Those Snow White Notes

Learning about Japan's artistic cultures is always a wonderful experience. How many times do we come across anime and manga that use themes that are unusual in the Western, but that produce an essential meaning in this very rich country? This season, eyes were definitely on the most popular animes and that overshadowed some titles that could deliver much more than just 12 Episodes. Mashiro no Oto is one of those hidden and silent animes within the huge catalog of titles. That's bad for the show's visibility, but definitely its relevance, even if filtered by the few people who appreciate that kind of culture, ismore than pleasing, it's surprising. Mashiro no Oto is basically a show involving an instrument and a melancholy story of Setsu, the protagonist. He lost his inspiration and his reason for existence, his grandfather. A gentleman known to everyone within the lovers of Shamisen, a stringed instrument. In Japan, Shamisen is like a guitar, however, if we go into the deeper culture of the country, it is possible to find records of the development and popularity of Shamisen as a very rich cultural artifact. Like any other instrument, Shamisen causes impact, emotion, sadness and freedom. In Mashiro no Oto, Setsu is the main catalyst and emitter of these varied emotions. He is young and having lost his grandfather recently shook him, so much so that he decided to flee to Tokyo, where his new life begins, in search of a "new sound", as the "sound" of a loved one disappeared before his eyes. eyes. At first, Mashiro no Oto honestly doesn't bring many predictions about what he really wants to tell. In fact, the anime deceives the audience. Until the first episode, you could see Setsu getting involved with Yuna, a girl who worked at an adult agency, but that's not exactly what happens. Of course, Yuna has her importance in Setsu's plot and development, she becomes a decisive factor in his resumption with Shamisen. However, if we're going to define one that awakens Setsu at its peak, it's certainly his school's Club. Maeda is an inexperienced girl from the Club and was the only one until Setsu's arrival. Even though she doesn't have great ambitions, what led her to continue with the Club is a song sung by her grandmother, but without the use of instruments. Along with Maeda, Kaito and two other members. In the beginning, their composition was not so positive. Setsu needs to develop and avoid his selfishness to harmonize with the rest of the team; Maeda has a "mental block" at times and this prevents her from advancing in songs and performances. Kaito is the most explosive of the group, and most of the discussions come from him, but this is due to frustration in football and family pressure on his future. The whole group somehow has some insecurity and it is well supported throughout the show, no matter if it's in a Championship or a show for just one person (as it was with Maeda's grandmother), everyone was building a bond of some kind. way with Shamisen. Even Setsu's relatives. Umeko, his mother, is a deprived woman and somehow doesn't deserve to be called the "mother" of a talented instrumentalist. The lack of it in Setsu's life is not felt at first sight, being often pushed aside to continue the show. But the very actions of Umeko that created a break with his children, causes a lot of trouble for them. The contrast between them is visible and sharp. Wakana, for example, occupies even more the role of Setsu's father, even though he is an older brother, something that is more demonstrated with the development of the protagonist, who starts shy, rigid and impulsive, but who starts to become aware and understand which is not unique in the music world, especially in the world of group competitions. This competence is also transmitted among the characters enshrined in the anime, such as Shouichi, Mai and Kamiki. The three have an engaging relationship with Setsu and his group over time and feed them positively with each new episode. But you can't just give merit to the anime. Mashiro no Oto is one of the shows that I most visualize the capacity of a production, from the creation of a story to its final execution. It is evident the work of the show staff, which was done by the Shin-Ei studio. Yes, the same Shin-Ei studio that made animes like "Takagi-san" and "Tonari no Seki-kun", but which today has been constantly questioned for its weak and disappointing work. It is the example of "Hachi-nan tte". Incorporating a show like Mashiro no Oto was practically a miracle. Much was said about the quality that the anime would deliver over time, but expectations were really exceeded. Congratulations to the whole show staff, I look forward to another new production, with the same quality and dedication. Also worth mentioning the amazing songwriting. For those who know and love Haikyuu, Burnout Syndromes is the band that best suits the show, both for the musicality and the lyrics of each song, in addition to its very engaging choruses. Mashiro no Oto was no different. Each episode was redefined with the openings and the band's work was the best possible to convey the sensations that the anime is. I should also mention Shamisen's own musical structures. All the melodies combined and made Mashiro no Oto a cultural grandeur. I think few people who saw this show really knew what this instrument was. I myself was completely unaware of its importance and its way of playing. Now I'm really happy to have absorbed some of this and I'm looking forward to more and more anime themed. It's been a while since we had musical animes either. It's something that had its peaks like Beck and Shigatsu wa Kimi in Uso, but lately it's been getting rarer. There are still some more unpopular works about music, but it is necessary to have a more adequate attention with the whole audience, it is a theme that can bring more history than we imagine. Finally, Mashiro no Oto is an essential show that changed my expectations with the year 2021. Many shows did not deliver a good story, nor were they even able to innovate. But this show is just the opposite. All the episodes are really good and the settings combined with the sentimentality of their own makes Mashiro no Oto an exclusive show. It's an anime that I wish it had a sequel, it was so worth every minute with this anime. If you don't know it, give it a try, it's a show that can interest even those who don't like music. It's an eclecticism in anime form. The wind blows in Mashiro no Oto, and this time it's to bring welcome.

