H2O: Footprints in the Sand

H2O is about a boy, Hirose Takuma, who arrives in a village. He's blind, but a spirit called Otoha somehow heals his illness. Now, he befriends the people (mostly girls) there, and many dramatic events unfold.

The story in itself was really nice. It's sad, yet happy, and it's dramatic. It gives me a feeling of happiness when watching, but also a sad feeling. And whilst it was really good, it was way too sudden at times though. And the jump-the-shark episode (episode 8) kind of ruined things, but I'm glad that it returned to normal after that episode. Anyway, this story was great IMO. Oh, ... and the last episode just couldn't settle on an end, which was irritating. I mean, first, I was somewhat at comfort with the first "ending". But not at all, suddenly something else happens, and the end has different outlook. I got used to that too, though. Then, at the last second, yet another thing happens. In the end, I wasn't sure whether I should cry of disappointment or happiness. In retrospect, I think I can say for certain that I liked the end though.

All in all, the story had its flaws and sudden moments, and one dreadful episode. The last episode couldn't settle on an end until the very last second. Despite these bad things, it was really enjoyable.

The animation wasn't anything spectacular, but it wasn't completely average either. Therefore, I am not sure what I can say about it either. I guess you will have to watch for yourselves, really.

Officially, I'm in love with this anime's soundtrack. Both the OP and ED themes were fantastic songs, and there were some really nice, enjoyable and moody piano pieces in this anime as well. I'm a big fan of piano music in anime shows, so that's a definite plus. Basically, I'm sure that anyone who enjoys piano music will enjoy the soundtrack as well.

The characters in this anime were pretty good. I mean, this anime has some very interesting characters. One of them is the very annoying, self-glorificating Yui. You also have the rather, um... feminine, cross-dressing boy Hamaji. And then you do, of course, have the grumpy, old village elder. I mean, how come village elders are always rude jerks with no sense of compassion for others? It's kind of weird. But then again, this kind of series need a character like that.

Of course, you have the main character, a boy who changes everything upon coming to the village. There was something about his character which I found interesting, but also bits and parts which were annoying. I guess he was just too kind, really. But then, if he was not, there wouldn't have been a story, so I was kind of okay with it.

All in all, I somewhat liked this anime, even though it had it's flaws and some bad moments *cough*Episode 8*cough*.

To 'Not Helpful' voters (and you 'Helpful' voters too): Feedback greatly appreciated =)

H2O has been a really interesting anime to watch, it certainly is a show that you're either going to love, or hate.

Story: The story of this show is really a story that you will either enjoy from the beginning till the end, or start to question what the hell is going on and end up confused. IMO I enjoyed the story from beginning to end, they did have 2 certain episodes which I felt were not really necessary to have (ep 4, ep 8). I will say, I love animes that always gives me shocking moments that make me go OMGWTFWASTHATNOWAI! and H2O certainly give ... me plenty of those, this show will throw you plot twists or curve balls out of nowhere that will just smack you in the face while you are the least prepared. Some people hated that about the show but I found it really cool. One issue in this anime however is that there are times where a major event gets barely any explanation or it gets a lack of emphasis. Overall if you can overlook some of the plot holes the story gives you will end up enjoying this story.

Art: The art in H2O was nothing spectacular but it was by no means terrible, there were times where there was serious drop in quality but also times where everything looked gorgeous. But for the most part it kept a steady, fluent and nice animation quality that I enjoyed.

Sound: Hmmm nothing really stands out from their soundtrack (although there are some serious piano DUUUUNNNNN moments which makes me lol) but it was not a bad one, I rather enjoyed the ED song a lot.

Character: Ok wow, H2O is an anime that really knows how to make you hate others, you have the main girl Hayami being threated so badly and so inhumanely that you cannot help but just get pissed to all the ones doing harm to her. But in the center of this pot of hate the Grandfather of the Kagura family is probably the most hated anime character I have ever seen (move aside Makoto) by the end of this series you will wanna kill him with all your might. As for the other main characters, Hirose is your typical boy that gets into a chain of events and believes that doing the right thing blah blah blah...Kagura on the other hand I found had quite an interesting story to her and you could not help but feel sympathy for her at times. And for those who havent seen the show yet...I have 1 name that will make your skin crawl....Hamaji, that is all.

Enjoyment: I really enjoyed H2O, the last episodes leading to the final one were nothing short of intensity and heavy plot development. I will say that you better watch out for the last episode for you will WTF to the end of time.

Overall I think H2O is a good watch if you are looking for a romance/drama show that will make you spit your coffee while your drinking it because of what you've just seen, then this show is for you. H2O rocked my soul.

H2O: Footprints in the Sand is a Psychological, Supernatural, Romance anime about a blind junior-high boy (Takuma) who moves to a quite rural town. He is given the given the gift of sight in order for him to help the people who need it the most.

The story to H2O is very simple and easy to follow however it tends to randomly add developments, just to complicate matters. After the first couple episodes you will begin to wonder when all the unexplained stuff will be explained but there’s no real urgency with this series. There seems to be a number of underlining plots in the story ... such as: the family name and honour, bullying, spirits, etc. The problem with this is that the story doesn’t have any real focus and just brings up stuff for its own convenience, rather than focusing on the actual romance. Just like how Otoha randomly appears. But I guess it helps the series to be this way, so that each episode is able to focus on a different story, yet still managing to link with the next one.

The main aspect that let this anime down is the characters, seeing how hard it is not to hate some of them. It’s not really the character’s personalities but their actions and interaction that make some of them incredibly annoying to watch. The protagonist seemed interesting at first but after the first episode he lost his first unique aspect and became somewhat dull to watch. The only redeeming factor is that all the main characters get their own moment of development, in their own episode.

The animation quality is pretty decent with a vibrate colour palette and somewhat fluid movements however the character designs and their enlarged heads do ruin things a bit. Also the excessive use of CG for spinning objects is a bit noticeable. The music was great, with one memorable melody played throughout but it didn’t always feel like a part of the show. The constant high-pitch yelling of certain annoying girls didn’t help things, in the sound department either.

Overall H2O ended up being just another typical “visual novel” – to – “anime adaptation”, with plenty of potential but this was squandered after the major issue surrounding one of the main girls was resolved. For a short anime series, story didn’t really feel like it knew what direction it was heading in and a particular episode helped prove this point (eps. 8). In the end, with such mediocre characters and lack of focus and romance; just makes it easier to find a similar show to enjoy more but that doesn’t mean you won’t enjoy this series.