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Jun 22, 2022
TLDR: This movie does everything it needs to do as an add-on to the main story of Fruits Basket. The focus is the relationship between Katsuya and Kyoko, a relationship which is extremely well done, as high quality as anything seen in seasons 1-3. The recap that comes before serves to add extra weight to the events and themes in Prelude by making sure the audience is up to date about the content of the main story. Though it pales in comparison to seeing the new content, and it feels disingenuous to call this a movie when 30 minutes is spent solely on recaps.
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Fruits Basket: Prelude is a love letter to the main story that every fan will love. It stays consistent with what fans loved about the series while adding extra depth to themes and ideas found in the show.
Before the movie truly begins about 30 minutes of runtime is dedicated to recapping events
seen in the 2nd and 3rd seasons (mostly the last episode). Since Fruits Basket was pretty dense, I feel most fans could find value in a small refresher. The recap serves an important role in the main plot by helping the audience recall crucial character details and themes that are found in the rest of the movie. It shares many similarities and connections to the main story, so keeping the audience up to date on these topics lets them more fully understand the complexities of Prelude. That being said it does drag on just a bit too long, I feel like the recap could have cut out a few scenes that didn’t need to be there. Luckily the majority is relevant to info that the audience actually wants to know.
The central plot of Fruits Basket: Prelude is carried by its main characters, of which there are practically only two. But while the number of characters is low, each one of them works so well to contribute to the story being told. The plot of Prelude is very simple, however, it is effective because the few characters that are present are so well done. The focus of the plot was obviously on Kyoko and Katsuya. With over an hour of content dedicated only to their relationship, I never once found myself even the slightest bit bored. Kyoko’s parents may be simple caricatures of typical abusive parents but they don’t overstay their welcome and even add to Kyoko’s characterization in interesting ways after they leave the story. The final scene of Kyo and Tohru together is honestly a more satisfying ending than the actual one the series gave us. Even the character with the least amount of screentime ( Tohru’s Grandfather) gets character development that makes perfect sense with his actions in the main story. His lessons about not trying to control his children’s lives connect back to his actions in the series when he lets Tohru go off on her own and live with Shigure. That little bit we get of him still connects back to the main story.
The plot itself is limited in the amount of tension and drama it can build since we already know how it's going to end. I’m glad that Prelude never dwells on one plot point for too long. Overall it's very fast-moving, hitting plot points quickly, but keeping the emotional impact that they need to keep the story meaningful. This felt very refreshing when compared to the anime (which from my memory moves a lot slower) it skips to the good parts and leaves behind a lot of the fat that Fruits Basket stories can sometimes have. It’s a great understanding of what the audience was looking for from Prelude: a story focused mainly on the relationship between Katsuya and Kyoko, not their individual struggles, but how they work together as characters, and what happens when that dynamic is taken away.
The art is neither breathtaking nor bad, it's just good enough that I couldn’t spot any quality drops, but nothing truly impressed me. Sound-wise I’d like to spotlight the VA’s because each of them does a terrific job, Kyoko's VA in particular sells the character perfectly.
While I wouldn’t call Fruits Basket: Prelude a masterpiece, I don’t think it was ever going to be one. As a prequel to a finished anime, Prelude can stand among seasons 1-3 of the anime in the quality of its writing and characters, while doing nothing drastic to elevate itself above that mark. A must-watch for Fruits Basket fans, Unremarkable to anyone else.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 31, 2022
BIG SPOILERS, IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY WATCHED THIS DO SO IMMEDIATELY
With the usual discussion surrounding this show solely mentioning how sad Kaori's death was, I came into this show thinking much less of it than I should've. I thought it'd be some one-trick pony and nothing else.
I was so glad to be wrong
Your Lie in April doesn’t have any glaring flaws that hamper its enjoyment or turn people off from it, it does everything a great show could, and that’s why it's loved. Relatable characters, a great setup and consistent plot, good music, and effective animation.
Some of
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the things in this show are so well done it makes me want to write on and on about my love for it, but I'll choose not to ramble on too much here.
