Impressed!! Hyouka 1-6
She’s only interested in Databases, Energy Conservationists and uhhhhh that angry girl?
You can look at Kyoto Animation’s work in one of two ways: at best they are celebrations of the ordinary, at worst, they are about absolutely nothing. About a quarter way through their latest work, Hyouka, I am not so sure which side of the argument it belongs on.
From the first episode on you could argue Hyouka already has more “plot” than your average KyoAni production. The Classics Club foray into mysteries of the past gives the show a sense of purpose more in the realm of Haruhi than K-ON!!, moving each episode along at a surprisingly brisk pace. I’d even go as far as to say the crisp dialogue and surreal, dreamy asides surpass anything the studio has done before. It’s akin to a Shinbo-directed Shaft series, if you traded the director’s notorious perversions for a massive animation budget.
So that all sounds pretty cool, right? Well it is… to a certain degree. While the elaborate detective work and stunning presentation of the mysteries are all entertaining enough, at the end of the day it is impossible to ignore that they are totally mundane. Even after the drama escalates beyond “hey who locked the door?” you can’t help but feel a little unsatisfied when the first arc concludes. There is of course the potential romance between Oreki and Chitanda as she trys to bat her eyelashes and manipulate him melt his apathy, but whether that will amount to anything seems highly unlikely. Even so, would a predictable romance be enough to elevate this show to its full potential? I just don’t know.
Taking the good and the bad into consideration, I still find myself very much looking forward to Hyouka each week. While the revelations in the first arc were not Earth shattering, they tugged enough at my emotions to keep me interested. And it’s simply impossible to ignore how beautifully crafted the series is. It looks as good, if not better, than this season’s other Most Beautiful series, Fate/Zero. Unlike that show however, the stakes are just not high enough for me to truly care; at least not to the point where I can declare this to be the incredible show I want it to be. With a full two season run in the works, here’s hoping they can get a little closer to their potential.
Japanator Saimoe 2012: Spring/Summer Semifinal
The tournament is almost over, go and VOTE while you still can!
Japanator Saimoe 2012: Fall Opening Round
AHA! IS THIS YOUR CHANCE… to vote for the Fall bracket? Why, yes it is.
Noel Vermillion as drawn by Persona artist Shigenori Soejima. Cleaned up a bit for wallpaper use. I say the more Atlus works with Arc System Works the better!
