Back to MangakaNotlora's Profile MangakaNotlora's Profile

Kyoto Animation has relationship with the viewer that I find to often be a complicated waltz between fame and infamy. Being so renowned, the line between these two traits is very thin, and often it is easier for the studio to be criticized rather than applauded; it is a much more popular option to join in on a cynical crowd mentality rather than to accept an achievement for what it is--and I believe Hibike! Euphonium is one of Kyoto Animation's achievements, a wonderful comeback from material that pushes the studio over to the infamous side of the line.

Because of the cynicism that often surrounds the ... products of KyoAni season to season, I went into the first few episodes of the show skeptical, critical, and determined not to enjoy myself. Episode one, then on to the next, soon episode five, then episode ten, and soon I realized that my determination had failed me.

Hibike! Euphonium is beautiful, and while my more pessimistic side imagined this to only be true on a surface level, the depths of the series' beauty went much deeper, with a great amount of pride present and accounted for in terms of character, story and further appeal.

The plot, at it's base, is very simple, and not at all an original tale, but the way it is told finds a certain realism that always pleases me when I see it.
Hibike! Euphonium encompasses the story of struggle, and of goals to set and achieved through willpower and belief in oneself, but it also happens to contain the drama that I find much more native to the high school atmosphere that is introduced within this and so many other school stories.
The fact of the matter is that high school girls are, in reality, emotional, catty, dramatic, and hold grudges over petty things. The fact of the matter is that school clubs do not always get along like family, the fact is that some members are more prominent than others and rarely rely on tropes to set them apart from the crowd.
Hibike! Euphonium understands this, and shows this, displaying a sort of quiet drama blown to the proportions that find their homes in both real life and in fiction, and it is perfect. The show knows when to take the situation seriously, and when to have side characters show off what makes them cute. The two aspects are never confused, which is supremely satisfying.

Of course, the show does experience some blips, in that I felt the romantic side-plot jams itself into places it may not necessarily fit. There are awkward attempts to build relationships between the main character, Kumiko, and her potential love interest, as well as awkward attempts regarding that same love interest and Kumiko's friend. These bits of the show were lopsided, but hardly something to do anything with other than ignore.

If anything, I believe some of the awkwardness comes from side characters such as the love interest, Shuuichi, and others like Midori (Kumiko's friend) taking away from the round dynamics of Kumiko and her primary relationship with Kousaka Reina. Kumiko and Kousaka have such a strong, utterly, utterly strong dynamic that it's very hard to match with anything else. As a positive, I applaud the relationship built between the two, and I feel it almost unmissable if one hopes to see anime in it's highest moments of beauty, but as a negative, it gives the rest of the show competition to rise to such a level.

On the topic, I appreciate such competition.
My original thought when I began Hibike! Euphonium was that KyoAni would try to squeak by on art alone, leaving the other aspects of the show--story, sound, pride in the overall work--out to dry. I appreciate that this was not the case, and that KyoAni made in effort to turn the piece into the beautiful final product of art and story combined that I now rate so highly.

For those of you with a similar mindset such as my own, for those of you skeptical that Hibike! Euphonium hides behind pretty colors and fanciful design, I implore you to give the show a try. I implore you to be patient with Kumiko as a disinterested, pessimistic protagonist, as one who isn't striving to be spunky or original.
Hibike! Euphonium may not be original. It may be the recycled plot of many past anime in the music genre, but as a new addition to that genre, it is definitely not a show to pass up.

Often times, anime becomes an effective outlet for limitless fictional worlds, ones that reach out far beyond the norm to accurately portray the original vision of the worlds' creators. Often times, these worlds suffer from being too complicated, too busy and too cluttered with the many ideas that have no place in a twelve or thirteen episode run. Often times, these twelve or thirteen episodes are the cause to many, many headaches of mine.
And yet, Plastic Memories has me missing those headaches, the ones spawned from such an expansive world, because this is something Plastic Memories has failed to explore.

While the anime provides an interesting ... base concept and characters that are lovable on perhaps a surface level, it leaves much to be desired in that there are many existential questions left unexplored as they are deemed out of place in Plastic Memories' established rom-com genre.

