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Jul 11, 2010
I wish this series existed when I was younger. Even though I'm much older now than the fourteen year-old characters, I can still appreciate that this is a special show. Sure, it's a show for kids or young teens, but it doesn't pander, doesn't try to be precious or cute, and has more respect for its intended audience than nearly any other show I can think of. And I can think of several shows intended for adults that aren't half as smart.
Overall, the story line is excellent. The group of young teens (plus one "animal", as it says in the opening)
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get stranded on an uninhabited planet. The main premise is an old one: characters get stranded, must learn how to survive, get along, deal with assorted trials of nature and bad guys, figure out how to get back home. But for once, the writers handle it all very well. Episode plots are tight, the story moves along briskly but without sloppiness. One story arc lasts too long, which made the next one feel far too short, but other than that, the writing is as good as that in any top series.
A lot of thought went into real elements of survival in the wild, and the kids definitely have a hard time of it before they learn how to do all the necessary tasks to feed and shelter themselves. It's not a picnic at all, contrary to most shows, live action or animated. The characters themselves start out as cardboard cutout stereotypes, but eventually individually-focused episodes and a bit of back-story flesh them out enough that you can't help but root for them all. The writers maintain a good group dynamic throughout the series, with different characters revealing strengths and weaknesses along the way.
Also, Chako is quite simply the best cute animal mascot character in any series, ever. And I absolutely hate cute animal mascots (except Teto from Nausicaä). I hate them in anime, and I hate them in Engineering in the new Star Trek movie. But Chako is a good one.
The artwork isn't all that great, but it's not meant to be. The characters and animals all have a Pokemon look to them, but it's not objectionable. The backgrounds, landscapes, and alien designs are well done, with nice colors, giving the viewer a good feel for the planet and its creatures. As others have mentioned, the character artwork and animation is very inconsistent. It seems like some of the in-betweens just weren't done as well as the key frames. There are also a few moments where you want to shout at the screen to tell the animator not to attempt to do certain camera angles if he can't draw those perspectives. But overall the artwork is nice and colorful enough, with that Pokemon-like bright and cheerful look, while still having a different enough to have its own character.
The opening sequence music really sets the mood, and reminds me of 80s American TV for some reason. End music is decent enough, but not as good. Background music is pretty good, and mostly unobtrusive (as it should be).
I'll miss this show now that I've seen the whole thing. Disney would make a fortune licensing it for the US market, and I don't understand why they haven't brought it over already.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Jul 16, 2008
Hanada Shounen-shi is a very high quality show. Everything from the character design - quite faithful to the manga - to the backgrounds are top notch, with a soft, pastoral, water-color feel. Even the music is a cut above the usual, sounding almost like it came from a British television show about country life. It really helps set the mood for the semi-rural setting. The story arcs are usually from two to three episodes. It's very smart, and tightly written. The direction is excellent, with just the right angles and moods, capturing the moments of genuine emotion, while
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still being able to treat the harsh realities of life honestly. There is no gratuitous sappiness; nothing is forced.
Above all, it's really, really funny.
While it's not for the very young (there is some brief nudity, some fairly mature emotional stuff, and Ichiro swears like a sailor at his mother), the many qualities of the show should appeal to a fairly wide range of people.
We meet young Ichiro Hanada doing what he does best - fighting with his mother. He sasses and insults her constantly, and argues with his entire family, who certainly don't pull any punches with him, either. His happy-drunk father and grandfather often tease him relentlessly. He also really loves to eat. Of course, Ichiro's selfishness and foul temper make him bring it all on himself. In fact, it's while fleeing from a fight with his mother that he gets into the accident which sets the story in motion.
Ichiro is hit by a truck, and has a near-death experience. He has a vision of his recently deceased grandmother, who helps him get back to his body and wake up in the hospital, still alive. None of this affects Ichiro's temperament, however. The only difference is that he now has a scar across the back of his head, which was shaved bald for the surgery. And for some reason his hair won't grow back.
Ichiro soon learns that he can see and hear spirits. He has no idea what's going on, and gets frightened when the first one appears. It turns out that his accident gave him the special ability to communicate with the spirits of those who have just died but have not yet "passed on" to the other side. They all seem to have some unfinished business keeping them in limbo, and they enlist Ichiro's help. Naturally, Ichiro hates it, and refuses, and at first the ghosts have to resort to scaring him half to death to get him to cooperate.
Eventually, he gets used to the nagging spirits. They come in all sorts of varieties, and have different reasons for seeking Ichiro's help. There's the father who wants to tell his son that it's okay for his mother to marry again, an old man who happened to die in an undignified position and needs help, and a student who died while still a virgin and wants to see a naked woman before he goes. There's even a phony medium who, although she used to con people by pretending to be clairvoyant, actually developed real powers as a spirit.
Ichiro goes through a lot of personal trials in the midst of all this, slowly but surely learning not to be such a little monster. He learns a different lesson on life from each adventure with a spirit.
The series ends in a nice place, but the manga is apparently still going. Ichiro eventually grows up, and his ability to see spirits is passed on to his son. It would be great to see some new animated adventures at some point, so long as it's done with the same care and skill.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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