Last year has been a busy year in personal terms, having almost no time for seeing stuff like Anime or Prison Break, so I’ve been updating myself these couple of months on what I’ve lost. Finished seeing The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya a week ago and surprisingly, even after being spoiled on the plot and seeing it in chronological order….I feel I’m becoming an Haruhiist.
But how the hell this show has managed to capture my attention and interest when, on the first look, seems equal to so many Anime’s out there? After a while thinking, I managed to make a small list of factors who I think contributed to turn it into a worldwide craze.
1. The Novels
One main factor was the origins of TMHS (gonna use TMSH instead of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya when I want to reference to the Anime.) Normally, a series start as a manga and depending on the sucess, it is decided if it will have an Anime version. instead , TMHS has it’s origins on a series of novels published in Japan. Those novels (who are still being released up to date.) form the bulk for the story of TMHS. Not every material present in the novels is being used but the adaptation has an impressive direct adaptation to the Anime. This origin as a novel means the plot is more well defined and worked than your typical Anime.
2. Moé Factor
As Haruhi said in TMHS, “Moé is an essential factor”. And we sure haven’t got lack of it in the series. Spanning from the energetical Haruhi to the shy girl Miruku, our megamemoe Nagato and even pretty boys as Itsuki to please the ladies (or Yaoi lovers; yeah I know you ladies want to see some Kyon x Itsuki action!!!). Even the side characters are eye candy (the guys at AB.net irc have a thing for Tsuruya. they only calm down when I give them an Echii pic of her per day). and we can’t forget Haruhi’s collection of cosplay suits, ranging from maid, bunny girl, frog (?) and other nosebleeding goodies. Just for this factor, TMHS can attract a good share of Haruhiists.
3. Genre Mixing
Another strong point in TMSH: this Anime is envolved in so many genres you can’t even name them right at the 1st try. We have Slice of Life, Sci- Fi, Paranormal, Romance, Seinen, Philosophical, Postmodern, Psychological, School. The anime ranges so many areas that there is always something for the individual tastes of the viewers. Also, this range allows less stress of seeing always the same stuff every episode.
4. Personalities
The characters, like any story, are a major part of the success or failure of an Anime, and TMSH has all the right elements in this aspect. But the most funny part is each main character seems to be connected to a particular psychological aspect and the group acts as a brain trying to process each situation they encounter:
Kyon - The Reality
Haruhi - The Imagination
Nagato - The Knowledge
Mikuru - The Innocence
Itsuki - The Cunning
…Or it’s just me over analyzing this .
5. Wierdness Factor
We have already seen before wierd anime shows: from oldie Excel Saga, to FLCL ( and the infamous 1st scene who almost costed the whole budget normally planned to a whole season.) and nose hair fighter Bobobo. But TMSH really hits a 10.0 on a scale of wierdness. The 1st episode made the viewers go “WTF?” and grabbed them from that point. The airing order ( who showed episodes randondly instead of a chronological order, also known as Kyon and Haruhi order) made the viewers wonder even more about the story and re-track several times on what they have seen. The whole plot is wierd: a girl after aliens, time travelers and espers who gets secretly watched by the same kind of beings who she is after because she has the power to create and end worlds; and the poor guy who gets stucked in the middle and sees all happening in front of him.
6. Kyon’s Point of View.
Talking about Kyon, the unlucky bastard who gets involved with the Sos Brigade. this guy is a major reason why TMSH is great: every action we see in the anime is seen and commented by him. He has the role of an active narrator, giving his opinion about the incidents he and the SoS Brigade go through. If we didn’t have the acess to his point of view, our perception of the whole show would be different.
Not sure if these are really the factors who make this show an object of cult, this they at least they are things to take in consideration when we analize it. I’m not really 100% changed into a Haruhiist and just when the 2nd season get’s aired I’ll know for sure if i really converted to this new “religion”.
Good argument, but you forgot animation quality! Haruhi had excellent animation quality and consistency. Consistency is the basis in good anime. If the consistency’s bad, chances are the anime’s crap (except for some, like Genshiken). Heck, in the Naruto fillers, they even forgot to draw in Naruto’s head!
I may not be female, but if anything, it’s all about Taniguchi and Kunikida. Together. In bed.
OH SHI-
How about voices and music? Haruhi’s voice actor is awesome!! Also her singing is really good too. As for the moé factor, I have to say Asakura Ryoko… sure she may have questionable motives… but you have to admit, she is pretty detailed for a secondary character ^^;
@TripleA: Animation quality is a normal characteristic of good Anime’s. I only tried to focus on the factors who were different from the Anime standard bases.
@koko: Same reason I gave to Triplea, I give to you. About asakura: I knew someone would complain why I didn’t mentioned her…now I’m waiting for a raging fanboy of Tsuruya to attack me…
Might I say that I agree with with TripleA on the quality of the show which was awsome. I also loved the plot in which reality was in the control of a troubled and strange teenage girl, which made the show more intresting. Strangely I also loved the order of the episodes.Lol
Point 6 is a good one - it struck me after seeing the series that Kyon is an Everyman figure - nameless apart from his one-syllable nickname - serving as an easy point-of-view conduit.
the first time i saw THSH is wen they were all doin a dance n it was the ketchup song so …it was odd. BUUUUTT, i got curious n ended up watching it, and i proudly call myself a Haruhiist. yep. I loved it all.
Good read. Thanks for taking the time to type it.
So yeah, I finished the series in about 2 days and I’m now reading the novels. I’m a Haruhiist. That was fast. Dang. It seriously got me hooked. I definately have to comment on the quality of the animation. Not just clarity or drawing-wise, but on what they decide to animate. Example, watching Naruto gets really boring because they decide to do half of the show in flashbacks, or boring scenes where the only way we know something is moving is because the background is swishing by a la fred flinstone, and naruto is slowly bobbing up and down to give the illusion of running. All the while, their mouths, and only their mouths move to give us the impression that dialogue is occuring. TMHS on the other hand animates stuff you wouldn’t even think about, like cards sticking to the bottom of Kyon’s hands when he fell asleep on them, or just subtle nuances like a character’s everyday movements. I love the detail put into the show.
so true in every way.
i especially agree with kyons point of view. it give the anime a perfect balance of humor, action and emotion.
the only bad things are that its 1st season was only 14 episodes =[ and second season isnt out yet!!! (im gonna read those novels now)
True! I like the genre mixing, and kyon’s point of view is awesome because he’s almost neutral during the narrations
I have high hopes for the second season! Yuki-chan!