Much like Chobits, Plastic Memories has the appeal of human/robot couple, but unlike Chobits, the pairing has almost nothing at stake.
During our thirteen episodes, we witness the awkward romance of Tsukasa and his robotic love interest, Isla, and throughout their narrative, nothing is pitted against them besides Isla's expiration date--an interesting aspect of the story that rarely comes up, replaced instead by a heap of filler episodes. In fact, besides this expiration date, the world of Plastic Memories has little to no conflict in it.
It's frustrating to watch, because there is a towering amount of set-up for a touching narrative on loss and acceptance, and that is never fully explored! There is set-up for some sort of commentary on humanity, and that isn't even touched on!
I find it a crime for a show to contain the same romantic dynamic of Chobits and fly so far from the meager philosophical commentary that Chobits provides. I find it a crime for a world to contain robots heavily integrated in society and not explore that aspect at all.

To continue down the path of minuscule fictional exploration, the characters in Plastic Memories are incredibly underdeveloped.
The show is more concerned with providing the cliches present in every rom-com than it is with differentiating itself from the other members of the genre. We know very little about Tsukasa, Isla and the many side characters, in favor of simple misunderstandings and the cookie-cutter tsundere yelling about something that hardly matters.
We are told things about Tsukasa and are expected to simply accept these aspects of his character, without so much as a flashback to back it up, making it very hard to sympathize with him. In fact, we get more background for the tsundere, Michiru, who receives more attention in terms of fleshing out the character than Isla, who is supposed to be the focus of the show.
As a result, the cast is very one note and forgettable, often tragically struggling to make the viewers care.

Unfortunately, I don't care.

When I was first introduced to the series, I was prepared to be emotionally torn to pieces by Isla's death looming over her; I was prepared for each new episode to be more painful than the last, for the tragedy of the series to be dragged out until the very last episode when mortality came to claim its eventual prize.
I was prepared, and instead I got romantic filler. Episode after episode features Tsukasa getting embarrassed about something new, with maybe a minute or two of screen time dedicated to the actual plot. Three episodes before the finale is a filler, and as a result, everything afterwards seems rushed and out of place.
The whole tone of the show can't decide whether it wants to be depressing or silly, and while I have seen other series where both are juggled successfully, Plastic Memories is not one of them.

To conclude, as a romantic comedy, Plastic Memories has all the essentials to carry it through from episode one to episode thirteen.
As a new, memorable and touching story, as a tragedy about a girl with so little time left, it has nothing.

Similar to a sandwich missing everything except the bread, Plastic Memories leaves me unsatisfied.

Shounen is a tricky genre. Too often, plot is abandoned for the sake of showcasing all of the powers and techniques of the hero, and knowing this, I was very reluctant to get into Nanatsu no Taizai. Having taken the plunge several weeks after the show's original premier, I am incredibly pleased with what I ended up with.

Nanatsu no Taizai does follow the same basic shounen formula: one powerful force butts heads against another, everyone is naming their attacks before they use them, a useless female companion appears--yet, these rough edges are given their time to develop into something likable and actually compelling to watch.

The ... story has excellent pacing in that it sticks to the typical format of battle after battle while still gradually introducing each of the main characters and forwarding the plot. With each few segments, the view gains time to grow accustom to each of the Deadly Sins themselves, and find more to them than simply different battle styles. As well, the motivation for both the protagonists' and antagonists' sides were plainly present; I was especially pleased at the motivation for the antagonists, as that is one such point that is so often vague and underdeveloped.
Toward the very end, elements from both opposing sides came together for a satisfying conclusion, and watching everyone's goal form into one single objective was a delightful way to conclude the relations between the two sides.
It was also pleasing to see that the series knew when to push fanservice down a few pegs in order to complete the story, rather than spoil the climax with the inclusion of the humorous bits of female lead at the beginning. It was nice to see the focus shift, the story taking precedence.
This is not to say any attempts at lightheartedness are abandoned; they find their spotlight for each of the characters, and not just the main hero.

Through this, equality was provided; it wasn't just the main Sin, Meliodas, that got the spotlight. Attention was paid to the feelings and relations between the other Sins, and screen time was generously given to explain their pasts, while not completely disconnecting from the main plot. While somewhat cliche at times, for lack of a better phrase, I gave a damn about the cast.

Everything in the show was also given the helpful support of clean art and magnificent sound. The selection of voices was very fitting for each character, emotions in-story being very well conveyed.
The color choices were bright and the animation harbored the obviousness of a team that knew what they were doing.

