Reflections of a Young Pilgrim

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is probably best described as an experimental anime. It is downright unpredictable and tries to fit in the comedy genre using that. If you’re not one to enjoy randomness in your stories then feel free to skip this anime, it’s simply not the comedy style for you; but for me who loves the randomness of life and can really laugh at that… this show caught my attention from episode 1.

It doesn’t nicely fit into any one genre, with comedic moments, musical moments, drama moments, action moments, mystery moments, and slice-of-life moments; in fact, this show is most simply described as… yes… “random”. It has become extremely popular in the anime industry to the point where some would call it an iconic classic. Whether it’s the all-perfect example of anime that it’s portrayed as, or simply overhyped, I was never looking to figure out. I find it difficult to be content with a show or anything if I have strange expectations for it. Let’s just see for ourselves what Haruhi is all about, and how much we’ll enjoy an experimental sci-fi comedy adventure…

~ Synopsis

Once upon a time, Kyon wanted to believe that aliens, time travelers, and espers were real. By the time he graduated from middle school, he realized these things were only to be found on television, and not in the realm of reality. So Kyon was fully prepared to live a normal, uneventful high school life … until the first day of school, when she came into his world.

Her name was Haruhi Suzumiya, who upon enrollment at school announced, “I have no interest in ordinary humans. If there are any aliens, beings from the future, or super-humans, come see me. That is all!”

Of course, nothing of the sort really exists, but Kyon made the mistake of humoring her - and became the first underling in her new club on campus, the SOS Brigade, devoted to discovering aliens, espers, and time travelers, and investigating every strange mystery that Haruhi can find.

NOTE: Esper means “ESPer” or one with ExtraSensory Perception. Basically an individual capable of telepathy and other paranormal abilities.

~ Thoughts and Impressions

Despite the title, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is anything but melancholic. Though it follows a very simple sci-fi idea, the storytelling is presented in such an unpredictable way that I can’t help but smile and laugh at its delightful strangeness.

First of all, I have to discuss the episode order. When Haruhi was first released on TV, the episode order was not arranged chronologically; the episodes were mixed up to add a more comedic and memorable presentation. When it was later released on DVD, the publishers rearranged the episodes into chronological order (unless you buy its more expensive Special Limited Edition).

I believe deviating from the creator’s original order was a bad choice. The final 3 episodes in the broadcast order *felt* like a good wrap-up to the show, while the chronological DVD order ends with “that’s it? You show all the mystery and character development early on, and stopped on the only slow episode with no plot at all?”

Also, the original broadcast order added some confusing “What the heck?” moments that really made me laugh. Showing full-blown flashbacks or lengthy discussions for episodes that haven’t even played yet … what the heck, who does that??? I’d like to give some examples, but that’s difficult without spoiling plot points; let’s just say I never knew a baseball game with Haruhi would determinate the fate of the world like that, and I had to laugh as they tried to save humanity via sports and I had no clue what was going on until the end.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not chaotic or unintelligibly silly, but it effectively tells that following the life of Haruhi will be organized chaos at best.

The first episode alone is very unusual (seriously, can someone explain to me what was up with that cat??) and it’s not until the second episode that you’ll even see the actual show opening and some actual plot. It’s a rather fun introduction though, in its over-the-top lame way, I rather enjoyed it. xD

Moving onto the story… looking back, it’s actually a remarkable simple tale. Almost too simple. It will probably disappoint anyone who needs a thoughtful plot or expects a lot from Haruhi with its high ratings. I finally understand why it’s so famous though. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is all about the characters and character interaction, as in most comedies. It doesn’t try to be exceptional in any category though, even comedy, It simply wants to present unique characters in a funny way that’s never been seen before. Something you’ll always remember and smile about. And for the most part, I believe it succeeds.

The story follows the activities of Kyon as he follows (willing or not!) the activities of Haruhi, as she seeks to experience a sci-fi adventure here on Earth. Eventually she forms the SOS Brigade, and dragging Kyon and a few other friends along, starts to investigate every paranormal or bizarre mystery she can find. It’s not all about supernatural moments though… in between investigations, there’s a lot of normal casual routine that she has to oversee too… club advertising (like making a feature film or running a sporting event), “acquiring” computer equipment for the clubroom (via gambling in an intensive video game battle), preparing for the annual school festival, etc. I was surprised to see some character development towards the end of the show. Some. But again, despite being devoid of serious plot and all those things that usually make up a “good” TV show, the characters here are just plain fun to get to know and watch.

