On snowy days like today, I always have the urge to watch Kanon. Unfortunately, my DVDs are in a box in a warehouse somewhere, so it’ll have to wait for another day.
Seasons are a big deal in Japan, so it should come as no surprise that they play an important role in the stories and settings of our favorite anime series. To this day, I find it difficult to watch certain shows “out of season”… Kanon is meant for Winter, Uta Kata for Summer, Ai Yori Aoshi for Spring… it doesn’t feel “right” to watch these shows any other time of year. Of course, some studios and networks in Japan take extra care to match new shows to their proper season, but with only so many time slots to go around, it’s not uncommon to find a “Natsuyasumi” show premiering in January, entrance ceremonies and cherry blossoms in October, or Christmas in July. It may seem weird, but such temporal disconnects have always bugged me.
One night in Tokyo, walking home from a late Summer baseball game, a Japanese friend asked me what I thought of the cacophony of crickets and cicadas, buzzing and chirping endlessly in the trees and bushes all around. “It’s beautiful,” I replied, much to her surprise.
“The sound means Autumn is almost here,” she said, and after a brief pause, remarked, “you must have a Japanese heart.”
Perhaps so.
I agree. I find all the cicadas and crickets a beautiful sound. I live here in the southern US and I crave to hear the cicadas once again.
So did that conversation lead to anywhere? C’mon Jeff, don’t tease us like that. ;)
Ha ha ha… no.
I guess you had to be there. Not all of nature’s aural cues are as poetic. Example, growing up in the city of Bombay, the croaking of frogs was the most obvious indicator of the beginnings of the monsoon season. Not as romantic, eh?
I have lived my whole life in concrete city so i haven’t see much those things, cold climate of Finland doesn’t provide much either. But it always funny to watch when squirrels collect food before winter.
Wow, Kanon has beautiful illustration. As i can tell by the picture. I definately agree with you on the fact that some anime series can only be watched in a certain time. For me…living in Canada, seasons do play a big part on how we feel each and everyday. The weather plays a big toll on me, thats forsure. Its funny how watching certain anime you can relate to some situations and yet some get totally exhaggerated which is comical. I love anime.
Feeling that way isn’t unique to the Japanese. I live in Southern California, where the year is broken up mostly into days when you need to wear a wetsuit and days you don’t, and I’ve always felt the minute change in season anyway.