Overall, I suppose this is one of those series that's popular for a reason, but more of a reason that useless moe or excessive showing off. Not being a particularly big action aficionado myself, I am unsure of whether or not my enjoyment stems from the excitement of branching out from slice of life once in a while, but I am glad I did. Nanatsu no Taizai earns its popularity, and I would not be upset at the release of another season, so long as those at the helm take careful care to put as much attention to making it more than basic shounen just as they did with these first 24 episodes.

I suppose I am a terrible believer in the idea that, more often than not, a show will get better over time. Whether or not this is true is subjective based on personal values. In the case of Absolute Duo, the idea is untrue, and painful to uphold.
As an anime, Absolute Duo moved through each episode like a dough ball rolling down an gravelly hill, gradually deteriorating in something that seemed a bit like fanservice wrapped up in cheap Soul Eater cosplay. From title credits and summaries alone, all's fine, but once the thin facade is peeled back, Absolute Duo is an action anime turned ... disaster.

One can recognize the remnants of the story's original planning, and, as a warning, there are many, many remnants. The problem is that there are too many--ideas flood in unevenly, bits of back-story, battle and boobs all mixed together for a bitter anime trope martini.
From the first episode, everything is gathered together to follow Kokonoe Tor's journey utilizing his Blaze, a weapon drawn from the manifestation of his soul. However, his Blaze is not a weapon, but a shield. However-however, despite this hinting that he'd rather be the type to defend and protect, the idea is betrayed by the fact that he is an excellent combatant and can fight with the shield anyway. This may have been an attempt to rescue the action part of the story, which already was being slowly trampled by the sticky, gooey topping of school life harem, and even the harem portion of the anime is dissatisfying.
As always, there is the quiet one, the tomboy, the rich girl, but there is a distinct failure to handle any of them well. With all harems, there will always be a certain air of indecisiveness, but unfortunately the problem here is that Tor seems too decisive before derailing from that decision and heading down a different track. Rather than properly balancing screen time between each heroine, one is dealt with for quite some time before another comes out of nowhere, is accepted by Tor and then forgotten about for the first one. There is nothing endearing about the main character pledging his love and protection to everyone like a shameless people-pleaser.
Additionally, and as previously mentioned, the harem is not the only piece mishandled--the action side of the anime is often put on hold for fillers that are too obviously fillers, and these fillers end with a random plot point that had little too no previous foreshadowing. The main opposing force is even late to the party in that it doesn't make itself very known until plenty of awkward and useless school day scenarios have been expended. These scenarios also rear their ugly heads once again at inappropriate times, throwing in boob jiggles and pantie shots in the very midst of the emotional thick of a scene. It grows tiring, even to describe.

For an anime so determined to be compelling and sexy, the art was lazy. In trying to make the girls look cute and attractive, their faces had little expression and no matter the timing, no matter the cup size, no matter the outfit, the girls' chests were shaped like oranges in push up bras.
Even in the final, crucial moments, the main characters were poorly drawn and moved stiffly alongside badly placed 3-D. Like many of the behaviors of the characters themselves, one too many varying head sizes in one scene grew ridiculous, especially given how clean cut the opening could get.

And in saying the behavior of the characters was ridiculous, I am saying an incredible truth.
For heroines introduced as strong and unique fighters, they all had a way of crumbling and abandoning their character traits for the sake of catering to the useless showing off the main character exhibited. One moment, Julie could fight to the fullest, take down ten foes at once, and the next, Tor is vowing to protect her as she sits on the ground, confused. Everyone seemed to blend together to try and make Tor spectacular, when he was a protagonist who could not be saved. His tragic flashbacks received little to no explanation, and so I found I could care less about him. The fact that he was pushed to me as a sensitive and likable guy offended me.

But then again, much of the anime offended me. Everything was handled so haphazardly I couldn't enjoy myself in any other way than making complete fun of it all. 'Oh man they're all about to have a serious showdown, I wonder which girl is going to fall on her face with her ass in the air--I love that battle tactic.' I was offended at the thought that so little care went into managing the basic elements of the story. Should any of you out there chance Absolute Duo yourselves, I expect you shall share in my offense.

It is a long journey to find out exactly what 'Your Lie in April' is, but it is one of delicacy, growth, and love, and from start to finish it was incredible.

The story follows the days of Kousei, his relationship with his friends, his music, his mother and, as the case often is, with the girl he loves. However, the anime does not hesitate to expand on each point, and the love for the work put into the show is evident.

