Nana and the movie, Almost Famous, is definitely on top of my favorites. Much like the latter title, this dealt with the coming-of-age of Koyuki, a seemingly ordinary kid with no interests in life until he found Beck and his owner. I have few complaints about the show, to be honest, but I did find that in the middle, it got a bit boring and there were times when I had to push myself to watch it to the end.
What I liked about the show is that the realistic portrayal of high school kids, like Koyuki and Saku. Just regular guys, despite their musical talents, even in school. There was no point in the series where it felt like they suddenly became overwhelmingly popular with their peers. There were no moments where the Power of Friendship overcame everything. Everything happens gradually, which makes you root for them by the last few episodes in the series.
That's not to say this series does not have its own share of loveable and larger-than-life characters. Chiba, for example, would be easy to turn into a caricature but he was nicely fleshed out and throughout the series, you get to see different sides of him. One of the reasons why I can't simply let go of this series is because of its characters. If I had to rank what makes this animanga great, characters is a step below the music.
Speaking of the music, this is where Beck shines the most. The music whether you listen to it in dubbed or subbed (I recommend the dubbed, honestly) is just plain ace! It's rock as we know it. British rock more like, but it felt like it evolved in the series to play a modern rock tune. (The last song 'Slip Out' particularly felt very Soundgarden-ish to me.) There's much to love for rock music fans, and if you're a musician, too, you would definitely sympathize with Koyuki's urge to play music.
Overall, watch this if you're a fan of rock and coming-of-age stories set in the world of music. If you're particular about the art styles and how perfectly animated the show might be, you might not like this as much but I still urge you to watch it. The art, somehow, grows in you. It just fits the show.
