March Comes in Like A Lion is the second work created by Umino Chica that I have watched. The first being Honey and Clover over a decade ago now. March Comes in Like a Lion was originally a 2007 manga that had a such a huge positive reception that an Anime was created. Soon after, a two part live action film also followed suit this year. The manga has not reached a conclusion yet so fans can still continue to enjoy what's to come from the series. Lets talk about the anime adaption for now(fingers crossed that the manga gets an English release under Shojo Beat label like earlier title, Honey and Clover.).
I would write a short summery about this anime but the truth of the matter is that the plot is as simple as depression and loneliness. The main character is a boy that's pretty withdrawn from the world. He only knows how to play the traditional Japanese board game sport called Shogi. I'm going to guess that many western viewers know absolutely nothing about Shogi unless you're one of those huge Japanese culture buffs. You know the ones that have lived in Japan and lived, breathed, every damn thing Japanese. Yeah, well most anime fans have not done that…. yet. Shogi is a big part of the show and shown in a emotional fashion that connects to the main characters unstable emotional state. A big feature about this anime is that a big amount of the plot is shown through narration of the main character or sometimes other characters. Viewers have forced into the character's emotional war with himself as a core experience of March Comes in Like a Loin. It would be a lie if I said that the experience isn't anything short of sad. Then inside of his depression comes a exciting viewing time for the viewer because we have all been through times where we felt lost. Even the most confident person breaks down from time to time. The anime defiantly knocks our main guy down more than a few times but he also slowly finds his own way to slowly stand up again. Thanks solely to the characters around him, like his support system when times get tough. Light hearted times slowly make a presence in the show due to his "support system", A family of sisters that have their own deep scars. They don't let that stop their positive light from shining on the main character in his depressive state. Umino was always good at inserting wacky humor into sad situations then switching back and forth between both without a hint of awkwardness. The over the top humor doesn't come across as trying to hard either. Each try at human felt right at home in the plots progression to me. My biggest annoyance with March Comes in Like a Lion was the random way that the anime tries to explain the rules of Shogi using a elementary sounding song. I really love the always hungry cats in the anime but this sequence got on my nerves. That song almost had my shouting, "RECLAIMING MY TIME!". I'm also a fan of the progression of the anime explained the backgrounds of the characters so you find out why they are the way that they are. Our main guy worried me as I watched because he seemed to be getting stronger one minute while the next minute he's backtracking into depression. Best wishes for him in Season 2.
Umino Chica's character designs have youthful look to me. They always have and I believe its because of the way she draws them. Her character faces are drawn using a round circular face. Perfect for the characters transformation into little Chibi size during the comedy scenes. Her drawings show maturity along with a lot of flexibility to be too cute for words. The sequences done for the moments of depression during the anime are masterpieces to me. The color schemes used for these scenes will hurt your heart. Don't get me started on the narration on top of that. Certain words that are used to hurt the main character create visual paintings for the viewers chance to relate to the pain that cuts the main characters from these words. I could enjoy March Comes In Like a Lion based on visuals alone. just so happens there's a solid story to back up it's beauty.
Please note that this anime isn't for everyone. Since the anime is heavily based on dialogue, An anime fan that loves mostly action might get bored watching this anime. You also need to have an open mind for all the Japanese cultural references shown not only through the sport of Shogi but in the comedy aspect of the anime as well. I personally like the show for the emotional depth any human can easily relate to.
No comments:
Post a Comment