There are two main arcs to the anime, one easily transitioning into the other at the mid-season mark. In the first, there is the classic ... introduction of our main cast, as well as the incorporation of music, as that is the genre the anime falls into. Yet, this music is lost to the protagonist due to conflict with his mother, only for it to be restored by love at first site. Everything is set up for the perfect cliche, but the cliche, delightfully, does not arrive. With his new love, Kaori, Kousei is lifted into a brighter world, and is immediately engaged and reflects engagement. Through dialogue, visual and audio stimulation, the story and Kousei's mother's affect on him carry on, unraveling into something that is more than simple the tale of one-sided abuse that needs to be forgotten. The first arc covers hurt and healing on one end, and gradually reveals an equal amount of hurt on the opposing end, though not one of healing, and that parallel is compelling.
Kousei's interesting relationship with his mother lives on in the second arc, but it not overspent, as it is carried further through further exploration of Kousei's interactions with Kaori, who reflects Kousei's mother in more ways than originally anticipated. Although this is not necessarily a good thing for either character, it makes for a compelling dynamic that drives the story forward to its beautiful end, an end which comes once again dodging bitter cliches. Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is a story of goodbyes in the end, goodbyes that are emotional and tear inducing, touching and yet delivered in a marvelously pleasing way, so as to not ruin the calming atmosphere the show supports.

The animation satisfies in that it is clean and smooth at all the right times, as well as carefully coordinated so that the color compliments the story perfectly. Of course there are dark times, but even these are to be appreciated for their beauty, and in being dark they highlight the happiness of times before or afterward.
The character designs were delightful and appealing, especially including the awkward cuteness of the characters' youth, which was charming.

It is obviously difficult to criticize the sound in a music oriented anime, and fortunately, I won't. There was more to the story of a piano player than solely classical music, and once again the viewer is free from the cliche of an odd assortment of j-pop. Both opening numbers were energetic, but not irritating, keeping with the same sort of composition as is found in classical pieces, with a gentle lead in and a powerful following. It works to keep one engaged.
In contrast, the endings were a slower pace, and yet still kept the aforementioned power. Tied together with the credits' art, the show was a well wrapped package, my sentiments to Goose house, Coalamode, wacci and 7!!.

Additionally, attention was paid to the characters' realism, while still keeping them within likable, interesting anime standards. Kousei was more than just a depressed anime boy, Kaori was more than a moe love-interest. Each of them seemed very real to me in that yes, they did get sad and angry and dramatic, but they also had their childhoods with them, and while you got to see these childhoods literally played out through flashbacks, you also saw them in the playful humor the characters shared between each other and I appreciated that. Like teenagers, they weren't afraid to break a sad, quiet moment with a bit of awkward comedy, and I really could see them growing.
Their feelings were expressed more than just with tropes and simple words, and could be expanded upon rather than being left at 'I love you' and 'I hate you'.

Because of the sheer obviousness of the work that went into Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso, because of the love that was put into it and reflected out, I found it to be incredibly enjoyable, despite being sad at times.
Drama and comedy was well balanced, and the jokes landed right on target even in the worst moments to build more and more love for the universe. It was artistic in all the ways I hoped it would be, and it is no Lie say the 22 episodes are well worth the watch.

When a giant saucer appears in the sky above a small town, what sort of events would you expect to follow?
Sora no Method poses this question, and then follows with the most mundane answer it could have gone with: a slice of life drama that spends about five minutes of the whole series actually talking about the saucer, despite it being the source of many troubles the characters face. The fact that someone thought it would be a good idea to through in such a large supernatural element and then treat it like it was nothing worth acknowledge subsequently succeeded in creating a very ... frustrating chain of events.

From the same anime industry that brought you enormous headed children with trouble making friends (looking at you, Haganai), this season, this same industry introduced more enormous headed children with trouble making friends.
The story does begin in a grabbing way; our main protagonist, Nonoka, is on her way to her new home with her father. This is obviously a basic scenario, but once Nonoka's car passes through a tunnel and into her new life, attention is drawn to the great glaring object in the sky.

And it all goes down hill from there.

After throwing the saucer into the plot, rather than choosing a story line to make Sora no Method unique from other anime, the main focus of the show becomes how badly Nonoka wants to make friends. She doesn't seem to give much of a damn about this thing that's hanging over the town constantly, but she will relentlessly bother another girl until she engages in conversation.
Most of the episodes out of the thirteen are back and forth nonsense consisting of 'will they be friends or won't they', only briefly mentioning the anime's unique, floating characteristic when its convenient to make the 'will they, won't they' business continues with petty argument.
It's terrible to admit, but most of the episodes in Sora no Method could probably be skipped over, as it's mostly the same mundanity--Nonoka goes somewhere, tries to make friends with someone, it doesn't work until she applies willpower, it suddenly works, on to the next potential friend.