Characters:
The characters in Your Lie in April grab your attention fiercely and make sure you’ll never forget them. Arima, Kaori, Tsubaki, Watari, and Nagi are so easily recognizable and relatable that they work very well as the show's core. Instead of having all the characters' lives be closely interlinked, we see them on their own time, going through their lives and expressing their desires without the presence of the rest of the supporting cast (besides Arima and Kaori, of course). This serves the purpose of trimming a lot of fat from the show because as it stands, the interactions themselves are very limited in suspense. It's why many of them feature a lot of comedy, when the melodrama runs high or a scene draws on for too long, there's often a quick gag that serves to add a bit of spice to the moment. The author knew that having the characters interact multiple times per episode would quickly run stale. I mean, there are only so many ways Tsubaki can physically assault Arima. I’m not saying they’re badly written, only that they become more interesting when left to their own thoughts. Because of this, during pivotal moments in the story where the characters are often forced together or into conflict, those moments stick out all the more as truly special when they’re played completely straight. Even while they’re acting on their own, most of Kimi No Uso’s characters present compelling and relatable stories that play around the central plot of Arima’s journey of personal growth. While the majority of the runtime is dedicated to his plotline, the supporting cast adds extra depth and meaning to his growth.
Animation:
Kimi, no Uso’s animation is unique among many other shows because of its character design which is much more detailed than similar anime. And while I’d call the designs themselves beautiful to look at, the animation never reaches jaw-dropping levels at any point. Instead Kimi no Uso uses limited animation extremely well. Across the 24 episodes, there are many scenes of static or lacking animation. In the comedic scenes especially the characters switch into a much less detailed animation style which helps the gags work better than they would have if the same art style were used. But it is because of this de-emphasis on animation in some scenes that Kimi no Uso’s artists were able to put more effort into areas where I think they really shined. While the animation may be lacking at times, all of the backgrounds are drawn in such beautiful detail that I can’t help but be sucked into each of the settings. The animators make up for lacking quality where it matters most. I was impressed by how well the movement was done during the musical performances. Their small bodily movements and how their fingers touched the keys had a lot of effort put into it. That along with the special effects like Arima’s “I can’t hear the notes” performances combine to make each musical piece seem like a larger-than-life showcase of artistic talent, both from the characters and the animators. Combining this with the pivotal character changes that accompany them makes for captivating scenes that I want to rewatch over and over again.
Plot:
Kimi No Uso’s plot centers around Kousei Arima, a genius musician who gave up the piano after his mother's death and who can no longer hear the notes of the piano. He and many of his other friends grow and change during a pivotal spot in their lives: middle school graduation. Kimi No Uso’s plot is centered around its characters and how they grow along with the overarching storyline. The plot happens when the characters make changes, so most of Kimi no Uso’s characters are very dynamic (Watari excluded, which is why there is so little screen time for him}. Given what I’ve said about the characters already, leaning onto them makes for a fantastic story. While I said that they spend much of their screen time without interacting with other characters, we see how many of their actions indirectly change each other's lives. When Kousei undergoes character changes, it's not just him we’re focused on, we get to see how it affects Kaori, Watari, and Tsubaki, making for engaging drama that is dense enough that it stays engaging for 24 episodes.
Enjoyment:
Admittedly, I’m a big fan of stories involving characters chasing distant dreams, so Kousei’s character arc was a huge point of interest for me. Most of Kaori’s arc never grabbed me very much, but that was only because I was spoiled for how that would end up. The part that DID grab came at the final episode and is something that will always stick in my mind and solidifies this show as truly something different from anything else I’ve watched. That moment was Kaori’s letter to Kousei. This letter does so many things that I love, it perfectly explains Kaori’s wild personality and her backstory which had been brushed off for the longest time without context. It completes her character and makes her even more likable, which adds to the impact her death has on the audience. It’s the perfect cap-off to Kaori’s and Arima’s relationship, somehow managing to create a satisfying conclusion to a story that was always destined to be incomplete. And what I think is the most significant, is it gives Kimi no Uso rewatch value. Not just rewatch it after you forget most of the plot points, like, as soon as you finished the series. I wanted to watch it all over again, each episode just noticing all the details and interactions and how they fit into the new context that we’ve been given. That’s a feeling I’ve never experienced before, and man do I love it.
