Bocchi the Rock!

Inspite others have mentioned almost everything, I really wanted to make my own review on Bocchi because at the end it became one of my favorite animes unexpectedly. (I wanted to watch a 'music anime' and it just happened, like how Birdie Wing got me which I didn't expect from a sports anime at the first place.)

Bocchi The Rock offers everything to be a great show. It starts slowly so you have to be patient and bear with Bocchi's character, because she is a borderline annoying introvert. Not saying she is unbelievably portrayed, but the way she is... well, that's the way she will be till the end, more or less. I would have given this show a 10 if she had been a bit less of an annoyance, but I understood the artistic exaggeration here, so for me it was okay. Maybe, not for you, check the first few episodes, she will change, but not too much. (At least she won't perform in a card box and becomes able to stand in front of a large audience which is a great achievement, now that I think of it.)

But then the other characters of the band get introduced and they are all lovely and provide a constant source of wholesome fun. And then they start playing music which is the real deal! In episode 5 they perform on stage which is super dope and the show starts to show its true merits. Later they perform in episodes 8 and 12 and it gets more and more awesome, I have watched episode 8 a few times because that's really the climax of the story.

So, yeah, there is definitely a nice story arc in the show and it's nice to see as they get together as a band, caring for each other and getting better and better by each episode. The in-between episodes do not feel filler at all, every single one tells a correct story. I would have appreciated a little bit of more drama and a less annoying Bocchi with some real changes in her personality, but it's great the way as it is and maybe I'm asking for too much. Music plays an important part of the show and it truly shines in that department! Kessoku Band has even released its real album which sold pretty well, check it out, cos it's good.

(Don't expect romance or yuri content here, even though there is a small hint in the beginning when Kita is joining the band - maybe in Season 2? Btw. The drunken girl was my favorite. Anime doesn't shy away to show some bad examples, does it? My soul mate.)

Musically contagious, visually impressive and overcharged personality-wise. There's a lot of talent here!

But more than a successful little comedy, pretty animation and good use of different styles.. It is the excellent execution of a good emotional core, uplifting interactions and onlook on life that weights heavily on my heart, and the reason I can have this kind of connection. To me, it is more than just your average anime girls doing silly things together; but how it makes me think about myself and how things I wished were like for me and everyone around. I do feel my excitement peaked in the middle, leaving the ending to be lesser as a result.

But this studio knows how to tell a story through animation perfectly, and I wished to recommend this to everyone that has the time, and maybe a little doubt about anything. The feeling it leaves you with is how you finish with a "good day".

First off, let's just get this out of the way: this show is comedy gold. Each episode has me laughing often - mostly thanks to the ridiculous antics of the show's lovably reclusive protagonist, Hitori. As the audience follows her experience trying to form a band, despite having absolutely no social skills, we meet a variety of enjoyable characters, and the interactions between these characters are always consistently funny.

As for the production, it's easy to say that Studio Cloverworks nailed the animation - the characters move very naturally and fluidly, and the color palette and compositing makes the show feel alive and beautiful. When matched with great music and voice acting, the show is clearly very well produced.

Honestly, this show turned my perception of music by 180°.

One of (if not) the best animes I've ever seen. From watching characters develop really great in their writing each episode to having lots of creative choices of representing social anxiety and relatable situations. It's an awesome experience.

Although it didn't get a lot of budget, the creators still tried to do their best with the amount of money they had and they did a really amazing job.

The music in this show is just something. The opening, The Concerts, Repetitions, Endings, OSTs and even Covers. Not a single bad composition from Kessoku band.

The cloverworks in my opinion really poured their soul into this show because the colors and characters movements make the show look more realistic and beautiful

The attention to the details is just mind-blowing. I love the fact that the creators did really care on how people would look into details so they decided to animate the instruments properly. Hope that they will keep up the great work with the upcoming season and the new producer would not dissapoint, they just don't have to rush and we'll get an another 10/10 experience.

"Society is scary!!!" I get you Bocchi, you have no idea how much I get you. This anime takes the idea of "humour based on my pain" to another level. This anime takes a very satirical approach on social anxiety. It's somehow just so relatable and so hilarious at the same time. This is the most I've laughed watching an anime in a long time, ever since I saw KonoSuba or SaikiK. I'm a huge overthinker myself. So this anime just hits different for me. It's a very exaggerated approach on overthinking and anxiety but that's exactly why it works. There are scenes where Bocchi goes on this long path of thoughts while overthinking and ends up getting scared of something very unrealistic. And it's hilarious yes, but then I look back at times when I get anxious of something very irrational and I just don't notice it at that time. So the writers got it exactly right.

The studio Cloverworks has outdone itself. I'm not a fan of their work because they tend to pick up stories with great potential, and they utilize like half of that potential (Horimiya, Balance Unlimited, Shadows House). But they have completely proved me wrong here. The animation is absolutely gorgeous. The character designs are downright hilarious. The direction and editing is so funny, it's unbelievable. And the source material wasn't even that famous. Not many knew about Bocchi The Rock when it started. And now its one of the highest rated animes on MAL. So they've created this almost from scratch. Almost every episode is hilarious. And the band performance scenes gave me goosebumps because I really cared about the character Bocchi, and knowing her struggles, I wanted her to succeed. The side characters and the camaraderie between them is great too.