Nonoka may also be a problem here, as I've noticed one of the downfalls of many anime for me is an irritating main character, and to me, Nonoka is incredible irritating. It isn't her voice or her appearance, but the fact that she blindly assumes she can change everyone's opinion of her if she bothers them enough times. In fact, Nonoka pushes for all the other characters to change and accept her, when she does nothing to change herself. Nonoka experiences no character development and remains presently the likable moe factor, remaining the same desperate from episode one to episode thirteen.
There are times where she would even blatantly prevent other characters from interacting with the saucer, which was perhaps the most frustrating part of her personality--physically watching her prevent any developments outside of her personal relationships nearly warranted a drop of the series halfway through.
If the main goal of Nonoka was to make her cute and charismatic, that base was already covered by part of her supporting cast, Noel, who exhibited a much rounder version of whatever Nonoka was trying to supply. I believe other characters like Noel were made more likable because they weren't trying too hard or forcing their personality onto one another. Where the protagonist failed, the supporting cast strongly marched onward in the shadows.

Being an anime new this year, as expected, the art and sound were cleanly done, and most of Sora no Method's soundtrack was very relaxing. Toward the very end of the series, there was a strange change in art style that startled me, but it may have worked to leave somewhat of an impact. That is to say, it was startling, but it wasn't bad. I especially liked the color palettes used.

In the end, I suppose Sora no Method is a simple case of a plot in the hands of the wrong genre, where there are many exciting and innovative paths to choose in response to the saucer, but none of them were taken. As a drama in its own genre, the show was still a bit indecisive and wishy washy, though with so many other anime out there it isn't right to set expectations to high.

As a final warning, I believe the personality of the main character takes high tolerance to watch, and if tolerated, she is compensated for by the characters that surround her. Why the title focuses on the sky is something of a mystery, because no one else seems concerned with it at all. That aspect may take high tolerance as well.

Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru was another member of the new-age magical girl genre--a collective of teen girls with your basic set of personalities (smart one, shy one, large breasted one, etc.) receive superhuman powers and moe outfits to fight some villain, the new age aspect being that there is some horrible catch to it.
Unfortunately, since Madoka Magica, it has become a nightmare to build hype for any new shows falling into these guidelines. Understandably, it is very hard to compete with a show that got not only its twelve episodes, but its drama CDs and several movies. Yuuki Yuuna just seems something of ... a wannabe Madoka.

The story has faults in that the pacing is incredibly uneven; toward the middle of the anime, there are several filler episodes that are hardly worth watching, as it seems like Yuuki Yuuna tried to drop from the magical girl genre to the slice of life genre. I have little problem with slice of life, but I do have a problem with being ripped out of an action-ridden battle to hear about how helpful each girl is to the community.
The slow realization of the catch to the magical powers is a good cherry on top of the cake, as that is the moment where one gets the most out of the characters. It's almost satisfying to see each of the girls suffer a touch after having one too many episodes of ease.
Additionally, the realization of demise brings emotion out of the characters that you just don't see early on.

Yuuki Yuuna herself acts as a weak link in the cast. While this girl is the supposed main character, she hardly gets as much screen time as a main character should--nor just she get enough character development. Next to her friend Togo, who only gets more and more dynamic with each episode, Yuuna remains a flat, peppy girl who solves all of her problems with willpower and a strong belief in friendship.
That belief acts as a major cop-out during the series as well, solving every single one of the girls' problems in a very developed tragedy.

It may sound cruel, but I am almost disappointed these characters didn't suffer more--or rather, I am disappointed their suffering was disgustingly impermanent.
Yuuna, as a character, did not deserve to have all of her problems fixed by her one-note personality. She watches as her friends lose hearing, sight and the ability to speak everyone pities her because she can no longer taste snacks. Yuuna takes none of the blunt force of repercussions until the final moment, and even then, the satisfaction of watching something happen to her is pulled away in an instant with the 'friendship conquers all' cliche.