Overall Kimi No Uso won’t rank as a top ten anime for me because of its lack of a huge draw that separates it from other high-level anime, (or maybe I just missed the main draw due to me getting spoiled for the ending). What sets Kimi No Uso apart from most shows is the clear effort that has been put into each of the working parts, its animation is efficient, the art is stunning when it needs to be, and the plot has a good base with plenty of turns to keep engagement high. All of this is centered around characters that truly define the show as something that can stand out among 99% of other anime. I’d watch this show over and over again and still find things to love about it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 15, 2022
When It comes to the slice of life genre, I feel there are two main appeals(aside from straight moe/fanservice). The relaxing vibes or the rich character dynamics.
If Yuru Camp is the golden standard of the former, I think Hyouka would be my pick for the best of the latter. A show that is carried solely by its characters, this is both why I love Hyouka while others hate it.
Hyouka's premise is kinda boring at its core, four friends, one genius, mysteries, go; There isn't much to bite into if you look at the premise itself, and this can grate on many people looking for a
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more attention-grabbing show.
I don't feel the same way, but I still have to dock points in the story department because even I can see how at times it seems like the plot refuses to move forward. If this show doesn't grab you, it REALLY won't work, which isn't common in most anime.
However, if slow but realistic character growth and mysteries click with you, this will absolutely be a treat to watch.Yonezawa Honobu is a master at using his characters in the best way possible.
At its core, Hyouka is driven by its characters instead of an overarching plot. Oreki, Chitanda, Satoshi, and Mayaka play off one another in the most compelling ways possible. I find that these characters are compelling because of how realistically they're portrayed. We see into the small details of their lives and how they struggle with grounded, realistic things. We see them change, little by little, with their worries about where they may be headed. Hyouka's characters skim the line between dynamic and stagnant, quite similar to how most people live. But when a character changes, it feels that much more impactful since we know their usual habits in detail. The audience feels what that change means to him/her. The realism of these characters draws us to them, inviting us to want to know more and see them grow. If these character changes were the sole premise of the show, however, it would turn out to be boring. Thankfully the show's many character interactions are framed around its mysteries.
These mysteries are inordinately small in scale, giving the characters more room to express themselves since they're not dealing with a life-or-death murder case. Oreki's pointless and amazing conversations with Satoshi wouldn't be welcome in a higher-stakes story. But here it serves to give the puzzle even more flavor. This is where the hook for the mysteries lies. by themselves, the cases have little excitement or energy to keep the audience with it. But the characters and their personal involvements make the audience care enough about these well-plotted but slow mysteries to look into them alongside the main cast. Hyouka might be missing exciting action or high stakes, but it more than makes up for it in its characters and how they interact with the mysteries.
This isn't to say the mysteries aren't engaging in their own right, but it can be hard to sell an audience on the "mystery of the locked door".The detail of the cases is where they shine. They may be simple in stakes but they are dense and well made, Each one gives the audience enough clues to figure out the mystery by themselves, but create such complex situations that it feels cathartic when Oreki can piece together both the theories of the other characters and the audience.But Oreki is no Holmes and none of the other characters are Watson.Every member of the Classic Club contributes in their own way to solve the case which lets them shine in their own way. Mayaka serves as a reference point to keep the other characters in check, Satoshi is a reliable database that the rest of the characters can consult, Chitanda drives the mystery forward with her enthusiasm, and Oreki is the one to put all the pieces in place.
The mysteries, small in scale as they are, serve a secondary purpose. That being the worldbuilding of Kamiyama High School. This takes us through the school's troubled past and its lively present giving us a complete picture of all its eccentricities, most notably its massive number of clubs. By the end of the show, I felt that Kamiyama was a real place that the characters had just begun to explore.
This is helped in large part by the astounding animation quality that makes Hyouka feel wildly different from much other anime because of its consistent attention to detail.Small things like background characters being almost as well-drawn as the protagonists and the constant attention to the time of day/weather make the show seem extremely believable. I usually expect periodic dips in quality as the animators try and save their time/energy, but there are no blemishes to be found throughout. It gives Hyouka very high-production energy which I love. The sound matches this quality, all the voice actors are expressive and seamlessly melt into their roles, and the animation is often enhanced by background sound effects when the animators want to add emphasis or draw attention to certain details. I might have issues with the first ed ( as many others do), but the rest of the music is solid.
