Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara

Watching Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara (Iroduku) is like a taking a journey into a storybook adventure. But in that adventure, there’s magic, creativity, and feelings that’s hard to be put into words alone. Produced by P.A. Works, I had high expectations for Iroduku considering their recent lineup. Being a powerhouse studio, P.A. Works has always captivated me with their wealth of ideas. From school life dramas to a dark thriller about vampires, this studio continues to establish themselves with their creativity.

To my delight, Iroduku turned out to be yet another show that made me realize how an original anime should be done. Believe me, ... this seemed like a hit or miss in the beginning that looked like an average modern teen soap opera. However, I would say not to judge too fast as the premise itself possesses great potential for a storyteller. From the beginning, we are introduced to the city of Nagasaki where magic is also part of normal life. We meet main female protagonist Hitomi Tsukishiro who happens to be a 17 year old descendant from a family of witches. What we know about her early on is that she has a disdain towards magic. It’s because she lost her sense with colors and also became distant with people. The plot involves her grandmother Kohaku who decides to send her 60 years into the past so they can reconnect. To be honest, this show became a modern fantasy about self-discovery even with the time travel gimmick. At the center of it is Hitomi Tsukishiro.

I’ll say right off the bat that the show will test a bit of the audience’s patience. The pacing in the beginning is slow and doesn’t jump over itself to sell its core concepts. But that’s not really a negative of the show. I came to realize that the directors wanted to help the characters grow especially with important relationships. From the first few episodes, it’s shown that Hitomi is not a sociable person and finds it difficult to open herself to others. That soon changes when she meets Yuito Aoi and the photography club. Through their influence, Hitomi begins to climb out of her shell. For some reason, Hitomi is also able to see Yuito’s colors in his drawings. This is important as it enables the both of them to connect on a more personal level.

Indeed, Iroduku shines best when it’s able to capitalize on the character relationship development. Hitomi and Yuito is a prominent example. The show commits to developing their relationship from strangers to close friends. It felt like the creators wanted us to experience both of their character growth alongside them. Significantly enough, Hitomi does develop from a withdrawn witch girl into a more mature woman. This is thanks to the positive influence of Kohaku Tsukishiro, who also joins the Photography Club later on. What I find interesting about Kohaku is her outgoing personality and loyalty to her friends. From the beginning, she seems like the opposite of Hitomi and is easily open to others. At the same time, she’s also a bit of a troublemaker for her experiments with magic at school. While I can’t say she is a flawless character, Kohaku brings in a lot of hope for character development. Hitomi begins to regain her sense of magic but also able to make new friends. It’s a very simple and acceptable way to see her character growth.

Now you may be questioning yourself if this show contains romance as part of its storytelling. While the show itself isn’t adamant on building romance, it does exist in some ways. As the story progresses, it seems Hitomi develops some feelings towards Yuito and vice versa. Their photography club president Shou Yamabuki also begins to show an attraction towards Hitomi. Meanwhile, there’s Asagi Kazeno in the club who has an obvious crush towards Shou. You get the idea. Not to mention, misunderstandings ensue early in the series when Kurumi (vice president of the photography club) took a video of Hitomi coming out of Yuito’s room. Romance angles exist in the show but really doesn’t overshadow the story’s flow. P.A. Works have been known to make anime with romance content that can get be stale and overly sensitive. Thankfully, Iroduku isn’t the case even though it exists.

Still, the big question to ask yourself is what’s the most you can get out of this show? At best, this show works in wonders as a character driven story with a creative modern fantasy atmosphere. Every character in the show brings something to the table for their role. The show’s main push though is Hitomi for her character growth and self-discovery. Whether you like it or not, the story focuses on her growing with more self-confidence and plays a central part in regaining her sense of magic. She even gets on better terms with characters like Asagi after the two understands each other more. Meanwhile, we also get some unique symbolisms. The most prominent one is the golden fish that symbolizes hope. Not only does Hitomi finds her own world now, she also grows to accept magic. This is also thanks to Kohaku’s presence as she wants to make her granddaughter happy. Magic plays a role and she wants Hitomi to experience the best out of it. As you may expect, the show also contains time travels tropes. But really, this isn’t a show about fixing the past but rather about changing a character in a positive way. I’m probably going easy on this show in some ways but everything felt like it flows so well from start to finish. From Hitomi joining the photography club to experiencing cultural festival together with friends, P.A. Works manages to sell this series as a modern coming of age fantasy.

Even if this show isn’t your cup of tea for its drama, the technical content is a feast for the eyes. P.A. Works once again manages to showcase their talent with high level production quality. It’s very well polished that makes the show itself look like a work of art. It’s easy to also accept the show as a modern fantasy with the relaxing setting and lush backgrounds. Magic itself is portrayed in aesthetic style with blending of unique colors. As it’s part of the plot, the show’s visuals manages to capture the essence of that at its finest. My only pet peeve is the character expressions. An easy finger to point at is Hitomi for having the same face for the majority of the show. I get the creators wanted to portray her as a withdrawn girl in the beginning but it’s hard to sometimes feel empathic about her on the surface. This is a contrast to pretty much almost every other character. As you may also expect, this show is very melancholic especially during some of the more emotional episodes. The theme songs reflects that as well along with voice mannerism in those cases.

There’s probably countless ways to accept this show but the simplest way is to embrace the character growth of the main protagonist, Hitomi. My initial impression of the show grew from a story about magic to how characters can change thanks to others’ influence. Character relationships play a big role for its ability to capture the significance of their growth. Once again, P.A. Works shows how valuable their original anime can be. And to me, I can’t help but recommend Iroduku for those who wants to experience more.

Just don't mess this up please...

Art/Sound:
The art and animation is phenomenal with outstanding lighting, detailed backgrounds and great character designs; the animation lacks some fluidity but is great overall. The sound is very good from the music to the voice acting to the OP.

Plot/Character:
The plot isn't complicated but rather is helped by the fantasy element of the anime, it isn't great but I can't argue that it's bad at all, the characters are generally well built with the MC being a typical shy girl that is common in hundreds of shows, yet for some reason, I can't seem to dislike her; mainly because of how ... good the relationships built between the characters are!

Overall:
The show is constantly interesting and the impressive visuals and lovable characters have me anticipating more. Please PA Works, don't fuck this up like you have with so many other shows with potential!
PS: I'm enjoying this more than I ever enjoyed Violet Evergarden.

rpehaSp shti si owh eht stryo swa triwten. y?wH eubCse it osed erytvhing ni eht worgn r.edor

*light spoilers follow*

"Kinda" colorblind person living in the present time is in angst and very sad because reasons and magic powers. Therefore, she travels back in time to join a school club in the past, falls in love with a teenager of her age and starts seeing colors again because feelings and happiness (assumably). Unicorns, rainbows and other nice stuff exist in the time where everything was better. Literally rainbows, not the meme. This is pretty much the stupidest reason I have heard for a time traveling story and ... the content surely is not making it any better. It's practically every school club thingie ever done except its selling point are the magic and time traveling stuff that simply exist and nothing more, so basically, there is no selling point.

The mc is simply awful, and has the personality of a suicidal toddler. y tho? Because she stops crying about her angsty side the second someone throws a goddamn magic toy at her. Her very existence is annoying and whenever she does anything or just is there, her whole presence is yelling "I am about to kill myself" but her pathetic personality quietly whispering "I can't do it." I paused the video first time in ep 1 at time stamp 7:30 and spend 5 minutes staring at her face that looked like this =( just to try and understand -- to figure out -- what is the point of her character. Why was this series made with some sort of pseudo-sad and borderline emo manner that is too bland and boring to be edgy and too stupid for me to give a damn about anything that she might or might not be feeling.

