So Ra No Wo To

Since I'm a musician I always give a try to those animes based on music themes, and this one is no exception, and maybe the best... music itself gives a lead to the storyline, that connects the characters, 5 girls who live in a kind of forgotten military outpost in the mountains...
The past and the present are mixed up through the sound of the bugle, legend and history have their own melodies in their every day life, which is a quite simple routine, although very emotional...
The art concept is warm and clean, the story as well as the environment have an attractive mood, ... characters are compelling with strong personalities and the sound, oh the sound... it goes on with you after you see every episode... good music is always powerful...
this is a very unique anime...
enjoy...

This is a greatly subjective review, that being said - a 10 is quite warranted.

I have watched anime all my life, not really an anime fan of sort. It's just that it's a normal thing here in my country. Even adults watch Dragon Ball Z here. In any case that means that I have watched plenty of it, plus all the other media I consume. My point is, it is rare to see something so well executed. Especially the last episode (out of the special 13th episode) where it all coalesced into a beautifully told story. I have watched a few musical animes, but this ... for me seems to be the best to tell how music can break barriers down.

There are no idols here, no lolis, just 5 women in a small town. That might sound boring on paper, but so does music.

This is a gem of an anime, has the same feel as Mushishi and to an extent - the same pace. The action is there to remove monotony and is peppered in enjoyable doses. It is of course, not perfect. Pacing could have been just a tad faster but still. It knows it will get twelve episodes and it never overreaches. I just hope they make a sequel about the old world.

Seriously though, listen to the story at the festival in the first episode. It will make everything in the twelfth episode so much more intense.

This is a gem and should be watched at least once in your life. :)

“On the outskirts of the country of Helvetia rests the tranquil town of Seize. Upon its cobbled streets, citizens go about their daily lives, undisturbed by the increasingly tense military relations between Helvetia and the neighboring Roman Empire. It is under these circumstances that the 1121st platoon of the Helvetian army, stationed at the Clocktower Fortress in Seize, receives a new recruit in the young and spirited Kanata Sorami. Having joined the military to fulfill her dream of learning to play the bugle, she excitedly accepts the tutelage of the Sergeant Major, Rio Kazumiya, who happens to be a skilled trumpeter. Working alongside them are ... the aloof mechanic, Noël Kannagi, the feisty gunner, Kureha Suminoya, and the compassionate Captain Felicia Heideman; together, they experience the beauty of life in Seize and the lasting joy of a community that has persevered in spite of the crumbling world around them.”
By: My Anime List

The characters are the most remarkable in the anime, although they are childish, each of them have a mature attitude of them when time suits, plus a character development or progression. Kanata Sorami is a young girl with the attitude of a kid, but with a determination to keep improving her ability with the trumpet. Noelle Kannagi, a sleepy, serious, and lazy in doing daily activities, although she is a hard-working perdón and becomes more social and expressive with others. Kureha Suminoya, a girl who wants the attention of her superiors and proud, but at the same time is brave and more friendly with the progress of the chapters. Rio Kazumiya, scream a lot, impatient, but she cares about her comrades and she act as a leader to be a example for the youngest. And Filicia Heideman, happy, kind, and is like the mother figure to others. Not only the protagonists had an evolution, the villagers also had an evolution thanks to the connections they had with the protagonist.

Although it sounds like a happy story because of the style of the characters' designs, the positivism of the protagonists in most of the chapters, and the music. Sometimes the anime can take an opposite route than expected, telling stories of war and teaching the side effects of war. Showing how their sufferings impelled them to continue advancing as a proof that they are alive for good or bad:

Filicia Heideman. she joined the armed Helvetian at a very young age, probably the same age as Kanata Sorami, aged of 15. Originally she was in 1147th platoon, participating in the Battle of Vinght and being the only survivor of her platoon. She saw how her other comrades died from the flames caused by the enemy. Shock and lost, she ended up trapped in an underground area, where she talked to a strange wounded soldier. When she talk to the soldier, he did not move his mouth, as if it were a hallucination or that he was a ghost from her lost. When she shouted that she wanted to live and be saved, she could see a small light that was expanding on the roof, she could see the Princess Illeya in that carpet of light, who saved her and who led reinforcement.

Or, Noel Kannagi, who is very knowledgeable about sciences and different cultures. Her extensive knowledge of science is likely due to the factor that was recruited by Colonel Hopkins to resurrect the "Invisible Reaper". He resurrected the Invisible Reaper, a biological weapon that was used to destroy three cities of the Roman Empire and, therefore, the Romans baptized it as "The Witch of Helvetia". Also, she knows about Filicias past. She was there or had a similar experience.

