Anime Genre: Comedy, School Life, Science Fiction
Date of Airing: 2nd April 2006
Date Concluded: n/a
Current Episode: 12
No. of Episodes Watched: 10
"Aliens, time travellers, and ESPers anyone?"
Aah, Haruhi. That's all most anime watchers talk about recently. And in that light, I wouldn't be blogging about anime if I didn't say something about her, now would I? So, unless I'm proven desperately wrong, and this turns out to be a 100-episode Naruto-like series, I thought that 10 episodes in, I should be able to do an acceptable enough review.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is not your typical, run-of-the-mill anime. At least, that's what it's trying really hard to put forward. And it does so pretty well, for now. Kyon is your normal, uninterested schoolguy, who once upon a time dreamt of meeting aliens, time-travellers, and ESPers. Feeling that would never come true, he decides to enter high school and live a normal life. A boring one. That is, until he meets a girl in class that specifically only wants to meet aliens, time-travellers, and that's right, ESPers. Oh, boy.
His interest piqued, Kyon finally approaches the beautiful, yet weird girl, and talks to her. Deciding to humour her, Kyon gets caught up in much, much more than he bargained for, starting with Haruhi's formation of the 'Save our world by Overloading it with fun Suzumiya Haruhi's Brigade' or the S.O.S. Brigade in short. Seriously, without reading anything much about it online, I first thought that this was another one of your school life satire and comedy series. Well, I was partly right. What I never expected were aliens, time-travellers, and ESPers (tired of that phrase yet?). Uh huh, this show is definitely more than meets the eye.
Okay, a little rundown of the characters, as is the norm. The star is definitely Haruhi Suzumiya, the beautiful schoolgirl who has a very bossy attitude, and twisted mind, as one can definitely see in the way she orders Kyon around and 'uses' Asahina Mikuru for her own devices. ^^ Kyon is the disinterested schoolguy that Haruhi seems to demand having around. Asahina is the blur, moé-like (moé = naive or innocent character, often submissive, and lovable) upperclassman, who turns out to be a time-traveller sent to monitor Haruhi. Koizumi Itsuki is the ESPer who is another member of the S.O.S and is there, again, to monitor Haruhi. And yes, Nagato Yuki, an alien, is also sent to monitor Haruhi. Don't get the wrong idea, in most shows, they're nothing more than your everyday schoolkids with weird personalities, but they are what they are. It seems Haruhi is sort of 'special' in that what she does seems to influence time and space. For example, in episode 4, we hear Koizumi say that if Haruhi loses a baseball match and gets into a foul mood, the world will end. Okay, there's lots more 'closed-space', time-travel mumbo-jumbo in the series, but I'll leave that for you guys to figure out yourselves. No blatant flying saucers here, but definitely sci-fi oriented.
Okay, I guess that explains the science-fiction genre then. What about humour, you say? Well, I find that while generally entertaining, most of the humour and satire present in the series comes from Kyon's actual narration of each episode and his inner thoughts during scenes. Sugita Tomokazu (Hideki of Chobits) voices Kyon, and does a really good job at making his thoughts and narration seem natural, no matter how irritated or sarcastic he is trying to be. Considering he is also Nova of Bleach, who says 2 words per episode, you'd think he'd strain his mouth talking so damn much here, lol. Oh, here's a particularly funny part. It's somewhere in episode 7, where Kyon sarcastically mimics Haruhi. I actually laughed out loud...getting strange looks from my family. ^^;
Kyon is also viewed as the only 'normal' human in this loony group that is the S.O.S, but that can't be right, can it? After all, he IS interested in Haruhi and what she does, no matter how much he tries not to be. Haruhi herself is exuberant (most of the time) to the point of breaking. Her antics with Asahina, and herself included, often has me smiling at its sheer 'twistedness'. A character as vibrant and lively as her is not usually found as the lead of an anime. But, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is trying to be different, and Haruhi is definitely different. If you don't mind listening closely to Kyon's narration, then you'd definitely find things to laugh about. Oh, and Koizumi has some weird powers which apparently involve shouting out Full Metal Panic series names, bringing back some fond memories, like so:
Another thing to mention is the nature of the series. Do not watch this expecting an episode-by-episode continuation. They decided to do a few arcs of the story together, and this can often get confusing at first. Also, it's best to have a couple of episodes ready to watch, unless you want to risk wondering where you've seen a particular scene before. Although unique, I could have done without this little addition. The story is screwy enough without cutting it up into pieces and randomly throwing episodes at us. For instance, episode 1 is actually somewhere in the middle of the series, while 2 and 3 are linked and 4 is another part altogether. Weird? You betcha.
I have to say though, animation is definitely top-notch. Well, this is 2006, but it was a pleasant surprise to find a 'school themed' show having exceptional animation like this, IMHO. Fighting scenes (yes, fighting scenes) rival those of the recent Fate/ Stay Night, and while Haruhi seems to resemble a cat (?), everyone is drawn in a way giving that 'easy to the eye' feel. And this has got to be one of the best animes in terms of dance animations. I love the little Haruhi dance in the ending credits. Yes, I'm weird too. ^^ Music isn't the greatest, with not much during the show. And while catchy, both the opening and ending songs feel too much like generic soda pop for me to like them much. Oh well, that's not really important in the grand scale of things.
