Review of Beautiful Bones -Sakurako's Investigation-

The first impression of Sakurako-san is that it gives off the feeling of a show that is purely focused on the mystery genre. In that respect, it reminds many people of how Hyouka was, minus the school life part of it. And yet, comparing Sakurako-san to Hyouka doesn't really do either of the shows justice. Hyouka integrates daily life into its mystery aspects, while one of the main plot points for Sakurako-san is the separation between everyday life and the mystery of the dead. Story: 9/10 The episodic format of Sakurako-san does throw some people off a bit. The uneven pacing between each of the episodes isinfluenced by the fact that each episode focuses on a different case and a different body, with the exception of the three two-episode cases. Some of the cases are chilling, incorporating aspects of the thriller genre in the fairly linear formula of "character introduction, present problem, gather evidence, formulate conclusion," such as the case of The Cursed Man. Some of the cases are drama-filled, detailing the extreme measures that some people are willing to go to for a cause, whether it be life or love, exploring the delicate psyche that is molded and broken in certain people, such as the case of The Butterfly Vanished in November. And then again, some of the cases are genuinely heartfelt and evokes the emotion of sadness and perhaps even nostalgia, as the show tries to connect with its viewers deeper than a superficial and tension-filled setting, and tries to delve deeper into the viewers' psyche by bringing up the true mortality of life and how death comes with the passage of time, no matter the memories or emotions that may be associated with it. An example of this type would be Grandmother's Pudding. And I totally agree that, even though the show is episodic in nature, the discrepancies in pacing does hinder the show's progression, such as the transition of a thrilling episode 5 to an episode 6 that just mostly focuses on character development and focus. While the episodes themselves are brilliantly written and manages to evoke the exact emotions and tension that the director probably wanted, the discrepancies in pacing prevents this category from being a solid 10.

Art: 8/10
Honestly, Sakurako-san suffered no graphical or animation hindrances from what I could tell. Maybe that's because I don't have the sharpest eyes for every little detail within a single scene, but I truly believe that the backgrounds and the character designs are extremely competent. I love it when Sakurako's eyes widen or narrow to express her mostly-logical mind's slight emotional outbursts, or how Ume's (the housekeeper) seems so kindly and warm and animated with all of that grandmother-like goodness. Nothing extraordinary done by studio TROYCA with their first time as a lead animation studio, but the visuals were solid nonetheless.

Sound: 8/10
If there was background music to this show, it must've been quite minimalistic and non-intrusive since I didn't notice much music within the episodes or during dialogue to really perk my interest. That being said, what background sounds there were, such as a busy cafe or cars going by on a snowy street, sounded well-done and fitting for their roles. The voice actors were quite good, and I especially liked Shizuka Itou's voice for Sakurako, the way her voice drifts up and down to reflect her analyzing personality, and yet having certain raw emotional outbursts at bringing up truly traumatic happenings. As with most animes, an emphasis was placed on the opening theme rather than the closing, and TRUE does a wonderful little pop ballad with electronic influences for "Dear answer." TECHNOBOYS was a little forgettable with the ending, however, and the fact that some episodes went over the ending theme to continue the story didn't help the song to brand itself into my memory either.

Character: 7/10
If this was a normal show with a connected plotline, this score would definitely be lower. However, Sakurako-san runs into the trouble of having already developed characters placed into a world where the norm prevails, and the only anomalies happen to be the dead. This does not prevent Sakurako-san from filling its episodes with interesting and inventive characters, however, such as the cute and caring Yuriko Kougami to the almost nihilistic Itsuki Isokazi. It is unfortunate that Hanabusa, the "main" antagonist, wasn't explored almost at all, and was merely defined by the actions of his pawns throughout the episodes. It is exciting, however, to see how a person's psyche can bend and break under certain conditions, such as how Minami was twisted and turned by a contorted form of love, and how Shoutarou finally realizes how his grandmother still cared for him during his last days, giving him a new understanding of what is meant in her actions and her love. Through the episodes, however, the main characters, Sakurako and Shoutarou, fall flat, as Sakurako is continuously haunted by her little brother and maintains an almost sociopathic attitude towards life, while Shoutarou wanders around like a lost dog, behaving in mostly normal ways except for that fact that his actions give off a sense of naive love towards Sakurako. Some aspects of the characters are confusing, like how Hitoe's mind finally broke and how does Shoutarou actually feels towards his archetypal "older sister." Nevertheless, the characters are still well done, even with flaws, firmly being granted a 7.

Overall: 7/10
While I have stated that character development isn't as huge an issue in episodic shows, the combination of slightly flat protagonists and an uneven pacing between even episodic plot structures leaves a man (or woman) wanting more out of this show. On top of that, the show leaves off on a cliffhanger, which is an absolutely horrible note in my book if the show has not been greenlit for a second season. That means that anime watchers may never truly know the fate of Hanabusa and whether this story is meant to be fatalistic, or optimistic in its views on death, life, and mortality itself.

"Read the manga!" "Read the light novel!" You'll be reading the bottom of my foot after I kick you out of sheer annoyance.