Encouragement of Climb: Next Summit

EnK-Onragement of Climb Encouragement of Climb is back and this time with full length 24 minute episodes for it’s final(?) season. Although I actually preferred the previous seasons 12 minute length episodes, there was an appropriate amount of story and content this time around (expect for the first 4 episodes which were recaps of the previous seasons with some added scenes) so I suppose it was justifiable. If you’ve never watched Encouragement of Climb before, it’s another cute moé blobs doing cute things ala mountain climbing edition. Aoi has climbed mountains literally and metaphorically in order to overcome her introverted ways and social anxiety in orderto become a functioning human able to make friends at school and… talk to people normally. This season sees that all her collective efforts has given her more confidence in her daily life, and the drive to train with the help of her friends for her ultimate goal, climbing to the submit of Mt. Fuji. There’s not really a lot to say about this one. It’s just good, wholesome, moé blob fun. 8-bit’s animation is still excellent - especially the background and scenery art, the main and supporting cast are still as fun and dorky as ever, the music is still on point and there’s no weirdly forced conflict this time around like there was in season 3. It’s unfortunate that this anime has been overshadowed by another moé blob show about a pink haired, sometimes melting moé blob with extreme, introverted, social anxiety problems learning how to become a functional human able to make friends and… talk to people normally, but Encourage of Climb has you covered if you’re looking for something with more chill. It might even make you want to start mountain climbing. The trivia it offers about gear and the various mountains the girls climb is genuinely interesting. I want to climb a mountain now… a small one though… maybe just a hill… god I’m so out of shape… 7/10 Good.

January 26, 2024. I finished watching the anime “Yama no Susume” (Encouragement of Climb). This anime is without a doubt the biggest milestone in the history of anime that I have watched and will continue to watch. The fact that this anime purely exists is actually amazing with all that it entails. When I started watching the series in August 2023, I couldn't have imagined what actually awaited me here. I would never have been prepared for this trip that Yama no Susume took me on. Yes, the anime definitely has its flaws, you shouldn't forget that. It's not perfect, but it exists. This anime really exists and you can't take thataway from it. I definitely recommend watching this anime. I'm speechless.

If you are reading this, you are very likely already a fan of CGDCT anime in general, and perhaps a fan of Yama no Susume in particular. Who will like this? Fans of the original series, seasons 1-3. Fans of CGDCT, especially outdoors CGDCT. If you like Yuru Camp, Slow Loop, or Super Cub, you will probably like this too. It is far from perfect. The first four episodes were just poorly edited scenes from the previous 3 seasons. It could have been done better. The narrative was choppy and just didn't make sense sometimes. Really, it would have been better to just giveus a mini-season of the 8 new episodes as a standalone series. But it was better than Yuru Camp. There is more of a story to Yama no Susume, with much more drama, and a better focus on the relationships between the characters. So if you liked Yuru Camp, you will probably love Yama no Susume. Worth watching. Not at the top of my re-watch list, but I wouldn't complain about watching it again,.

"We've made it this far, so let's go." -- the following is a discussion on how time is discussed in the yama no susume series and a look at this season in particular. a spoiler or two lies within. reader discretion is advised. -- Time. Time passes whether we like it or not, a constant that consistently chugs away. Sometimes the clock seems to be moving in slow motion as we gaze at it longingly, and that gaze is repeated when we wish for more of it, a fun event draining it at a rapid pace. This change is only present in the eye of the beholder,one's perception. Encouragement of Climb is all about the perception of time. Not only with how it moves, but with how we spend it and how it looks at different moments: past, present, and future. The first season explored the idea of transitioning from alone time to group time. Aoi, now in high school, has been cooped up and spending every waking moment alone. She finds joy in solitude, happiness working on various crafts in the fortress of her own room. She gets pulled out of her comfort zone for the better, discovering newfound happiness through climbing and, more importantly, being in a group. The second season continued this transitional trend with focus on responsibilities and a growing social group: time to grow up. The third season took a look at the past, present, and future the most with the relationship between Aoi and Hinata being put to the magnifying glass. Those promises from the past, how much do they bound the present and without a longstanding promise, who's to say what lies in the future? Season Four, Next Summit, is all about persistence, dedication, keeping it up, and acceptance. Who knows what comes next? Let's just keep walking, one foot after the other. Aoi has grown a lot. She spends time with a variety of people in varying situations, sharing her passion with others and learning about others'. She's able to speak up in a crowd, comfort her senior, be an upstanding employee, and, finally conquer Mount Fuji. Keep going, just keep going, and through pure will, good things will happen. It's all just a matter of patience, a matter of time. Stellar animation, quality VAs, it's got all the works. I love shows like this that really dig deep into the activity - it puts you right there with the characters and it's motivating to get the viewer into the same mindset. In fact, the reason I didn't finish this day of was because I was out hiking this week on vacation! It's very unfortunate that the first few episodes had to be purely recap with odd gaps (which made them completely obsolete and unhelpful), but given that every season prior had twelve minute episodes and this one doubled that length, I can't be too upset I guess. Another quality season overall!