The time travelling concept itself is chaotically random to begin with. Grandma gives a hug and sends our mc in the year 2018 with nothing but a talking earring and a map with her. Good thing she happens to end up in just the right place and get instantly surrounded by characters who all seem to love her and not see what an uninteresting and sad person she is. Basically she is just a transfer student but for some reason, the series needed to be seasoned with some extra messy because -- well -- it can be done. Cool. The character development on the other hand makes no sense at all. Why couldn't this grill talk with people in her own timeline and stop being a lil bitch there? -- why this is possible in the current year but not in the original angsty timeline is beyond me.

The side characters and production all are decent, no problems there -- I would even praise the art if I thought it mattered -- but this thing is sucking because of the main lead is... this character and the series' excuse to even exist is beyond lame.

The only way I have been able to enjoy this thing at all is laughing at scenes such as our mc trying to open windows or asking people "what is a band-aid?" I like to imagine that she doesn't know these things not because she is from the future where they don't apparently exist, but because she is so fucking stupid.

'With fewer colors, you might come to understand some important things. '

If you were given the chance to use magic, what will you do? Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara, aka The World in Colors, is truly a beautiful show on the levels of Violet Evergarden and some films as well. But what breathes color into the show itself is the story, directed by Toshiya Shinohara, I have high hopes for this original written anime, and thus far it has been delivering quite well. Without further ado, lets dive right into this review.

Story / Character -9.5-
Set in a world sixty years from now, ... people living in the future have been utilizing magic to ease up their life. However, our female protagonist Hitomi hates magic. The beautiful colors everyone sees turns monochrome for her, nothing enlightens her and she seems to have no friends. Her grandmother, Kohaku, knowing well of Hitomi's situation, decides to send her sixty years back to meet her younger self, in hopes of helping Hitomi to overcome the situation. After some strange interactions, Hitomi finds herself in a stranger's house, and escapes from it. A few encounters later she starts making friends and has found her grandmother and even her great grandmother, albeit at that time they might as well just be their sister and mother. However strangely enough, she notices she has dropped her important azurite, an equipment (?) from the future, and sets out to look for it. Coincidentally, it was dropped on the stranger's house, whom she found was drawing. As she approaches him, she saw colors that she has never seen for ages starting to come in life surrounding her. But when Yuito, the stranger himself stops her, the world goes back to monochromatic.
With all these being said, this original story has a lot going for it at this point, the world building and the characters are very likable, and what enhances it by a LARGE MARGIN would be the art that im going to talk about next.

Art -10-
PA Works just outdone themselves, this show looks literally like cocaine but for your eyes. The background art is literally one of the best you can find in anime, the usage of colors and some indeed very unique camera angle really makes this show stand out from the rest this season. Character animations are very fluid and looks natural. Absolutely one of the best looking anime overall.

Sound -10-
As much as I want to give more credits to the voice acting on this show, what really steals the show is the OST, Opening and Ending. From the first episode I was already blown away from the soundtrack. The OST used are almost certainly beautiful, just as the show itself is. And as aforementioned, the OP/ED really isnt something I cant find myself ever skipping on, not only they look good, which Ive already strongly emphasized, but the song itself is, too, very impressive, especially the ED by Nagi Yanagi, one of my favourite artist.

Overall -10-
If you are still wondering what you should be watching for this season, this show has got you covered good. With an interesting premise this show I have really high hopes for, and I personally can see this show ending with a lot of ninjas cutting onions behind the scenes. As someone who draws, this show is like a godsend for those who appreciates art. By all means, I really hope this show gets to more people with this humble review as I feel as of now this show is seemingly unappreciated.

I feel that it’s safe to say that all stories in some essence are contrived. I mean these are works of fiction, fake stories concocted by a writer/s imagination. From characters, settings, plot conventions, conveniences, and anything else under the sun, the writer has full control to manipulate them however they wish. Of course this is only looking at a work in a very reductionist point of view. Because even if they are contrived, most don’t give off the air or feel of being one. Due to the fact of the creators embellishing their stories that makes their characters more compelling, the ... settings having a sense of place, and for the plot to come off as more “naturel”. Why is all this important? Well because Irozuku seems to be in conflict with two different elements, with one being the tale of self growth as a character and the other being a magical time travel romantic melodrama.

From the start off it’s easy to see that there was a good amount of effort put into the visuals of the show. With a show with the name color in its name, it does make sure to bring it to the screen with a vibrant color pallet being applied to almost everything. However sometimes the vibrancy doesn’t work in it’s favor when it comes to the characters as they come of as glossy making them at time look a bit plastic like. What also doesn’t help for their characters is their designs, at least their faces. While i’m kind of fine with most shows and their minimalist design of the faces this show takes a it a small step more that ends up being to far. With the nose being far to small, and thanks to the glossy look of the show almost non-existent, and that could also play in part with now the eyes looking a bit far apart from the face that they start to look like fish people.

Anyway the main story is about Hitomi, a girl from the future, where magic is commonplace and not the type where technology is advance that it’s like magic, but actual magic. Due to her very strained relationship with her mother, she has lost the color in her life. I don’t mean in a metaphorically melancholic way, but she has honestly become monochromatic colorblind. Then her grandmother comes and has some inkling of how her granddaughter feels and then she just sends her to the past, after which this series of events happen. Hitomi wakes up in some guys empty room, she “secretly” leaves but forgets her earing, she is seen by some people who happen to be the friends of the guy living in the room, she realizes she lost her earring, she finds the guy who lived in that room with her earing, and finally the guys drawing are the only thing that Hitomi can see in color, and mind you that this is just the first episode. It’s not all the small conveniences that are the problem, but how they constantly stack up on one another that makes them so forced and so contrived. Events like these happen every once in a while in the show, and across multiple episodes that it is easy to be taken out of the experience that it is trying to sell.

Now i’m not going to get into the whole time travel thing since that’s a whole beast i don’t care enough to go into it, other than it’s just kind of dumb. The magic i don’t mind as much and i’m fine having it be somewhat ambiguous. However it’s obvious how these are used as plot devices and probably the main vehicle why so many parts of the story just feel so forced.

It just leaves lingering questions of why the creators of this work would go to such lengths to create such extraneous plot lines for a show about personal growth. Sure this is an anime original and it was trying to be original in its premise from other derivative Japanese high school anime. But that’s just how far they went, only the premise. Since outside of the whole magic and time travel thing all that’s left is a dull school romantic melodrama. None of which are bad elements but the show does nothing to make them work in its favor. There’s not much about the romance that makes it really endearing or compelling. Especially with how all the characters are “coupled up” with the main couple, the childhood friends, and the other two. None of them are in actual relationships with each other but the show still makes a point to make it overtly obvious. Even when there’s romantic conflicts which make up most of the melodrama portion. Most of it is just eye rolling and annoying and makes me internally scream, "get on with it already"! These problems probably had more to do with the characters themselves. There’s not really much to them when it goes to characterization and personality since it’s rather basic and on the surface and the few who do have some character development, it’s also rather basic and isn’t really that well done. There’s not much about them that makes them really compelling. Even the main character and her developing from her angst into a better person in end is still a dull character.

Now the whole show isn’t that bad. The theme of self growth is rather consistent across the show and it does have moments that are rather good and touching. It even hits a really good stride during the last two or three episodes, even if it’s undermined by more plot contrivance. The production value is fine even if there are some poor decisions with the directing of the show like when it the POV of Hitomi but from her perspective she can still see color and then a few seconds later it turns to monochrome to make a point that she’s color blind in case it wasn’t obvious enough times.

In the end there’s not much that is worthwhile about this show. With a cast of just boring 2-dimensional characters. A plot that could have gone down a more simpler road while still maintaining it’s core theme, but opted for a more convoluted yet easily convenient one. There’s not much that hides the intrinsic contrivances of the story. Maybe the show should have upped the plastic look of the characters so the writing could have something to match with.

