True Tears: A Closer Look
February 1, 2008 | Television | True Tears
The more I watch, the more I fall in love with True Tears.
Perhaps the most engaging thing about the show at this point is the tacit suggestion that there’s “more than meets the eye,” as far as Isurugi Noe’s obsession with collecting tears is concerned. Is there a supernatural element to this story? Or is it simply a red herring? I’m inclined to think it’s all metaphorical and that the story will remain grounded in reality until the very end, but there’s enough mystery in Noe’s words to leave me uncertain. The show continues to do a wonderful job maintaining that air of mystery.
And Noe is a fantastic character. I appreciate that she’s the central character among the female leads. As much as Shin’s attention is directed toward Hiromi, the story really does seem to revolve around Noe’s circumstances. That’s not something I expected going in, and I think it’s especially interesting given how Noe isn’t so much a romantic interest for Shin as she is his nutjob partner in crime. It saves the show from the sort of “one guy, one girl” tunnel vision so typical of high school romance anime.
There’s also something to be said for Nishimura Junji’s deft direction. His work in Simoun was far more deliberate; the operatic nature of the show demanded it. The direction in True Tears, however, is more abstract. Seemingly minor scenes and exchanges provide some of the greatest insight into the story and characters, and there’s surprise to be found in the smallest nooks and crannies of each episode. If you ask me, this is atypical for this sort of show. Most high school romance anime series have all the nuance of a sledgehammer upside the head.
I’ve previously touched on the impressive animation, of course, but I feel compelled to add that, watching True Tears alongside Clannad, I almost feel as if PA Works is on the verge of besting Kyoto Animation in certain ways. Both studios have mastered the art of expressive character animation, but the approach taken by PA Works in True Tears feels so much more “natural” to me. Whereas many of the small gestures and movements made by characters in Clannad appear carefully calculated and precise, those same gestures and movements in True Tears appear smoothly integrated into the show’s animation as a whole.
For example, in the fourth episode, there’s a brief sequence in which Miyokichi attempts to grab hold of Ai’s hand while she’s not looking, and her reaction as she pulls away in shock strikes me as surprisingly organic. They might as well have been two real live people on film. The show is full of moments like this, and it makes the more emotional scenes all the more gripping to watch. Every conversation between Shin and Hiromi, for example, is loaded with hidden body language you don’t see all that often outside of theatrical anime and a few particular television series.
Do you see the underlying message here? True Tears is really something special, and I think it would benefit anyone who passed on the show due to its supposedly generic premise to give it a closer look. It’s not your average anime series.
Oh, and on the topic of the show’s recently revealed release plans for North America, I’ll just say one thing: True Tears is a show I would happily buy on DVD, but not at Bandai Visual’s absurd prices.
If you really loved it, you’d buy R2s (at absurd prices). Trust me.
True Tears is for sure the best animated show this season :D………So many subtleties in hair movement etc. It’s really awesome! :)
I’d probably rank it #2 in storyline (topped only by Shigofumi…..which, despite being a “character of the day” kind of show is turning out to be very entertaining)
I don’t think there will be a supernatural……..There has been some talk in the anime blogosphere that the tears Noe will collect at the end of the series will be from the girl who gets her heart broken :P……i.e. the one Shin doesn’t pick……..
It’s a great show to look forward to every week :)
Pete, most of the R2s I own, I bought used. At reasonable prices.
Being a fan of something places me under no obligation to be ripped off, and I’m not going to support the Japanese price fixing cartel trying to muscle in on the North American market.
This is the only time I’d ever consider buying a Bandai Visual release. And I won’t. I refuse to support they’re absurd reasoning for their prices and they’re complete lack of understanding of the R1 anime market. I really want it on DVD too….
I understand the whole reverse importing thing, but really, save it for the Blu-Ray releases.
Your point about the naturalness of the movement deserves to be underlined. Watching Clannad yesterday gave me exactly that feeling of deliberateness you mention. Not that I’m complaining about that, but this is different. Where does this naturalness come from? It surely didn’t “spring fully formed from the head of Zeus,” there are actual individuals who made sure it happened this way, and they had previous works.
The subtlety of the script parallels the subtlety of the animation. I guess that means giving credit to Nishimura-san, the man in charge, especially7 since the staff in charge of each episde is q. But lead writer Okada Mari (who wrote many episodes of Simoun) deserves some credit, too, I suppose.
