Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu Review

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Review :

Haruhi Suzumiya is one of the most well known faces in the anime community. Until recently, I had absolutely no idea why the show was so popular, and to be perfectly honest, I still don't. Your going to see this word a lot in my upcoming Angel Beats review: potential. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya had unbelievable potential. While it didn't quite live up to it in the show, it was still very fun to watch and a very good show.

Story 7/10:
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is about a freshman called Kyon who is quite the cynic and is skeptical about all things supernatural. On the first day of school during role call the girl sitting behind him announces to the class that all aliens, time travelers, and espers come see her immediately. Intrigued by this girl, Kyon begins talking to her and learns her name is Haruhi Suzumiya. They become friends and establish a club called the SOS Brigade where lo and behold an alien named Yuki Nagato, a time traveler named Mikuru Asahina, and an espers named Itsuki Koizuma are forced to join. As time goes by, Kyon learns from the other brigade members that Haruhi is actually able to change the world around her almost like a god. Haruhi is unaware of her powers and of her friends being supernatural beings. Thus the story revolves around preventing Haruhi from getting bored and destroying the world through her subconscious. Now, I watched the show in chronological order (there are 3 ways to watch the show) , and found that the first 6 episode arc was brilliant and absolutely loved it. Unfortunately the episodes to follow were a different story. They were fun yes, but they felt like filler episodes to me, and because the entire series after the first 6 episodes was actually fillers, the ending was abrupt, providing no closure whatsoever. The "second season" episodes also felt like filler episodes and the endless eight felt lazy because they could have just shortened it to 3 episodes. I feel like if the series was better paced and had a larger main plot, the show could have been something really special. Thankfully, my desires were met in the movie The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, which is now one of my favorite movies of all time. In short, the story started off with a bang, then fizzed away.

Art 9/10:
It really is amazing that this show came out back in 2006 because the art is fantastic. This is probably one of the main reasons why people have been so attracted to this show. The character designs are all great and they aren't bound to the same set of clothes every day. The wide array of settings are well done and this is just overall a very well produced anime.

Sound 6/10:
I do not understand where some people are coming from. I watched the dub and the sub version of this show, and in neither did I find the "superb" voice acting that everyone was raving about. Don't get me wrong, it's not bad, it's actually pretty good, but it's definitely not anything special in MY opinion. Don't hate on me for my OPINION of the voice acting. Many people find the voice acting superb especially for the 2 main characters, unfortunately I did not. I did like how the story was presented with Kyon thoughts however. The real reason I gave this section a 6 (enjoyable) instead of a 7 (good) was because the music really wasn't anything better than a 5 (average), I found no songs to be catchy, and the mood setting songs (particularly the dramatic ones) often found themselves misplaced in scenes. Overall the sound aspects of the show was above average due to the good voice acting, but not anything really noteworthy.

Characters 7/10:
The characters in this show were quite good. Haruhi is a sporadic bundle of craziness, Kyon is the cynical voice of reason, and the other 3 leads were over the top stereotypes. Although these 3 were stereotypes, they were so intentionally. Because haruhi basically wished for these 3 stereotypical characters to be there, they arrived on q. It's satisfying to have an explanation to why the 3 characters are so one dimensional instead of just throwing them at us and expecting us to relate to them. And even though they were stereotypes, they were very well done and a joy to watch. And if the show didn't provide enough for you, the movie really brings them out of their shells and provides much deeper insight on them, particularly with Yuki. Obviously the strongest characters were Haruhi and Kyon due to their yin and yang type presence in the show. However, there were drawbacks to the characters. My qualms were that Kyon really did complain A LOT, and Haruhi can sometimes come off as a real bitch when she bosses people around. My main issue is just that the characters had almost no development throughout the story. I mean Haruhi developed a lot in the first 6 episodes. But after that there was almost nothing. However, once again the movie answered my prayers on this issue too (see a trend here?). The characters were great, but lack of development really prevented them from being more relatable and and interesting, so in the end I rate them as good, but not anything more.

Enjoyment 8/10:
I have no idea why but I REALLY enjoyed watching this show. If there was more closure at the end of the season I most likely would have given this show an 8 (which is a very rare score from me). The tasks that the cast had to do to entertain Haruhi were fun to watch and the first 6 episodes were pretty intense. Maybe it was the characters, or maybe being able to hear all of Kyons thoughts. I really don't know why I enjoyed this show so much. Ultimately with better pacing and a thicker plot, I would have fallen completely in love with this show.