Other than the despicable treatment of the main character, the art and sound were not incredibly notable. The design for the areas where most of the action takes place are interesting, and the choice of watercolor and pastel is a unique juxtaposition coupled with the battle that is taking place in the foreground.
Let a quick warning be given, there is a bit of shameless fanservice involving Togo, the disabled girl in the wheel chair; ask yourselves, is it /really/ necessary to sexualize the girl in the wheel chair of all people?

Yuuki Yuuna did, however, do a good job of wrapping up the plot in a way that satisfied the anime's needs. The climax pulled through despite some difficulty managing the show's pacing. Someone less critical than me might enjoy the show more even--just don't look for Yuuki Yuuna to be anything other than the one-note courageous hero the title promises her to be.

Gugure! Kokkuri-san follows the episodic adventures of various Japanese supernatural creatures and Kohina, a self-proclaimed 'doll'. As the events are disjointed scenarios from episode to episode, the show relies wholly on it's comedy to gain viewship--however, this comedy is not at all top notch for being the one savior of the program.

None of the different endeavors of the characters from episode to episode are new, or presented in a refreshing way. A girl summons a ghost because she is lonely, and said ghost becomes her substitute mom, as, for some reason, those in charge of Gugure! felt the need to throw in angst in an ... otherwise comedic plot. While there are moments where the emotion and relationships between the characters shine through, it's all a bit disjointed.
Additionally, for a comedy, many of the jokes fall quite flat. There were times earlier one when I genuinely got a good laugh out of an episode, but that was back in the character introduction stages very early on. As Gugure! pushed to provide more of an emotional message of family or togetherness or what have you, getting laughs became second priority though that was the anime's strength.
In the end, Gugure! goes out not with a bang, but with a fizzle, retelling the age old 'friends are forever' cliche to close out episode twelve. Nothing new, memorable or humorous here.

A lot of the anime's best humor may lie in it's visual gags; when Gugure! is trying to be funny, the art is very on point. Images of Kohina's eyes coming off like stickers and the tanuki morphing into a grown man in Kohina's clothes come to mind.
Otherwise, for an anime at the end of 2014, I was not exactly impressed--not to say there were crossed eyes and miniature misshapen limbs all over the place, but the animation was nothing progressive.

Sound was what is expected from a sort of parody/comedy anime like this one, and there is nothing really worth mentioning here as well.

Characters, even the main ones, were very one note, which is something common but still depressing to see. Once introduced, most of the material coming from each personality was very predictable, and thus short lived. At times, it was almost as if the characters themselves were forcing out the laughter, and I could almost here the Kokkuri-san himself losing his voice over all the yelling that defined his nagging personality type. It all seemed a bit forced at times, and relaxed in others, creating an uncomfortable uneveness.
As is the case with tropes, the possibility of finding a favorite character is there. Unfortunately, throughout the course of the show I did find my favorite, and pitied them, a side character, more than Kohina, whose loneliness kept getting shoved in my face for plot reasons. Sorry Kohina, your monotone loner act makes you too flat and static for my liking.

Enjoyment decreased over time, sloping downward during the process of the jokes getting stale. This particular series may be better to viewers who are not already well immersed in anime, but know that there are also many references to Japanese culture that go unexplained and may deter a newer fan.
Wikipedia if you will, laugh stiffly if you will--I will mostly like smoothly move on from a supernatural comedy that is, in the end, a bit bland.

With a selling point of fun, yet simple characters and bright colors, Denki-Gai no Honya-san provides a solid representation of comedy for the fall anime season.
Additionally, with Denki-Gai, I believe what you see is a good summary of what you get.

As with many slice of life anime, Denki-Gai is episodic in nature, with some continuing romantic plot to keep the story going. It is almost nostalgic to watch, as the different weekly goings-on in the show are reminiscent of various cartoons one might watch, though of course with a lot more seinen added in.
Most of these episodes are a bit cliche in nature, which ... brings the experience down a notch as we all hope for something fresh and original in our own personal anime viewing expeditions, but the comedy with in is well managed. Most jokes land without failure, and I did find myself entertained for the 20-minute period of watching. This can most likely be thanks to decent scripting, clean art, or passable voice acting.
Whatever the case may be, old material is knowledgeably funny, and if it isn't the viewer's cuppa tea, there are properly managed characters to keep track of.