Not everything is perfect in the world of Haruhi though. As funny as he is, Kyon's narration can get stale sometimes. The messed up episodes are another turn-off. The series, up to this point, is basically one crazy ride in PREVENTING Haruhi from getting melancholic, and while okay for now, may get tiresome soon.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya seems to be anything but that. An anime which you will either hate or like, depending on your tastes. But at least suffer through the first episode of 'Mikuru-Beam' and watch a few more before you make your decision. I'm not going crazy over it, but I find it's definitely one of the better animes from the spring line-up.
*Out of 10*
Animation (Quality of): 9
Story (Depth, twists, and extras): 8
Music (Songs, Suitability): 6
Characters (Dynamism, Background): 9
True to Genre?: 7
OVERALL RATING: 7.5/10
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Tags: Animation, Anime, Japanese Animation, Manga, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu, Haruhi Suzumiya, Tenjou
24 comments:
thank god. I don't know why everyone thought this show was great. It tries to hard to be different or crazy but it didn't work for me. :( and I usually do watch strange anime shows (not pervy ones)
It didn't work for me either. It tries too hard to be funny using extrememly unfunny cliches, main character is unlikable to the point of me wanting to slap her after 5 minutes and the storyline is so bizarre that it should be funny but it isn't. Absolutely terrible in my opinion.
I dunno if I liked this show a lot or not. I enjoyed it, especially around the end, but some of the story arcs were sort of boring. I'd rate it about the same way that you did. And of course, an occurrence that takes place WAY too much in anime... a lot of the characters were too cliche. :(
I haven't seen a single scene from the whole series. From what I heard, the whole series is based around Haruhi being a total asshole, and everyone around her catering to her every whim so she doesn't blow up the Earth or someshit, while she molests a classmate for lulz.
...So yeah, I think I'd end up hating Haruhi about... 3 minutes in.
i don't know why people think it's so good. i hated Haruhi. i hated her the moment she introduced herelf and i continue to hate her. she is second on my most hated list the first being the male protagonist in School days. i hated the way she bossed people around. i hated everything about her. i had to pause throughout the episodes so that i could calm myself down.
I don't see why everyone hates haruhi so much. Yeah, the episodes can get a little confusing but I thought the idea was great and funny. I love the songs and the dance. The animation is beautiful and smooth though it can get a little grainy on my screen. I give it 8 1/2 stars out of 10.
after completed all 13 episodes, i still didn't get the plot. It seem like this is just another anime with random futuristic events happened on a bunch of high schooler.
I was hoping for a better ending but it seem like just ended halfway without any conclusion.
lol I'd give this, after watching 28 episodes, an 8.9 Only because of Kyon
Loved the Series, Waiting for more!
P.S. Smells like samefag in here
& by "Because of Kyon" I mean his personality bugs me
I, for one, think that the random episode order was very clever.
I just don't really get why everyone hates Haruhi so much, seeing as there are characters way meaner and more hyper than her that nobody seems to mind at all. Many people say the anime is horrible without even watching any of it. It's different, of course, but what's the problem with that? I actually found the mixed up episodes and confusing plot very intriguing, though I can see how a very stupid person would not understand it. It also has just about the best opening out there. I think it's actually better than those generic shows, Kanon, Clannad, and Air.
I never watched the episodes that weren't linked and/or core essential to the plot. So basically, I went 2, 3, 5, 10, 13, and then 14. I never touched any others or the 2nd season, because they honestly just felt like filler to me. Plus, that and I just don't see a reason in continuing a series after it's clearly finished.
That said though, I loved it. Kyon's inner thoughts "ramble" on and on about his fascinations and it's honestly really well written and funny. He reminds me a bit of myself in high school.
I can't say I care much for the other characters, but they're at best parodies. Mikuru is most certainly a satire, and Haruhi even says this; that she is a postergirl for their club. However, I may be cynical, but I read that as a much deeper and ironic meaning: that Mikuru is a satire that works so well that she manages to legitimately bring in fans.
I still think she's annoying though. I'd definitely be embarrassed if someone saw me watching the show with her on screen at any given point.
I found it was fun and unique. It started out as a bit of a comedy, and then just went tits up. I care alot for the ending (14) sequence in particular. I think they tried alot of different things with the series, but it didn't work out so well in the end because the actual story only needed 5 or 6 episodes to tell.
That and people don't really appreciate it the same way I do. They just like Mikuru's tits.
*sigh* why do I still watch anime?