I think, and I believe that this anime has a lot of potential, and needs its improvements in different ways.
(This review contains light spoilers.)

Story: 8

The story could be better, but I was hoping for the main character to not be so clueless, I mean, she did come from a different world not knowing as much, I think she could've been improved if she was just a normal human being that looks up upon her life as a whole. I'm not saying that it's bad, or it's just downright stupid. I'm saying this like how I reflect upon the story, and how much I would ... love to reflect upon it many more times. This show has tons of potential, and I think that there is very little for them to improve on. I feel like they should've made Hitomi teleport somewhere else instead of the dudes house. Don't you think that's a little bit weird? (Yuito)
(Hitomi is waifu quality, and she can be. am i right or am i wrong?)

Art: 10

Wow, never have I seen such exquisite art on my laptop screen. This kind of art is something that they were very dedicated by putting together a sequential series, or perhaps a showcase of very many talented artists in one show. After watching the first few episodes, I believe that this anime makes very flawless art in many different aspects that I could never ever imagine of as myself, a human being. (or filthy weeb trash.) Getting to the point, the abstract art that you've seen today, which is from this anime, is something to behold and to get together with your friends, eating popcorn as you stare in awe of this stupendous art.
(Maybe I'm saying too much?)

Sound: 8

I love the opening theme song so much, and I think that makes me think about how it would better if Yuito were to be drawing the whole entire opening and ending as time flows in the full opening track. The ending as well could well, made from magic from Hitomi. Although she isn't a professional at magic, I think she would have the courage to do that and impress the others that watch the anime. The ending theme song makes me sad, and the sadness I feel is the happiness that gives me to enjoy the anime. I hope for this anime to make more better music. If you haven't listened to the full OP, then I highly suggest it. Also, be the one weeb that downloads and saves it to their library for the next 5 years. (that's me)

Character: 9

Hitomi is just a weird ass girl that doesn't know much about reality. She makes magic out of thin air, trying to impress Yuito. (Let's be real here, she is a waifu, and I think that every waifu is cute when they're just dumb out of their mind.)

Yuito should've went home earlier, and made sure Hitomi was safe and sound in her house to carry out his "deeds." (˵ ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°˵)

Kohaku is just another waifu that needs to be noticed in the anime. (waifus are deliciou- i mean what?)

All of the characters are just side characters. You don't need to worry about them rather than Yuito and Hitomi. (I ship them so hard. But I hope this won't be like there's romance on the last episode cause that's pretty dumb if you ask me.)

Enjoyment: 10
I was stumbling upon the fall anime list and saw this. I thought this would have a male lead, but it's always nice to have a woman as beautiful as Hitomi lead the show as the female lead. Though, I thought it was pretty tragic for her grandmother to cast her away from her, to a whole new parallel world, or maybe was it just on the other side of world? Who knows? But getting to the important part, I was just sitting down in my chair with my laptop open. I was watching this. Never have I regretted saying: "This show is gonna be terrible." Even though a show like this will amaze you by how talented the art that they show us, is something that we should be praising for. I have high hopes for this anime to improve as time passes by.

Overall: 9

I gotta admit, for a show this high for my ratings is something I would just wish for more episodes by going on my knees, crying and begging for more seasons as the future comes by. But you know the drill, once new anime has been aired, you know to not get so sad about something that's just on a screen. This is no more than just an ordinary screen, it's beautiful art in the making. I hope for the best for this anime!

Alright P.A. Works, what've you got up your sleeve this time?  Let's see...can't see colors; she's colorblind, that's kinda interesting.  Magic, sent back in time...ok, a time traveling series.  Could pose some problems, but I'm sure it won't bite them in the ass.  Hopefully.  Shinohara Toshiya as the series director.  Why does that name sound familiar?  Director of...NagiAsu?  Oh goddamnit.

Story:

In a version of Japan where magic is prominent, Tsukishiro Hitomi watches from afar at fireworks that she used to watch with her mother, only to see black and white.  All color is lost in her vision, and the world she lives in exists in an ... ashen gray.  Her grandmother, Kohaku, comes up to her and really without word or warning, sends her granddaughter back in time to the time when she was a student sixty years in the past.  It's here where Hitomi is forced upon an older world in hopes to help her and with the help of her grandmother's younger self, restore color to her granddaughter's world.

The mantra of P.A. Works and the company's main selling point are the original works they manage to pump out each year, hardly doing any actual adaptations of light novels or manga in favor of original stories.  Irozuku appears as the latest in the company's lineup with some very mixed results.  

The story focuses on Hitomi and her journey to break out of her shell, capitalizing on the themes on how important people are in our lives and that as long as you have someone close to you, you're never alone.  A simple plot with enough punch and potential to grant the viewer an emotional and powerful journey when done well.  But this is kind of the fault line where Irozuku borders on 'has potential' and 'wasted potential'.  The setup with a group of friends of mixed genders almost always has some kind of romantic subplot going in the background, which given the director's history of NagiAsu was assuredly guaranteed. 

While Hitomi is certainly at the forefront of the majority of the story, what ends up being a lacking component is how the rest of the characters around her are formulated as characters.  The story lumps up every one or two of her friends together for a character arc, showcasing their respective ups and downs in their personalities to Hitomi so that ultimately everyone grows as people.  Issue here is how uneventful everything feels.  The show never seems to reach a true emotional high point that makes it possible for me to give a damn, instead choosing to have several smaller bumps that little amount to a few shed tears instead of true emotional breakdown, a shame considering the validity of one given some of the cast's problems.  This problem ends up bleeding into Hitomi as well since while yes she does have significant change, it feels subtle enough to almost not matter, had it not been for the ending giving us a proper epilogue to the entire story.

Romantic subplots also plague this story (and many other of P.A.'s works), resulting in an expected, yet also very lukewarm result.  I don't understand why they thought that having a romance in a story where a girl is sent back 60 years in the past only to assuredly go back by the end was a good idea to begin with.  Honestly, the show could've just not made it so that there was any romance between the characters and it would almost assuredly have the same impact.  I actually feel like the show was constricting itself with it because it's like "Oh, we HAVE to have this tragic romance where they can't be together for tension" instead of just having the entire group just be really good friends.  The fact that it doesn't really go anywhere either does make it a harmless add-in, but also raises the question of what the point of having romance was to begin with.

Story-wise, the show's only true, major upside lies in its ending where everything is wrapped in a neat bow, glorifying the journey as an emotional rollercoaster of emotions.  The embellishment is kind of unreal for a good majority of the meandering that happens in the plot, but it serves to give the story a satisfying conclusion that it otherwise wouldn't have given the fact that it puts Hitomi's entire character arc into perspective.  It's probably the only aspect of the story that I like, which if nothing else, gives me hope that 'Hey, at least P.A. can do endings now'.  

Characters:

Hitomi herself is a depressing character, moping around for a majority of the plot due to her shy and walled-off nature where she's afraid to inconvenience people, hates her existence as a mage, and bears the burden of the conflict that she had with her mother.  Despite a potential breeding ground for growth, ultimately I don't really like Hitomi as a character.  It never feels like she's truly at the forefront of the story despite all of the other characters making her so.  She definitely has her moments in the spotlight where she does take initiative and acts on her own accord to not only better herself and hone in her qualities as a mage, but the majority of her character just doesn't feel like she does anything meaningful due to her innately shy and soft-spoken nature.  

Kohaku is the only other character that I feel has any real moments in the spotlight.  As Hitomi's grandmother de-aged sixty years, Kohaku serves as the spunky and outspoken character who loves magic, the complete opposite to her granddaughter.  While Kohaku doesn't really get a character arc herself, a lot of what she does serves to make the plot happen, showing us the amount of work she puts in to better herself as a mage and takes responsibility of what her older self has done.  

