Yorito Morimiya is a normal 15-year-old high school student with a unique interest: he loves the sky, whether it be just gazing at it, or taking pictures of it. He lives alone as his only family - his elder sister, Aono - is sickly and in the hospital.
While setting up his equipment to take a picture of the dawning sun over the sea, Yorito meets a young girl, but she leaves before he is able to ask her name. The next night, the two meet again; the mysterious girl introduces herself as Matsuri Shihou, and she seems to share Yorito's interest in the sky. The third time they meet, someone appears with the intention of harming Matsuri...and Yorito discovers that she may not even be human.
Based on a synopsis written by Miyuki89.
Story & Characters
Every visitor to this site loves the Japanese. They give us some form of entertainment that we just can't get from
western media. Whether it be anime, crazy game shows or apocalyptic role-playing games that we crave, Japan has the
answer. Sure they aren't perfect with things like used panty vending machines, avocado flavored Pepsi and Hello
Kitty but we love em anyway. Well when a survey was done in Japan to find out the most beloved anime of 2007, Sola came
out on top. Time to find out, do the Japanese know best?
Yorito Morimiya loves the sky. He goes out of his way, day or night, to take pictures of every sky he can. While
setting up near a bay to take in a glorious sunrise, he sees a girl frantically beating at a vending machine to give her
the drink she paid for. He helps her and after a short talk, she disappears. Later he seeks out this girl and finds
out she is much more than he ever imagined. This girl is Matsuri and she is a yaka. A yaka is essentially a normal
human in nature, only unable to venture out into daylight, has supernatural powers and healing ability, and does not
die. This particular yaka is being chased by a mysterious sword-wielding man who wants nothing but her death. Yorito
wants to protect this girl and takes her into his life. These are the ingredients for an average anime.
The first half of the series is exactly that, average. It consists mostly of character introduction and allows for the
viewer to take in all the relationships that exist and are developing. You know very little about the yaka concept,
only that it will play a larger part eventually. But then, after that halfway point, Sola punches you in the mouth for
ever doubting it. While the story remains relatively simple, it becomes extremely engaging. Now you get a story
involving multiple yaka, Yorito's hidden past and the struggle between Aono (Yorito's sister) and Matsuri.
The latter half of the series is where all the "umph" lies.
The biggest strength and the thing that made this series what it is, is the characters. Superficially, some of the
characters personalities alone make this a show worth watching. Mana is a strong character and a great friend. Koyori
is quite possibly the most adorable character in creation. Matsuri is a misunderstood, lovely character. But at the
deeper level, it's all about how the show pulls the viewer into the character's world. You genuinely have a
sense of the characters emotions and can truly empathize with them. When their angry, you feel that. When their sad or
crying, you get teary eyed. You find yourself truly vested in the characters ups and downs and their rollercoaster ride
to the end.
Special Note: The story is contained within 13 episodes, however there are two additional episodes which are simply
extras. Episode 14 is the obligatory episode where your favorite characters go to the beach or water park. It's
an entertaining enough episode on it's own. Episode 15 acts a one episode prequel to the show entirely. I'm
glad these two episodes were not used in the main story and simply added on as extras as they would have wasted precious
time with nothing more than filler. This tactic should be used more often in anime. Extras like this are fine, just
don't make it an actual staple in the show itself.
Rating: 8
Art
It's inevitable that if the words "J.C. Staff" is anywhere in the opening credits that you are going to
be treated to a feast for the eyes. Sola is no exception. The standout as usual in this type of show is character
design. While many of the characters may have a somewhat cliched overall makeup, it's the small details that give
it that little bit of difference. Matsuri has the dark hair and deep colored eyes, all the while being pale in
complexion to emphasize her nocturnal lifestyle. But so as to not distance herself from the rest of the cast, she wears
normal clothing that just extenuates her physical features. The other characters are equally impressive, but the best
feature they all share is the detail in their eyes. There is no lack of detail when it comes to the sheer gamut of
emotions that each character will go through, all very well represented by their eyes. And since the main cast is
limited (seven in total), each one is able to have their own individual physical traits.
