i just recently found your channel and i almost can't forgive myself when i keep saying K-On is my favorite anime of all time. but happy to have finally experienced watching your annual K-On video on the day of upload!🤘 that said, i wasn't ready for that intro "15 year old show" 😬
This show doesnt get enough credit for how well directed, well paced, and well animated it is. Its got that high level of polish but it never feels stiff. Naoko Yamada is nuts, the way she directed the team to make season 2 with that huge shift in feel as well as all the anime original content is insane, she continues her top tier directing efforts in Tamako Market, but that show didn't catch the same level of hype as k-on sadly. It def had some of her best directing work You can also see a ton of influence for k-on in "lost in translation" by Sofia Coppola, same moody shots with minimal dialogue, some shots being exact matches to the film. Naoko Yamada has cited Sofia as a huge Influence to her work and you can def see it. Also you can def see the animation style in Clannad for sure, but also in the first season of Haruhi, sometimes Haruhi makes faces that look exactly like Yui God tier video 10/10 so far
Crisis is actually one of my favorite. The foundation of the conflict was laid way back when Mio was separated from the group and began close to Nadoka. Mio was mesmerized by the lefty guitars when Ritsu dragged her away and accidentally made her fall, leading Mio to call Ritsu baka. Nadoka showed up right after to hang out with Yui, Mio wanted to go too, leading Ritsu to feel she’s losing her best friend and started to act erratic to get Mio’s attention. I think using Ritsu being sick to explain her absence was kind of an easy way out but important thing is they let their guards down and made up. To tie up everything nicely, Nadoka came to the rescue and pleaded for Ritsu in front the the student president for not turned in the form, Ritsu asked Nadoka to take care of her too and that was great.
I love to hear your high praise for winter days. It's one of my all time favorite ova episodes, but i dont ever hear much commentary about it. P.S. love the tim rodgers shoutout.
It’s not an ova. It’s just the last episode of the season, but the previous episode was the climax, so it’s considered an “extra” episode. The only ova’s are Live House and Plan.
It's def one of the best episodes for sure, it's in my top 5, there's a clear shift in tone and the directing is much more personal. I firmly believe the the point in the show where the gave much more creative control to Naoko Yamada. Very hard to explain mood and feel it conveys but it's a brilliant brilliant episode
I recently stumbled upon your channel and I must say, i truly love to hear you talk about anime! Thanks for giving us this content. Also, I've been wondering if you've seen Aria the Animation. It's my favorite series, and I'm curious to hear you talk about it...
I’ve heard its name a lot of times, but haven’t gotten around to watching it. I should add it to the watch list. Also thank you! I’m glad you like the videos
The whole making other shows look ugly bit is actually what I experienced. I went and watched Toradora right after watching K-ON for the first time, and background art looked so barren by comparison. It took me like half a season to get used to, and Toradora is not bad or ugly by any stretch Also, holy shit, look and that motion picture of a video here, that's dedication to the bit.
What I remember is "Love Me Tender". I didn't think it sounded bad; yes, there was a "we're kinda beginners, here" vibe, and that makes sense. Didn't someone get their own gift and trade with Sawako? I could hear that the intonation was off. Though I'd be happy to have a device telling me I'm right. Muwhahahahahaha. Did you know that every single student in their 3rd-year class has a canonical name? I didn't until I looked up the voice actress and vtuber AmaLee, a.k.a. Monarch, and found that one of her earliest roles was one of these random students. "Ushio Oota? Who? ...Oh yeah, I've seen her, I think." You might recognize other roles, but... Unfortunately, I haven't heard of a lot of fans of K-On! High School or K-On! College. I like how the manga does it. Obviously, you can't hear voices, and Ui's not put her hair in a ponytail yet, so your only clue is maybe that little extra size to her chest. Then she does it, and the final panel reveals that Yui is still asleep, even though the trip is the one SHE'S going on. I can't speak to how well Minako Kotobuki did that "talking in Kyoto dialect" thing, but Shelby Lindley sold that old-ish Modern English they localized it with. Or maybe her voice is just really cute and that blinded me to any problems. I wonder if that's a Great Pyrenees, like Chiyo's dog from Azumanga Daioh. You say that, but dude, in all your watching, have you not run into the Christmas Cake metaphor? It comes up in Lucky Star, at least. That would be difficult enough, but then there was that other group in the gym trying to keep their own rhythm... In fact, isn't leaving behind a recording exactly what Death Devil did before them?
Oh, the (bass) Intonation is what I'm supposed to be listening for in the English version? For the original Japanese Tsubasa wo Kudasai, trying to put myself in Yui's shoes, I'd guess the single biggest thing she heard was Mugi, who played her part rather devoid of dynamics. In fact, it sounded a lot like Musescore's automatic rendition and that's not a good thing. If that's so, it is a good choice to put the flaw there. All three are supposed to be veteran players to various extents, so the show has to balance giving something that sounds crappy without being too disrespectful to that character. Mugi is a veteran classical pianist, but pianos are not exactly keyboards. I'd guess she's not used to the completely different downweights and ended up either playing it very safe with the dynamics or even locking them out. In fact, other than Yui, Mugi would be the one who most obviously advanced with her instrument. She starts with the piano sound, advances to using the organ sounds for Fuwa Fuwa, while late songs like Gohan have a lot of synth. Transcriptions of Gohan suggest that at one point, two different synth sounds were played at the same pitch consecutively, which means the sounds have to be differentiated with a Velocity-Split. I really like that little Easter Egg buried within the song because of how well it integrates Mugi's old skills with her new role and instrument.
@@Nyperold018 Oh S2E6.Yes, it's audible, though they exaggerated Yui's first pluck to ensure most people would at least suspect something was off (it was about 65 cents sharp). The second time it was about 28 cents sharp. No, I don't have perfect pitch or anything like that. I happen to have a software analyzer.
My favorite video of the year already, this brought so much memories back to me and really deepened my appreciation for my favorite show of all time that much more
I definitely relate to ranking Winter Days as the best of season 1. A great laid back, mellow, atmospheric way to show how these five work better as a group than they do alone. Yui’s random-ass text message is one of my favorite moments of the show. I try to imagine how I’d react in the other girls’ shoes, sitting in the middle of what must surely seem like a personal crisis, stewing in worry over what to do, when out of nowhere I get a message asking which of these two absolutely disgusting-sounding dishes I’d prefer. I’m not even having a crisis, and yet I still feel like a weight is lifting from my shoulders when that scene plays. Yeah, I rate this one highly even when factoring in season 2. Partly just because of the vibe, maybe. I’m prone to bouts of melancholy. Not depression, just days where my overall attitude is “Meh, not feeling it, leave me alone.” And this episode matches that tone while gently pulling me toward a brighter mood. I have to be careful not to rewatch it too often, because I don’t want it to lose that power.
OK, I actually didn't get around to this until now. So nice having a nice little recap of the show. I haven't watched in like 10 years at this point (except the movie which I finally saw sometime around 2020). While I knew I loved the anime, this simply reminded me of its greatness. Now where is K-ON! The College Years lol?
Started watching this show in my freshman year of high school, finished it a year later in 2021, have a lot of nostalgia for K-ON, not just for when I watched it, but also for when it came out, every time I rewatch this series shows me that Yui is just me for real, and I actually see myself in all of the main and side characters of this Also… insulting Mio is an unforgivable deed, confess NOW
Marathon! … Yui whines and moans and slogs through a 5k run, but when motivated she has all the energy in the world. Because for years she’s been dashing to school with a 9 lb guitar on her back, plus the gig bag and books.
I"m sure this will kick off at some point, so: My favorite episode, and I realize this is a quixotic choice, is Season 2 Episode #6, Rainy Season! I consider it the third episode of a trilogy, following Field Trip! and Staying Behind! (The latter where Ui wins the giant stuffed turtle that we see in her room for the rest of the series.) I know Rainy Season! is a plotless episode even for this show, but it showcases perhaps my two favorite relationships, Yui and Ui (the umbrella song scene is terrific) and the show's one romantic relationship, Yui and Geeta. Also, Mio's eventual (if meant to be secret) embracing of Yui naming her bass Elizabass is super adorable.
are u a genius ? are u mad ? I would probably say both. But what I am only sure about is that I will continue to be here every years any times this serie continues. Thank you for that
My favorite joke of episode 1? It's that brief shot of Yui walking down the hallway right before meeting Ritsu and Mio in Sawa-chan's office. It reminds me of the comical walk of Popeye in the old Fleischer Brothers cartoons. Kills me every time. Also, people talk about how Yui (as do all the girls) matures as the show progresses, but few point out how easily spooked she was in the first episode. She basically has a nervous breakdown because Ritzu stares at her when they first meet. Within two years she's running around talking to strangers at the drop of a hat, including, as Mio observes, "the scary ones."
35:08 “So many shots that make me desperately wish I lived in whatever town inspired these drawings.” It’s suburban Kyoto, where the KyoAni building is located. Hundreds of shots are direct replicas of real locations in the modern, spread out parts of eastern Kyoto.