I should also point out that the animation for this show is exceptionally good. This came from Kyoto Animation studios, which made the gorgeous shows Air (which I refuse to watch) and Kanon 2006 (which I sincerely enjoyed), so I’m not surprised. Every scene is crisp and clear, animation is perfectly smooth, vibrant colors, great backgrounds, the locations are actually alive with people and things moving… Haruhi is a fine example of anime production done right.

~ The Characters

Haruhi Suzumiya herself – well, you’ve probably already gotten an idea of what she’s like. Bored, unpredictable, bossy. But she doesn’t come off as a spoiled brat, but as someone who wants to find something bigger and more exciting in life and has the determination to get it. She might not care what people think about her but she’s never heartless or unsympathetic. Despite all that, I won’t lie, she is a little mean. But there’s still a lot more to this cast than Haruhi…

Kyon is the official narrator of this show and is very quick witted, very thoughtful, very sarcastic.  He might complain about how much Haruhi demands of him, but he really enjoys the randomness of the club and goes out of his way to help everyone there when something’s needed. But dang he can have a sharp tongue! I never saw so much ‘casual complaining’ in my life. Put him together in a room with Haruhi, no wonder randomness happens.

But these two aren’t the only main characters of the show. In fact, I’d say the next three characters contribute just as much laughs and story. Behold!

Mikuru Asahina is the blushing maid of the series. I never thought I’d write those words in my life, and I should probably stop right there to be safe. xD But suffice it to say she plays an over-the-top cute character who somehow gets involved in Haruhi’s plots.

.

Itsuki Koizumi is the porter boy. That is, whatever Haruhi says, it’s “Yes Ma’am!” or “That was genius Ma’am!”, he’s quite the kiss-up. Nevertheless, he’s extremely intelligent, and combined with the constant smile on his face, he always looks like he’s secretly planning something. By the end, I loved his unique personality as much as the others. Well almost.

.

Yuki Nagato is truthfully the one I loved the most. That’s not saying that the other 4 characters are awful, I enjoyed watching their stories very much, but it was Nagato that really caught my attention. She plays a geek… a constantly reading-a-book and wears-glasses geek. A very cool mysterious geek. Her face is typically emotionless (almost to the point of being scary), but she’s a great programmer, a great fighter, always watchful and seems to know more than she should, and she’s always there to help her friends.

And there we have the SOS Brigade member roster: the President, the Complainer, the Maid, the Porter, and the Geek.

What will happen when these 5 meet and investigate for the club? You seriously should consider watching this and find out.

~ Conclusion

All in all, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya does an excellent job of portraying the random everyday life of the SOS Brigade in a charmingly strange and very funny way. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys comedy or sci-fi (or both!).

Storyline: 6 – Above Average
Characters: 8 – Very Good
Animation: 10 – Nearly Perfect

Enjoyment Rating: 8 / 10 Stars (Very Good)

~ Recommended Audience

Appropriate for about the 16-up crowd for its many suggestive “fanservice” moments and a scene of bloody violence.

Violence: While normally set in the peaceful (sort of) high school setting, a few scenes can quickly turn into all-out serious battles. In particular, there’s a rather bloody impaling of a person, though it’s not gratuitously graphic or traumatic.

Language: The usual mild language one finds in anime, though I hate to admit almost all TV shows suffer from that. Also some mild innuendo.

Sexual Content: Quite a few ‘suggestive’ moments. Haruhi is quite aware of the power of ‘sex appeal’ and is not afraid to use it in choosing clothes. And as they say in CAA’s review, Kyon is a healthy teenaged male and not afraid to comment on what he sees. It’s also a little disturbing how one character is outright groped or repeatedly pressured to strip down and dress up in suggestive outfits.

Nudity: Shown skin never goes past the bikini zone, though the show “threatens” nudity on several occasions, only to block the view at the last second with a conveniently placed prop.

Religious Material: The show does question who created the world and why, and sometimes comes up with very comical theories for an answer. However, this is a comedy, and any ideas given about God are so laughable and unrealistic that I don’t see how any mature viewer would really find it offensive.

~ Show Details

Episode Count: 14
Version Reviewed: Subtitled by a.f.k.
Aired: 2006-04-02 to 2006-06-25
Genre: Comedy / Experimental
Studio: Kyoto Animation
Other Reviews: