I never brought this up in prior reviews but time tends
to really fly in K-On. Over the span of
8 episodes we ran through one years time, bringing things back full circle in
more ways than one. It’s kind of jarring
but you tend to ignore things like that when youre in good company. And truly there has been no better company to
be around than the Light Music Club.
Despite one minor mishandling, the final episodes of K-ON’s first season
ended on a note true to form and makes me long for the days when I can actually
watch Season Two.
I don’t think anyone ever doubted Yui would make it to
the school festival. That said, it still
left the girls to seriously think about doing a big musical number without
her. Thankfully, Azusa’s character
growth last week wasn’t just brushed under the table. The young freshman maintained unshakeable
faith in Yui, even if Mio was rightfully considering a Plan B. Even Ui stepped up to try and fill in for her
sister, her going for disguising herself as Yui was just icing on the
cake. I know Azusa will have a major
role to play in the Light Music Clubs’ future after the core quartet
graduates. But now I wonder if Ui, who’s
just as much if not more a natural as her sister, will become part of After
School Tea Time Generation 2 as well.
Then came the big show and it turned out to be better
than the first. First off, we got to
hear Ball Tip Pen, a song that I think is my absolute favorite of the
season. As Yui rushed to retrieve her
guitar (cutely named “Guita”) she reflected on a similar run she made to school
in the first episode and wished she could tell her past self just how much fun
she was going to have in high school. I
feel similarly, that Ball Tip Pen is far more feel good than Fuwa Fuwa Time and
it instills a powerful “everythings going to be ok” feeling in my heart, it’s
beautiful. Plus, Yamanaka got to fill in
during Yui’s brief absence so we got to see two generations of Light Music Club
members (I guess three if you count Azusa as a separate age group) on stage
together. And then came the next
performance of Fuwa Fuwa Time with Yui and Mio at the lead. Jeez could you get any more pumped up? Actually yes you could as Mugi began an
encore that the group all jumped in on.
Yeah, Episode 12 was billed as the “Final Episode” and if that were the
case, it was a damn good finale and every bit as K-ON as K-ON has been all
season long.
However, there were two bonus episodes that followed
this, focusing on the post festival antics of the girls. The Winter Days episode moved slower than
most in the part and felt pretty reflective.
It’s not a kind of pacing I’d associate with K-ON but things did pick up
towards the end and there were some good character moments: Mugi trying a part
time job on her own and Ritsu misreading Mio’s lyrics as a “love letter” from
someone else. The absolute last episode
of the season involved the girls playing their first official show as a band
outside of school. It was good to see a
taste of the world beyond the classroom and that so many bands were ready to
welcome After School Tea Time with open arms.
Could they play more small club gigs in the future? I guess that’s for Season Two to answer. But seeing Yui, Mio, Ritsu, Mugi and Azusa
looking out at a beautiful New Years Day sunrise fills me with hope that things
can only get better for this quintet.
Plus they had the always reliable Nadoka, Ui and Yamanaka cheering them
on during their concert too (Yamanaka wearing a hot punk rocker look from her
old days too). The gangs in good hands.
Man, guess I should wrap up with final thoughts. I didn’t want the season to come to a close
for a second, even though I know there is a Season Two. K-ON is the textbook definition of a feel
good Anime filled with fun characters, kick ass music, gorgeous animation
(Kyoto Animation bringing the gold yet again) and a strong sense of pure
enjoyment. Yui said it best during the
bands second show, even though the Light Music Club doesn’t practice music so
much, there’s so much joy to be had just spending the day in the same room as
Yui, Mio, Ritsu, Mugi and Azusa. And in
the end, isn’t it about enjoying the journey regardless of the destination or
lack therof? Sure there was a small
misstep or two here and there but K-ON never became something radically
different than how it began: an Anime about finding a great group of friends
and having a great time…and every once in a while churn out some of the best
tunes in all of Anime this side of FLCL.
I really have to find Season Two now.
I’m really gonna miss hanging with these girls: Gullible Yui,
Unstoppable Ritsu, Beautiful Mio, Kind Mugi and Determined Azusa. Pat yourselves on the back girls, your first
show was a resounding success here at the Gundam Anime Corner.
K-ON! gets a 9.5/10.
And with that, we’re back to business as usual tomorrow
with a couple of special reviews to commemorate the 4th of July
holiday (coming a bit sooner cause July 4 comes right after Turn A Gundam gets
started and I don’t want to interrupt it).
Check back all week for our special coverage of The Matrix Franchise
with The Matrix, The Matrix Reloaded,
The Matrix Revolutions and The Animatrix.
Then, on June 30th, comes our special 4th of July
holiday review which ill keep secret until I post it. And then we finally, FINALLY have Turn A Gundam beginning next Monday (side
note, the special 4th of July Holiday review was going to be RWBY Vol.6
but im delaying that indefinitely for the time being for reasons). Summers only just getting started right here
at the Gundam Anime Corner. Hope youre
ready.
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