Sorry to appear to double post. I somehow published the comment before I was finished. That “q” is a finger-flail for “is quite varied.” I just checked the official site for an animation director, but none is credited. That makes Nishimura-san seem even more significant.
No problem, Hashihime. Next time I update my Wordpress build, I should probably install one of those comment editing plugins.
Anyway, as is the case with most TV series, it’s a team effort, but Nishimura-san is responsible for bringing that team together and keeping them working toward a particular vision. Still, credit where credit is due. The Okada Mari contribution is especially notable.
I have to say I’m not liking the characters so much; Shinichiro, Aiko and Hiromi seem to be making very bad judgement mistakes and I really don’t like that kind of characters. But we are only in episode 4, so this might be just temporary. I just hope they don’t pile the mistakes up.
I must note that this is a very personal opinion (redundant redundancy lol), since the show is very well done and I wouldn’t care about the decisions they make if they were not portrayed in the human way they are.
Noe is OK, but I have to know her better :P.
Thanks, Jeff. I now want to actually double post, since something else occurred to me. I noted earlier in the series that episode 2 had non-Japanese names credited not only for all the animation, but also as episode director and episode animation supervisor. The names were given in Chinese characters, but could have been either Chinese or Korean. Probably the latter. The same goes for the upcoming episode 5. Could it be that P.A.Works is tapping in to non-Japanese talent that is good enough to do KyoAni work, and cheap enough to be given the time to do it? And by getting every third episode done cheaply, they can afford to give the Japanese animators more time, too?
The anime really is the best for the season..
The story interests me and the characters are great too..(especially Noe and Hiromi)
For me, it’s quite different from other ‘high school romance’ animes..(in a good way)
The more I watch, the more I’m liking the show. Probably because I’m getting to know other characters more. Noe (”nutjob partner in crime” is right. She’s so fun) and Aiko had me at hello, but it’s taking me a while to be interested in Hiromi and Shinichiro, which probably isn’t a great thing. ^^;
Heard about the absurd prices of the DVD, and it’s truly sad to see that happening. This is one show more than worth enough to buy the DVD’s but certainly, the overwhelming pricing does put a damper to it unless you’re relatively rich. Looks like it seems they might be trying to prevent cross importing with that strategy though.
On your point that P.A. Works’ animation being more fluid than Kyoto Animation, I fully agree with that. With CLANNAD, I can still feel that it’s an animation, with true tears however…. the lines blur for me. I really get absorbed in to watching it. The subtlety of the gestures, movements are truly natural and life-like.
Coupled with the exemplary voice work of the cast, especially Kaori Nazuka, it truly makes true tears the most amazing piece of anime I’ve watched in recent times.
I am looking forward for Nishimura Junji’s direction with true tears. His work in Simoun was truly underrated and I really hope this show will increase his fame further.
I said earlier the website didn;t list an overall animation director. The on-screen credits sure do, however, and they list her first: Sekiguchi Kanami 関口可奈味. According to ANN, she was animation director of GITS Solid State, did key animation of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, was “drawing director” of FMA Shambhala, and animation supervisor of seven episodes of FMA the series. Perhaps she is the one to give most credit to?
P.A.Works has an excellent website, which includes a long interview with her, with pictures.
True Tears is one of those shows that even though it doesn’t really do anything new, what it does, it does really well. So while I love Clannad for its progressive approach, I love True Tears for pretty much the complete opposite reason. Two different shows; same devoted fanboy.
One thing that strikes me odd about the show is that with all the emphasis on subtlety, the endings of most of the episodes so far have been pretty abrupt. They’re not even really cliff-hangers, more like unsuccessful attempts at building drama right before cutting to the ED. I don’t think it’s really necessary, but it’s only a minor complaint.
When you saw Jun look “strangely” at Noe’s chin before buckling up her helmet, what was your reaction? What did you think it implied?
I wonder if, and how much, money they are saving with CG shots. Maybe this is what allows them to spend more time on the rest?
The CG is fine tho, and one of my favourite parts of the OP is the festival (or whatever) scene which is obviously CG.
But definitely agree on the differences between this and Clannad.
I’m not yet sure what to make of that scene, Laurie. I don’t want to jump to the, “OMG, he’s attracted to his sister,” conclusion just yet, not having more information and all. After all, the show hasn’t revealed a lot about Jun. For all we know, they’re not even related by blood.
Which sounds cliche, of course, but I could see it working. For now, though, I’m taking a wait and see approach.