Hidamari Sketch (ひだまりスケッチ) Season 1 DVD R1 Episode 1~7

 

 DVD Menu

I won't go into Special Features because it's just NeoADV trailers and credits. The cheap price is certainly worth it but I find it irritating that.... I cannot turn off the subtitles, another words, it's a hard sub. Some people do actually watch anime raw! Not only that what if you want to capture screenshots? Another minor flaw is the lack of scene selection on the menu. Other then these minor complaints, I will continue to support them.

Now for the show itself: I remember watching the first 3 episodes of this series when it first began airing back in around 2007. My honest initial impression was that it is somewhat dull even for a huge slice-of-life fan like myself. But I thought the visual style, voice acting, and music was spectacular. I never bothered giving it a second chance... until now. Thanks to NeoADV and their sub-only release, I was able to grab this set for a mere $20! I would probably purchase more anime if there were more releases like these and give other titles a chance which I wouldn't have other wise.

Being a slice-of-life fan, I was quite excited to give Hidamari another chance. Let's see how it turned out. ^^

Episode 1~2 Ep. 1 Title: "Jan. 11th Winter Collage" Ep. 2: "Aug. 21st Japan's Summer"

I'll be honest and say I struggled through these episodes just like the past. Maybe I still need more time to get fully acquainted with the characters since that's the key part of enjoying slice-of-life. I tried watching the first episode three times and literally fell asleep twice. XD Maybe I was just tired? I don't know but I will try watching it again after I get more acquainted with these characters to see if it makes any difference.

Episode 3 (Pics: Part A / Part B) "June 17th Indian.. again"

Part A: Yay! It's now starting to get warmer. What is wrong with their teacher, Yoshinoya-sensei? Hahaha! She is hilarious. Wearing inappropriate attire as a teacher and as a model for her art students. I'm also starting to like Miyano - starving art student who is hyperactive and has a carefree spirit? Love!

Part B: Hm, I somehow get the feeling that I have to get use to the main 4 characters sitting around at their apartment and talking about random things. Here they talk about food, the weather, and about Sae and Hiro's sempai who use to live in Yuno's room while watching the water leak drop into the bucket. They warn Yuno about that sempai and her 'purple snake'. Later Yuno finds a purple rope hanging down in her room. She pulls it and gets hit in the head by a dropping tin pan which knocks her out cold. Classic Japanese comedy routine that was popular way back then. Hehe. 

I enjoyed this episode and I'm beginning to understand what Hidamari is about.

Episode 4 (Pics: Part A / Part B) "May 18th Singing Shortcake"

Part A: The first half of the episode focused around Yuno and Miya playing with some sort of sacred stone statue. Miya prays to it for good fortune. Hehe. I like her, she's funny. Sae seems to know the true origin of the statue but avoids revealing anything. The first half was quite enjoyable. ^^

Part B: Karaoke! Yes! I'm starting to understand Hiro's personality now - she's always worrying about her weight and diet. Yuno mentions how the machines at the new karaoke place has a calorie meter and each song burns an average of 10 calories per song. So they decided to go and have fun. While there they spot Yoshinoya-sensei and the discussion of the previous stone statue comes up. It is revealed that Yoshinoya-sensei is the creator of that statue and it supposedly makes chests bigger to whomever prays to it. No wonder Sae was trying to keep it a secret! 

Overall, this was the first episode of Hidamari that I truly enjoyed. I thought they were just going to stick to the theme of "art "but I'm glad that isn't the case because, I think, their true strength lies outside of that subject.

Episode 5 (Pics: Part A / Part B) "February 13th Body and Soul"

Part A:  The first half basically revolved around Yuno having a fever. She stays home to get some rest and sleep. This first half was very SHAFT with Yuno's dream/hallucination. Anyway, Miya pays a visit while Yuno is asleep and changes her clothes because she was heavily sweating. Miya is now my favorite character! ^^

Part B: Thanks to everyone's care, Yuno is already feeling better. They hang out Yuno's room and do their usual stuff - discuss random things. Miya even does an impression of the principal and it was totally hilarious! Hehe. 

This episode blew me away with it's SHAFT-ness. Now I'm glad that I gave this series a second chance because I am totally getting absorbed. It might be too early to get carried away and praise it too much but I am really beginning to understand why this series is so popular in Japan.

Episode 6 (Pics: Part A / Part B) "July 14th Cool and Laid-back"

Part A: It's summer time and it's hot! First half focused on the exam and staying cool. Miya decided to get a tan on the roof of their apartment building. I personally think she looks better with a tan. They head to Sae and they decide to take a dip into an inflatable pool.

Part B: They head to Hiro's room to invite her to join them in the inflatable pool. What is Hiro doing on such a hot summer day? Eating "nabe" with all the windows closed and room temperature blasting high. Why? Weight-loss, of course! Hehe. After everyone takes a few bites, they couldn't take the heat anymore and heads back to the pool. 

This episode was certainly fun but nothing particularly memorable.

Episode 7 (Pics: Part A / Part B) "October 12th Storm of Dry Packs"

Part A: Ah, the obligatory 'sports festival' episode in most school related anime. I'm completely fine with since those are nostalgic memories for me and it can be fun and I feel Hidamari can use the extra entertainment push. What?? It got rained out? Boo. I guess Hidamari is trying to stand out in the own way?

Part B: This second half is fun! I love grocery shopping and wouldn't mind seeing it more in anime. Unfortunately, it was short and the setting goes quickly goes back to their favorite location, their apartment. XD Sae got some fresh chestnuts from her parents so they decided to make "kurigohan" with it. Yum! 

This episode was again fun but I feel that it would have been better if they had actually shown the sports festival. Perhaps they will show it in the next episode?

Overall Impressions (so far)

I'm really glad to have given a second chance to this series because it has potential to be a good slice-of-life series that I can enjoy when I'm in the mood. The characters are quite fun once you get to know them, that is if you can manage to get through the first few episodes to reach that state. I look forward to seeing more of this series. Hopefully, I can somehow catch up to the currently airing "Hiromittsu" before it ends. Go Miyano!