Hidamari Sketch Episode 1 "January 11th A Winter's Collage"

Tonight, to start things off, I watched the first episode of Hidamari Sketch. I overheard someone on my floor talking about it on Friday, so I decided to have a look for myself. And so far I like what I see.

The series is based off of a 4koma series much like Azumanga Daioh. The first episode starts off with the main character Yuno waking up and getting ready for school. We find out that she and her friends, Miyako (her energetic next door neighbor), Hiro (a nice girl, always worrying about her weight), and Sae (cool meganekko) all attend a nearby art school. Their teacher, Yoshinoya-sensei, is a cosplay fanatic and altogether fun in a very Yukari-like way (except she seems to actually enjoy teaching). Yuno and Co. all meet up and head to school and it is on the way, that we learn Yuno has a homework assignment due today that she forgot all about. She asks Yoshinoya-sensei for leniency and after receiving none, Yuno skips lunch to go home and finish her assignment which turns out to be a collage about her winter vacation. She gets it done just in time and on her way back to school it begins to snow. She hands in her assignment at the end of the day and collapses in the floor from hunger over skipping lunch. Miyako hands her a rice ball Hiro had saved her from her own lunch and she eats it hungrily. Then, Yuno and Miyako go outside to begin their assigned cleaning duties. By this time, however, the snow has piled up and the cleaning is put on hold in favor of playing in the snow! Finally, they return home at dusk and stop to visit Hiro to thank her for the rice ball earlier and are invited inside for snacks and to warm up under the Kotatsu. Yuno then tells her friends about her collage and they return home.

I'm happy with this series so far. It's not quite as slap-stick as Azumanga and not as weird as Pani Poni. It's a nice, pointless, cute show with no real plot in sight. Good way to brighten the mood of a melancholy day.

Here's a nice shot of Yuno with the title in the background.

These next shots are basically name cards for all the characters from the opening theme.

Yuno...


...Miyako...


...Hiro...


...and finally, Sae


First shot of Yuno as she gets ready for school (moe~)


Yuno's super-deformed look. Here she's just realized she forgot her homework.


A shot of their teacher, Yoshinoya-sensei. This series loves the active chalkboard much like Pani Poni Dash.


Miyako having a snowball fight with Yuno after school when they should be cleaning.


Miyako acting like a cat under the Kotatsu.
Nyo~~


Miyako's snow writing. Sae points out how she used the wrong "Peace" here.



One of the interesting things about this show is how it blends real-world objects into the animation. Like here on Miyako's desk.


A shot of the animation/live action contrast.


This, I believe, is Yuno's alarm clock. Still notice the real world contrast.
Notice the books on the shelf below the clock. ひだま and part of り ("Hidama" and part of "ri") is clearly legible here. More than likely this is the collection of "Hidamari Sketch" 4koma manga. Nice touch.

Well, that's all for now. I'll probably continue watching this series and see how it develops. Until next time.

Hello

I decided to make a dedicated blog just for anime blogging. This should keep things more organized and keep my anime reviews separate from my personal life. If you want to know what's up with me, personally, check out my other blog.

I'll start things off with my favorite types of shows and what I'm currently watching.

My favorite type of shows (and thus the sort of shows you should expect for me to blog) are generally comedies, slice-of-life series , and shoujo dramas. I do watch other types of anime, action and the like, but as far as my favorite, that would have to be basically any series with an intense moe feeling to it.

What I'm currently watching:

• Kanon (2006)
• Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight!
• Aria: the Natural
• Gakuen Alice
• Naruto Shippuuden

Since I am an active IU undergraduate, I may not be able to keep up to date with every new episode, but I'll try as best I can. That's it for now. Expect reviews to follow.