Review of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya exceeded my expectations, in regards to what I normally expect from a KyoAni series; BUT, conversely, it didn’t achieve the grandeur that it could have had with its unique story. The characters are fun, but aren’t explored enough. The humor relies too heavily on humiliating the shy, emotionally fragile girl from the future (Mikuru)―therefore, the comedy doesn’t really have a leg to stand on. So, ultimately, the intrigue of realities being formed around one person’s whims is the only thing that really carries the focal facination in this series. • The first season of Haruhi does really well with blending supernatural elementsinto the burgeoning relationship between Haruhi and Kyon; it actually has a few legitimately touching moments! The second season, on the other hand, is a complete blunder and should have never been made. I’ll go into that more later in this reviewー☆

•So, other than the main character, Kyon―every other character is a strange singularity that transmutes space-time for one reason or another. Despite that being the case, Haruhi is the only real shared motivation among this diverse cast of characters and she has no idea that supernatural elements actually being exist (other than being obsessed with speculation, like wondering about UFOs, Bigfoot, aliens)… even though those things are right in front of her and she has unknowingly willed them into existence! That is an incredibly interesting concept for a story!

•So, what does KyoAni end up doing with such a fascinating plot? Bunny-girl outfits, cosplay, more bunny-girl outfits, and a school festival. Why would nine episodes out of fourteen in the second season revolve around something so banal? I’m guessing it had something to do with the degenerative otaku fanbase that didn’t care about the science fiction aspect as much as seeing cute girls in sexy outfits… doing random things for a high school film submission that no one really cares about…

•I’ve seen many people complain about the Endless Eight arc, which is eight entire episodes dedicated to a summer time-loop, but I didn’t mind that as much. While it could have been shorter, it had a lot of good character development, especially with Yuki Nagato. Before that arc, Yuki had only had a couple of good moments that were only a few minutes long, at most. Personally, going more into depth about what I think about Yuki’s characterーshe’s basically a Rei Ayanami copy-paste that’s too “kuu” and not enough “dere,” but the most likable out of the main female cast; Haruhi’s really likable too, but she comes off as very obnoxious in the second season. Last thoughts on Endless Eight: I think the main reason that this arc was so long was because resetting time with differing outcomes means each reset is an opurtunity to draw each female characters in a plethora of swimsuits. And who doesn’t want to see their favorite waifu in every type of bikini or one-piece imaginable?

•The most irritating part about the yawn-inducing festival arc is that it’s basically like any other school-centric anime imaginable. I was initially drawn into the world of Haruhi Suzumiya because it had an esper, alien android, and a girl who was sent from the future to stop a calamitous possibility from happening, brought upon by Haruhi’s teenage whims! This isn’t To Heart, where there’s a random android for no particular reason―these characters are brought into Haruhi’s existence for her amusement. I feel like something so significant to the story should be fleshed out with more than just literal representations of the flesh (too many scenes with characters in sexy bunny outfits... for no reason)!

•Most of The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya is just Haruhi getting jealous of Mikuru, churlishly being abusive and publicly humiliating her ―I don’t know about you, but that isn’t something that I really wanted to see out of a lead heroine, though I admittedly laughed at the Mikuru-Beam scene. Despite all of my complaints, not ALL of it is terrible; the second to last episode is an homage to Space Battleship Yamato and Yuki has a dope AF talking-cat that has a small cameo during this arduous arc; sometimes the characters with the least amount of lines are the best, like Kyon’s adorable imouto!

•I desperately wanted to see more adventures like the murder-mystery arc or when Haruhi transports Kyon to an alternate dimensionーwhere a creature resembling an angel (from Neon Genesis Evangelion) wreaks havoc and destroys their high school while Kyon confesses to having a ponytail fetish, or that time when the class president turns out being an android that goes psycho, having no empathy for the human race (as opposed to Yuki, who seems to feel compassion despite also being a humanoid). Stories like these initially drew me to this series―momentarily making me believe that KyoAni could do more than the typical “cute-girls-doing-cute-things” anime series. Kyoto Animation always has beautiful animation, a top-notch vocal cast, and decent music but what matters the most to me is what a studio can convey through the lens of a story and characters, not just with high production values. I rate Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu: Season 1 a 6/10 and Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu: Season 2 a 4/10.