Overall 7.5/10:
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya was a show that I thoroughly enjoyed watching. I can see why some people absolutely love this show, but unfortunately for me it had too many flaws particularly in the pacing and lack of plot after the first 6 episodes to make this truly great. However, if you enjoyed the show like I did, you HAVE to watch the movie: The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, because it is exactly what I was hoping for from the series. I may or may not write a review for it, but just know that it is everything you could ask for in a movie and has become only the 4th anime to ever get a 9/10 or higher from me.

The Verdict:
Very good show that is very fun to watch, gleaming with potential but unfortunately falls short of what it could be.

Pros:
+Great Characters
+Fantastic first 6 episodes
+Amazing art especially for the time
+Addicting to watch

Cons:
-Plot dies after 6th episode and climax in the middle of the season
-Lack of a memorable soundtrack
-Almost no character development

7.5/10 - Very Good

Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu Review

To say that the Suzumiya Haruhi franchise has been a bit of an emotional rollercoaster for fans of the show would be an understatement. The first season hit the anime world like a storm, and huge numbers of people immediately swore their devotion to Haruhi and the SOS Brigade. The second season though, sorely tested the patience of many fans with the lesson in tedium known as "Endless Eight", and many were left wondering where it all went wrong. The ups and downs of the franchise are well documented and commented upon, and while Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu (2009) had some great moments, the lacklustre storyline left many diehard fans dejected and despairing that the promise of the first series had seemingly fizzled out.

Well, it seems someone was listening.

Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu begins on 16th December, a month after the cultural festival in the first series, and all is seemingly peaceful. It's not long though, before reality gets put through the wringer, and it's up to Kyon to fix everything.

The thing that most surprised me about this movie is how closely it tries to follow the light novel of the same name. Granted there are a few liberties here and there, but nothing near the number used in both TV series. The benefit of this is that the story has a solid base to begin with, especially as the plot is mainly based around Kyon's thoughts and actions.

The movie begins at a farily placid pace with nothing untoward or suspicious occuring, but one of the problems with the story is that it never really shakes off the languidity of the first 20 or so minutes. While the story itself is actually very good, there are occasions where there is a marked lack of urgency about the plot, and it's these occurences that upset the flow of the movie.

There are some plusses though. The fact that much of the movie is based around Kyon's motivations makes it a more interesting piece than the majority of TV episodes, as he is now the engine by which drives the plot rather than a reactionary element. Another big plus are Kyon's numerous monolgoues which reinforce the direction of the story, but also offer some insight into his character, especially towards the end of the movie.

The design is exactly what one would expect from the Suzumiya Haruhi franchise and follows that of both TV series, but it's when things go to hell that KyoAni really begin to flex some of their creative muscles. The alterations in the character's appearances and actions are extremely well managed, and the characters are generally more expressive here than they are in either series. The animation is crisp and smooth for the majority of the movie, however there are the oddfew blips here and there with character actions (nothing that's really worth worrying about though).

The music used throughout the movie is actually very good, even though the majority of Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu lacks any thematic pieces. The main theme, "Yasashi Boukyaku", is sung by Chihara Minori, and while the song has echoes of regret and oppurtunities lost, these sentiments are made more powerful by the lack of any musical accompaniment. The rest of the music is choreographed well with the on screen action, and some of the tracks chosen are inspired in their usage.

The one thing that hasn't really changed at all is the cast, and while many of the seiyuu definitely earn their pay with this movie, the two stand out performances are from Sugita Tomkazu (Kyon), and Chihara Minori (Yuki), both of whom give a new perspective on their respective characters.

Which neatly leads me on to the characters themselves.

One of the things that has always been a bit lacking with the Suzumiya Haruhi franchise is that there hasn't really been much focus on specific characters with a view to developing them. Thankfully, this movie begins to address that issue. Unlike the two TV series, both of which adopt a more reactionary approach to the growth of a character, the movie is more direct in terms of Kyon's development, and the difference this makes is rather surprising. While some may find Kyon's monologues to be no different to those in the series, it should be noted that the content of his comments gradually changes overthe course fo the movie, and the culmination of this development bodes well for future releases.

In all honesty, I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. The tight storyline, together with the more focused character development, means that the plot is more flowing than in either of the TV series' (although admittedly the time jumps from one episodeto the next play a part in that too). In truth, this movie is everything the second season should have been, and it goes some way to tying up certain loose ends from both series.

One thing that many people don't seem to see though, is the very clear influence of a certain long running British sci-fi series about a time traveller who sometimes calls himself "John Smith" and there were occasions in this movie where I kept expecting to see a TARDIS.

As with any popular title though, there will undoubtedly be those who will be inclined to hate this movie because it's part of the Suzumiya Haruhi series. The majority of viewers however, may find that they enjoy the movie in a way that isn't possible with a 13 episode series.

Hopefully, movies like this will be the way forward for the franchise, as the last thing anyone needs is more Endless Eight.