Life is full of opportunities and the teenage years is no exception as the time to experience growth. What does that tell you about Setsu Sawamura? Is he an opportunist seeking glory or trying to find his own purpose in life? You see, if there's anything in life that's difficult, it's to live in it. Chances are that if you're the average anime viewer following only a few shows every year, this slipped under ther radar. It didn't achieve mainstream popularity even in its own genre. And let's be honest here, judging on the premise itself gives the impression of a niche type of show. Indeed,Mahiro no Oto (Those Snow White Notes) packages together a variety of characteristics and genres that mixes music, drama, and most importantly, character growth. With that mind, it's time to take a deep dive into what you're about to see. From day one, it should come to no surprise that Setsu Sawamura is talented but also a self-disciplined person. He has a music background and protrayed as a gifted shamisen player. But on the personality side, he's not easy to get along with. In fact, Setsu has the mentality of a perfectionist but not in the way you think. He strives to discover himself and deep down wants to reignite his passion of music. Thanks to his flameboyant mother Umeko, he's given an opportunity, the opportunity of a lifetime as he enters Umezono Academy. It's from there where his true journey begins. I'm not going to try and convince you to like Setsu or not but on the general surface, he is a relatable character. You ever recall a time in your life where you wanted to discover something new in life? A hobby? Achieving a dream goal? Picture yourself as Setsu and you may realize how realistic his character is. However, on the outside, he is a closed shell. He doesn't open up to people easily and acts mostly with indifference towards his peers. There's an understandable reason too given his past with his grandfather. It isn't until he meets Shuri Maeda and other students at his academy that he truly begins to embrace music again. It's rather ironic as well since she started a music club with similar reasons as Setsu. Both characters wants to discover a certain piece of music with a sense of purpose. Otherwise, Shuri's personality is a sharp contrast with her bright and friendly personality. This brings some trouble in the beginning as Setsu has a dead mind set on shamisen. It seems to be the only purpose in life to rediscover himself and to be quite honest, living a life like that sounds almost abysmal. Now, the shamisen club in this show isn't exactly a group drafted like some NBA team with a collective purpose. Every character is there for a reason but the range in diversity of their personalities is almost laughable. You'd have to be the judge for yourself but let's just say that the shamisen club isn't exactly built for teamwork. In the world of shamisen, every character has to also rely on themselves and not hold back. Setsu knows this from the very beginning so he had that one single minded purpose. It really isn't until he understands why the club is together that he begins to feel a passion of music again. And truth to be told. watching the shamisen club shows that every character needs to improve, whether it's their technical skills or people skills. For the latter, I'm looking at you Setsu. Looking at this show from a story perspective, you're going to have to embrace yourself for a slate of melodrama. This isn't some happy goofy storyteller trying to make you laugh. Sure, it has its lighthearted moments here and there. However, this is a show made up for drama that appeals to emotions. To be more precise, it appeals to human emotions. Yes, Mashiro no Oto appeals to the inner human emotions that we all experience in every day of our lives. Setsu dealing with the aftermath of his grandfather's death is a prominent example. When watching this anime as a drama, it draws you in by showing what the characters goes through. It's watching how their lives unfold that you can truly enjoy the show together. Likewise, you may also find the witty dialogues and character personalities entertaining. Characters such as Yui, Umeko, Kaito, and Mai all make memorable impressions. Among them, Umeko especially stands out as a commanding woman who displays the 'no nonsense' attitude. Can we just give her a medal with her character debut? Like most shows with music and competition, there's definitely talent when the characters steps onto the stage. Rivalries even exist at some levels such as Mai's desire to prove herself to everyone, especially Setsu. Others such as Kaji contains the level of determination to go beyond their limits. In one particular episode, he plays despite having a broken instrument to show that anything can be done when they put their heart into their work. That brings back to the topic of Setsu. After joining the club, it seems his heart opens up more with a love for shamisen again. It doesn't happen just over night but little by little, he doesn't let his past hold him back. It's this type of character journey that is worth watching for and if you came here for that, then Mashiro no Oto will be a sweet treat. Given a show about music, we can see and hear the talent of the cast. Artistically, the performance scenes has an unique vibrant style of showcasing the production quality. Every one of the shamisen performance scenes stands out above its typial animation quality. It feels surreal, magical, and grabs you into to your seat. Even if you're not a music fanatic, those scenes are captivating like a magical spell. Now, I'm not an expert on shamisen but even I can see why this show wants those performances to look more elegant than any others. It's to showcase the important of shamisen and its culture, not just as a competition but a way of life. t's a the heart and soul of the show that gives our characters a purpose after all. It may be somewhat of a niche show but don't let that hold you back from watching Mashiro no Oto. It's not just a show about music but about personal discovery. Looking at it from a realistic perspective, life itself has limitless possibilities and the cast in this show wants to take opportunities to discover themselves. And if you came into this anime with a similar reason, to perhaps discover something to take away from this show to remember, then you're in the right place.

