Natsu-iro no Sunadokei

I found this anime just by surfing through MAL and when i read its summary, i got the exciting chills XD Though its just 2 EPs, its worth watching ^^ i mean the anime is just really built well. It contains a big mystery too.. About the art, its good ^^ i gave it an overall of 10 ^^ BANZAI ! Another great experience X)

Well, I have in fact played through the visual novel.. So I can say I enjoyed both though I gave the Novel a 10/10

The OVA Follows as best it can the Kaho Path - It changes a few things here a few things there, and it does change the ending a bit to.


But if you take the OVA for what it is .. 2 episodes - it is well done for that. The characters are surprisingly well done for 2 episodes - as is the general plot explained surprisingly well for such a short ova. (When it was a far longer Visual novel) ... And the sound track for the OVA wasn't bad either - Nothing I would go run out and buy, but nothing to scorn either , it fit the mood well , and helped the story along.

All and all I would say this OVA is worth the watch , whether or not you have gone through the visual novel- It can stand on its own and be quite enjoyable (though I recommend you go through both of course)

This is a fun little OVA that is strongly reminiscent of the era in which it was made, conjuring up nostalgic memories of the medium as it was in 2004. This largely unremarkable OVA, more an advertisement for its associated visual novel, still serves as this kind of time capsule for the cultural atmosphere anime existed in back then, as it was going through the first upheavals of a transition to digital animation, and found itself distinctly within the cultural moment known as the "moe boom". Indeed, I'd say much of this anime's value comes in the form of its capacity as an artistic and ... cultural artifact, but now that that's been addressed, Hourglass of Summer Colors must be examined on its own merits.

Beginning with the story, which is this anime's strongest point, I feel it holds some more substance than many fleeting OVAs of a similar type. It wrestles with time travel, a famously sticky and unmanageable subject, with caution and ease, settling on a system that makes a good deal of sense all things considered. With that out of the way, it goes on to tell a pretty typical school romance story in a dramatic, engaging, and touching way. I quite liked the story, though the brevity of this title really hinders its sense of continuity, with jarring jumps between certain events and explanations only made after the fact.

The art is quite nostalgic, meeting all basic standards of quality for the time, complete with the old lovable tropes in terms of character design and how it employs humor. It exudes that clean, colorful aesthetic of the 2000s, and makes heavy use of that chibi-esque, 2chan emoticon facial style for funny moments and misunderstandings, which I found both funny and very nostalgic, as I remember back when that sort of thing was completely inseparable from anime comedy as a whole.

The sound exists in a similar fashion, meeting all basic standards of quality once again, complete with the somewhat melodramatic VA work of the time period, with a very specific inflection that they applied to their work at that time. It's hard to exactly place my finger on it, but there's something in the way they speak here that definitively dates it to this time period, and many other 2000s titles, too. Perhaps it's just an unmentioned stylistic aspect, but I noticed and enjoyed it, as it brought me back to sitting in front of the TV at all hours of the night watching any anime I could find in no particular order.

The characters are good, if broadly typical for this kind of show, as they broadly serve to fulfill various archetypes, like the clingy childhood best friend who's secretly in love with the protagonist, the overpowered clutzy magic/sci-fi girl who's secretly love with the protagonist, the shy rich girl with strict parents and a kind soul who's secretly in love with the protagonist, and the protagonist who's just your every day high school guy that all these girls are inexplicably secretly in love with. Of them, Ligene and Mana Kawamura are my favorites, Ligene for being a funny, unique character that shakes up the story and honestly just makes the whole thing possible in the first place, and Mana for being a pretty well-written side character and, in comparison to the other options here, also best girl. As of the time of this writing I haven't played the visual novel, but I assume that her's is a potential route in the game. Overall, Hourglass of Summer Colors is a fun little romance OVA with a unique twist, even if it is rather formulaic by the standards of the time. At the end of the day, if you enjoy this era of anime then you'll likely enjoy this particular anime, at least to some extent. In fact, I'd say that a distinct appreciation for the era is probably required to get anything out of this title.