Omohide.com

Although I am still very much in a slightly obsessed mode (with Maison Ikkoku), I’ve decided to begin watching Kimagure Orange Road. This series is not nearly as long as Maison Ikkoku, which means it will be slightly better for my schedule, but compared to modern anime series it is still double the length of most longer series nowadays. Regardless, Maison Ikkoku’s length, in my opinion, helped make it as unique an experiences as it was. KOR seemed like a natural series to continue onto because I have always heard that Maison Ikkoku and Kimagure Orange Road are the two “classic” ….

When I first started watching anime and other Japanese materials, the language itself was completely lost on me and I relied mostly on translations and subtitles, as most other fans do. Ever since I’ve started learning Japanese, however, I’ve found it really satisfying to be able to get a better understanding of what characters are actually saying. There’s a completely different kind of cadence and flow to Japanese speech which, many times, can give a different impression than the English translation. Of course, this is natural for any language. But as I said, it really becomes……

I thought I’d go through and list some of my favourite episoides and moments from this very, very long series. Most of them are moments of real character development, which is done wonderfully in this series. Of course, there are also some which are just enjoyable to see………

I’ve decided that I will extend what I did with an earlier piece of music from Maison Ikkoku ( A Bell Rings at Dawn ) to other pieces from the Maison Ikkoku soundtrack. This will basically culminate in an album of sorts, an orchestral album of Maison Ikkoku orchestral arrangements containing somewhere between 5-10 pieces of re-done music pieces from the original soundtrack along with some piano versions….

(Click read more for the links)
Latest addition: “Yoru no Ame”..

(Spoiler Free) Let me begin this review by saying that at the time I first started watching this series, I was beginning to sorely miss watching anime altogether. It’s true that with classes starting, much of the time I may have at one point spent watching anime was now replaced with solving equations, but that isn’t the entire reason. If I could find a series that I really enjoy, I would have found time to go through it. But I’m not a mass anime-watcher like some of the fans you’ll find all over the internet. Simply being an anime doesn’t make me want to watch a series. What I want is a sincere anime that truly brings you into its world and makes you love the characters, the story and the setting. But that doesn’t sell as much, it seems, as the endless cycle of …

I’ll start off this post with a link and video. When I really enjoy a film or series, and I also happen to enjoy the music and/or identify it strongly with the work in question, I typically feel compelled to write sheet music for it. Maison Ikkoku is certainly no exception. So here is some sheet music for a piano arrangement of “Kanashimi yo Konnichiwa”.

http://omohide.com/theowne_maison_ikkoku.pdf

And here is a video of myself playing the piece:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0n2gLBJInw

Now, let’s continue on to the general music review. Maison Ikkoku is an older series, so the music may sound a bit outdated at times. For example, there are several string pieces that I think are quite good compositions but the older recording gives them a somewhat harsh quality. But the melodies retain a…..

I will soon write a full review of the series (and its music). This post is more or less just my reaction to finishing the series. It will contain slight spoilers. My full review, however, will not contain spoilers. Just a heads up.

I’ve officially completed the longest anime series I have ever watched - a full 96 episodes (plus one hour long movie), and I enjoyed every single minute of it right up until the end. Having just finished episode 96, Maison Ikkoku has one of the most satisfying endings I have ever watched. There is one specific thing that I am very happy about, and that is that the producers decided to bring back the melody of “Kanashimi Yo Konnichiwa” to play as the entire series came to a close. This was a wonderful choice. Maybe nostalgia just gets to me too easily, but I couldn’t help but get….

(Mostly spoiler-free, until last paragraph) I’m finding it hard to believe that I actually went through 36 episodes of this show in the span of a few days. I suppose the fact that classes were cancelled due to a holiday helped, but regardless, that is quite a large marathon and I am sitting here thinking there must be some kind of mistake. I planned to write a third episode block review before going into the ending, and episode 76 seems to be the perfect place to do so. I mentioned before that episode 40 felt like the first peak in the show’s plot and character development, and I can now say that the second one is episode 76 (the final one, of course, will occur during the climactic final episodes….or so I assume).

As I was watching these latest episodes, I started to wonder about what it must have been like to have watched this show when it originally aired. Of course, this series aired before I was born, but the idea sounds very interesting to me, of watching these characters lives progress, realistically, through several years. I really enjoy the passing of time in this anime. You are literally watching the main character grow, experience new things, and develop into……

(No Spoilers) There are plenty of anime, books, and films out there with twisting storylines and dramatic plot twists - and they can be quite interesting provided they’re done well. But the most gripping storylines (in my opinion) have always been the ones that get you to form attachments with the characters first and foremost. Once this has happened, interactions and developments between characters becomes even more enthralling than the kind of thing I mentioned above simply because the viewer has become so connected with them. There are many anime titles which try to accomplish this, but they don’t always succeed. It’s very difficult to create utterly likable characters who the viewer cannot resist latching onto. Kare Kano managed to do it, so did Honey and Clover.

Maison Ikkoku is clearly a character-oriented show. The engrossing moments are a result of the viewer’s connection with the characters. You continue to watch because you…….

(No Spoilers) Though I would usually describe myself as an anime fan, I watch relatively few anime compared to the people I find on message boards. Looking over their lists of anime they’ve seen, it is far, far longer than my own list would ever be. I think that I just have become more “picky” after being exposed to some of the better anime out there. After having watched series like Honey and Clover, I just can………….