Mashiro no Oto started out as a trainwreck. Riddled with horrendous pacing issues, the first episode tried fitting in way too much content for its own good, nearly making me give up all my hopes for the anime. I'm glad that I stayed until the end, though, because what came afterward was nothing short of spectacular. Mashiro no Oto focuses on the traditional Japanese instrument known as shamisen, something that very few people are familiar with. However, this is not necessarily an anime about shamisen. First and foremost, Mashiro no Oto is an anime about the inner growth of a troubled teenager named Setsu Sawamura, whomerely plays shamisen. The anime primarily chronicles Setsu's tumultuous life as he tries to overcome his struggles with the help of his friends and family members. Mashiro no Oto isn't really the first anime to touch on the topic of shamisen; that title actually goes to Nitaboh, a movie which depicts the life of a renowned shamisen player. However, the former is thematically more rich and varied than than the latter—mainly due to the fact that while Nitaboh is a moderately long movie, Mashiro no Oto is a one cour TV anime which provides it much more time to flesh outs its themes and characters. And fortunately, the series takes great advantage of this opportunity. Despite the rather unique subject, the actual storyline of Mashiro no Oto is quite predictable and formulaic; however, along with the awe-inspiring shamisen music, the nuanced and compelling characters make the anime very entertaining to watch. As I said earlier, in essence, Mashiro no Oto focuses on our protagonist Setsu's gradual growth as both a person and a shamisen artist. Expectedly, Setsu receives the most amount of focus in the anime, and thus he is the most compelling character of the cast. Setsu is a conflicted individual. Ever since the death of his grandfather Matsugorou, who used to be his sole source of inspiration, he has been struggling to find meaning in his life. Now in search of his own sound, Setsu sets out for Tokyo, only to be dismayed by the strange and overpowering ambience of the city. Luckily, he meets Yuna Tachiki there, an ambitious actress who, after seeing his distress, decides to take him to her apartment. Then, following an unexpected turn of events, Setsu enrolls in Umezono Academy and starts up a shamisen club with his new friends. Setsu's endeavors to rediscover his love for shamisen is the focal point of the story, and Mashiro no Oto illustrates this point beautifully. Setsu may not leave much initial impression due to his irritatingly blunt and secluded nature, but later on, the anime detailedly explores his backstory which indicates why he behaves that way. Prior to his grandfather's death, Setsu's life was simply confined to the world of shamisen; it was one of the few things he genuinely cared about. So when his grandfather—the person who taught him how to play shamisen—passed away, Setsu was distraught and lost his motivation for playing shamisen. Luckily, he does change for the better. Setsu's development gradually occurs as he regularly interacts with others; he learns to improve himself through observing his friend and potential rivals. Granted, even now, he occasionally struggles to find motivation and gets frustrated when he fails to meet his expectations, but it's undeniable that he has changed drastically from the person he was at the beginning. Setsu has now become much more confident and recovered his passion for playing shamisen. He has made genuine friends who would always be there for him, something which he wouldn't have been able to imagine few months ago. Despite the series' marked focus on Setsu, the secondary characters are also well-written and decently fleshed out. Almost all of them, particularly those who are close to Setsu or rival him, play a pivotal role in shaping up Setsu's character and complement him as a persona. Their own contribution in the story isn't underwhelming by any means, though. They have been given their own backstories which makes them stand out individually. They all have a realistic motivation for why they want to play shamisen or pursue it as a career, which makes it easy for the viewers to relate to them. As I said earlier, the storyline of Mashiro no Oto is rather formulaic, but it doesn't cause much problem since the characters are more than enough to keep the viewers engaged. The