Ohana Matsumae is sent to live with her grandmother, who she has never met nor spoken to, at her Taisho-era (1920s) hot springs inn. It's not a lifestyle that Ohana would have chosen, but she decidesnot to be discouraged and to make the most of her new circumstances.
I'm rather surprised that not many people are commenting on this anime, and I feel that it isn't receiving enough credit. Thus, here I am.
It's been some time since I've watched a simple anime of quality. How do I say this, it lightens up my mood when I watch this anime, like when you want to watch something nice and refreshing after an exhausting day, Hanasaku Iroha is just the right anime for me. (I highly recommend Ao no Exorcist for rich action though ^^)
Before I start, just wanna mention that my review here is based on only the first 3 episodes.
Story: Yup, it's a slice of life genre without anything too deep. Or at least for now. Storyline is just as stated in the summary:
"Just the life of a girl named Ohana who got thrown into the inn owned by her (never seen before) Grandma due certain circumstances, met with some unpleasant events, was down-hearted but in the end decided to make the best of it. And we shall witness what she decides to do then.
So far, nothing too cliche has happened, or even if there are some hints of familiarity, it was pulled off nicely~!
The first episode may seem to be boring to some, but gets better from episode 2 onwards =) Nothing dark or too "emo" so far.
Dialogue: Nice and simple, with dashes of humour sprinkled here and there. Nothing complicated. Voice-acting is good, which captures the personalities of the characters well.
Animation: Ah, this is one of my favourite styles, perfect for this genre. Fluid animation, well-drawn characters, colours are bright and lively. Along with gradients and lightings used, it just makes the animation all the more beautiful. A definite 5 here!
Entertainment: I'm rather picky on the anime I watch. Boring or predictable scenes are not my cup of tea. For this anime, not only was I pleasantly surprised as to how the events flow, I was amused at some point as well.
Just a warning, though very mild, there are some essence of ecchi. For fanservice? Well yeah, but I think it contributes more towards the amusement factor, which is something I don't mind and personally enjoy ^^ Nothing overwhelming, or extreme like *coughHOTDFreezingetcccough*
Ok, long review. Well, I hardly ever done any anyways cause I know I'm kinda long winded =P Forgive me for that and my grammar/expressions.
I hope that I managed to convince you to watch Hanasaku Iroha as I'm thoroughly enjoying it. What's important to me is the anticipation you will have while waiting for the next episode, and Hanasaku Iroha does so for me =)
