Watashi no Ashinaga Ojisan

This is a part of Nippon Animation's World Masterpiece Theatre, and I believe it to a masterpiece indeed. The story chronicles the life of an orphan girl named Jerusha 'Judy' Abbot through her teen-aged years up to her young adulthood.
The many characters in this series truly have depth and are far from being one-dimensional - It is amazing that the writers can introduce such characters and without giving them hours upon hours of screen time are able to define their persona. The feelings and opinions of Judy that is conveyed through her actions, interactions ... with other characters, narrations, and letters (she writes them a lot - like a journal) are very sincere but most of all original and this makes a very interesting main character and a very interesting series.
The animation itself is very good, showing a very early late eighties to early nineties style with beautiful frame-by-frame hand-drawn characters and watercolour backgrounds - none of that cheap cg you get nowadays.
This anime is not a kiddy anime, it is suitable for all ages and not only children but adults will enjoy it as well, and are sure to appreciate the more complex storyline. This anime also slips in some nice americana and historical references in once in a while that is absent from the book (e.g. the first solo transatlantic flight by Charles Lindbergh on the Spirit of St. Louis in 1927). This is truly a classic anime that is not to be missed, especially if you are as big an anime fan as I am!
Once you have seen the first episode, you are sure to continue on and follow Judy throughout her adventures from a child yearning to break free from the shackles of an orphanage and attend school; to her coming of age years when she discovers love and has her first crush; and in high-school where she develops ambitions of becoming a writer and a fully independent woman!

My Daddy Long Legs is a World Masterpiece Theatre adaptation of the 1912 novel by Jean Webster. I first read the book when I was 18, at a friend's recommendation, then watched the anime adaptation afterwards. Just like many Nippon Animation adaptations that came before and after this one, it faithfully adapts all the good, the bad and the ugly from the source material, for better or for worse.

I will begin with "the good", as there truly is a lot of greatness in this story. The anime perfectly adapted everything that is so lovable and charming about the protagonist, Judy Abbott. She brightens up the ... lives of everyone around her and is a girl with a hidden talent for writing. An orphan thrown into the world of the upper class, we watch her grow as she navigates this alien world with wit and dignity. And though her friends and classmates seem stuck up and unlikable at first, they too change and grow as they learn to be more humble and kind like Judy.

The world that Judy is surrounded by truly feels alive. This is also helped by the stunning art direction and strong sound direction. We watch the seasons change and the students of Lincoln Memorial School slowly physically age over the course of their education. The anime is filled with subtle and quiet moments where Judy will self reflect on her current situation with breathtaking background art and establishing shots of nature or the New York cityscape. As I watched these characters change I grew very attached to them all over again, only wishing for their happiness. However, as I knew the entire story already before starting the anime, the feeling of dread loomed over me knowing that under this easygoing slice-of-life, the problems that plagued the original novel were just as poignant here in it's on-screen adaptation. As they are problems rooted in the premise itself, there is very little even an excellent adaptation could fix.

Now let's explore the elements which may be "the bad" to some. There are a lot of aspects of this anime and story with which many people will simply not resonate with. If you do not find Judy an enjoyable protagonist, the likelihood of you enjoying 40 episodes of her journey to adulthood is unlikely. The character design is very simplified; they don't appear very realistic and at times even resemble caricatures. The plots and twists were easy to follow even in the novel, since the source material was relatively short - this is even more so in the anime adaptation. It makes the plot easy to follow, but simultaneously it makes it predictable and many might find it boring or slow.

By far the biggest change in this anime adaptation worth noting was the setting - while the novel begins with Judy Abott completing her university education with the assistance of her benefactor, in the anime this was changed to her entering high school. This was likely done to make the story more palatable to a younger and broader audience, as many anime under the World Masterpiece Theatre umbrella were produced in a similar manner.

Finally, I would like to explore "the ugly". In the case of Daddy Long Legs, the new high school setting has become a growing problem as the already complicated relationship between Judy and her guardian only grows worse when viewed through the lens of an adolescent girl. And though this was what always plagued the original novel, all these issues become significantly magnified the moment that Judy's age was changed and thus had a very negative effect on my enjoyment of this adaptation. The scenes that made me uncomfortable in the novel become borderline unbearable in the anime adaptation because of this one simple change.

There is no way of putting this lightly - at its worst, the core of the plot revolves around a glorification of grooming. And as these issues were always there in the source material, perhaps it shows that this anime should have never been adapted as a shoujo story. A seinen or jousei direction and with the original university setting would make this a more faithful and slightly more palatable adaptation of the source material. As I continue to watch the anime it becomes more difficult to ignore its problems, despite the charming characters and anime production. By all means do watch it for yourself if you are intrigued but discretion is heavily advised.

This rating also reflects my personal views. First of all, Judy was only 14 years old when 27-year old Jervis met her. Why was he trying to touch her hand when they went out to the cafe? Judy was sixteen when Jervis kissed her. The constant focus of the camera to Jervis' eyes screamed pedophile. Who looks at minors with that gaze? Jervis stopped Judy from going to Sallie's house and forced her to go to his farm because he knows Judy will be happy if she sees him there. Jervis is basically trapping Judy with him by saying she doesn't know how cruel the ... world is. Judy wants to be independent but he kept insisting that she must depend on him. Fast forward, Judy finally knew Jervis was his secret daddy and seems like she forgot about how manipulative the man was. Jervis groomed her by gifting expensive things so whenever she thinks she doesn't want to be with him anymore, she will be reminded of all the things he had done for her. Jervis claims if he revealed that he was John Smith earlier, then he wouldn't have fallen in love with her. But let's be honest here. There was a woman his age and rich but he still chose Judy, not because he loves her, but because he is a pedo. He doesn't want women he can't control that's why he trains them young. He said he had fallen in love with Judy because she was innocent and honest. INNOCENT... He also said that she was fun. Of course, she's a child?! Then married her when she was 21 and still in college. If this is reality, Judy will either end up being a housewife for the rest of her life or she divorces her "daddy" because she wants to be in her own for once.

I believe Jerusha in the book started as 18 y.o. so I really don't get why the anime made Judy a minor.