The rest of the cast suffers from honestly, not being all that memorable.  Chigusa, Sho, Kurumi, and Asagi all have their moments in the spotlight, but never to the point where their existence is validated enough beyond a part of the whole that is the 'group'.  Their respective claims to fame exist for maybe an episode or two at the most, which I feel is a shame considering the potential for this show.  The only standout character of 'The Group' is Aoi Yuito, an aspiring artist who while has a character arc in line with Hitomi, also suffers the same problems as her being that his innate character traits restrict the potential that he has.  Romantic subplot also makes his growth feel a lot less genuine than it could've been.  

Art:

If there's at least one thing that I love from P.A. Works, it's just how much they love their artwork.  At least for a majority of their projects.  Characters are drawn in the signature P.A. style with a bit more care put into them compared to Kuromukuro or Shirobako of projects past, and the background and panning shots rival that of KyoAni's quality.  Bright colors, a beautiful shimmer over everything, and impressive effects and utilization of CGI make for a visually stunning show that makes everything look that much nicer, especially with the fact that show has magic.

There're a lot of glitter effects in this show.  Shine and typical magical flair are common due to two of the main characters being mages by trade, so what we end up getting is a lot more 'movie magic' put into many scenes in order to add a unique charm to everything.  

Sound:

Both "17 Sai" by Haruka to Miyuki and "Mimei no Kimi to Hakumei no Mahou" by Nagi Yanagi act as somber pieces that exemplify the trapped and emotional feeling of Hitomi's journey.  (Or at least its potential)  You really get the feeling of growing outwardness with the OP and the somber qualities of Hitomi's lonely personality through these songs.  Aesthetics have always felt like P.A.'s strong point, and I'm glad that these tracks came out as good as they did.  

Personal Enjoyment:

I love P.A. Works as a company.  I really do.  But loving them is a real exercise in frustration because of how much hope I put into their works only for that hope to be slandered by the end result of their newest project.  It's gotten to a point that I kind of dread whatever comes next and coined the term 'Doing a P.A. Works' for myself whenever a show with potential ends up floundering at the end cause the execution is just poor.  Shinohara Toshiya was also a massive red flag for me considering NagiAsu is one of the biggest examples for how P.A. Works manages to falter its writing and potential towards the tail end of a series, especially due to love triangles and tension within the group because of that.

But Irozuku doesn't manage the same as its predecessors, instead having a new trend of: A story with good potential, floundered middle, and a good end.  I don't like this pattern, but it's a new one for the company nonetheless.  It feels to me almost like P.A. played it safe this time, choosing to go for what they normally do but tone it back so much that any high impact moments feel like a light tap instead of a punch to the gut that it probably should've been so that they don't screw up so badly by doing something like 'Pull a Charlotte'.  The end of that created a lukewarm series that feels like it accomplished sort of what it wanted to do, but did it in a way that made whatever was being show only have a subtle enough impact to insinuate that SOMETHING happened, but maybe not.  

Really I stand at a bit of an impasse with P.A. this time cause it's not like they ruined what they made.  Quite the opposite really considering I was extremely afraid of the inherent problem of a time traveler who has to go back going back in time and falling in love with someone from the past.  It ended exactly how I wanted (and expected) it to despite the romantic subplot, and for that I breathe a sigh of relief.  Still, even with the ending being as good if not a little better than what I expected it to be, I still don't find Irozuku to be little more than something that deserved a better execution than what it got.

As such, I can't really recommend this show cause I can't give a proper assessment on account of the fact that it doesn't sit right with me.  It's not great, it's not terrible, it's not average cause it has too many problems in its middle portion to just be a 'meh' product, but it's not so bad that it doesn't have its good points.  So honestly, make your own judgment on whether or not this is worth a watch.  As for me, I hope that we don't get another Shinohara Toshiya for a long while.  Irozuku is a lot less heavy-handed and stressful than NagiAsu is to watch, but assessing his works and by extension anything P.A. Works does takes up a lot of time.  I blame on the fact that I care about the company too much.

A underrated hidden gem of the fall season.This show actually depicts the literal and true meaning of colors in life. Another good thing it's an original series which makes it quite more interesting..

The start of the series begins in a world sixty years from now, people where people have incorporated using various magic to ease up their life.
But our female protagonist Hitomi who comes from a family of magicians hates magic. The very irony.
Also she has another dilemma color blindness. The cause? Quite a mystery. She's doesn't feel much joy from life. Leads quite a monotonous life.
Her grandmother, Kohaku, knowing what hitomi ... is going through, decides to send her sixty years back to meet her younger self, in hopes of helping Hitomi to overcome the situation.
And now the Story begins with hitomi living life in the past along with the grandmother and her other school friends.

Characters 7/10
Our female Mc Hitomi. As I said earlier at the start she is quite the typical shy, a little slight depressed, quiet character.She doesn't like magic due to apparent reasons. But throughout the series she shows slow but good character development from liking, learning and using magic to opening up with her emotions and learning to enjoy life more.
Quite pleasant to watch.

Our male Mc Aoi. Quite the normal Mc at first, but more to him than meets the eye. A excellent artist with his drawings. Sensible and smart. But still has some personal problems with his motivation and desire to draw and create art.

Interesting thing, the only place Hitomi can see colors is Aoi's drawings, which literally come to life for her, Magic? well you can find that for yourselves. Obviously she is mysteriously attracted to it, curious and wanting to see more. Aoi on the other hand with his problems is also intrigued by this unique situation as he later gets to know about her color blindness.
So now both share and develop a unique bonding & start trying to figure out and indirectly help with each others situation, while growing closer to each other at the same time.
At the few end episodes of the series a strong hint of romance is indicated between them

Then there is the grandmother or lets say the young version of grandmother Kohaku. She is for me the MVP of the series. A Joyful, carefree girl who is not only smart and skilled at magic, but also knows how to play the wingman for our two MC's.
She also can be a serious & sensible person who you can rely for advice and help in need. Great character and waifu material for sure.

The Other side characters are interesting too. They provide good entertainment to the main story and support to the MC's and have bit of decent development to their personalities as well.
They don't have any extra ordinary qualities, but i really like it, mainly because of how good the relationships built between the characters are.
Story 8/10

The plot is a combination of Slice of life, Magic and Romance. Magic is the main concept, which is definitely shown and represented in abundance and in quality.

The story presented to be honest is a bit complicated but rather it is really well supported by the supernatural and fantasy element with a bit of emotions and feels thrown into the mix.
The Beautiful concept and application of Magic is displayed which along with the stunning visual scenarios can be breathtaking at times for real.


It just shows us how beautiful and deep meaning colors have in our life, which depicting every bit of deep emotions.
Hitomi's character especially when we see the monochrome view through her perspective, we realize how dull and monotonous life is without colors, not literally but the actual color of life.
Also,most of the times it maintains its the simplicity which is really enjoyable

One thing i was slightly disappointed was they took a bit of time for story progress and mainly character development, and very less amount of drama and romance. Which was later a bit rushed and incorporated in the final few episodes.
They could have done better in that department considering its a original series.

Art 10/10
The Best part of the series and i mean for real. like literally if i could say If any anime could come close to Violet Evergarden in terms of animation this year. It would be this series

I mean PA Works just outdone themselves, i mean literally blew me out of my seat from the first episode and got me hooked The background art is literally one of the best you can find in anime,the multi admirable display and usage of colors and some indeed very well captured unique camera angles and beautiful sceneries, literally makes this show stand out from the rest.
Character animations are very smooth and looks natural. Absolutely top quality animations. Mad respect again to PA Works. I would watch it again Just for the Art and animation.

Sound 9/10
I want to appreciate voice acting on this show and the background sound track, really well done. But more than that, i want to give a heartfelt applause to really to the OST, both Opening and Ending tracks.
From the first episode I was already like *WOW* from the soundtracks. The OST used are almost certainly beautiful, just as the show itself is, its really heartwarming and melodic.

