lack of comedy and especially romance.

Overall: 7/10

So here is my opinions about this series. Could be a lot better? Hell, yes. Is it bad? Hell, no :)

So I really liked this anime, it was very entertaining and the characters were really fun. I could really enjoy these epic battles, and the last episode made me really emotional, it is truly a great anime. One thing that bothers me a bit... is the lack of a bit more slice of life scenes and a bit more character development, I think it was just a bit rushed, not really much, but they could have done much more and it would have been a 10, I would fucking love this anime and it would be my favorite. But yeah overall an 8.