Review of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
"There's something wrong with people who seek reality in fiction." --Kyon The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is a landmark in anime history, notable for spawning dozens of imitators throughout the late 2000s after the series exploded in popularity. Its off-the-wall antics, garbled broadcast order, and memorable characters made it an icon of the anime world in 2006, and to this day its influence is still felt in the medium. So does it stand up as a great anime in its own right ten years later? After conducting my own rewatch, I'm inclined to say yes. The characters are still as lovable and interesting now as they were backthen. The scenes that cracked me up as a teenager ten years ago still get a chuckle out of me today as a grown man. The passage of time and refinement of the medium have not diminished the glory of Haruhi.
Storywise, the show isn't really all that deep. It's a regular slice-of-life set in high school, although with a supernatural twist. Haruhi Suzumiya is basically a reality-warping deity who is not and cannot be allowed to be aware of her powers. She's not interested in anything regular schoolkids do, so she creates a club to look for every sci-fi cliche in the book: aliens, time travelers, and espers. And she's lucky enough to have one of each plop into her lap, unbeknownst to her, of course. Humor ensues, generally led by the deadpan observations of the resident normie, Kyon, and his mildly antagonistic relationship with the mercurial Miss Suzumiya.
Haruhi herself is a character that has to be seen to be believed. She's bossy. She's arrogant. She has very few moral standards. What she wants, she gets, or she raises hell. You might think that such a character would be thoroughly unbearable to watch, but she manages to be absolutely adorable despite these traits. She's the engine that gets the events of the series going, and you know there's not likely to be a dull moment when she's around. I think to this day she's easily one of the most charismatic personages in anime history.
The rest of Haruhi's SOS brigade are a bit tropey: Yuki Nagato is a "silent beauty" as Haruhi calls her. Mikuru Asahina is rather lackwitted but possesses limitless moe power, bringing Kyon and the viewer to their knees with her smile and sincerity. Koizumi Itsuki is a perpetual Stepford smiler who is one of the more interesting characters. Although he gives out a ton of exposition throughout the show, he always seems like he knows more than he lets on.
This first season plays out like a collection of short stories about this ragtag group of supernatural entities, culminating in a couple emotional climaxes that put an exclamation point on the events. While you may believe you've seen a lot of these same ideas in play before, Melancholy was the prototype that originated the scores of clones that followed it. K-On! practically owes its entire existence to a single episode of this show.
The art for this is easily recognizable as the work of Kyoto Animation, and while some of their more recent efforts might have outdone Haruhi, they have by no means diminished its quality.
The sound design is also very well done. I've watched both subbed and dubbed versions, and am more than willing to stand up and say that the English localization is just as good as the series' mother tongue. The cavalcade of talent (Crispin Freeman, Wendee Lee, Johnny Yong Bosch, Stephanie Sheh, and Kari Wahlgren just to name a few!) put together tremendous performances that have won awards for their quality. If dubs aren't your thing, this might just be the exception. The music is all memorable, and I still get hyped at the OP. The ED, "Hare Hare Yukai", doesn't even need to be explained. The dance itself has transcended anime and become a pop culture icon.
Melancholy is not without flaws. Its pacing is a bit inconsistent, and some of the gags are definitely cringey, or done to death over 14 brisk episodes. The series has lost some of its "groundbreaking" cred because of the legions of wannabes that now exist.
Above all, I can say that this is one of those shows that will always be a favorite of mine. That said, I can't really objectively review this because my memories of watching it ten years ago are still so vivid. But putting aside my personal feelings, I still think that Haruhi has withstood the test of time, and will continue to do so for many years to come. I wouldn't call it a must-watch, but it's worth checking out if you've never seen it before.
Until next time, just do what the girl says.