On a side note i really love the ED "Mimei no Kimi to Hakumei no Mahou" sung by Nagi Yanagi, what a talent. The song itself is so melancholic and soothing with the amazing animation again.
It just makes me wanna close my eyes and let the song take me away for real.

Conclusion
I would just say, please watch it. This show is really amazing and consistent with its Stunning mind blowing, Visuals,Satisfying plot, likable characters, the wonderful world of colorful Magic and a bit of a powerful message to the meaning of people and colors in life.
Lets just say how the right people bring different colors to your life. Great Job PA works again wonderful work done right.
It started unexpectedly for me but this series still made me craving for more right to the end. Good stuff.

Find people who bring color into your life!

If you're looking for a very emotional anime filled with bittersweetness and beautiful art, you just found the perfect one!

From the start of first episode, I already knew I was gonna love this show. I don't even need to mention the art, cause anyone can see that it is truly a masterpiece. One of the most aesthetically pleasing anime I've ever seen! Just the art itself makes me wanna cry.

I've enjoyed every second of every episode so far, always thinking in the back of my mind that I really don't want this anime to end... The story is ... so full of meaning, love, friendship, self confidence, and growing up issues. Wow I sound so cringe. But this show really got to me, you know.

Every character seems so genuine and passionate. Hitomi had to go to the past to be able to find and express her true self. She finally opened up and saw herself surrounded by friends. Yet she is meant to be living 60 years in the future, when all of those people are already much older and have already lived most of their lives. Hitomi felt wanted for the first time in her life, however she has to choose between staying there or going back to the future, where her life's meant to be lived.

I've been preparing myself for all the tears that are about to come with this show's ending, but I don't think I'm ready for it at all. I just keep wondering on what's gonna happen if she stays and what's gonna happen if she goes back. Their lives are gonna be forever changed, and I'm so here to see it all.

Beautiful anime, please watch it and cry with me.

An amazing anime. Totally recommend it!

Why?

The plots and the arts are just outstanding. Just beginning of the first episode, it has already displayed amazing talents to be one of the best anime of the year.
Also, because it's about TIME TRAVEL, when it's time travel there's always this suspense element, suspecting if Hitomi's going to end up with Aoi or they are forced to separate after that. Besides that, I love the opening and the ending of the anime, also totally worth listening to. In addition, every time watching it, it has the right feels that hit you that grabs your attention and makes you to ... be dedicated to it. The characters are all awesome especially Yuito and Aoi. (Most probably gonna be a sad ship)

In a nutshell, it's an outstanding anime that has the right story, art, sound, character and enjoyment. Any anime fans should never miss it, if you do you will regret it for the rest of your life until you actually watch it! So, go watch it now!

Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara is beautiful in each and every aspect. I’m so glad I stumbled upon it and decided to watch it as it left me with a huge impact despite its simpleness

This anime might not be everyone’s cup of tea. A lot of ppl may have found Hitomi (MC) annoying or boring and what not, but for me, I could genuinely relate to her.
While watching her I could see a glimpse of myself back in school days...Does the feeling of loneliness, closing off yourself completely from others, not being able to talk even if you want to and people simply brushing you ... off as a shy or weird person rings bell, eh?
If it does then do give it a watch. You won’t regret it.

Having people who can truly understand you and accept you for who you are is truly a blessing because it helps not just you but also them to see their weaknesses and grow from it. And this is what the central message of this anime is.

All the characters are extremely charming. You just cannot not like any one of them.
And they have their own share of problems which is pretty relatable to each one of us
The elderly people were so nice. It made me feel how nice it must be having grandparents like that because I don’t really have any memories with mine.
Moreover the MC being color blind was really unique as you don’t get to see this kind of a storyline that often.
Also the story is not at all predictable. One of the main reasons is Ofcourse the time skip, because you never know how the story is going to end whenever time skip is involved.

This is one of those animes which I can rewatch without getting bored! I really liked it a lot..

Just an additional message from my side,
You are great as you are...If you don’t get along well with people around you that doesn’t mean you’re weird or that there’s anything wrong with you. It’s just that you haven’t met the right people meant for you yet...And you will definitely meet them one day! :)

I just have 3 words to say: SASUGA P.A. WORKS! Irozuku had all the Nagi no Asukara vibes yet it had it's own originality to set it apart from Nagi no Asukara. I absolutely loved watching Irozuku no Ashita Kara. From the story, to the characters, animation and music, they were all 10/10!!!

Story: It all started when Grandma Kohaku decided to send Hitomi back 60 years to the past. That's when all the feels and romance started. It was as if fate had intervened. Hitomi ended up in Yuito's room and met Yuito when he was drawing. That was when she realized she could see ... the colors in his drawing. At first Yuito was surprised, but as the two of them bonded together in the same club, romance started to fill the air as both fell in love with each other. They both went out with each other, chased each other down the street, and hugged each other in a final act of love. Alas, Hitomi had to return to her timeline, but that was not the end of their relationship just yet. Something interfered with Kohaku's magic and sent both Yuito and Hitomi to another world, a dull world. However, as Hitomi and Yuito both confessed to and hugged each other, the curse of Hitomi started to break apart, and Hitomi realized that she could finally see color again. After saying their final goodbyes, Hitomi was finally sent back to the future. God I feel like I'm writing a romance novel. In other story, this story is about Hitomi's growth as a person as she interacts with other characters. At first, she was cold, shy and rather aloof. However, she soon becomes a warm and friendly person, willing to talk to others and help them. I love how the characters interacted with one another and the various ships associated with them. Sho X Asagi, Kurumi X Chigusa and the stars of the show, Hitomi X Yuito. The story is also heartwarming full of feels! I cried while watching certain episodes. Overall a 10/10 story. The only criticism I can give is they rushed the middle of the anime a bit so there's a bit of inconsistency when it comes to the pacing of the show.
Rating: 10/10

Animation: You know that animation will be on point when P.A. Works is the one animating the anime. The animation was like Nagi no Asukara, PERFECTION! I loved the animation of the scenery, the characters, the magic effects, and of course, the fireworks!!! I also love how they put so much detail into the animation. The only criticism I can give is they botched up some of the animation for the last episode. Other than that, 10/10!
Rating: 10/10

Music/Sound
Again, it's P.A. Works, so the music is amazing!!! I love both the opening and especially the ending they're so beautiful and soothing to listen to. Mimei no imi to Hakumei no Mahou has become my top 5 songs for this year! The sound effects for magic casting are also great to hear!
Rating: 10/10

Characters: Ah yes the characters. P.A. Works did a pretty good job for the characters. There was just enough character development for each character to make us fall in love with them. I loved how they developed Hitomi's character. I already mentioned it earlier so I'll skip her. Yuito is quite gentle but quite dense. Sho is the big brother character trying to protect and looking out for everyone. Asagi is the little sister character a soft and emotional character. Chigusa is the.... clown of the anime with all the jokes he makes and sometimes the insensitive things he says. Kurumi is probably the most level headed and smartest person out of the bunch? And of course, Kohaku the most cheerful and fun-loving character although she can get serious. I have a hard time choosing which is my favorite character but you know what, I'm gonna do something different and choose Hitomi as my favorite character for the show.
Rating: 10/10

Overall, my favorite anime for Fall 2018 season and possibly my top 5 anime for this year! I absolutely love Irozuku and I gotta thank P.A. Works for making such a heartwarming anime.

Final rating: 10/10

“I am sure we met to put color back in each other’s future.” - Yuito Aoi

🥇 9/10
Have you ever met someone and that person has changed your life forever? If yes, what would your life be, if you did not meet that person? Pretty amazing, isn’t it? This anime will take you to not anywhere far but in 2018, our modern world but with magic. Of course, not huge explosive magic or powerful energy beams, just small magics but they spice everything up making this show more unique.

