Suzuhara is slow clumsy and shy and finds it very hard to get a long at school. She is a Red Data Girl whose is set to succeed her mother as host to the Goddess. Raised as a shrine maiden in the country side she is easily scared by other people and destroys most the technology she touches. After an encounter with a God of the mountain Suzuhara decides to take her fathers advice and enroll in high school in Tokyo along with her childhood friend Sagara. Sagara is from a family of warriors whose fate is to protect people like Suzuhara but Sagara is repelled by Suzuhara's timid nature at first but as they spend more time together at school and Suzuhara breaks away from her shyness bit by bit.... Well it's a romance do I need to spell it out for you?
Season one recently finished and I do feel like a lot of points have just been brushed under the carpet I did enjoy it! But really, almost everything in episode one was a waste of time! Suzuhara is extra shy in this episode. So shy in fact, it made me feel awkward! And what was with that computer scene? She tried to use the internet in her school computer room but ends up having what is essentially a panic attack and then all the computers break? Seriously, her ability to break electronics needs some explaining! Then there's the time when it's heavily implied that Sagara was abused by his father. Maybe I'm just reading into it too much but I'm pretty sure that child abuse is not something that should be used lightly like that! The main problem though is the pacing. There are a lot of sub-plots which were crammed into the 12 episode of season one and I'm not going to lie, they have some good sub-plots! But trying to fit them all in to 12 episodes made the whole series choppy and the main plot was almost lost. It also meant that no conclusion was reached by the end of the season. Whilst I understand leaving points unanswered for a second series I did feel that by the end of is all we never got any further into the main plot! I could carry on but my point is that there are parts which really irk me!
However, it definitely improves after they leave the county side and get into high school. The Soda twins are introduced which adds to both the supernatural and the romance aspects! There is also the fight to be top student which adds some drama in to the mix. So the good out weighs the bad for the plot! I especially love all the supernatural touches and since they are based on Shinto legends it feels very cultural!
The art and animation lives up to the standards P.A. Works set in Another with more beautiful backgrounds which really help the spiritual vibe! There's a focus on nature and ethereal things that are just really pretty. The various ghosts and spirits are also nicely animated. There are a few fights scenes, nothing to fancy but nothing to complain about. It's not exactly an action anime after all.
But Suzuhara is quite possibly the most annoying heroine! Her 'clumsy and shy' act is off the charts in a not cute way, she's a total push-over without an ounce of her own character. She just follows those around her and wonders why she gets teased! Also, she is totally dependent and doesn't do anything good I don't know what Sagara sees in her! The only time she's presented as desirable is when she's dancing. At which time the art is absolutely stunning! Her design is very cute despite how 'plain' looking she is (isn't that always the way!). Her braids which apparently make her so undesirable are really nice in my opinion! But what I really love about Suzuhara (there has to be something with a personality like that) is that when she's taken over by the goddess you can tell just looking at her that she's changed with out really changing her appearance. I'm not sure how they do it, but the subtlety is lovely.
Sagara's personality isn't much better though! His nature is very inconsistent not to mention the fact that he starts off as a bully! Yes, the heroic guardian character is a former bully. Not cool! So to sum it up, our two main characters are a bit or a let down, fortunately there's still the soda triplets! I can't decide whether I prefer Mayura's secret cunning or Masumi's child like charm. They are both really awesome and the contrast between greatly improves the cast. In fact, all three of them have better characters than the lead characters. They should get their own show or something!
It's a shame really because there is so much potential in this show! All it really needs is a longer season and most the problems would be fixed! The sub-plots could be resolved, the main plot could be elaborated upon and the characters might develop into more lovable people. Alas as a 12 episode show it is lacking in a lot of aspects. It's genuinely pretty and of course the romance is adorable! I do think that people with knowledge of Shinto legends (not me) might find it more interesting than others because it'd probably be easier to understand. Nonetheless I do want to watch season two, I just really hope they fix the pacing!!
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