Story: The story of glasslip follows the lives of 5 youths, Touko, Yukinari, Hiro, Sachi, and Yanagi. Being childhood friends in the port town that they live in, the five have grown up together and have spent a great deal of time being great friends without a single hitch in their relationship. One day, on a fireworks festival, a strange boy by the name of Kakeru appears and starts to mix himself in the strong bonds of the five friends, and everything starts to change.
Now, as for first impressions, Glasslip gave me a rather awful one. The setting of a port town, the close knit friends being disrupted by a new addition to the group, and the romantic feelings with one another between the various members of the group, made me think that this was a rip-off of its predecessor, Nagi no Asukara. The two shows bear a lot of similarity in that regard and I felt that P.A. works was being a bit cheeky by creating something that was essentially the same as what their previous success was. But over time, Glasslip started to give a different impression that really made it its own. That impression was confusion.
Let's start with the overall plot. Well, it's shit. What glasslip does in its runtime is beyond what it could've even tried to be in the grand scheme of things. It had the very big philosophical idea of child to adult transition that everyone has to face as its theme, but it just could not deliver. The show is structured in a very odd way as how the six main characters just split off into three separate groups of three to deal with their own problems while not even speaking a word to any of the other groups. This is another example of "try-hard" in anime where the anime really tries hard to convey its message, but ending up leaving with a plotline that had an absurd amount of plot holes, lack of explanation as to what is going on, and leaving overall confusion to the general audience.
Another thing the anime tried to do was symbolism, and there was a lot of it. This show requires you to literally pay EVERY single bit of it from the birds in the sky to dialogue word for word in order for you to truly understand what exactly is going on. To its credit, the symbolism was rather genius and (with the help of some reddit threads to explain it to me), made a lot of sense. The only problem is that for the average anime watcher who just wants to watch the show for the entertainment value, will not only get confused, but distraught as to what is happening in any given moment in time as even the most obscure things in the show are linked to the general main idea.
As for pacing, well the show is a mess. There's not really much explanation as to why any one character does a certain action or say a specific line. (I quote "You're the reason why Yuki isn't attractive anymore!") In one scene, you will get the perspective from one duo of characters, then transition to another for another scene, then transition to the third group for a literal 10 seconds, before transitioning back. It's this form of trying to tell three separate stories that really leads to its downfall. (Aside for some dumb dialogue and lack of explanation for a core aspect of the show) In the end, it just didn't work and was overall, just really confusing to watch.
And finally, the ending. Oh, boy, was that ambiguous. The ending of glasslip basically does nothing, as the show doesn't really tell you anything that happened, making you have to imply what is going on, which for me isn't a fun experience when you've been ambiguous in storytelling this whole time. (Not to mention the idea of the guy coming into town, leaving his mark, then just skipping town is freaking stupid idea from a viewer standpoint.) As a whole, it made me really upset because it's just one of those "THAT'S IT?" moments that would infuriate anyone.
Overall, Glasslip's message was one of the better ones that I've seen in a long time. The only problem is the fact that I had to get information from a third party source and have to think excessively about the symbolism in order to completely understand why this was done or why this wasn't done. The pacing and overall presentation of the show clouded the great idea that it had behind it, and it really just felt awkward to watch due to just how much potential this show did actually have. In the end, if you have a show that is basically a vague, visual representation of some sort of novel, you're not going to get a very positive response from the populous.
Overview:
+ FANTASTIC themes
- Cutaways for three separate stories
- Too much ambiguous symbolism
- Unsatisfying ending
- Awful pacing
- Massive amounts of plot holes
Characters: As for characters, well...they're also quite shit as well. What really makes that characters in this show bad is because they don't really have much of a three-dimensional personality that comes very clear to the audience.
Up first is our main female lead, Touko Fukami. As the lead female, well...I really don't know what to say honestly. She's a very upbeat and cheery girl that wants to stay friends with the people that she's known all her life, which is quite commendable seeing as how they are all third years and approaching adult life. Oh yeah, and she has the ability to see random "fragments of the future" through glass. This aspect of her in addition to having met Kakeru are the defining moments of her personality, which honestly, doesn't say very much. The reason being is the fact that the whole "fragments of the future " thing is a load of bull that not only gets shelved away for about half the series, but is never really explained in any entirety. This aspect of seeing the future is what makes the show unique, and it is handled completely incorrectly, giving once again, a very vague idea as to what it actually is. In the end, Touko's character is not really defined, as her relationship with Kakeru feels very forced and there aren't very noticeable qualities about her.
And then we have our main male lead, Kakeru Okikura. (Lotta K's.) Kakeru faces a similar problem to his main female counterpart as he himself is not really explored very deeply. Over the course of the series, you do get to understand some aspects of him that I suppose counts as character development, but once again, it's not really explained very deeply. In addition to that, Kakeru has the ability to "hear the fragments of the future", which combined with Touko's ability to "See" the fragments, leaves them being able to completely see and hear what these fragments are. This aspect of him really doesn't add a whole lot because there really isn't much explanation as to what the idea of the fragments really are, leading right up to the end, a very confusing idea. In addition to that, Kakeru seems to be proficient in golluming, where there are some scenes that he "talks to himself" with two other Kakerus, which, like almost every other aspect of this show, is not explained.