🎬 Story - 7/10
I considered the story to be quite an ordinary school life story, but with the ... concept of magic, which did spice up the story to be more interesting. I did hope the show to contain more episodes, more storytelling would work very well in this show, but it has already reached my standard of what an anime story should be.

🎨 Animation - 9/10
This show consists of surprisingly high-quality art, colorful, not too vibrant or too dull, pretty much as expected from a show in the theme of ‘colors’.

🔈 Sound - 9/10
Overall pretty nice, beautiful, and relaxing soundtracks, really suit the theme of the anime, and giving off a magical vibe, as well as theme songs, as they match and express the emotions of the anime very well.

🕶 Characters - 8/10
Pretty nice and cute character designs, with the influence of the art, they even look better. Character development is shown, as well as their background and emotions, which pretty much explained everything their personality and actions. However, there might be some characters’ actions that could annoy or irritate you. Also, as I stated in the story section, more storytelling on the characters’ background would work very well.

🎉 Enjoyment - 9/10
Overall great animation, sound, and characters. I am pretty much impressed by this show, finding beauty and interest in it.

📌 Recommendations
If you are looking for some extraordinary drama-romance-school anime, anime with high-quality animation, or anime with nice soundtracks and theme songs, then I recommend this anime. Enjoy!

Iroduku is the epitome of all drama and slice of life anime. From the gorgeous art, pleasing soundtracks, and lovable characters, almost everything is perfect. It's a very touching anime with the intention of leaving a good impression with its viewers, teaching them a life lesson that'll change the way they perceive this world.

And they successfully pulled it off.

~[Story]~

This is the weakest part of this anime. It's still good. I love how the annoying love triangles didn't last long (they handled it really well), fights got resolved quickly (thank God they communicate!), and the long awaited confession scene was greatly executed. In ... my opinion, it's one of the best confession scenes out there. Who would've thought a piece of paper with a little bit of magic will result to one of the sweetest and most romantic scenes of all time?

However, just like what I said, it's still the weakest. In some episodes, it just felt flat. It became a bit boring to the point I once thought "Oh, just get it over with". I honestly watched an episode in 2x speed because of that.

I understand that they're laying the groundwork and the likes but it gets tiring. This happened around the middle part of the anime.

But thankfully, during the last parts, oh darn. Things finally picked up. Every episode is a rollercoaster of emotions. So many revelations, pivotal moments, and amazing character developments. Thank God I didn't drop this anime or else I wouldn't discover this precious gem and the priceless value it has.

They definitely made up for those boring episodes, rewarding its viewers with a thrilling rollercoaster ride filled with emotions and character developments which made everything so worth it and beautiful.

I just wish the ending was a bit better because they left one loose thread but it still tied everything up nicely.

Score: 9/10

~[Art]~

The art is very astounding. There are a lot of beautiful backgrounds. I took many screenshots while watching this series. I love how they portrayed the colors, and the black and white scenes. They really added a lot of depth to the whole anime.

Prepare to be amazed especially when the characters use magic. So beautiful.

However the character designs, especially the main guy, isn't my favorite. I don't understand how such a beautiful anime could have such a boring character designs. They're very lacklustre and barely complimented the gorgeous backgrounds. But, even with that, I still believe the art of this anime deserves praise.

Score: 10/10

~[Sound]~

The sound is the strongest part of this anime. It's very pleasant and has a calming effect. The OSTs are memorable, the ending's great, but the opening beats them all. 17 Sai is one of the best anime openings I've ever heard. When I first listened to the first few seconds of the song, I immediately knew this'd be my fave anime opening of Fall 2018.

They definitely added more impact to the scene and the creators inserted them at the right moment and shot. This resulted to a very memorable scenes that'll be remembered by its viewers for a long time.

Score: 10/10

~[Character]~

The characters are relatable and lovable. You'll immediately get immersed into their world and get attached with the people living in it. The main cast is the sort of people I want to meet and be friends with forever. They were a good influence to Hitomi and changed her for the better.

At the same time, you can tell how much everyone in this show cares for her. Whenever I see scenes depicting this, my heart always swell up with joy, and muttering "Ahh, thank God. Hitomi's not alone anymore".

Everyone also had great character development especially the main guy. I'm really proud of him and I'm glad I didn't think ill of him no matter how "boring" he may seem. I knew he'll have a great development. Same goes with Hitomi as well. I'm just really happy for her.

Oh and Asagi is #bestgirl definitely. I won't give out too much details but let me just say, they really did her character right.

It breaks my heart to leave them behind but I'll always remember the great things they did for Hitomi and how they made her feel belonged and loved.

Score: 10/10

~[Enjoyment]~

In this case, enjoyment = times I cried. And that's a lot especially on the last few episodes. Thank God I decided to wait for three weeks and binged them all in one day.

Plus, it didn't help either that I'm a huge crybaby. I was teary eyed for almost thirty minutes on one episode and literally cried for almost an hour while watching the last two episodes because my heart couldn't just take it anymore.

I won't delve too much into the details. Let me just say that make sure there are tissues beside you and prepare for a ride of fluctuating emotions. You can really tell that this show's playing with your heart on purpose.

Score: 10/10

~[Conclusion]~

Overall, Iroduku is a really beautiful and touching anime. This is the type that appeals more to the heart rather than the mind and after watching, it'd leave behind a good impression and a great life lesson. The story's good, the art's gorgeous, the sounds are pleasant, and the characters are memorable.

They handled a lot of tropes well and did everything related to it right. It's refreshing to see a new take on these clichéd scenes which made me love this anime even more. The romance was handled really great especially the confession scene. I'll always remember that scene fondly even though it broke my heart at the same time.

So if you're planning to watch this, prepare tissues and even though it's already obvious how it'd end from episode 1, it's still a great ride that you shouldn't miss out. Once it gets boring, just hang in there. It's only for a few episodes. I promise after that, things would pick up without giving you time to breathe. And most of all, prepare for a touching and bittersweet anime that'll change the way you perceive this world.

Ahhh, I'll truly miss this anime. Thank you for the wonderful memories, Iroduku and P.A. Works.

P.S.: This is the first ever anime from P.A. Works I've ever watched. I'm so excited for their future works!

This is probably the most beautiful anime I've ever seen. Somehow it manages to capture the incredible beauty that can be present in things that have to come to an end, without wallowing in tragedy like so many similar stories end up doing. Although it has a similar feel to AnoHana or Byousaku 5 Centimeter, in many ways it's actually telling the opposite story, a story perhaps more similar in nature to Hyouka.

Overall I would say that this anime has three dominant themes: impermanence, relationships, and emotions. It interacts with these three themes with three primary symbols: art, magic, and color. ... Cleverly, the symbols don't tie to just a single theme, but rather are connected to multiple themes.

For example, the theme of impermanence is explored through the existence of time magic, but it is also explored through art, as what is photography but a means to try to capture the moment? Further, Hitomi, the main character, is colorblind, but she sees color on occasion, though again that sight is impermanent. Overall, this theme generates a strong feeling of nostalgia, but rather than the traditional nostalgia of looking back to the past and wishing for its return, this nostalgia is forward looking, promising that the beauty of the past will be repeated in the future.

The second theme of relationships drives much of the story of the show, as Hitomi explores relationships with the people she meets in the past. Here the show does a good job of not confining the relationships to a single type, as Hitomi explores family relationships, friendly relationships, and romantic relationships. Her relationship with magic is directly tied to her relationship with her family, her relationship with art is tied to her relationship with her friends, and her relationship with color is tied to her romantic relationships. Overall, I love how the anime emphasizes the value of relationships despite the fact that they are not permanent in this life.