content of the anime is mostly dramatic and maintains a serious atmosphere, but there are a fair amount of light-hearted scenes as well. The not-so-serious moments of the anime include our characters goofing around and having fun with their shamisen, which are very entertaining for the most part. There are occasional scenes in the anime that provide comic relief, and while they can be hit-or-miss, it didn't hinder my enjoyment that much. Perhaps the place where Mashiro no Oto shines the most is its breathtaking music. The shamisen playing of this show is actually phenomenal. Athough I'm not familiar with traditional instruments at all, I can tell that the performers are putting their heart and soul into playing the shamisen, which is quite a feat to achieve. Setsu's performances in the Matsugorou Cup were exceptionally beautiful—I was astonished at how a musical piece can capture someone's heart so easily. All of the theme songs fittingly incorporate shamisen music too, among which the first opening titled "Blizzard" is one of my favorite theme songs from this season. The background music mostly features traditional music, which fits in excellently with the solemn atmosphere of the anime. Lastly, a great deal of care has been put into the voice acting—the most notable example of this would be our protagonist Setsu, especially due to how distinct his dialect is and how good it sounds. Excluding some of the flaws here and there, the animation of Mashiro no Oto remains consistently smooth throughout its entirety. Facial expressions are normally beautifully depicted, but the quality increases tenfold when the characters are playing shamisen. Rapid finger movements are fluidly animated, and several visual metaphors are used to represent the piece that's being performed, which makes the performances even more immersive. Mashiro no Oto isn't really flawless, though. It does have problems, and most of them stem from the rather peculiar first episode. The first couple of minutes of Mashiro no Oto are strangely intriguing. At the very beginning, we see a young man run away from his house in the middle of a blizzard, while a captivating shamisen piece plays on the background. Shortly, a seemingly older person leaves the house in a hurry and stops the young man from running away, and they engage in a short yet heartfelt conversation surrounding the death of their grandfather. When I first watched this scene, I found myself genuinely moved by it—despite not knowing the context behind it in the slightest. Maybe it was because of the solemn atmosphere and how wholeheartedly everything was potrayed; that scene immediately absorbed me into the anime. Unfortunately, the rest of the first episode is vastly inferior. Much to my surprise, and annoyance, the intriguing opening scene quickly dissolves into a substandard romance story between two characters that barely know each other, which is awfully paced and makes little sense in the context of the plot. I honestly don't know what the creators were thinking of while making this, because later on, this part of the story is basically entirely forgotten. Luckily, at least they didn't expand on it, but without a doubt, the anime could have done without such a poor introduction. There are a few other issues with how the narrative is constructed. For starters, since the anime has only covered the early stages of the story so far, some of the characters are a bit unimpressive since there hadn't been much time to fully explore them. For this exact reason, the conclusion to the anime may not sit too well with all of the viewers, while I personally think it's quite satisfactory. In addition to this, the drama can be a little overstretched and over-exaggerated at times, instead of getting straight to the point. Despite its flaws and relatively niche subject, though, Mashiro no Oto is surprisingly a very compelling show that provides an elaborate glimpse of the shamisen world. While it may not be a perfect experience, it is easily one of the best, and probably the most underrated, anime from the Spring 2021 line-up, and that says a lot given how great of a season this has been. The first episode is probably going to underwhelm you, but don't let that mislead you into thinking this show isn't worth a watch—because it indeed is. I'm eagerly waiting for the second season. It has the potential to be even more amazing.