The other four characters in the show, Yanagi, Yuki, Hiro, and Sachi are slightly minor in the grand scheme of things. They don't get as much screentime as Kakeru and Touko get, and are really there just to serve as the "other aspects of growing up" with Yanagi and Yuki trying to chase their dreams and Hiro and Sachi delving into a more romantic aspect of life. They don't get a whole lot of development and parts of them remain undefined since well, the show just doesn't say, making you have to infer and assume what is what. (For example, Yanagi and Yuki live in the same house, but aren't siblings. I assume they're stepsiblings, but...I'm really not sure.)
And for side characters, well, they don't serve much purpose other than moving the plot along. We have Touko's sister and parents, Kakeru's parents, Hiro's grandfather and sister, Sachi's mom, and a chicken named Jonathan, which bears the same name as me. These characters don't have as much purpose and serve for the most part, more aspects of symbolism that just make this show more confusing than it already is.
Overall, the cast of Glasslip wasn't really anything to hit home about. Because of the way that these characters are designed, it's safe to say that this show is a story driven one, and the characters serve little purpose than to just go along for the ride and do the best they can. Because of this, in addition to the gaping plot holes, gives the characters more than they bargained for, leaving them to be really just cardboard cutouts that don't see much in terms of development.
Overview:
+/- "OK" main cast
- cardboard cutout characters
- Lack of use for supporting cast
Art and Sound: Ok, let's stop shattering pieces of this show and focus more on what really makes P.A. works so glorious and great, the art.
P.A. works has always done fantastic work when it comes to artwork, and this show is no pushover. The backgrounds are amazing, the lighting mood with the sun look absolutely gorgeous, and the characters themselves look very nice. Anything made by P.A. works has always shown itself to be a masterpiece in the art department and an absolutely stunning visual experience to watch. Regardless though, there were a few quite noticeable flaws for this show.
The first of the two problems are the stills. In every episode, in various scenic (or not scenic) points in the show, the show will stop and show you a picture of a certain frame with a frosted border. Now, since this is P.A. works, the stills themselves look quite amazing. The only problem is the fact that it disrupts the show. They inject the stills at random points in time and really just cuts into it and distorts the flow of the story by giving you a still frame. As a viewer, I didn't like having these things pop up because they didn't add anything more to the show, and it looked rather stupid for doing so. (Also, in the last episode, they do a skype sort of setup where they have a smaller picture in the corner with a bigger picture taking up the rest of the screen. Really, P.A.?)
The other problem is chibi art. While this happens rather uncommonly, the show does sport some chibi art by injecting a circle in any part of the screen and having a little chibi face of a certain character talk. Ordinarily, this would be fine in any comedy show, but since this wasn't a comedy show, it really just didn't fit. In addition, the art for it was completely different from the rest of the show, which gave for a jarring feeling as the two art styles clashed heavily upon one another.
As for music, well, I love the opening. I won't lie, this opening is a great opening to listen to. It has a similar feel as what Nagi No Asukara had with its first opening and it was a good listen. It's a song that I wholeheartedly would continue listening to on its own as it has a very memorable tune and it does leave a good impact. As for the ending, well, it's ok, but I don't like how it's played. The singer for the ending is a bit too high for what I feel like the vocals should've been, and it just didn't work in my opinion.
In addition, the show uses piano a lot, which I quite like for a mood aspect. Both the opening and ending for this anime are used as piano tracks for various points in the show, which actually, aesthetically, improves the overall feel of the show. In addition, (since Kakeru's mom is a professional pianist), the show gives us some classical pieces that you can really just sit back and listen to because well, it's classical music.
Overview:
+ FANTASTIC VISUALS
+ Good opening
+/- Meh ending
- Clashing artsyles and stills
Personal Enjoyment: When I first saw this show on Anichart, I expected this to be a good slice of life series. Seeing as how the production studio was the same as the one that produced one of my all-time favorite anime gave me a glimmer of "Oh my god, this is going to be a great show". After having come out from that experience, I have to say, I am really disappointed as to what this turned into. One thing that I thought would be a plus was just how different it would be on anime as whole since Glasslip is a completely original anime series. In addition, there was a lot of hype for the show, and with all of the expectations for it, it had to disappoint in some way or another. Overall for me, the show was a very confusing experience as many plot points were scattered and the mass amount of symbolism of the show was just lost on me as a general viewer. Anyway, onto the three questions!
Did I like this show?
Aesthetically, yes. The show looks fantastic and very detailed in terms overall look of the show. The music was very nice and really, anything visually looked very pleasing to the eyes. (Plus, the chicken has my name, so I had fun trying to reply to Touko every time she called out "Jonathan")
What didn't I like about this show?
Apart from the obvious problems with plot and character, there were several aspects of the show that felt either rushed, or just plain stupid. For example, Kakeru sleeps in a tent. I understand the whole symbolism of the cage an everything, but what parent would let their child sleep in a tent outside? It's dumb. In addition, the overall idea of the "fragments of the future" and "Sudden unexpected loneliness" was just completely lost on me.
Would I recommend this show?
Honestly, I'm not sure. The show has a very good philosophy to it which if you connect all of the points, makes for a rather enjoyable watch that has a much deeper meaning to it than one can see. This show requires overthinking because you really have to take EVERY aspect of the show in order to even get a sense as to what the characters are even talking about. Personally, I think if you're someone who enjoys finding themes in stories and trying to find the overarching idea, then this show might be a good fit for you. However, if you are, like me, trying to just enjoy a show for what it is, then this will be hell on earth. The show is really awful in the way it was designed and executed, but it does delve into a core aspect of life which to be honest, fits with all they were trying to do with this show.
