Hibike! Euphonium is a music school show in which we follow the story of Kitauji high school's band on their mission to get to the nationals! Ah, such a beautifully simple narrative isn't it? We've seen it done hundreds of times before, both very well and shockingly. The whole 'get to the nationals' narrative is one that many people may describe as overdone but in its defence there's a reason it's so popular. It allows for an effective and dramatic narrative whilst still delivering a relatable and realistic experience to the prime demographic of anime (teens and young adults). There's little use in overly critiquing the basis of this plot as it is only there to encourage other elements of the show to flourish. That brings me onto my first big point in regard to this show.
Hibike! Euphonium is not a music show. Well, not really anyway. Yes, yes; they play musical instruments and, yes, the eventual goal is to reach a music related finals. So technically speaking the overriding plot is exclusively musical, but it's not really that simple. The musical setting only acts as a fundamental basis for the character's interactions to shine off of it. The plot's progression is driven by the characters, not the major plot points. For example at one point there is conflict over who should get what role. I'm keeping this vague to avoid spoilers by the way. The overcoming of this conflict is achieved by an individual realising what was best for the band. There is no forced narrative point that carries the plot but rather naturalistic characterisation to do so instead. It's the characters of the show that really allow Hibike! Euphonium to shine.
Sadly though for all the pros in regard to the characters themselves, their presentation is a bit more off-kilter. There were some points in the show where characters react so dramatically and emotionally that I honestly felt it completely broke their character's trends as a whole. I couldn't tell if Reina was meant to be the composed and professional type or the overly-emotional type. One moment she'd be acting all cool, giving a dramatic speech showing why she's a bit of a boss and then the next she'd be having an emotional breakdown because someone disagreed with her. Eh? There's absolutely nothing wrong with having three dimensional characters with flexible personalities but at times their behaviours are bordering on clinical multi-personality disorder. Honestly though, if what you are looking for is a very dramatic presentation of characters then this show does that fine. I might be over-analysing this but hey, that's a reviewer's job after all.
Whenever I get onto a Kyoto Animation show to review, I always know there's one bit I will get to praise. This is no exception. Actually, this is the rule itself. Hibike! Euphonium is a gorgeous show with both art and animation that is near-unparalleled in anime. Just looking up pictures online makes it so apparent how much talent has gone into this. There were some scenes where I genuinely paused the episode to just take in the beautiful lighting, stellar character design and generally angelic aesthetic that Euphonium presents. This is the best looking piece of art that KyoAni have put out to date and it could very easily claim the title as the best looking anime to date too. There's this one scene where Kumiko is running across a bridge screaming her desire to improve. The quality of animation in this scene is just staggering. It's not even as though it has a particularly high frame count either, it's just that everything and every little detail flows so smoothly. I just love how Kyoto Animation put this kind of effort into the small things. Other studios, cough A1 Pictures cough, should look down in shame at this kind of work. Kyoto Animation never fail to disappoint me in regard to the appearance of their shows.... no, their art.
For lovers of openings and soundtracks as a whole, you won't be let down. The opening didn't immediately grab me but I could tell it had potential to grow. I listened and watched it in every episode without a single skip (although to be honest I don't tend to skip openings very often anyway, so that isn't saying too much) and eventually came to the conclusion that it's a very good OP. It matches the show's tone to a peach and gives a lovely presentation of the main cast with 3D spinning images of their instruments in the background. After this we have a lot of slow shots portraying the determination and passion of the character cast, as these are very much reoccurring themes within Euphonium it fits well. The song itself, 'DREAM SOLISTER' by TRUE, is one for the iTunes library in my opinion. It's one of those songs for when you are feeling relaxed and want to hum along to something catchy. The remainder of the soundtrack mostly consists of diegetic music played by the band themselves. Think K-ON! but less pop and more brass. It's an acquired taste of music which probably appeals to those more interested in music as an art form than I am.
All in all then Hibike! Euphonium is a fine show. Don't be put off by the 'music' tag like I was for so long. Not watching this show is a bad mistake. You'll be missing out on a fine school drama show that showcases Kyoto Animation's abilities at their near-best. It's far from perfect and at times I felt it was trying too hard to be dramatic but what do you expect really? It's a 'drama' after all, I guess they tend to do that. In short ask yourself these three questions? Do you like Kyoto Animation? Do you like music? Do you like drama anime? If you answered yes to any of these three questions, well, then I guess you better get to work.