*I didn't intend to write this as an actual submitted review, but decided to post it on a whim, because why not? *Spoilers included I thought the first episode or two were excellent, as was the season finale (even the penultimate episode was pretty solid, mostly because of the build-up of tension leading into the finale and re-focus back on Setsu and the individual competition). The other 10 or so episodes though were a huge letdown. Beyond the first and final episodes, I love the color palette and lush art style in this show and most of the shamisen playing scenes and their musical quality (I say most,because some were kind of a retread and others were too diluted with being drowned out with interspersed characters' talking and the general OST of unnecessary piano music loudly playing over the shamisen). What I didn't like was the very generic character archetypes with threadbare characterization of the school club group and very rushed, forced, and hollow/shallow seeming melodrama which was reminiscent of a Spanish soap opera. It felt very unearned and there was so little time to develop it properly and so little substance, that the "payoff" to any of these breezed through character arcs felt impotent and non-existent. I also found the change of direction in the series confusing (which is ironic on a meta level when you stop to think about it, because the in-universe critique of Setsu in the last episode was his abrupt change of focus confounding his audience), because the way the move was set up and portrayed in episode one, it almost seemed like Setsu was in his early 20s going off to move to a different big city and get an apartment, or at least 18 - 20/early college age. So I found it jarring to see him randomly plopped down in a high school club setting. And the decision to abandon the direction of the first episode, where it seemed it was teasing at the beginning of a journey of him having to settle into a new life in a new urban environment and find his place in the musical world in a new city, his relationship with the girl and her old friends, etc. seems bizarre. Overall I found the female character, her boyfriend, Setsu's older brother and immediate family, and even the young girl and her father who oversee Setsu's apartment more compelling than his high school friends. Basically, the first episode felt almost deceptive, like a form of false advertising. The beginning and the ending of a series, any series, are highly important. You need some really worthwhile material to hook people in in the first place and then, even if a show is regarded as at a masterpiece tier throughout its runtime, a poor series finale and not "sticking the landing" can really sink and irreparably mar its reputation. So it's nothing new for the first episode and the last episode of a series to be some of its best, but in this series the contrast is too great and it feels too incongruent and jarring because the majority of everything in the middle is too lackluster in comparison. I rated this series a 5/10 and out of 11 seasonals watched, it's actually been my least favorite thus far and will probably remain in that position, but one peculiar thing to note is that while my opinion has been more negative of the series on a whole than the average who probably place it somewhere around a 7, reading the immediate feedback on MAL, Reddit, and elsewhere, I get the sense that I actually enjoyed the last episode more than the majority of people, including the majority of those who actually rated the series overall higher than I did. I think it's because many of the decisions they made in terms of plot developments and character portrayals in the last episode actually felt very bold and brave in contrast to what they did throughout most of the show's runtime. Winning the competition or coming in second would be no surprise, but the third place rank actually did surprise me, and then to have all the important people around him be excessively cruel, critical, and callous until he breaks down in a crying fit giving the message that, even if you decide to do the "right" thing in the end and are "authentic" to yourself, it will just be written off as "self-indulgent" if you can't bridge the communication gap between the authentic self of what's in your mind and heart with other people actually felt shockingly and hauntingly, oddly realistic to how most people think and act. And a little courageously so. He gave it his all in the end and that still wasn't enough to salvage it and ends up just being derided as a whiny brat as the adults and other kids around him just kind of shake their head and either call him a whiny brat, or act perplexed, distance themselves from him, and don't know how to react. I thought...how sickeningly true to life.... It couldn't save the series for me, but as I said I admired it. I can't agree with (at least what I believe/my interpretation of) the series' message which seems to want to portray other characters' behavior toward Setsu as justified and coming from a good place or one of tough love makes right (mainly referring to his mom Umeko in this case, but also the older mentor figure whom I find annoyingly condescending and arrogant), but it does seem to strike an unnerving strong chord of fidelity with how many people actually operate and what drives the cruelty and avarice of theatre parents concerned with prestige and social position above all else. And I don't ever have to agree with the actions, beliefs, or behavior of characters portrayed onscreen to consider the portrayal and story artful and beautiful, valid and valuable. This series was always at its best when it organically portrayed how ugly so many people's attitudes are toward competition, self-loathing/obsessively masochistic self-flagellation, and the narrow mindset of so many people that music or art in general only has true value based on others' appraisal of and how they receive it, and what that translates into for your social status. I find it a hideous and loathesome attitude and mentality, but this is how too many people are...Stage moms that treat their own offspring like dirt and a commodity and people who bawl all day over placing second or third because everyone is judged so harshly and looks down on everyone else and themselves to a fanatical degree. I didn't actively enjoy this show for the majority of its run, but I'm glad I watched it (as I feel about all series I complete even if I give them a "lesser" rating of 6, 5, 4, etc. otherwise I simply would have dropped them; there was enough of note and interest to keep going). The last episode pissed me off royally, but that has value too. It pissed me off in a good way. Because it drove me to think and feel something, which is after all all I want out of anime and all my art and entertainment. The 80% of the rest of the show didn't push and challenge and piss me off in a provocative way. It pissed me off in a dull and generic, derivative, and humdrum way. A series with the artistic acumen, guts, testicular fortitude and candid insight to execute what it did in its last episode shouldn't have played it so lame and safe, coloring within the lines over ground so thoroughly beaten to death it's slurry for most of its runtime.