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Blue Box is an interesting sports-romance anime that caught my attention when it aired.

Story:
The story was well written at first especially around the first half (eps 1-12), but the direction isn't great during the second half. The sports aspect is shown throughout the show, but not as much as the romance. The romance is written as your generic love triangle with our MC Taiki and the two main girls Chinatsu and Hina. So although I did love some parts of the writing, it's definitely not as special as I thought. The ending was also left in an awkward position which have a large impact on ... viewing this series.

Animation:
No doubt this animation is definitely one of the best. The characters look stunning throughout the series.

Characters:
The MC Taiki has his strengths and weaknesses throughout. He is a good-hearted guy who is striving to improve his badminton skills to keep up with his crush Chinatsu, which she is aiming for nationals in basketball. But Taiki's interactions with other characters is not pleasing to watch based on his behavior.

Overall this show has a wonderful animation and a decent/good story at first, but the second half isn't great and has an awkward ending.

White Album 2 is definitely one of the most unique romance shows I've ever watched.

Just to reduce any confusion, you can watch White Album 2 from the start (it's not a season 2) , it's not completely related to the White Album.

Story:
Haruki, Kazusa and Setsuna performing at the school stage and the problems later in the story. This is not a spoiler since it's shown at the first scene. However, the story involves Haruki's journey in saving the light music club and the hardships involved in it. The story is definitely confusing as it is not fully set in chronological order.

Animation:
While the animation is ... not perfect, it done pretty well.

Characters:
The characters mainly focus in development and the flaws when it comes to romance, the communications involved in it and the result of it. A lot of the times, it's hard to watch the characters.

Overall, I didn't explain much since I don't want to spoil anything if you are considering seeing this piece. This approach is much different than what we see in many modern romance anime and I'm all for it. However, this series may result in viewers having a sorrow feeling which is why it's hard to recommend to people who are looking for a more joyful watch.

9/10

Flower and Asura is a slice of life show about recitation in a high school broadcasting club.

Story:
Hana lives in a small remote island, goes to school by a ferry and was recruited to the broadcasting club by Mizuki. With this simple description, this story is very unique compared to others. The overall is written pretty well, but not perfect.

Animation:
The animation looks great with the character designs, the background, etc, but it's nothing spectacular.

Characters:
The characters are great to the story and viewing experience as they are significant to the overall story including the side characters. The one noticeable flaw that I noticed were the lack ... of emotion that some characters have which can feel unsettling.

Overall it's nice to see Flower and Asura being a part of the variety of anime in the Winter 2025 seasonal. Some may find this show to be boring, but it's a great relaxing watch for those who are a big fan of slice of life.

8/10

Liz and the Blue Bird is a nice spin off of the Sound Euphonium series

Story:
The story in this movie focuses on Mizore and Nozomi instead of Kumiko and Reina from Sound Euphonium. It starts off slow, but then does get moving. There are aspects of the book "Liz and the Blue Bird" and how it relates to the characters when it comes to growing up and parting ways which is well written overall. Music is an important aspect as well.

Animation:
It's notable to mention that the animation is not as well as Sound Euphonium, but still look stunning in it's own way because of its ... simplicity.

Characters:
We know from Sound Euphonium that even though both are friends, Nozomi is an extrovert while Mizroe is an introvert which appears in Liz and the Blue Bird. Both of their characteristics are interesting to watch as well as how their differences impact their friendship.

Overall this movie did great when it comes to the story, characters, and animation. While this movie isn't required to watch for the Sound Euphonium series, it's a great addition to understanding the side characters more.

9/10

Sound Euphonium 3 is simply one of the best conclusions to a show I've seen.

It's not everyday you see the concept of concert band in an anime. In fact, the music genre is really rare let alone a concert band.

Like past seasons, the animation is peak quality and the story is written really well. The drama that occurs during Kumiko's third and last year in high school makes me want to continue watching. However, the introduction of Mayu Kuroe to the series degrade my enjoyment of the show. But overall, I love the entire Sound Euphonium series and I believe anyone who is willing to ... deal with some drama and competition involved would enjoy this series as much as I do.

10/10