All this contributes to a plot that I think stays rock-solid with few or little holes during most of Hyouka's runtime. In the final few episodes though, some issues rear their heads. After the conclusion of the festival arc, the most exciting and impactful of the show is followed by a few episodes of events that can be described as basically plot-irrelevant. Basically, when I read reviews calling Hyouka boring and uneventful, these episodes are often used as examples. Now I think these episodes serve a great purpose, though they may be uneventful they finalize each character's overall growth throughout the series. It conveys how the characters return to normal life, and normal life isn't exciting all the time like during one of the major arcs. But even a well-done plot shift in the last 4 episodes can be jarring.
All these complaints are only made worse after watching Hyouka's inconclusive ending. Being an adaptation of a currently unfinished light novel, an incomplete ending is inevitable. But for a show so focused on its character growth, seeing it go unfinished hampers its overall quality. The conclusion works well but does nothing to bring it to a true close that an audience can be satisfied with. This is especially apparent when it comes to Satoshi and Mayaka's characters, who only get a few lines of dialogue in the final episode dedicated to them. All this makes finishing Hyouka a much less enjoyable experience for many compared to the beginning and middle of the show.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Apr 14, 2022
Takt Op. Destiny had no reason to be an actively bad show, if I were to make an apt musical comparison, I'd liken it to an orchestra that starts with a beautiful melody.
However eventually, as the performance goes on, many of the individual performers begin to mess up individual notes, until eventually, not even the conductor can keep the performance together and it fades into an incomprehensible mess.
At the beginning of this show airing, I thought it had a lot going for it, the setting in midwestern America felt like a refreshing breeze compared to the usual setting of "random small town in Japan",
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even as someone from the east coast I much preferred this to the later scenes in New York. The music went in a unique direction too, adding small flourishes of piano to the battles, and the opening was my favorite of the season. The character dynamics were basic and predictable but enjoyable to the point where I could say I was having fun whenever a character opened his/her mouth. Takt and Destiny's beginning antics as foils to each other worked well, and Anna served as a great character to ground the audience. The worldbuilding was the least impressive part, a basic apocalypse setting with the added quirk that all music is banned, or at least extremely dangerous to play. The concept held promise for future character drama in the lives of some of the civilians Takt and Destiny have to protect.
Where does the show go after this? After the first 2 episodes, the show begins to miss notes, Takt and Cosette's backstories are unremarkable and with very little drama that can't be found in other anime, the setting begins to feel more like a basic apocalypse, and the realization that the show's shtick of "no music" actually doesn't change all too much hampers the engagement of the show. After Lenny and Titan each character introduced is actively bad, I could describe each in about two words based on their tropes.
"But none of these blunders can ruin a show, as long as the core concepts stick". I thought. "And this is a mobile game adaptation, they'll probably throw about 20 characters our way, maybe something else will stick."
The show then proceeds to double down, seemingly intent on focusing on the absolute worst parts of itself. Revisiting this show for this review I thought it was 24 episodes instead of 12 because each one dragged on so long. Every interaction is just similar tropes repeating over and over. Fights no longer hold meaning, no technique is used, it's just colorful characters swinging blades and/or shooting at each other.
The same tracks are repeated for the same "dramatic" moments, souring the overall OST. For a show focused on music there was very little variety to be found. Takt and Cosette undergo some basic character changes in the middle of the series, but then stagnate in the final few episodes. Their characters near the end of the show are 10 times less interesting than the ones we saw in episode one. It's like the show goes out of its way to destroy the likable relationship between Takt, Destiny, and Ann. Major character development happens in the last minutes of the show between Takt and Ann, which is not foreshadowed, makes no sense in canon, and destroys their fun character dynamic. And if you have watched any number of action anime, you can probably guess what happened just from my vague description.
All of these complaints are just exemplified by the fact that the overarching plot doesn't create any suspense. Each objective is nothing but a vague goal that matters only to the characters, and not to the audience. This is especially bad in the finale, where the main antagonist is so vague and unthreatening that there was nothing to keep me motivated to watch the show.
There was only one real character arc that could grip me throughout the show, and that was Lenny and Titan's, however as soon as that arc ends, the characters go on and never mention it again.
At the end of Takt Op. I just wished I could go back in time to when I knew less about these characters and the world they inhabit. The potential shown by this series vastly outpaced what it was. And the potential wasn't even anything spectacular.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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