Pete Townsend’s windmill strums are famous, so the S2 Ep. 1 opening scene is another The Who reference for your list. I love Yui’s reverse windmill. Oh, and I saw him do it, in person, at one of their reunion concerts. 🤘
Please keep saying "brevity" where other people would say "levity", dude, it's moé moé kyun and I'm sure it will lead to more engagement as people comment about it. I didn't know that "discrete" and "discreet" were two different words until like last week. Anyways great video, I always look forward to the annual K-ON! video although I still haven't finished last year's.
I admit to being surprised. I know you didn't like S1E11 (though it *is* one that maybe you'd like less as you rewatch it more - I rewatch K-On a lot and it is an episode I find myself avoiding a bit), but I'm surprised S1E2 ended up lower than S2E15 or S2E11 even though those two are clear candidates for the bottom and are as close to filler as anything in the show. Above that competition does get tight and it's honestly hard for me to pick between your Top 5. = I think Mugi's hesitation in E2 is because Mugi is trying to put her advantages behind her and live as a high school girl of normal means. She slips up from time to time (such as offering really luxurious gifts to get more club members), but mostly she does do that. Her instrument, sweets and tea are things that don't break this rule because she can do that as a normal family - they are just a *little* nicer than the otherwise would be. For an anime ojou-sama she really is very low-key. At their first visit, Mugi is weighing between granting Yui her wish and her decision to not use her advantages. She knows she won't really be playing with bargaining - she'd be using it as a pretext to flaunt her family status to coerce a discount. Ultimately, Mugi realizes that Yui really wants that guitar. And she didn't want her friend to start her music career knowingly picking a second rate instrument. After all, Mugi got to pick her instrument, and it's probable she picked it by appearance b/c EP1 shows she clearly is no master of the Keyboard (a different instrument from the Piano). So Yui gets to do the same. All Mugi has to do is bend her own self-imposed rules a little. = Mio is also my least favorite character (someone has to be), but to me it's not her scaredly-catness. Rather, it's her penchant to criticize others rather than do something. For example, in S2E4, Mio complains when Yui tries to phone Azusa. However, at least Yui is trying to make progress and the idea of getting some outside help is a good one by that point. Mio doesn't think "OK, I'd find someone better to phone" - she shuts Yui down and then ... does nothing to improve the situation.
This is a nice early birthday gift as my birthday is on the 23rd of May. Wonder what next year will bring. It'll be kind of funny if he runs out of ideas and ranks K-on ships lmfao.
Might take awhile to create, but maybe next year it should be ranking all male characters in K-On. Maybe limit it to just ones with dialogue so it's not too overwhelming.
K-On! is my favorite anime, it’s sacred to me. Part of me dislikes any time someone talks about the show/characters nonchalantly or crudely. But that’s just me Interesting way of pronouncing “Ritsu” and “Ton” lol. So many good episodes throughout season 2, like who could forget the Azusa dream episode, or the Romeo and Juliet episodes, or how perfect and solemn the graduation episode is. In s2e13 it’s not that tempura and watermelon taste bad together, it’s that it’ll give you diarrhea. My computer is broken rn so I can’t verify but I’m pretty sure Jun wasn’t confused as to why Asuza was freaking out/melting in s2e22, maybe I’ll come back and edit this. Also with s2e15 I don’t recall how long the run is, if it’s a 5k or shorter maybe. And at the end of s2e12 Ritsu doesn’t exactly think Yui is joking, she tells her to get better at guitar and then asks if she knows what an aura is (found a clip online). But I digress If anyone is looking for more K-On! discussion, I recommend r/k_on’s annual Christmas rewatch threads for 10 years worth of impressions.
mio is my fav and ritsu is 2nd, i think their foil is perfect, and thats what makes both of them the favs, azusa and yui foil is great too 17:15 worst part in the show 20:37 YO WTF MAN 22:19 True and real s2e7 yea the fanclub shit was weird fs, but some funny lines iirc 1:01:30 ive seen that arm gesture somewhere before 🤔 s2e14 the mugi and mio strawberry scene was best scene in the show nice vid 👍
I love you k-on stuff and im sure you have answered this before buttttt. Totaraum, where do you watch k-on? I'm having to bootleg it and would like to own it.
It's in Hidive (if you're in NA...? I have Bilibili here in Thailand but pretty sure it's just for here) and I believe Sentai sells the Ultimate Collection Blu-ray set (the entire 2 seasons + OVAs + Movie + Ura-ons) on its site.
On behalf of left-handed bass guitarists everywhere I can't let your comments about Mio go unchallenged! Grrr! Oh, and I still think she's a better singer than Yui.
