Horimiya Season Review

“There’s no distance between us. I’ve never been this close to a person before. There’s no boundary between us.”

I may have gone into Horimiya’s premiere with a sense of trepidation, but it proved to be my favorite premiere of the winter season, and I’m pleased to say that it remained my favorite throughout. In fact, of all the shows I wrote First Impressions reviews for this season, Horimiya is the only one that hasn’t gone down in its rating (I’m not counting So, I’m a Spider in that assessment as there are 12 more episodes to go). This is one of those shows that was so good that I was left feeling a little melancholic when it was over, as it pushed me towards introspection and reflection on past events in my own life. Horimiya is officially “My Favorite Show of the Winter Anime Season,” and the one to beat this year. Each week, Horimiya proved to be the show I was consistently looking forward to, and if I had fallen behind on any of the other titles I was following, I would use the incentive of watching the newest episode of Horimiya as a motivating factor to get myself caught up.

The show is named for our two primary leads, Hori Kyoko and Miyamura Izumi, but given that one of the key underlying themes is the nature of one’s interpersonal connections, it should come as no surprise that the cast list runs a bit longer than just those two. The cast includes members of Hori’s family, people from Hori and Miyamura’s class, the student council, and even former middle school classmates of Miyamura. The weird thing is, as large as the cast is, there is never a sense that someone is just a side character. Any one of these characters could suddenly be the focal point of an episode, and many of them are. No one in this show exists in an undeveloped state, and this is an essential factor when it comes to exploring two of the primary themes of the show. The first of those themes is the idea that everyone has an aspect of themselves that they wish to hide away. Insecurities are a major factor for many of the characters in this show, and there is something really rewarding about watching characters grapple with their own weakness and overcome it. This is something shonen action series have known for decades, but Horimiya employs this on an emotional level, and it can be spellbinding to witness. The other theme is that of regret, with many of the characters holding on to their past failures or weaknesses as they eat away at them. Understandably, these two aspects are closely linked, but their inclusion ensures that all of the characters exist with more than a simple surface-level characterization.

I could spend the rest of this review just rambling about the cast of characters, and trust me, it is tempting. Kono Sakura is one of my favorite characters in the show, and I think I could shed a thousand words on her alone. However, Horimiya is also an exceptional comedy, and I suppose that deserves to be discussed as well. It may not have the gut-busting moments of last year’s My Next Life as a Villainess, but the quirky situational comedy was usually good for a couple laughs an episode. The moment from the premiere where Miyamura runs away from one of his classmates shouting, “It’s egg time!” will probably stick in my memory for a while. I suppose if I were to try and pin down a particular flaw with the show, it would be that some of the jokes about Hori having a masochistic streak don’t always land. Even then, the key problem seems to be that Hori pushes Miyamura to play at being abusive in public which, understandably, gives some of their more casual acquaintances the wrong impression.

The production is handled by CloverWorks, and while it may not be as polished or have as much visual flair as this season’s Wonder Egg Priority, they still brought their A-game. A lesser production may have phoned it in, assuming that a slice-of-life dramedy could stand on its own merits without any visual flourishes, and I’m confident that Horimiya could. That being said, I’m glad that CloverWorks didn’t skimp on the quality. The OP might be my second favorite opening of the season after Jujutsu Kaisen’s second OP, and I honestly never skipped that ED. That’s a rarity for me, but the visuals and music were perfect and I absolutely adored it through and through. It was the perfect way to cap off each episode.

Before I wrap up, a few Notes and Nitpicks:

• I forgot about my “Seasonal Anime Awards” gimmick for a couple of reviews there. I like the concept of that gimmick, not as any official kind of award, but as a method of refining down to a short phrase the aspects of a series that ultimately cause it to work or fall apart.
• In my opinion, Kono’s character arc represents everything that was wonderful about the show. Without going into spoilers, I found myself in a situation where I was rooting for two characters who had opposing interests, and ultimately was overjoyed even though nothing turned out the way I’d hoped.
• The problem with writing this many end-of-season anime reviews is that it’s really difficult to get moving on the next season’s first impressions reviews. Wow. This is the 8th season wrap up review I’ve done for the winter season. Dead’s taking the SK8 review, so I don’t need to bother with that. I liked it, but I didn’t think it was anything special. I tend to like my sports series more grounded, though.