S.A - Special A ep. 1
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OP: “Special Days” by Yuko Goto
ED: “Hidamari no Gate (陽だまりのゲート)” by Jun Fukuyama, Hiro Shimono, Tsubasa Yonaga & Kazuma Horie
Production: AIC, Gonzo
[ Episode 1: Hikari・Kei ]
There can only be one Number one! Then again, wouldn’t it be better to be second?
I’ll be straight to the point: I liked the premiere of Special A. I haven’t read the manga before and I’m not sure I’m going to even after being charmed by the series already.
First thing’s first: There were times that when I was watching and I mistook Kei for Lelouch. Dammit Fukuyama Jun! You’re everywhere this season! He used his Lelouch voice at least once or twice when the situation got pretty serious but it wasn’t 100%. I don’t have a problem with it but it can be a bit funny and confusing at times.
The characters are more likable than I expected them to be. Normally in a high level class you’d expect all or most of the students to be snobbish but all seven of them have their own unique personalities and don’t follow the stereotypes of elitists. Hikari, Kei, Akira, Tadashi, Ryuu, Jun, and Megumi are all hilarious in their own way. Hikari and Kei have the whole competitive dynamic. Akira adores Hikari and totally assaults Tadashi when he pisses her off. Ryuu, Jun, and Megumi have this weird trio thing going on where he can control their behavior with a whistle. Yeah. I couldn’t believe it myself when I saw it and yes I did laugh. I’m wondering about Megumi though…she doesn’t speak at all yet at the end of the episode when she was about to sing her voice seemed to cause an explosion (of sound at least). I can only imagine how awesome her performance was to have rendered Kei pale and unresponsive!
The animation isn’t exactly top-of-the-line but it is still attractive. The colors are vibrant and the character movements aren’t stiff. The character designs may bother some but I find them to be just fine. Their long limbs don’t bother me either since such things are common in the shoujo manga that I read and I am a CLAMP fan as well. Vocal-wise I was impressed with the seiyuu cast. Even if Fukuyama Jun came off as Lelouch once or twice, he still did a great job making Kei sound different that Lelouch. I could hardly tell that Goto Yuuko was Hikari. She’s got amazing range given that she voices Mikuru in the Haruhi series.
Overall, Special is quite enjoyable. The characters are all lively and likable. While watching I must admit I was thinking of Ouran Host Club as well as the manga/dorama Yukan Club, both of which are great series. I’m hoping that GONZO and AIC will continue doing a great job with this series because it would be a shame to see the quality drop because of laziness.
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“Ryuu, Jun, and Megumi have this weird trio thing going on where he can control their behavior with a whistle.”
I didn’t understand this part, but it did made me laugh. lol
Also, their bodies are LONG.
And the lengths changes sometimes..(or is it just me)
But it is still bearable..
[...] I couldn’t put my finger on what bothered me about the character design until Leon @ Kita ze Inbou pointed out that the long legs are reminiscent of CLAMP’s style. CLAMP! How could I forget [...]
I had no idea that Goto Yuuko was in on this, but that’s fantastic. I loved her work as Mikuru.
I really appreciate the thick-outlined, almost cel-shaded scenes too as it’s fun when a series plays around with their animation for different moments. (Hidamari you are my god!)