Let's start with the story. The eccentric family starts off pretty mild in terms of the narrative, giving the view bits and pieces of a larger overarching plot for the first few episodes as we get to know the characters. It takes place in a fictional version of Japan where 3 species; tanooki, human and tengu all live together (although its implied that the humans do not know about the other two). Tanooki have the ability to morph into any form they can imagine while Tengu control the wind and can fly. There is a rather peculiar hierarchy in the world with the Tanooki being low man on the totem pole and are generally looked down upon by other humans and referred to as "stupid" by Tengu characters. This all lends itself to a sort of oppressed vibe when other characters besides Tanooki are involved. At its heart however the show has a relatively sad story, and without wanting to spoil much, will leave you thinking about how much time and love you give to those close to you. The story is tight and well written and doesn't leave many loose ends but lets the viewer think about what's to come for certain characters after its over. While the story is very good its the atmosphere that makes the series what it is.
The atmosphere during certain episodes is really where this series shines the most . Whether is be on the rooftop at night after a rather stressful party or having a 4th of July esque fireworks viewing with family this show has some very special moments that completely capture what its like to be in that situation. It really makes you feel like you're right there with the characters breathing in the night air. These parts of the show are the sole reason it ascends above very good into the realm of great in my eyes.
Moving on to art style and sound though the quality takes a bit of a dip. Sound during the episodes is fine and gets the job done while the opening and ending themes are rather good. However the art could do with some polish. All the characters are pretty minimalist in terms of detail and suffer from weird clothing lines at certain points. It's not all bad, the color palate is quite rich and its clear the animators had a style they were trying to emulate. All in all the art might not be anything to write home about but it gets the job done.
Finally moving on to characters we have another high point for this show. most of the characters in the show are very well written and have different dynamics when interacting with one another. Very few suffer from cliche's and there are no characters that are frustrating to see come back on screen. Our main character is part of a family consisting of 4 brothers, one being a frog (it makes sense in context), a mother and a recently deceased father. This family is where the bulk of the good character development comes from.
With the 4 brothers we have some really great dynamics going on and you can sense a very real family like connection. You have the oldest, stern but kind and reliable brother desperately trying to be the head of the house after the tragic passing of his father. The 2nd eldest who was so torn up over his fathers death that he decides to become a frog at the bottom of a well and forget all his problems. The 3rd child and our main character who wants nothing more than to live an interesting life. And the youngest who is significantly younger than his brothers but is doing his best to be a helpful part of the family. The interactions between these 4 are top notch, and being part of a similar household myself I can attest that they act like real brothers in that situation would.
There are plenty of other very memorable characters and they all get full marks but it would take an awful lot of time to talk about all of them. Suffice it to say that there really is someone that everyone can relate to.
In conclusion, The Eccentric Family gets a shining 10/10 from me despite lacking in certain areas. For me I thought that there was so much to be gained from growing with this family and being with the characters in certain moments that it more than outweighs the negatives like the art and lack of a huge plot. This is a show everyone needs to watch, I'd recommend it to anyone over 13 who's willing to take on the more mature side of family life, all the way up to people in their 20's who need to do a bit of soul searching. Watch this, its worth your time.