The cast is easy to comprehend, again, reminiscent of a simple childhood cartoon. It is believed that among Umio, Sensei, Kantoku, Hiotan, Fu Girl, Sommelier and all the others, a viewer will be able to find several personalities to take a liking to.
Interactions between them are, if not entirely interesting, at least natural, and well balanced. The supposed protagonist, Umio, spends about as much time on screen as his co-workers, given each of them a good chance to show their stuff.
As well, I liked how the romantic aspects were handled, with a good bundle of couples to develop episode to episode, despite the otaku personalities each character harbors. It's almost as if the show brings out a sort of hope, where a mostly unconventional person can find someone and simply enjoy their company--one of the shining characteristics of this show is how the characters enjoy one another's company.

Mentioned previously, the art is bright and suits the overall atmosphere. Round faces and bubbly colors fit nicely in place of the typical seinen mold, and successfully, the characters are cute while avoiding ridiculousness or poorly placed eyes. Admittedly, there was something a bit off about seeing so many small, round figures hungover and falling all over themselves, but in the end Denki-Gai is well put together.

I am guilty of skipping the OP a large number of times, reasons being that it doesn't fit in with the tone of the show at all for me, and there's something off-putting about all the main characters laughing hysterically at being presented with apples. I suppose it seems a bit like a bad sitcom.
If anything, the ED gives one a better idea of what sort of experience Denki-Gai is, but sadly I don't think anything in this aspect is particularly memorable.

As a whole, Denki-Gai no Honya-san is not a must-see anime, but one that provides the seinen/comedy/slice of life that it initially promises. In short, it gives that and does not go beyond, fitting superbly into its twelve episode span. If a second season is to be released, it's predictable that the next set of episodes will follow the same pattern, using different traditional anime tropes that were missed the first time around.
Solid comedy, but no more than that.

Barakamon was the end to my summer anime endeavors and I was incredibly pleased with the amount of life, heart and value I found in its story. The entire atmosphere of the show was such a homely, comforting experience, one that so enjoyable and I expect to continue to be so should I ever decide to give it another run through.

The story is that of the impulsive calligrapher Handa Seishuu, referred to as Sensei throughout the series, and his journey of finding himself in his work--a wonderful balance is created between this end of the plot and the comedic situations encountered, those of which keep ... Barakamon so light.
While animes of the slice of life genre are usually limited to fragmented pieces of encounters, Barakamon is very on point in its presentation of these separate events. The introduction of characters over time is steady and interesting in a way that avoids the usual cliches (i.e., protag. gets into fight with someone, protag. meets potential love interest, etc. etc.). As well, the anime focuses on a country lifestyle, similar to Non Non Biyori, and yet Barakamon contrarily keeps events to a standard that avoids the viewers' boredom.

Much of this is to the credit of the show's cast of children, all of whom wholeheartedly represent the youth that is so often replaced for shameless moe aspects. Sensei himself has a certain childishness that mixes well with the cast of elementary and middle school kids, all of whom are so diverse. There are the children that cling, the children that cry, the children who are ahead of their time, and all react to each other so natural that the whole adventure is the definition of comfortable.
It is especially the relationship between Sensei and the children that makes the anime so stupendous. Their interactions contain so much life and so much heart to them, and the separation of screen time is done in such a fashion that each character gets their moment. Best of all, the over-branching natural feel is something to note, as it is the perfect balance between the appeal of fiction and the experiences we hold in our memories.

Barakamon is exactly that--a collection of memories that are so very reminiscent of the ones we ourselves hold close. Often there is a disconnect where one cannot relate to the panty shots and the hyperbolic reactions of the anime world; with Barakamon, real life is renewed in an entertaining way, one given just the right episode count and just the right set of characters.

The art is very relaxing, relating back to Sensei's background as a calligraphist. Where Glasslip failed in terms of creating an artist atmosphere, Barakamon succeeded, making lines soft and unique like that of the calligraphy. The line work is comfortable and is complemented by a natural color palette. Any exaggerated faces are placed well for the moment, and the backgrounds throughout the series are well done, especially for the island aesthetic.

Sound throughout the series suits its characters, which is good seeing as the characters are most definitely one of the selling points of the show. The OP continues in Barakamon's good streak of balance, displaying the correct amount of power and softness, and is one worth listening to every once and a while; the case is similar with the ED, providing a calming ending to the episode's events.

Overall, the color, the characters and the unique elements of Barakamon come together to form a memorable summer show, while it is not the most psychological or action packed. The balance of humor and realism tap into the core of humanity and what makes life an experience. Subsequently, Barakamon is also an experience, life and humanity and memories contained within a dozen episodes.