Finally, the theme of emotions is explored through both Hitomi and Yuito, who act as mirrors for each other, helping each other better come in contact with their own emotions. Hitomi's ability to see color is most directly tied to her emotions, but her emotions also show as she learns how to use magic from Kohaku, and in the art of her fellow club members. Watching Hitomi's emotions blooming is a beautiful experience.

One of the things that I really appreciated in Irozuku was that all of the characters felt like people you could actually meet in your day to day life. Certainly, this sacrifices a bit in terms of memorability, as none of the characters have the types of quirky personalities that are so often used in mainstream anime in lieu of true characterization, but to me it makes them all the more perfect.

I also loved the way that magic is portrayed in this series. So often magic is portrayed as simply a method for enhancing conflict, but here it is soft and gentle, a beautiful extension of the flow of life. I love it when people realize that magic would actually affect the world in more ways than simply changing the nature of battle; I also appreciate that the magic in this world is well suited to how the world works, with none of the magic changing things on the scale that would make the world a completely different place, except perhaps for reducing the need for therapists, self-help books, and feel-good styles of religion.

Finally, in close I return to the premise that this is simply the most beautiful anime I have ever seen. P.A. Works pulled out all the stops in making Irozuku live up to it's name: "So many colors, what a beautiful world." All of the nuance placed in the scenery is upheld by the nuance in the story and the relationships between the characters, leaving you filled with a gentle, beautiful appreciation for the wonder of life. Someday when we have matured a little more as humans, this is the type of story we will appreciate more than the stories of conflict that currently dominate our entertainment. May we one day enjoy living in such a peaceful and beautiful world.

To this day, Kimi ni Todoke remains one of my favorite rom-coms of all time, close to my heart in a way that few other series manage to touch. If I were to designate one reason above all else why it was able to sweep me away so completely, it’s that it takes place in a world that is fundamentally good. Everyone in Kimi ni Todoke is the best person they can possibly be, always ready to reach out a helping hand to guide each other through their troubles. The show’s world feels like a world that actively wants its characters to succeed, and the ... result is probably the single most comforting atmosphere in all of anime, a universe that I love diving into and snuggling under like a warm fluffy blanket on a winter’s day. It would be so easy for a show with this much heart on its sleeve to come off as overly saccharine, but thanks to the strength of its stellar cast, its production values, and Sawako herself being one of the smartest written anime protagonists of all time, it never tips into treacle. It’s a beautiful balancing act of warmth and compassion that I’ve never seen pulled off quite as well as it is there.

I bring all this up to say that Iroduku: The World in Colors captures that same essence better than any show since Kimi ni Todoke itself, and the result is probably my favorite show of the Fall 2018 season.

What makes Iroduku such a fantastic successor to Kimi ni Todoke’s throne of nice people doing nice things is just how well its premise and execution embrace the easy, un-posturing warmth that human interaction can be at its best. The story follows Hitomi, a girl from the future born to a family of witches with an obvious depression metaphor that keeps her from seeing colors. You might think that this concept would be enough to fill an entire world of storytelling possibilities all on its own, but nope; that’s just the set-up for the real story. The actual plot kicks in when Hitomi’s grandmother uses time magic to send her into her own childhood for reasons that aren’t immediately explained in-universe, but on a meta sense are very clearly an attempt to help her granddaughter work through her emotional issues. Thus, Hitomi finds herself transported sixty years into the past- a.k.a. our present- and doing her best to fit into normal life there, going to school, joining a club, connecting with her grandmother’s now-teenage self, and meeting a similarly disaffected boy whose drawings are the one thing she’s able to see in color, all while trying to figure out why her grandmother sent her back in the first place and what she’s supposed to do.

So yes, the fertile set-up of magic and time travel ends up being the skeleton for a very loose slice-of-life/romance tale, less interested in the mechanics of this unique take on the world and more in the emotional journeys of everyone in the photography and artistry club Hitomi ends up joining. But therein lies the subtle genius at the core of Iroduku’s story; while the mystical and magical elements aren’t the focus, they are still woven into the fabric of the narrative. In this world, magic is commonplace and common knowledge, but not in the sense like Harry Potter where it’s wizards and broomsticks around every corner; here, magic is integrated into life as we know it, not so much altering how the world operates as providing spice and flavor to a very familiar setting. This is a story about a normal group of teenagers living normal teenage lives that just happens to have magic dancing around the edges. It’s a story of a group of photography students who care for each other and want to see each other succeed, of the bonds they share and the bonds they form, of the passion they have for their art and how they use it to prop each other up, and all the while Hitomi and her grandmother are able to provide visual splendor to the emotions everyone’s feeling with a single wave of they improvised Pocky wands.

And that’s what I love about this show; it’s magical realism where the magic truly feels real, and reality truly feels magical. If magic actually existed in an otherwise normal interpretation of our universe, this is exactly how I imagine it would be implemented; as something familiar yet exciting, in powders and potions that everyone can use but not everyone can make, creating splashy effects to enhance school projects and demonstrations, a collector’s item for adventurous souls who love to experiment, a recipe one can brew up with patience and time, baked into every subtle facet of these ordinary, extraordinary lives its characters lead. I love watching them use water magic to walk on water for a club presentation like one might use a fog machine. I love watching Hitomi learn to cook up enchanted sand as if it were a real recipe with components that can run dry and a clear process to its creation. I love how alive this world feels, how utterly gorgeous its reflection of reality is. Admittedly, I am the biggest slut in existence for exactly this kind of heartfelt confectionary, ESPECIALLY the pastel rainbow color palette that makes every ray of light feel like it’s been reflected through a million stained glass windows before reaching the earth. But thanks to just how goddamn staggering the production values are (seriously, even in a year with Violet Evergarden this show is remarkable in its beauty) and how warm the character interactions are, it manages to feel truly whimsical, capturing a flee-flying spirit of imagination and wonder that makes the world feel as alive to us as it does to Hitomi as she gradually opens her shell up.

While I compare this show heavily to Kimi ni Todoke, it isn’t following that show’s exact framework. Kimi ni Todoke was very focused on character writing, on making each individual player in its world feel as alive and vibrant as humanly possible. It was a show where I could look at each character and recognize them as a fully fleshed-out creation with their own thoughts, feelings, and desires. That’s not the case with Iroduku; no one in this show, except perhaps Hitomi’s wonderfully rambunctious teenage grandmother, is complex or memorable enough to carry the story on their own. The strength of this cast comes from their interactions and how their warmth all feeds into each other, which explains why the first and last episodes, in which Hitomi has alternatively not yet formed those connections and is leaving them behind, are easily and unfortunately the weakest episodes of the show. The character writing just isn’t strong enough to support them on their own. Thankfully, it makes up the slack with its situation writing: when Iroduku’s characters talk, they feel like real people having real conversations about real issues, like I could step through the screen and join right in with them. What helps capture this feeling of naturalism is that the dialogue writing is very good at saying just as much as it needs to and nothing more. The characters will occasionally speak in emotional exposition, laying out the groundwork of their emotional states, but it never goes so far as to spell out the conclusions you’re supposed to reach. It just lets these characters reveal as much as they need to, and leaves the unspoken end result of those conversations to hover in the air, providing texture to every single time these character interact from then on.

And nowhere is this clearer than in a handful of utterly breathtaking scenes that are too spoilery to properly explore in full. To speak without giving away the game, there are moments where Hitomi’s magic takes her into the color-filled drawings of the aforementioned artist boy, and if you know anything about art in fiction, it shouldn’t be a surprise that these moments end up delving deep into these characters’ psyches with metaphor and symbolism bubbling from the depths of this crayola-sketched world. But what truly makes them such a experience is that these metaphors are allowed to play themselves out in silence. The precise details of what’s going on in these surreal sequences don’t matter; what matters is the feeling they evoke. Which means you’re allowed to watch these abstract, almost avant-garde expressions of feeling just wash over you, getting you into the characters’ emotional headspaces better than any expositional dialogue would do. And it’s really goddamn powerful. I had to remind myself to breathe at several points, I was so entranced by the unspoken story playing out in front of me. It’s only once the magic is over and the characters have returned to their world that we get some context into what emotions and experiences formed the basis of all those metaphors, and once again, we’re only given just enough to “get it” without spoiling the mystique of the event itself. If for nothing else, you should watch Iroduku just for those few sequences; they’re really a sight to behold.