Something interesting that I had not noticed until now was that the story Rio Kazumiya was telling in the first episode was very similar to the event that happened in the last episode. "A winged demon come to live in the bottom of this valley. The demon breath fire, shook the ground, and cause people to suffer. Then, one day, I have kidnapped the maidens who lives in the fort, and locked them in an underground labyrinth. However the girls refused to give up, and called each other with the golden horns given by the Lord of heaven. Upon escaping the labyrinth, they gained the help of an enormous spider, and defeated the demon, taking its head. Once they'd done so, the head began spewing flame everywhere. If left alone, it would have burned the town above to ash. So, to keep the flames at bay, the maidens took turns embracing the demon's head. Everyday, the villagers would throw water on the maiden who held the flaming head. The flames lasted for a year, and then disappeared at last. And so the town created a water-throw festival, to commemorate the maidens who saved it”.

It’s referring to Colonel Hopkins (Demon of Vingt) who spread fear and doubt to the people causing instability to the people, suffering consequences such as the arrest of Naomi, and the protagonists having doubt of their ideals. Afterwards, the Colonel surrounded the town with his soldiers, leaving the protagonists cornered, although they did not surrender and kept their composure thanks to the words of Aisha. They mounted the giant spider, escaping from the village to head towards the center of the conflict, while immobilizing the movements of the Colonel and his soldiers. Upon arrival, Kanata Sorami used the trumpet to stop the war unsuccessfully, tried a second one that did work. Thus ending the war without any death and people consumed by the flame.

Or like in the first episode, when Kanata Sorami used the horns for the first time, some said that if it was the demon or that if it was awakened, and at in the last episode,she used efficiently the horn to stop a war.

My first impression: it's like a better _K-On_, set in a _Ghibli_-esque army. This turns out to be fairly accurate as far as it goes, but as I kept watching the next 2 episodes of _Sora no Woto_, I was struck even more by all the borrowings from other series. The already mentioned _K-On!_ bits, but then there's Sasaki from _Azumanga Daioh_, opening art copying _Elfen Lied_, the character Noël being the old Rei/Yuki ripoff, Kureha is just annoyingly tsundere (or is she instead a nod to a Class S subgenre character like one from _Marimite_? Couldn't watch it, so dunno.) And I was flabbergasted ... that in a post-apocalyptic nuclear war devastated medieval setting, the animators *still* managed to work in a ghost hunt in the school at night story! I await with interest and horror the cultural festival episode, the hot springs episode, the beach episode... ...And the onsen episode of _Sora no Woto_ was episode 5. I was only joking, animators, I didn't actually expect you to do it! It becomes better than it has any right to be for a good chunk of the series. And in particular, the backgrounds remained beautiful to the end. But unfortunately, the ending episode demonstrates why you can't cross _K-On!_ with _Now and Then, Here and There_ unless you are really good - it just comes off as a little bit silly.

I started watching this expecting something like a combination of K-on and Girls’ Last Tour, but got something that was less like the aforementioned series and more like a cross between Violet Evergarden and Yuru camp. It started off very slowly, so slowly as to be almost frustrating at times and to the point where I almost dropped it. I’m glad I didn’t, though, as the finale was impactful, satisfying and quite the tearjerker. Definitely worth sitting through the first 10 episodes.

My take on it is this: it is far from perfect. It spends ten out of twelve episodes moving at a very slow pace, ... and while that slow pace was good for fleshing out the characters and world-building, the sudden change of pace during the final two episodes, while welcome, is a little confusing and feels out-of-place. If the tone shift had been more gradual I might have given it another star. The characters (save for Noel and to a lesser extent Filicia) are also not very unique, but their interactions are enjoyable and fun to watch. There were also some needlessly sexualized moments (especially in the opening sequence) that felt out of place and a bit uncomfortable, and this is coming from someone who enjoys ecchi (at least to an extent).

However, it grows on you. Slowly but surely as you get to know the characters and setting little by little you start to love them, and their stories start to impact you more and more as you learn about their circumstances. You start to feel little bubbles of happiness rise within you every time Kanata gets better at playing the bugle, or when you see Noel smile. You start to really appreciate the beautiful art, music and crafty world building that form the essence of this show. And then in the finale you see everything come to a climax, and you’re left with a feeling of, “that was quite nice.”

Here’s my advice. For the first 10 episodes it’d be hard to watch more than one in a day. Try watching one before bed every night, they’re very relaxing and have helped me fall asleep more than once. Then, watch the final two episodes back to back.

My original rating for this was a 6, but it’s been bumped up to a 7. I’d say it’s pretty good.