Anime: Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm

When I first read the description for the show I thought, "Great, here's another harem where the underdog guy will suddenly sweep everyone off their feet." Surprisingly, this show isn't really like that at all, it's more about the fruition of a girl's lifelong dream to be able to fly and compete with the other best flyers in the area. Though the show showed promise early on with some good development, the circus's act breaks up late in the show, falling victim to forced, unnatural antagonists. If you're looking for a harem, this definitely is not one. If you're looking for a competitive, tournament-based show that bastardizes moves from air combat, then feel free to dig in.

Animation:
The show is well drawn overall with a rather bright mood and lots of serene, blue skies and oceans. Backgrounds in general are mixed as occasionally you get really detailed drawings (mostly clouds) and other times you get generic, blurred scenery. There is definitely a lot of CGI in this show, some of which is pretty distracting. The show has some nice, colorful UI displays during tournaments and some other gadgetry that looks like it's lifted right out of a game. The character styling is average overall; you won't get characters confused with each other but there isn't anything particularly special about them either. Asuka's drawing style feels a bit odd as her eyes seem to give off an air of confidence and sharpness that honestly is missing most of the time. I also don't get the uniforms worn during matches, not really sure why yukata-like sleeves are helpful in a speed contest.

Expect a fair, though dispersed, amount of action, centered around the two main tournaments in the show. I was indeed surprised that they made it through two tournaments considering how most shows of late fail to conclude even a single one per season. The action consists of two contestants flying and attempting to accomplish goals, either hitting pylons or hitting the other contestant's back, which apparently causes a giant magic-sign-like symbol to appear. Given that most of the action is really just following colorful contrails in the sky, this isn't going to be satisfying for those needing real, gritty action. The same can be said in the ecchi department. Though there are completely unnecessary scenes, such as our protagonist seeing his neighbor pretty much naked multiple times, it isn't nearly as over the top as some of the other ecchi heavy hitters. That said, there is plenty of bouncy and bodysuits in the show if that's your fancy.

Sound:
The show opens with a very light rock OP that reminds me a bit of the voicing in Mami Kawada's work in Shakugan no Shana, the melody here isn't nearly as strong though. The ED is likewise very light (almost like they purposely filtered out all the base); I like the instrumentation and atmospheric pads, but the melody just isn't convincing. The same could be said about the BGM, it has some good fundamentals and some nice string tracks but ultimately lacks any memorable melodies; the stringed instruments make for a fairly relaxed mood overall.

The show has a decent number of veterans but the actual casting feels odd. Misato Fukuen (Yami from ToLoveRu) is an interesting choice for a clumsy, light-hearted heroine and Azumi Asakura (Asia from DxD and Kumin from Chuunibyou) is an odd choice for an own-pace tsundere. Really, my choice for strongest performance goes to Risa Taneda, who voices a strong supporting character.

Story:
The show follows yet another high school club, this time the Flying Circus club where you train to fly in circles in what is essentially something like a baseball diamond. Our protagonist, Hinata, is coerced into joining the dying Kurahama club along with the heroines of the show. What follows is a lot of preparation and, surprisingly, multiple tournaments. It's all told in a rather simple, contiguous storyline with just a few teasing flashbacks.

Though I appreciated the effort in drawing out this unlikely setting and liked the intensity during the tournaments, the rest of the show felt rather lackluster. Though episodes flow well together, many of them focus on a specific heroine and their personal struggle; often the protagonist isn't even part of the resolution. As alluded to before, the show builds to two main peaks in the form of the tournaments. Each is resolved to a fair degree (the latter in the final end credits) though I still don't get the point of the whole show. There were a lot of what seem to be foreshadows that don't amount to anything; either Gonzo planned a sequel or are using them to satisfy those who consumed the original source material- in either case these events are just wasted screen time for the rest of us for now.

Character:
There are a fair number of characters in this show, including about half of dozen rather important females. The character interactions were pretty good overall, but one wonders why they even put the protagonist here. It becomes obviously pretty early in the show that he's no ordinary Joe, but he really never gets much of a chance to shine nor does he really try for the majority of the show. Other than seeing his neighbor undress a few times, there's nothing guyish about our lead.

The heroines fare better than our protagonist but likewise aren't particularly memorable. There's just too many of them and none of them really ever develops any real bonds with the protagonist, the strongest bond is arguably between two of the girls. Reiko Satouin gets my vote for most interesting character, which says a lot considering that she's not even a main character. As for the lead heroine, Asuka, there's just something about her that's off. Sometimes she's goofy and sometimes she's Kira Yamato; it just boggles me how a single person can be such a klutz and yet such a genius.

Unfortunately, a character-centric slice of life is pretty meaningless without strong characters, and that's exactly what we have here.

Value:
This show is about a useless bystander of a male lead who barks orders at various girls flying in circles who eventually develop some feelings for the guy barking orders at them but nothing ever develops- there is no romance. In addition, there's some amusing tournaments where it apparently makes sense that the best way to intercept a flying object is to stand still- there is no logic.

So there you have it, a VN-converted show with no romance and illogical battles. If you're looking for a show with good character development or intense action, steer clear. This is really only a filler show to pick up when you've really run out of things to pick up. That said, it isn't the worst of fillers that I've seen. Are you ready to run in circles figuring out what this show is really about?