Anime Hajime Review: Mahoraba

***Warning, the following may contain spoilers for Mahoraba. Reader discretion is advised.***

Series Synopsis

Shiratori Ryushi (voiced by Ryoko Shiraishi) has come to Tokyo to become a children’s book artist. Being new to the city, Shiratori was lucky to find residence in a small apartment complex. There he meets its landlord, Kozue Aoba (voiced by Satomi Arai). Taken in by Kozue’s kindness, Shiratori is glad to have found such a wonderful place.

At least, that’s what he thought.

The other residents are a unique bunch. Plus, they have a bad habit of keeping Shiratori away from his artwork. Though Kozue insists they mean well, it's difficult nonetheless. Always exhausted, Shiratori does his best to maintain his sanity. Luckily, he has Kozue to give him support.

But it’s Kozue who holds the biggest surprise.

Whenever Kozue gets startled, frightened, angry, or sad she loses consciousness. Upon recovery, Kozue won’t be the person waking up. For you see, the kind-hearted landlord has several different personalities living inside her. Each one worlds different than the more level-headed Kozue.

The peaceful apartment Shiratori thought he moved into is anything but. His time in Tokyo is sure to be rough and tiring. Yet, this is the kind of place that has the tendency to grow on you. And soon, you can't imagine living anywhere else.

Series Positives

We’ve taken a look at over two hundred anime over these past two years. In that time, there have amazing highs. As well as infuriating lows. At no point would I go back and change any of it. Except, I’ve been watching anime longer than I’ve written for this site.

Shiratori and Kozue

In many of my reviews, I’ve made reference to all kinds of different series. While most were shows covered in the past, many were not. Along with that, there are plenty of anime I would love to have under the Anime Hajime banner that I've already seen.

That’s why during March 2017 I’ll be looking at, or rather, be re-looking at anime from before this site. And I couldn’t think of a better place to start this Pre-Blog Month than with Mahoraba.

I adore this series. Or at least I did when I first watched it. We’ll see how well it held up in a bit. Spoilers, pretty f@#$ing well.

Mahoraba was an eye opener. I realized “when” you watch an anime can have just as much bearing as "what" the actual anime is. I watched this series a few months after my return from my first stay in Japan. My time in university in Nagoya was an unforgettable experience. And by the time I got to Mahoraba I was in the depths of missing it. This show triggered so many fond memories. Under these circumstances, I couldn’t help but fall in love with it.

That was some time ago now. The circumstances have changed. I’m back in Japan. While still very much enjoy watching anime, I do so with a much more critical eye. And Mahoraba managed to remain the same outstanding series I remembered it being.

The Tenants

This show was funny. This show was charming. This show was sweet, heartwarming, and fun. And it had everything to do with the tenants. I’ll extend this compliment to all the characters. But I'll only focus on these eight.

Shiratori was a great anchor and target for all the teasing. A little on the wimpy side, this could have gotten old. Yet as the show went on, he adapted. Though he would always react, he learned how to push back in his own way. Plus, his dream of being a children’s book artist I thought was quite enduring.

Kozue was always a sweetheart. At the risk of sounding corny, her kindness always felt genuine. Which was why her transformations were both drastic and fun. As well as welcomed. Okay, so, what do I mean by that? I’ll explain in a moment.

Megumi (voiced by Masumi Asano) is either my favorite character or is in the running. She breathed a lot of life into the apartment. Most of this series’ excitement-from-nothing was her doing. However, the fact her character was so much deeper was what I found the most interesting.

Now if Megumi isn’t my favorite than that honor goes to Tamami (voiced by Yui Horie). Her unrelenting manipulation was fascinating. But it was well balanced since there were people who could get to her. Plus her unbreakable friendship with Kozue helped show she wasn’t heartless.

Sayoko (voiced by Mioko Fujiwara) and Asami (voiced by Umi Tenjin) were cute together. It was funny when it was hard to tell who mother and daughter were. But it was much more impactful when they filled their actual roles.

Before finishing off this section, there’s something I need to hint at. It was something I noticed way back during my first viewing. It applies to all the characters. Yet was more prominent with Sayoko and Asami. More on this later.

And last is Haibara and Johnny (voiced by Kenyuu Horiuchi). I don’t have much to say about them. Of all the tenants, they were the most background-ish. If anyone could've been removed it would've been these two. So, let’s consider them as a pleasant addition.

It was these tenants who hit my memories. Living in close proximity with people who can make anything exciting. These eight are the best aspect of Mahoraba.

Series Negatives

I do love this show. For what it did good, it did great. This will always be a favorite. That said, there were issues. Issues I saw even during my first viewing. And during my second, these issues were glaring.

Although Mahoraba went into a lot of detail with the character's backstories, it went too far as well.

“How is that possible?” you may be wondering.

This series gave such a clear look into events that happened before the story. So clear, in fact, it was obvious when things were missing. Lines of dialogue. Whole episodes. Certain actions were out of place and didn’t belong in the world that had been created.

For example, Megumi mentioned she had bad memories about playing the piano. Here was a person who had a past. It got me interested. What did she mean by that? I have no idea. It never got brought up again.

Or even more jarring was what happened to Sayoko and Asami. Unlike Megumi's off the cuff comment, this was a several-episode arc with build-up. For what ended up happening, it wasn’t enough build-up. This storyline comes out of nowhere. Never mind the fact it happened to be interesting. Why the show went in this direction doesn’t make a lot of sense.

Until you think, "Maybe there’s more going on that's not being told".

This would also explain what Megumi said. As well as a lot of moments that didn't add up. From my understanding, the manga did go in the kind of detail the anime did not.

Adaptations do have to change things. Conversion between mediums requires flexibility. It’s a balancing act. Mahoraba didn’t always pull this off in the best way. Or, perhaps, it did do the source material justice. I don’t I haven’t read it yet to confirm.

But there’s the silver lining in all this. I want to check out the source material. That means I get to spend more time in the world of Mahoraba. Fantastic. The possibility of learning more about these characters is exciting.

Plus, it’s a chance to answer the biggest question I have about this series. Something that's been bugging me since I first watched it.

Kozue’s Personalities

What point did they serve? I shouldn't be asking this question.

All Kozue’s personalities were great. The show was enjoyable when they were on screen. So, why weren’t they on screen all the time? When I said, "They were always a welcomed addition," it was because they weren’t around enough. At least, not nearly long enough to justify such a premise.

Here was a chance to explore who Kozue was. Why did she have all these different sides to her? Sure, the show gave an answer. At the end. But it felt rushed. And for a series that just didn’t do that, how could you not feel a little disappointed?

I wanted to see more. We got enough of Saki. For some reason, she was the one this story always tended to turn to. But there were three others that got almost no screen time? What about Nanako? What about Natsume? What about Chiyuri, who got the absolute shaft of it all? Why have such a unique set up and not use it to its full potential?

For how much I praise this show. For how much it means to me. I cannot get passed this. It doesn’t take away from the enjoyment of Mahoraba. Except this is a problem that shouldn't exist either.

Final Thoughts

It was wonderful to return to this series. Enough time had passed to where a lot of it was new again.

Mahoraba is a show that makes you feel good. It’s relaxing. It’s funny. It has a brilliant cast of characters you want to get to know. And you get to know them. Granted, this series doesn’t go the full way. But where it does go is more than most.

I loved it once and I loved it again. Mahoraba is a must.

Believe me, I can see me coming back to this one time and time again. Either as a fan or a reviewer. This show is special to me. And to my Chukyo gang. If any of you are reading this, I still miss you all.

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