Oni: Thunder God's Tale

Oni: Kamigami Yama no Onari - from here on just referred to as Oni - is an unassuming little show I found on Netflix and just went in completely blind due to it very charming stop-motion animation and all of the characters looking like little dollhouse toys. And for the most part, that is where I think Oni is at its strongest. The environments feel lush and beautiful, all of these fantastical creatures are like tiny children in a big, beautiful forest. The Animation itself is a hybrid between actual stop motion and CG-Animation, which for the most part blends incredibly well and helps make themost of the characters and their different textures as well as ways to move around. Some don't have appendages, others can fly, but all emote fairly well. Ostensibly, this show is meant for children, and the fairly simple, straightforward story and simplistic characters confirm that, but due to how well-made, lovingly detailed and genuinely charming Oni is, it's really watchable for everyone. The locations especially- the house Onari lives in with her father, the school, the clearings in the forest - show plenty of things to see if the story or any given scene doesn't particularly grab your attention. Because attention-grabbing definitely is one thing this show is not, apart from some dramatical scenes with heightened emotions and the last episode, it's mostly a show to kick back to and enjoy the environments, like a walk in the forest. As for the story, as I eluded to before; originality isn't its strong suit, showing a headstrong little girl named Onari, with a mysteriously absent mother who left her just one item, who finds that she doesn't quite seem to fit in with her peers of other little Yokai children, discovering their mystical powers for the first time. Later on, the story is paralleled with another child finding themself in a predicament similar to Onari's, and it's also a very nice bond that deverlops between the kids. Even the conclusion foregoes the obvious solution and instead encourages Onari to choose her own path despite what others think. I am not a child, but I have relatives who are, and I can definitely see the message reaching them. In the end, the show kinda just comes in, does its thing, and then leaves, but once in a while, having a show like that is just fine, and if you have really young pre-teen siblings, relatives or even children of your own, this show is wonderful as a thing to be shared between you, or even just for yourself to return to childhood feelings of whimsy for a few hours.