Based on the manga by Seo Kouji, Suzuka is about a high school romance story. Yamato-kun, the main guy in the anime, traveled to Tokyo for high school in anticipation of a change in environment. He lives with her aunt. what is awkward here is that his aunt actually operates a women's dorm. In order to live for free, Yamato agrees to help her clean the place every day past 12am, Interested? then Go ahead.

One afternoon, casually, Yamato came across this pretty female jumper Asahina. He was immediately mesmerized by her beauty and her poise and ahtletic ability. It turns out that Asahina actually holds the Japanese high school record for jumping. An inspiration among many japanese people, she is under a lot of pressure to meet everyone's expectations. Yamato helped her along the way and a relationship developed between them.

Credits: hiddensnakehands

Story & Characters

I have not seen this anime in over a year, so I may be a little off on some issues but please bear with me. I noticed that the only anime review was done by someone who hadn't seen the entire series, and, as I have, I decided to submit my first review myself.

This anime follows a guy named Yamato Akitsuki. He moves from his home in Hiroshima to his aunt's all-female dormitory in Tokyo in pursuit of changing himself. While he is looking at his new school, he sees Suzuka Asahina. He is amazed by her athletic ability and falls in love at first sight.

I believe the story is somewhat unique, however doesn't go overboard trying to be something else. It is a romance drama, and it sticks to that genre. It brings sports to the table to breathe some life into the genre, and it does very well.

The characters are like normal people. For example, Yamato is the carefree type of person however he needs motivation to become determined. He becomes sad and happy at times, like normal people.

Suzuka, on the other hand, is very strict. This suits her because she is a star athlete and must keep working to improve. Because of all the pressure, she is also very stressed out, although she does not show it often.

Honoka, Yamato's girlfriend in the later half of the anime, has a very shy personality. However, she is very sensitive. When she develops a crush on Yamato, she gathers up enough courage to talk to him.

Although the characters are like normal people, some don't develop enough depth. A lot of the characters change and shape but others are neglected.

Rating: 7

Art

The art is above average. The colors are nice, and the movement is usually fluid. The characters can be somewhat disproportionate, with their busts being above average in Japan. However, they usually stay the same. The characters also change their clothes (which I love about this anime) and their uniforms suit them. I would say the art is very enjoyable and wouldn't annoy you, but it is nothing particularly special.

The hair colors of some characters are very unrealistic, which can set you off as the anime itself is very realistic. Some colors clash but it is usually not too noticeable.

Rating: 8

Sound

I fell in love with the openings and endings of this anime. The lyrics suited the story and characters and it never failed to make me want to watch more. I've heard both the Japanese and English versions, and both are extremely good. The lyrics are edited just a little in the English version, perhaps to make it sound less awkward so that Americans could understand it better. It pumped me up with energy and made me sing.

As I have only seen the English dub, I can only review their voice actresses.

None of the voices annoyed me. Yamato's sometimes failed to bring enough emotion, but I believed Suzuka's suited her very well. She brought the strict-and-filled-with-attitude Suzuka to the table and made her character her own. Honoka's voice was a little below average but it was bearable.

Yamato's drunk neighbors who often came to his room to drink had good voice actresses. They played out their drunk voices extremely well, and their voices suited their personalities and looks very well.

The background music was nothing special, just your typical music. It suited the situations but it didn't stand out. In that sense, I'd say it did its job.

Rating: 7

Presentation

In the end, Suzuka became one of my all-time favorites. Whether it is because I enjoy romance dramas too much for my own good, or because the anime was just great by itself, I just loved it anyway. The humor was there when you needed a breather moment, and the drama never became so horrible that you had to turn the TV off. It was realistic and it made me feel like I was watching classmates at school fall in love.

In the beginning, the anime starts off and shows its true intentions, however it doesn't shove them at you. It lures you in then gradually shows you what it plans to do. I would recommend this anime to any fan of shoujo.

Rating: 9

Final Verdict

7.83 (good)

Reviewed by ChiekoKawabe, 19wk 4d ago

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