Aaahh!! This was such an enjoyable first episode for me. I feel like I just watched a short film. I’m looking forward to seeing Setsu’s journey as he hopefully finds his sound. But at the same time, I’m also looking forward to him watching him experiencing life and making connections along the way.
The premise of Setsu leaving for Tokyo to find his sound is something that really interests me. I loved the back and forth between his current situation and back when his grandfather was dying. He may love the sounds from his grandfather and want to strive to replicate them, but that doesn’t help him experience things on his own. It was harsh to hear someone that he looked up to tell him to quit the Shamisen, but if it was preventing him from being his own person, then I think that is a fair recommendation for the grandfather to make. Granted, I’m sure Setsu is going to have to learn that over time. A single connection in Tokyo, probably isn’t going to help him fully realize his own sound.
I love the characters that were introduced in this episode! Setsu, I would say, is a pretty plain jane protagonist. There isn’t a whole lot too him yet aside from the fact that he learned to play the shamisen because of the sounds his grandfather was able to make. He has so much potential to be filled out based on all of his experiences, so I’m looking forward to seeing how he changes over the course of the series. Yuna is an absolute gem and I hope there will be more of her in future episodes (but I won’t hope too much because it seems like she will be gone for a good long while). I loved her attitude of consistently trying her hardest, even when things weren’t really going her way. She’s a good-hearted person. I want to see her succeed and I’m proud of her for quitting her agency! Heck yeah! She was going through some rough stuff, but she’s going to turn her life around for good. Also, I’m glad that she was the one throwing punches (or rather kicks) in this episode. And as the overall person pushing everything forward in this episode, I’m happy for her! Go Yuna go!
For the more side characters in this episode, I also appreciated what they were able to add. The interactions Setsu had with his grandfather were really nice, because it helps to establish the kind of grandfather he was. For the most part, it doesn’t seem like he was the primary caretaker or that there was any bad blood between them. It was just an instance of someone thoroughly appreciating the work that they had made. Yeah, Grandfather was harsh, but it’s valuable to hear those words. There’s nothing wrong with giving your grandson an existential crisis if it’s to help him grow. Right? Then there is Taketo. I don’t like him, and he was set up in this episode to be an unlikeable character. But I think that really helped to show how much power there is in Setsu’s playing. His overall self-centeredness especially when he claims that everyone was there for HIM and no one else, it really paints how much he only cared about himself. But after hearing Setsu for just a few minutes, he is quickly thrown back down to earth and realizes that the world does not actually revolve around him. Heck, even just seeing him in the final minutes writing music in Yuna’s apartment, shows at least a little change in him. He’s still bossy and rude, but at least he’s trying. I’m interested to see if he’s going to be a recurring character and if he grows as a person, or if he was just here for the premier.
The ending of the episode threw me for a loop, but I guess they do need to set up the next episode. Umeko, what kind of person are you? And what chaos are you bringing? I mean, you had people break down his door. At first, I thought she might be the landlord, but uh, her introduction tells me otherwise. I’m looking forward to seeing what her role is.
After this first episode, I’m pretty excited to see where this anime will go. I want to see Setsu succeed and I can’t wait how each episode is going to add vibrancy to his personality and help him discover his sound. If the next couple of episodes are as enjoyable as I found this one to be, I expect that I’ll really enjoy the whole anime. Alright, Mashiro no Oto, let’s see if you can live up to that expectation!
Possibility of Watching: Incredibly High
Possibility of Blogging: Extremely High
