Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm - The REAL Proper Review
Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm is an anime that could have had the potential to be a really great anime but was plagued by its origin. "Eroge" & "Visual Novel" Lets take a deeper look why it meets its demise when compared other animes of the season.
Most anime are adapted & serialized from its manga counterpart. Manga are usually known & recognized for its deep plot/content. Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm on the other hand is adapted from its visual novel known for its eroge. Most visual novels serving its "eroge" purposes have little to no real plot by default. Furthermore, its "sports" focus further reduce its chances for any deep plot to come by.
However with Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm, I think they have done pretty well despite being a "sports" anime. It's actually deeper than it seems and gets better at later episodes.
Story - 6/10
Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm revolves around a sports called "Flying Circus" The goal of the sports, by flying through the use of Grav shoes, is to score points by touching its buoys in sequence "1,2,3,4" or scoring a hit on the opponent's back. Or so it seems... This is when the real plot begins to surface.
Do not JUDGE its plot before Episode 7, because that's where it really showed how deep it really is.
When you love & know something so well, for example in a game, (In this case, FC) then all of a sudden, someone new just came & destroyed your concept of that. You become afraid, because the very thing you are so familiar & close to, becomes something you no longer understand.
That's what Misaki felt. FC became something "dark".
All these while, FC to her, was about touching buoy or hitting each other's back. A simple and fun sport. But Inui broke that concept. Instead of playing the game, she intensely pressures the opponent by restricting & denying whatever her opponent tries to do. It becomes a mental sports and makes you feel inferior & powerless. That's the "beauty" Inui and Saki sought. However, Asuka, being that carefree girl, may not fully understand the "dark" Misaki began to see. To Asuka, it is an exciting new territory of the game. But Misaki became afraid of FC, became afraid of Asuka. She could not accept how Asuka could think that way.
Art - 6/10
Brilliant & Radiant. This anime is just beautiful to look at.
Sound - 8/10
One of the best anime's OST I've heard in a while. If you actually listen closely, you will notice. One example I can give is in Episode 6.
Listen closely to the OST:
05:04 to 06:02.
16:22 to 17:47.
17:47 to 19:45.
Character - 6/10
I love the contrast between Asuka and Misaki's mindset. As I've explained earlier.
Masaya Hinata is your secretive hidden ace badass. He is shown to be rather highly intelligent.
Asuka Kurashina is your slightly clueless clumsy cute female MC with innate potential in FC that she doesn't really know about.
Misaki Tobisawai is strong female character that is also smart. Realizing the "dark" in FC.
Mashiro Arisaka is your kawaii little loli with cute obsession with Misaki.
Aoi Kagami is your ultimate hidden ace triumph card that you hope she would just come out and whoop everyone's ass.
Enjoyment - 6/10
I really like all the characters. There's a good variety in personalities and good comedy. I like seeing Asuka's sillyness, Mashiro's cute obsession with Misaki. Hinata & Kagami being the hidden badass retired aces.
Overall - 6/10
Honestly, I really enjoyed this anime despite being poorly received by the community. A good mix of comedy, action with its beautiful art, amazing OSTs. Would definitely recommend to give this series a try and watch till the very end.