But in reality, you should watch Iroduku for so much more. You should watch it for its utterly gorgeous depiction of a world just a colorful hop removed from our own. You should watch it for the warmth of its cast and their immensely fun interactions. You should watch it for the timelessness of its reality, and the engrossing whimsy of it magic. And you should watch it for its poignant, affecting story of depression, hope, and learning to see color in a world of black and while. Iroduku: The World in Colors is a gorgeous feast for all senses, including the most important one: the heart.

This anime falls within the slow paced drama genres with some magic to spice things up, if you have watched 5cm per second, just because or your name then you have already essentially experienced all there is to this anime but the other shows did it better. So why bother watching? For the characters naturally and sadly this show fails horribly at it but to make this consistent I will express my views on the characters, story and then finally the art.

Characters(Hitomi *Spoilers*)

The characters in this show are so weak it is sad, our main character Hitomi to be blunt is stale, listless and easily ... forgettable. She has lost her sense of color since she was a child for an unknown reason, doesn't like magic cause reasons and therefore is anti-social and shy cause reasons. She most have had the worst childhood ever for her to be so negative just because she can't see colours, she doesn't talk to anyone at all clearly because in ep 2 she goes on about how no one has ever said they want to see her magic or
how it can make someone happy. This show also loves forcing drama down your throat making any tension painful unnatural or outright stupid. Example: ep2 she finally says she wants to see Shou's art, hooray finally wasn't so hard was it? Why was there even tension for such a simple question? When she sees it nothing happens end of issue. Yup that is it, queue credits lol. I find her genuinely frustrating, she is a character that is portrayed as some victim (Thanks to Shou and grandma) who is innocent but she is very much incompetent and self pitying. However, because I need to say what I like about this show, in terms of Hitomi I like how she is pretty, thanks P.A Works.

Shou is a typical edgy guy who is considered a loner but has a few close friends. Yet he must still be a edgy loner and uptight about everything apparently so he is I'll say mean to the obviously introverted Hitomi. Don't worry though they say opposites attract, he'll probably have some back story as to why he has got to be negative all the time.

Supporting characters are all cliche. Wow that was quick guess the root of this show's issues are the two main characters surprise surprise.

Story

We all know the story, if not read the summary. It is nothing special with only Hitomi's progression driving it which is a shame because I don't call asking a question then getting happy over someone saying something nice to you about the thing you hate progression. Well we are on ep 2 so fingers crossed this show can actually turn out to be good.

Edit: Hello, here from the future at ep 4, nothing has changed. It is so pathetic that I didn't even need to change my review I wrote from ep 2!

Art

Absolutely fantastic. The visuals are great and the show is pure eye candy. The only issue is that Hitomi seems to be permanently blushing for some reason... In-fact make that all the females hmmm.

Verdict: This show is average if you can look past the terrible characters. If you are like me and can't stand them it is simply bad, cringey and even frustrating to watch which is a huge shame because I'm a huge romance fan.

If you were to go back in time what would you do?
Would you use your powers to end up as a millionaire? Would you tell everyone that you came from the future and make predictions to become a deity? Would you do something actually INTERESTING?!
Well in this case, the MC is sent to the past to find her grandma (from the past, which makes her around the same age as the MC) in order to find a way to make the MC happier and see colors again (since she is colorblind).
You would think that in 60 years from now there would be a way to ... cure colorblindeness, I mean we already have glasses that allow colorblind people to see, but it doesnt seem like the anime is taking this into account.
Other than the awful story and plotholes, I also strongly dislike the characters (especially the main one). I dont know what it is but they are all just so damn stupid and cringy...
On the other hand, the Art style and the Sound is truly magnifiscent, but with the bad Story and Characters it feels like it has just gone to waste.
In the end, giving it a solid 5/10. <3

Color not only makes the world more beautiful but also expresses one’s innermost emotions. As Henri Matisse stated- “Color helps to express light—not the physical phenomenon, but the only light that really exists”, from which he clearly refers color as the mechanism through which abstract internal processes and emotions are realized.

Such can also be said for a series named Iroduku: The World in Colors (いろずく せかい の あした から Or Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara) (2018). This series showed the story of Tsukishiro Hitomi, a young mage who lost her sense of colors despite being ingrained with kaleidoscopic magic. On a night as monochrome as ... usual, amidst the fireworks spreading across the sky, her grandmother Tsukishiro Kohaku sent her sixty years back in time in order to find her true purpose.

This series beautifully showcased the gradual change in Tsukishiro Hitomi as she tried to overcome her condition with the support of her fellow classmates. I liked how she started seeing colors through the artworks made by Yuito Aoi despite seeing everything around her monochromatically, which not only helped her to find what her true purpose is but also rekindled Aoi’s passion for art. I also liked how this series depicted it’s key plot elements- Photography, Art & Magic with respect to its story.

There was a sequence of dialogues in this series that I really liked-

“You know, when it comes to pictures, you can never take the same one again. Different people lead different lives, and after dark, the same light that was on yesterday might not be today. And before you know it, the scenery changes, never to be the same again”-Yamabuki Shou. In my opinion, it beautifully expressed the significance of portraying the events of daily life through photograph, which was also one of key plot elements of this series.

This series had quite beautiful opening and ending songs. Especially I liked Mimei no Kimi to Hakumei no Mahou (みめい の 君 と はくめい の まほう) by Nagi Yanagi (なぎ やなぎ) (commonly known as Yanaginagi) (Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara Ending Song) the most.

I really liked the overall animation of this series as well,as it was made by the studio named Progressive Animation Works, also known as P.A.Works which is famous for making animes made with picturesque animation style such as, Nagi no Asukara, Shiro Suna no Aquatope, Hanasaku Iroha, Sayonara no Asa ni Yakusoku no Hana wo Kazarou etc. Especially I liked how the studio illustrated the transition from monochrome state to color state in the opening sequence, as well as the ending sequence of every episodes so beautifully.

Need to mention that, the place shown in this series is based on the city of Nagasaki, the capital of Nagasaki Prefecture.

Every season theres tons of new shows airing, and among those many shows theres always one underrated show which doesn't get the attention it deserves and in my opinion Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara was that.

Story:8

Its an emotional bittersweet anime and the story is a bit slow paced because our male lead (yuito) is terribly dense. The story was good but it had a lot of room for improvement, it had a lot of potential and could have been better in my opinion. to sum it up Its about a girl (Hitomi) who is sent back 60 years into the past by her grandmother (Kohaku), ... and during her time there she finally makes friends, falls in love and regains her ability to see colors as more lovable characters are introduced. I dont wanna spoil more than this because it would be better to watch and enjoy it for yourself.

Art/Sound:10

The art was extremely beautiful and detailed. When i began watching the series i didn't expect much but as soon as i got into it i was blown away, thats how good the art was. The characters were designed with an amazing amount of detail. The colors were bright stunning and perfectly suited to the anime about magic. The sound played a crucial part as well, every soundtrack perfectly matched the story and characters.

Overall:9

Its a simple story which does get complicated sometimes, i cant say it was perfect but i can say it was great and the reason i couldn't give it a 10 was because I was left with some unanswered questions. But that doesn't mean it wasn't good, other than a few minor problems this show was an amazing show in almost every aspect and i would totally recommend watching it as the art, colors and music were beautiful in my opinion. It was an emotional ride and every episode was extremely detailed and specially the last episode, it was really sad to see Hitomi go back.