Hyouka remains one of KyoAni’s most emotionally mature anime shows to date – here’s why.
Kodoani.com – Kyoto Animation has become one of the most recognized names in the anime industry, and for good reason. The studio churned out hit after hit, from anime moe titles like K-On! to far more serious and tragic stories like Violet Evergarden.
However, Hyouka remains one of KyoAni’s most emotionally mature anime to date – not because it often deals with extremely serious themes, but because the story’s approach is much more subtle and light. often deal with the character’s emotions and next actions.
Hyouka’s Journey
Hyouka was released in Spring 2012 and is based on the novel of the same name written by Honobu Yonezawa. Although Kyoto Animation has been known for many popular anime titles, before that almost all anime produced by the studio was classified as “moe” in some form, even if they were anime titles. slice of life like Lucky Star or an adaptation of one of Clannad-like dating visual novels.
Suffice it to say, Hyouka was an oddity among Kyoto Animation’s works at the time of its release. It’s a Slice of life with a mysterious angle led by a slow-paced motto genius instead of a bright-eyed blonde, with a gender-equal group instead of a 5:1 ratio of female to male. . Thanks to this series, it also becomes clear that Kyoto Animation is capable of doing much more than just anime for cute high school girls.
Hyouka tells the story of Hotarou Oreki, a brilliant but lazy teenager with a natural gift for solving mysteries. After joining the Classics Club at the request of his older sister, he meets a strange girl named Eru. She immediately follows Hotarou after being impressed by his reasoning skills, and is one of the few people Hotarou can never say “no”. The group is later joined by Hotarou’s middle school friends, the cheerful Satoshi and the gritty Mayaka. Together, they spend the day solving mysteries surrounding their school and fulfilling Eru’s requests.
What makes Hyouka emotionally mature
With gorgeous animations and eye-catching character designs, it’s no wonder Hyouka is still attracting new fans 10 years after its original broadcast. Even now, after Kyoto Animation has expanded its anime genre to include sports anime like Free! and serious anime like A Silent Voice, Hyouka still stands out as the only mystery series Kyoto Animation has produced to date.
It also featured the group’s boisterous antics with the main quartet. Eru is the unassigned leader who encourages the group to solve mysteries, Hotarou is the reluctant genius who finally solves mysteries despite his objections, Satoshi is a fun best friend. temperamental and excitable, who supports Hotarou from the sidelines, and Mayaka is a skeptic who often challenges Hotarou because of his inherent laziness.
Hyouka’s original main character cast represents the mischief that is so common in anime to this day: a quiet and sarcastic protagonist, an energetic best friend, a lovable heroine, and a tsundere stubborn . What makes this group special is the way they turn those mischiefs around and prove they’re human and trustworthy.
Hotarou has poor social skills due to his ability to read other people’s personalities beyond what they show on the surface. Satoshi has self-esteem issues from being the best friend of a natural-born genius. Eru is very pessimistic due to the strict upbringing of a wealthy family. Despite how keenly she can talk when she’s around other people – especially Hotarou – Mayaka is often the target of bullying in the manga club.
There, Hyouka’s real appeal stems from the unique human personalities and captivating dynamism that all those contrasting personalities bring. Even after a decade since their debut, the characters continue to captivate audiences around the world. The novel is still a work in progress, so there’s still a lot of material that hasn’t been adapted yet. Here’s to hoping Kyoto Animation will consider bringing these lovable characters back at some point in the near future.
Theo: Kodoani.com
