Major S1

Before you read this review, I would like to say that before watching Major I have never watched or played in a baseball game before. (My country has no baseball love >_>) Despite that, I knew some of the basics from a few video games I've tried a little of before. I cannot vouch for those who are already familiar with baseball as I will be reviewing from the point of view of a newbie. Story This is actually pretty typical. Boy strives to become the best in something, which in this case is baseball. Honda Goro tries to take after his father as a pitcher whoplays in the pro league in Japan. That's basically all you're gonna get. They play baseball to try to get to the next "level", fighting stronger opponents as they go on. However there are various plot advances as well as drama thrown into the mix, so don't go in thinking this is just a tournament-after-tournament anime. Art Art is very solid and pleasing although the animation does get a little sloppy at certain times. However, it is well done during important parts, especially during games. I won't go so far as to say this is any ground-breaking animation, but it serves its purpose. After all, this is a baseball anime, not something that has flashy explosions. Sound I absolutely loved the soundtrack. Very few songs used in the background actually are able to make me find myself humming them unconsciously later onward. There are quite a few notable pieces used throughout the series and they all carry out their duty in helping to further emote scenes. Character This is where the series shines for me. I enjoyed the character development that Major had. As baseball is a team sport, there is also a lot of focus on developing relationships within the team, and how problems arise and are solved amongst one another. The characters are all very likable (well, with a few exceptions), and its fun to watch them interact with one another. The show also focuses quite moderately on family relationships. There are a few issues which come up within Goro's family and it shows how he as a child, handles them. I found certain scenes to be quite touching also. Enjoyment Uh, I enjoyed this. A lot. It's my favorite sports anime. Although it isn't without its flaws, I found it a great watch. If you enjoy seeing a character "grow", then you will like this. Not too sure about those who are familiar with baseball though, as it helped as a device to pique my interest. Overall Amongst all the seasons, I found this one to be the strongest. (Though this is not to say the other seasons are vastly inferior.) You should give at least this first season a try, even if you don't like baseball, as the character relations are great to watch no matter what sport they are playing.

I started watching Major with the expectation that it would be your stereotypical sports anime. And if you boil it down to its bones, it sort of is. But it's the meat of the story, the actual conflicts and the actual relationships and the actual characters makes this a really entertaining series to watch. Story: The story focuses on Honda Goro, who is in kindergarten when the show starts. The first quarter or so of the series focuses on Goro in kindergarten and just establishing his personality, life and family and friends. The rest of the series jumps ahead to whenGoro starts little league and... let the baseball begin! Art: It's clean and crisp and pretty simple. I certainly didn't have any complaints. The style doesn't have as much depth as the more mature series out there, but I think it's appropriate for the subject matter and the ages of the characters. In other words, it suits the story. =) Sound: The OP/ED are fine... whereas I don't love them (and I so rarely do), they don't bother me in anyway either, which is pretty good, imo. ;) I did like the voice acting. I thought they did a good job with their characters and their emotions without going overboard and overacting the way some shows do. There is a little Engrish, but... I figure if you watch enough anime, you just get used to it -- it's intended for a Japanese audience after all. Character: Goro's great. I found myself rooting for him and cheering him on; he's just really charismatic. He's enthusiastic and single-minded and I can't help but appreciate that type of personality, especially in a sports anime. His father is loveable and one of my favorite anime dads. Even his kindergarten teacher is cute and likeable. And during the course of the show, you get to see a bunch of teammates and opponents that have their own brand of flavor and charm that adds nicely to the mix. Enjoyment: This probably sounds so cliche and fake, but seriously... I laughed, I cried, I groaned and I cheered. For real. And maybe that says something more about me than the show, but it was an unexpected emotional roller coaster in a way. I mean, I really thought it was just going to be another generic shounen and it would just kill some time, but it ended up being compelling and I really felt sucked in and interested. So much so that I'm currently still watching it in its fourth season (btw, girls, Goro grows up to be kind of a hottie and so does Toshi ;D). Just for reference: S1 focuses on elementary school level little league; S2 Goro's in his last year of middle school and his first year of high school; S3 is the rest of high school; and S4 is Goro post-high school.

I was MAJORly excited to watch Major. I was afraid of it being a MAJOR disappointment, but it ended up being MAJORly fun! Ok no more major puns, I promise! Major Season 1 is pretty much your standard sports shounen. It's very well made, but it has a lot of the same strengths and weaknesses as other sports related shows. The best part about Major would have to be the characters. They spend quite a bit of time developing most of the players on the team, as well as other characters, like Goro's rivals (the main character). It's pretty easy to get into the baseball gamesthat you watch because the show does a good job at making you care about the "good guys". As for the baseball itself, it can be quite intense, but the show kind of falls into the trap of being a little ridiculous, like a lot of sports shows can be. You'll see unreal comebacks, ridiculous strategies, and elementary school kids that have the ability to beat high schoolers. Sometimes it's OK, but other times it can really ruin your ability to become immersed with the show. The games can be a bit predictable at times as well, I found it kind of obvious when they would win and when they would lose, but I was still usually very into the games, so I have to give them a lot of credit for that. The last game especially has no silly gimmicks like some other games, and ends up being a great conclusion to the season. While the 2nd half of the show concentrates on Goro's little league baseball team, the 1st half of the show actually doesn't have that much baseball, it more concentrates on building characters and a storyline. And surprisingly, the part of the show without baseball isn't bad at all. There is a somewhat predictable romance storyline, and then a pretty shocking twist that I didn't see coming that turns everything upside down. It felt a little lacking and boring at times, but I still enjoyed the first half of the show overall. So while the main appeal of the show is baseball, they do a good job with the non-baseball elements. Another thing they do a good job with is the art and sound. The animation is crisp, the art is mostly pretty, although I think the baseball fields look kind of ugly and unfinished. The music adds a lot to some of the more epic moments during the baseball, and is very good. Overall, Major doesn't end up being a major-league disappointment, but it doesn't end up being major-league good either. It's more of a "very good" show. People who know baseball may be a little turned off by some ridiculous parts, but the baseball is still exciting, and the non-baseball stuff isn't half-bad either. Major is a show I would reccomend to anyone who likes sports shounen.