run with the wind – paynes grey illustration

Re-watching my favourite anime during this lengthy shielding lockdown period seems to be paying off. On a personal level it is just a happy thing to do, it reminds me of what they mean to me and allows me to revisit all those amazing feels. I watched many of these so long ago it’s almost like watching them for the first time.

It also reminds me of what it is I like about them and how they inspired me and continue to inspire me. As a result, I’ve started writing my story again and trying some online courses. This includes Latin which could be interesting!

In concentrating on creative writing, and my pursuit of re-engaging with some really influential stories, I’m fuelling not just my own creativity but also my evaluation of life goals and the energy I put into them.

Anime always inspires me. I could cry a river when I hear the assumption that anime is just a load of cartoons. It really isn’t. I believe this assumption must come from lack of experience and all I can say is, watch some. Not just the obvious ones that appear to be aimed at a younger audience – but the ones that are for an older audience, which can explore darker and/or more mature themes and will more likely have very beautiful art and engaging characters.

3-gatsu no lion / March Comes in like a Lion

March comes in like a lion
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This is a show about a shogi (sort of Japanese chess) player, Rei Kiriyama, who finds himself alone and depressed in the world at a young age. All he has is shogi and he is very good at it. He also hates it but it really is all he has. He is a person lost. A person in need of some sort of connection outside of shogi. He finds this connection when he befriends a family of three sisters and their grandfather (plus a couple of lovely kitty cats) and they address his loneliness through genuine concern and friendship. The anime follows his growth as he battles with isolation, loss and depression. The premise sounds like it might be a little gloomy, but overall it is about his recovery and how he recuperates, little by little, with the new found support of the Kawamoto family. Sometimes it is humorous; sometimes it is sad, but as the story progresses you really get drawn in. Season two is slightly better as the characters have all been introduced and the storytelling becomes more indepth. So much happens – it left me wanting more. I will soon turn to the manga for that much needed closure as apparently it is finally getting printed in English. Happy days!

The artwork is very appealing to me – the character art is a little strange looking and I like it. The art is so striking – and it works, as it looks rather elegant, and I could learn a lot from those expressively beautiful hands. The colours, the light, the water and reflections – it’s gorgeous. The movement and style in the animation is very eye catching, the mood is romantic and melancholy, and really quite beautiful. There is so much detail, so much work with light and with those watery reflections and all featured beautifully in the opening and end credits. I love the opening and ending art and music so much for repeatedly reminding me of the absolute awesomeness of this shows aesthetics; they tell their own beautiful story.

March comes in like a lion – Opening 3 | Raise the Flag – YouTube

Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru / Run With the Wind

This is one of my favourite anime. I’ve watched it countless times and I’ve put off re-watching it countless more because I can’t bear the thought of finishing it. Even as I begin to watch I start feeling this impending sorrow as I know it must soon come to an end – basically, missing it before it’s gone. I can’t express how much this anime means to me – I like sports anime a lot but this anime is something else – so much more than that – it’s such a warm journey; sweet and relatable. It’s full of flawed and realistic people – they are all so human, all of them flawed. Some are dealing with injury, and some are not particularly sporty or even fit. To watch them try; that is all, just to watch them try – and they try so hard. They are such an inspiration because of that.

There’s a lot of good sports anime out there – I like a lot of them, but this show? I don’t know – it’s got something going for it. It’s not just a sports anime, it’s not even about winning. Perhaps it’s a slice of life more than anything. It’s about people. It’s a peek at some folks with a goal to do something incredible. The storytelling is excellent – it’s from a Japanese novel by Shion Miura and I would love to read it if it ever gets published in English. The story plays out around a group of college students and their aim to run the Hakone Ekiden relay marathon. Most of the characters are so likable right from the start and as you learn more and more about them you start appreciating what each of them adds to the team. They just crash your heart, and you never want them to leave. I found myself in awe at them as a group. They are so real and so fragile. I think that fragility is what appeals to me the most as they all grow into stronger people – not so different from who they were at the beginning – they just found what was already there.

The artwork is gentle. It has a calm and pretty palette – not overbearing or chaotic. Its clean, fresh, natural tones reflect, and even enhance, the feel of story. I like the use of light, the skies, the landscape, the character art – the whole mood and it has an energy to it that is refreshing. Different locations are presented well – the ocean, the mountains, the city – it looks beautiful. It’s so lovely, it makes me yearn to go – especially to the mountains. There was a good range of weather conditions featured due to altitudes and locations – it practically show cased the diversity of Japan!

Sometimes you just need a show that makes you really feel something. Something that makes you look at the world a little differently, and I think both of these shows do just that.

http://Run with the Wind – Opening (HD) – YouTube