Anime Review: Tari Tari

rating: 4.5

This will be the first Anime review (spoiler free) undertaken here at WhatCulture, and what better way to start than with a gem of a show: Tari Tari

Simplicity done well

If there is one phrase that would aptly describe Tari Tari, it would be the above phrase. Tari Tari is one of 2012's summer anime shows that has ended recently. Its genre is predominantly slice-of-life, with a good helping of music, drama and comedy to spice things up. It uses the typical high school setting that most anime shows tend to portray nowadays, but it still manages to shine as one of the best shows this season and of this year. The strength of Tari Tari lies within its plot execution. It centers on five people who are brought together to start a second choir club at their school. Most of the characters are relatively strangers to each other, and the show portrays their interactions and development brilliantly over the course of the series. There's a lot more focus on the three female characters in the show, but the two main male characters still manage to make a decent account of themselves over the 13 episodes. The plot revolves around music and the choir club, but isn't limited to it. There are plenty of side dramas and issues that crop up over the course of the show. Some of these are run of the mill plots, but again, it's the execution of these plots and the characters themselves that are the highlight of the show. On a basic level, it's great to see characters that aren't one-dimensional or defined by a singular personality trope. The various interactions the characters have both within the main cast and outside of it portray a sense being realistic 'humans', something that many anime shows forgo in favour of fanservice. The stand out character in this show is Sakai Wakana. Her development over the course of the show is outstanding to witness. Her growth as a character is honest and realistic and most importantly, done excellently. The other characters in the show: Okita Sawa, Miyamoto Konatsu, Tanaka Taichi and Wien - all provide a good account of themselves too. For the most part, they support each other brilliantly throughout the show. The show itself doesn't ever focus solely on one character through a particular arc, and as such, episodes always have a sense that plenty is happening and going on both in the foreground and background. The side characters of the show also deserve special mention. In a short series covering 13 episodes, the amount of depth shown through the side characters rival that of the main cast. Most of them are family members of the main cast, and it's refreshing to see family members and adults in general portrayed in a good manner rather than simply being placeholders. All of these positive aspects are seen during various moments throughout the show. Whether the plot is dealing with drama, comedy or just focusing on the music aspect, great characters bring those moments to life really well. It's not perfect, as some comedy moments or dramatic moments don't come off great, but even these moments are passable and don't take away from the various moments of brilliance. You might also need to watch a couple of episodes before being convinced of the show, but keep to it and the show will reward you for your time. From an animation perspective, the show does provide decent visuals both for the characters and the background scenery. It may not be to the liking of some, but it's not terrible by any stretch. It doesn't push any boundaries and isn't the best visuals on the medium, but it is good. The directing of the show is also very good. The visuals never become the focal point of the series, as it relies purely on the characters and plots. Sometimes, animation studios like to showcase their skills by providing unnecessary visuals that focus on characters being 'moe' or overly cute. These studios tend to have unnecessary character fidgeting and poses to showcase the visuals rather than anything else. Such visuals can take away from the show, regardless of animation quality. This isn't the case in Tari Tari. On the sound front, the music featured in the show is very good. From the opening and ending themes to any of the choir pieces that are sung, they all fit the show nicely. Special mention should be given to the choir pieces, as some might be put off and regard the songs as cheesy at first, but as the show grows and the characters grow, the weight of the lyrics really hit home. The voice acting is really good too. Characters portray emotions and personalities well through their voices, and there aren't many instances where it feels lacking. The main cast has an especially decent array of vocal talent considering the work they put into the choir songs too. The show packs a lot of content into its 13 episodes and re-watchability is definitely high as you might very well have miss out on subtle hints and clues or gain a better understand of certain character behaviours in the early parts of the story. There aren't any heavy action sequences here nor are there any heavy mysteries to solve. It's a slice-of-life show that does what it sets out to do very, very well. If there is a downside, the official subtitles at times don't do the best job at explaining situations within the show. Final thoughts: This is a definite must-see show for any slice-of-life genre fan or music fan. For those that aren't particular fans or know much of the genre, then Tari Tari is a still a great show to watch as an introduction and as a glimpse into what the best of the genre can offer. For those new to anime, this show definitely has the chance of drawing you in given how relatable it is. Tari Tari is available to stream through Crunchyroll