Crossing Time

Fumikiri Jikan is a great way to spend three minutes. There isn't much to say besides the fact that the anime knows how to use up it's time. The problem with shorts often is not the length itself, but what happens within that timeframe. Some shorts have the gall to not only include an opening, but an ending as well, cutting into the content (mainly because there really is no content). Fumikihi Jikan allows itself to use almost all of it's runtime, with an opening that lasts no more than 24 seconds (at least for the one episode where I actually checked). This means thatthe three minute short is actually a three minute short. Now, even if the anime only gave us a minute for content, nobody is going to want to waste time if it's shit. But, every episode is gold in its own way. The meat of the anime ends up being interactions between different characters as they wait for a train to pass at a railroad crossing. Each episode is a vignette, all taking place at the same spot. The difference being not the setting, or the factor that sets them up to interact, but the characters themselves. And it's entertaining interaction between various characters that serves as the selling point for this anime. Little 'slice-of-life' scenes are done masterfully. It may be the brevity or the casual everyday randomness that prevades the conversations, but it's hard for me to find any fauly with the writing. It all feels very natural, pulling you along with the rhythm of the scenes until they end. There is no ending theme (credits play during the 'opening) so when the scene is over, the anime is over. And it usually ends once you just started feeling like you got to know the characters. I think it takes some smarts to be able to put in so much genuine feeling into characters whom we really can only see in one spot, at one time. There's certainly more feeling in these conversations than we sometimes see in full-length series, which often meanders around, and away from, anything interesting. But, perhaps it's so short that there isn't a ton of room for them to screw up. The focus, for this anime, is the conversations themselves. They unfold and become the narrative, where other anime only use interactions to set up for a certain result. Of course being written this way also allows for a quick and immediate emotional attachment, so when the writing becomes sentimental and wistful, it doesn't feel tacked on or contrived. In any case, Fumikiri Jikan is probably the best short this season, it's funny and a great way to spend the time it takes to complete. Also, I think the voice acting deserves special mention. All of the voice work is done very well, which it needs to for a dialogue-driven short. There's plenty of newbie actors in here, so it may be interesting for people who are into that, as well. Rail road crossings may not be very 'poetic,' as one of our characters points without realizing the irony because the anime she's in. Oh, and they stink too, so you may not want to confess while in front of one(or maybe you do). However, as we see here, crossings can serve as a starting point for some good fun, and maybe a lesson or two in social interaction.

To be completely honest, I should rate this lower. I don’t normally rate shorts anything lower than a 4, but a lot of these episodes hurt to watch. It has each episode focus on new characters, with a few characters getting 2 episodes of focus. 2 out of the 12 episodes were genuinely good. The very first episode and the very last episode. The other episodes range from “Boring” to “Unnecessarily creepy or uncomfortable.” I would’ve much preferred an anime short focusing on the two characters in Episodes 1 and 12. Most episodes introduced new characters that were either unmemorable or really bad. The humorjust never landed for me. It either came off as awkward or unfunny in its attempts. I had so much whiplash going from “Two friends waiting at a railroad crossing when one suddenly confesses” in Epsiode 1, to “A guy awkwardly stares at a girl and calls her sexy in his mind for three minutes straight” in episode two. The only thing saving this anime from a score of 3 was the first and last episodes. If those were never there, I probably would’ve dropped the short altogether. I continued solely for the off chance that the characters from Episode 1 would get the spotlight again.

In a world that is so obsessed with creating a perfect story and extending things as far as they can go to stumble upon something so charming, short and quaint is a blessing. Honestly given the duration of this show there's not much to it in terms of a full story, its just characters going about their life and waiting at a railroad crossing. Yet, somehow, this show is entertaining from the first to the last second, vividly offering a small glimpse into something we never really give any thought to and that is the thought of others. Every day we pass an untold numberof people on the streets and each of them have lives that are both as mundane and completely unlike ours. I honestly loved this show and would recommend it to anyone looking for a quick pick me up, because its a quick shot of happiness in about an hour. For such short screen time the characters were always captivating and ensure you have a smile on your face at the end of the episode.