Review of Hyouka

At first, I wanted to give Hyouka a try, thinking it would contain romance of any sort. I also came for Chitanda Eru. However, after watching the show for quite some time, I was on the edge of being disappointed. I never expected Hyouka to be this mystery-heavy. To be honest, it was not exactly what I'd been looking for in a show. If I knew from the start that Hyouka will turn out to be like this, I would never even bother to watch it in the first place. All that aside, I do think that the problems I have with Hyouka aren't exactly thecase for everyone. I'd have to admit that the story of Hyouka is very well-written. Judging from the first few episodes, the mysteries presented were lively and humorous. However, as the episode progresses, the story gets more complex and deeper by a large margin, or even dark at some point. It was seriously intense to watch, but it has meaningful features that left me astonished.

Due to this approach to the story, sometimes Hyouka reminds me of the infamous Oregairu. Both are the type of shows in which I spent more time thinking about the story than actually watching the show itself. Not to mention, both also revolve around the main character with similar natures.

I think the part where Hyouka really excels is within the animation. Seriously though, I would expect nothing less from Kyoto Animation. For an anime that's been out for almost a decade, the animation was really magnificent and beautiful. I'd go as far as to say that it's on par with recent shows nowadays, if not better. The art style is no slouch either, especially if we count what Kyoto Animation did to each of the characters' eyes.

I heard that the director of the show along with the other staff has died in the fire accident. May they rest in peace. We are greatly honored to be able to witness one of your biggest creations, Hyouka.

All in all, I genuinely think that Hyouka is overall a great show. The reason I'm not giving it a higher score is that it didn't turn out to be what I expected at first. However, with that being said, if you already know what Hyouka has to offer beforehand, you will surely enjoy watching it way more than I do.