Anime Reviews
Tsuki ga Kirei (2017, Feel)
月がきれい
[The Moon Is Beautiful]
無中文版
Athletic Akane Mizuno from the track and fields team had long fallen for the aspiring novelist "curly hair" Kotarou Azumi ever since she saw him but never found the courage to approach him. As their third year of junior high begins, Akane just happens to be put in the same class as him and her hesitant actions ends up catching Kotarou's eyes too. The two keep their distance as strangers until one evening their families both happened to be dining at the same restaurant. When Akane's sister sees her shy reaction next to Kotarou, she decides to stir things up and the families introduce one another. Shortly after, Akane and Kotarou ends up in the same festival duties group and so, are given a chance to slowly close their distance but they soon learn the ups and downs of having a relationship - not to mention one under wraps.
"Tsuki (moon)". What better a time to ask "tsukiatte (go out with me)" than a moon lit night?
This is an original show from Feel, not based on any Manga like most Anime are. Right from the very first episode, you're greeted with the beautiful sights of cherry blossoms as the new school year begins. And if you've ever visited Kawagoe AKA "Little Edo" in Japan due to the buildings keeping their appearance from the 17 - 19th century Edo era, you'll recognise the signature black buildings right away along with the bell tower sign - I actually watched this because I visited the place. It's a very relaxed romance show with equally pleasant art to match. Interactions are cute as we watch Akane and Kotarou explore their first love relationship. Characters are likeable with their own little signature habit such as Akane with her little stress relief toy and Kotarou using his room's light cord as a boxing target.
Interestingly enough, some of the staff behind the Anime adaptation for Assassination Classroom was involved in this show namely director Seiji Kishi and story editor Yuuko Kakihara. Kakihara also happened to be the writer for Orange too although I don't quite notice any similarities apart from the cheery, happiness the show is mostly filled with. A bit too cheery even with everyone getting along perfectly but with this show, it's toned down a little more.
As with most romance shows, coincidences play a big part in getting the couple together - and becoming hurdles. It doesn't get away from your usual cliche drama coming from misunderstandings and missed encounters. It doesn't help when the shy couple are trying to keep it all a secret so that others think they're available. While the cliche situations do drag out a bit similarly in some way, the show does also resolve them quickly rather than spread out the heartache over multiple episodes. Maybe because this is a short series or Kakihara just wanted to highlight how important it is to communicate and be decisive.
So if you're expecting something as harsh as 5cm then... There might be a tint of similarity but it definitely isn't as bitter as the little couple puts in a fair amount of effort mutually to maintain their relationship which was great to see. There's also the odd jokes and fun shorts featuring the supporting characters after the ending credits which lightens up the mood even more so there really isn't a lot of bitter drama.
As with most Anime shows that use 3D, the animation can be an eye-sore when they switch to using it but otherwise the show looks good for the most part. As I mentioned earlier, the show is pleasant to watch. There's plenty of colour but not overly saturated and backgrounds are good but again, not heavily detailed so that everything's balanced out and you aren't too distracted from the characters. The Hayashi dance particularly shows off what the Feel can do and was quite mesmerising to watch. If they got rid of the 3D I think the show would have been a lot more aesthetically pleasing. While the OP song doesn't change for this short series, the animation used does half way through the show.
It's a cute sweet romance show (complete with plenty of blushing) without the dragged out cliche moments from the genre. If you enjoyed Orange for its romance and friendship, you will probably like this too.
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