Obviously the main focus of this story is in relation to the sky. To that end the sky is animated down to the slightest
details. Yorito says "two skies might look similar, but no two are the same", and that is made evident by the
minor detail tweaks. Clouds, shadows from the sun and the blending of pastels during dawn and dusk are all unique from
the last. Aside of that, there are a scant few actions scenes throughout the show that all have a smooth framerate and
lossless animation. It's not the simple sword flash, one frame escape animation, but much more action oriented.
It really helps immerse the viewer in the sheer emotion being portrayed at the time.
Rating: 9
Sound
Opening theme: "colorless wind" by Aira Yuuki
Ending theme (Eps 1-12): "mellow melody" by Ceui
Ending theme (Ep 13): "Miageru Ano Sora de" by Aira Yuuki
All the themes for this show were right up my alley. The opening song is the light-hearted pop/technoish sound
accompanied by solid singing similar to Aki Misato (Strawberry Panic). The ending song is much slower and depends on
quiet tambourine and maraca sounds and is close to Aiko Kitahara (yes I like making comparisons, gives you a better
chance of knowing what I'm talking about). The final ending song proves still that anime is still #1 at taking
your final emotions from a show and increasing them exponentially. You'll probably already feel a bit of sadness,
or that feeling in the pit of your stomach and when you add this in you'll probably be locking your door making
sure no one can see you in this weakened state (it was four in the morning for me so no one was awake to see me in wussy
mode). The BGM was fitting on the whole but relatively average. But there's a reason for that... it's
constantly overshadowed.
The best way to properly quantify voice acting for this show: If you viewed this show next to a blind man, you would
both "see" the exact same thing. Every actor does a magnificent job in bringing the story to life, almost to
the point where no visual representation is necessary. Yes, it could nearly be a radio program and it would still prove
just as good. This is a top to bottom solid job by every member of the staff from the ones who cast the parts to the
ones that actually did the voicing. It's because of this that the aforementioned attachment to the characters is
so strong. Matsuri (voiced by Mamiko Noto) sounds as sweet and confused as her character should. Yorito (Nabuhiko
Okamoto) brings out the loving and strong nature of Yorito. I could easily go on about every character, but it's
unnecessary. I will pay special attention to Ai Shimizu and Youko Honda as Ishizuki sisters Mana and Koyori. They were
part of the seven major characters, but played the most minimal parts out of them. Yet the genuine feelings you were
able to absorb from these girls in their caring of the Morimiya siblings really made their impact felt. I cannot speak
highly enough of the vocal work done.
Rating: 10
Presentation
I went into Sola with no knowledge of exactly what the show was about. From the opening through the end of episode one,
I expected an average show that would dabble in romance or possibly even harem comedy. I had no idea the depth and the
dark atmosphere I'd be later viewing. Let's get one thing straight, compared to many anime out there, Sola is
fairly shallow on plot. But this show proved that an epic, normal human imagination shattering plot isn't always
necessary. A simple, well told story can prove to be just as entertaining. That's what Sola does and does so
well. It gives you a simple premise and expounds on it from there. In the end, you are going to be given an ending
that every viewer will react differently to. Some will feel relieved, others angry and even more saddened. It all
depends on where your character loyalties lie.
Sola is a fantastic show that will appeal to a lot of viewers out there. It has a nice mix of all genres of animation
with no real emphasis on any one in particular. In has romance, action, comedy, deceipt and hints of the supernatural.
Yet all of that is balanced and presented in a great story. And when you have just great animation, enjoyable music and
a vocal cast that can effectively blow you away, you end up with a memorable experience. I'd recommend this to
nearly every person who considers themselves an anime fan.
So were the Japanese right? I didn't see a whole lot of 2007 animation, so I don't really know. But based on
this experience, I'd say I can still depend on them in the future to keep me entertained until my end.
Rating: 9
Final Verdict
8.8333 (very good)
Reviewed by shoujoboy, Apr 23, 2008