Unlike most people, I didnt mind Haruhi's attitude so much as the story jumping around so much. First i saw the 'first' 14 episodes, and then found out they were all wrong and then watched the 2009 re-aired version with the additional 14, which wasn't a big problem except that the last episode had not changed. I dont know about any of you, but I was hoping for either a crazy almost end-of-the-world episode, or a dramatic happily ever after episode between Kyon and Haruhi, but no. I get to stay up all night and finish an anime where the last episodes high light is the main character retrieving a heater for nothing more than convenience. Hopefully the manga is more climatic or at least more kissy kissy and action oriented. Even though I didnt like its climax, I was very impressed with the animation, especially for this being made in 2006. and this I believe is a 6/10 anime.
i tried to watch it, but after 2 episodes i couldn't stand it anymore. haruhi ruined the show for me. it would be much better without her. she's mean manipulative, and i can't stand that she molests mikuru. poor mikuru!
She's supposed to be a brat--that's part of its brilliance. What if God was a lonely egomaniac who just wanted one of her creations to love her back?
Hilarious, idealistic, and philosophical...that's Haruhism.
WHat an awesome anime ! Nice article ;)
I know Haruhi can be an ass most of the time, but I'm pretty sure that that's how she was meant to be. I don't see why some people are overreacting on the creators. If they want her to be an ass, she's going to be one. I, for one, love the crazy twists. It's the most unpredictable anime for me and the best so far.
People who have only watched a few episodes should hold on to their comments. As with any good series, it takes a while to flesh out the characters. Particularly in the first few episodes, Haruhi is shown to be a very bratty, outright weird person. I hated Haruhi's personality for several episodes as well. But (and this might be spoiler) if you watched the entire series (including the second "season") you would know that it's really more of a facade. Haruhi's not a one dimensional character; she's not just a bossy dictator; she has a soft side. And for me, that's one of the most compelling aspects of the story; trying to determine the motives behind of each the characters in terms of why they do what they do and why they behave the way they behave.
I'm not sure if the characters are too "cliche," but I thought the characters did a good job of making the story work (assuming, of course, you liked the story). Considering that it's about preventing someone from altering "reality", each of the four main supporting characters played a pivotal role, and their unique personalities facilitated the story quite well.
[Here's your spoiler alert]
In my opinion (story-wise), there wasn't really a "main" character that was superfluous. Kyon's job was to keep the story grounded in reality. He helped define the boundaries of "reality" by reminding Haruhi of what's possible, and what's impossible. Of course, some things would still get out of hand, which is where Yuki Nagato comes into play. Her task was to revert changes in reality back to a "normal" state - so to speak. Itsuki Koizumi's role was to explain strange occurrences so that the audience wouldn't be too confused about what was going on. And of course, Mikuru Asahina was a catalyst for conflict (there wouldn't be a story without conflict!) Since Asahina is weak, she's subject to being bullied by Haruhi on a regular basis. But at the same time, Kyon really "admires" Asahina, which prompts him to defend her. This upsets Haruhi, and this is usually when things start to get interesting. Haruhi ties all these elements together resulting in a story that (I feel) presents a unique, and interesting mix of realism and fantasy elements. Rather interesting because I find stories often either favour realism or fantasy, but not both simultaneously.
I hated Haruhi sooo very much... I was really mad when I saw the anime..& kind of shocked as well...I cant believe some people actually find a young girl getting molested amusing! The anime was soo stupid & pointless! >_<
well everyone have their own taste. i mean i also thinks that haruhi is a mean bitch sometimes, but sooner after 3/4 episodes, whenever she is doing her stupid stuff, you'll cheer. if you understand the anime much, some mysterious question arises: why does haruhi wants kyon in the club if he is normal? is haruhi's parents as eccentric as her? these question is what actually every ever- famous animes consists, and they make you want to discover more about the anime, and thus, watch it. besides, dont hate the anime if only a character is mean, since every animes have to have victims, protagonists and antagonists. the victim hear is asahina, the protagonist is kyon and the antagonist is haruhi, except that they're all friends, which is tricky. i give thi anime rationally 10/10
Yes, Haruhi has her soft side which means that she's not entirely one-dimensional. Honestly though, this sort of makes me hate her more.
Like all of us as people, there's more to her than meets the eye. If you consider her as an actual person though, acting the way she constantly does, it's inexcusable.
Personally, I would never befriend such a brat, even under threat of an apocalypse should she throw a tantrum.
The show tends to emphasize her good moods rather than her sociopathic behaviour though so it tends to draw away from how awful a person she really is.
Overall nothing about the show really stuck out in a positive way for me, other than Kyon's narration which is a refreshing take on a television show narrative. I give it a 6/10, ignoring the first few unentertaining episodes and 5-6 of the Endless Eight episodes.
Loved Haruhi, great main char...couldn't stand annoying pushover Kyo...Mikura was supposed to be satire, but any humor they tried to make with her all fell flat so toss her out too...Nagato and the ESPer were good side characters...Above Average anime, but not as good as the hype had led me to believe...
You didn't like the music? I thought it was particularly great, although I'm not referring to the opening or ending credits. The bit where Haruhi sings at the school festival was a bit jaw-dropping for me, and the normal music (or lack thereof) during the show itself was very fitting and at some points epic (Haruhi and Kyon in the dream world, for example).
But hell, to each his own.
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