Let's start with characters, which to me play the most important role in this case. All the horse girls are based on real race horses and their designs are all connected to their real life equivalents. I love the character designs - they are all so detailed and the connection to the actual horses makes them even more interesting. All girls are unique, both physically and in terms of personality. And I love them all. With a cast this broad, it's amazing that all characters stand out in one way or another, and I think everyone watching this show will find a horse girl they'll love. Honestly though, at first it was hard for me to choose a favourite. But among all the lovely ladies, I think it's the elegant Suzuka that I love the most.
It's also worth noting that the characters have the names of the actual horses, and these can be a bit quirky, yet - in my opinion - really cool.
Now onto the races. They are also based on the races that actually took place, and their outcomes are also inspired by how it was in real life - now this is a unique kind of fanservice! My advice is to read a bit about the horses and their stories. You might spoil yourself a bit, but it makes watching this anime all the more interesting, since you know what is about to happen. And it increases the emotional impact. Not everything goes like it was in real world, though - and I'm especially happy about one thing that got changed. So happy that it made me burst into tears.
The races are exciting and well done, I enjoyed watching them, and the fact that I actually care about the characters made watching them race even more enjoyable for me, since I was cheering for my favourites.
Aside from racing, we see how the characters train, get stronger mentally and physically, develop friendships, face their fears and make their dreams come true. And as much as I get bored of regular slice of life, I enjoyed such kind of scenes in this anime. The comedy scenes are actually funny, there are some unique gags in Uma Musume which get repeated throughout the series but don't get old or unfunny. Uma Musume made me laugh many times. About as many times as it made me cry. I didn't expect a show about horse girl idols to make me this emotional, but Uma Musume did have an impact on me. It was funny, it was sad, and it was heartwarming.
As I said before, our horse girls shine not only on the track, but on the stage as well! The songs are nice and catchy. And if you like them, I recommend checking more of the characters' songs, not only these that were included in the anime. Still my personal favourite is Silent Star, which we get to hear at the end of one of the episodes.
Uma Musume both sounds and looks good. As I said, I love the detailed and diverse character designs, and the artstyle and animation are of good quality too.
To wrap it up, Uma Musume turned out to be a great surprise for me and I enjoyed it in every aspect. I highly recommend it, no matter if it's the slice of life, the races, the horse girls or the comedy that you're looking for. I hope you will love my horse girls as well!
