FIRST EPISODE:
The series starts pretty strong, with it establishing the focus characters as well as the intrigue in a clever and cohesive way. The conflict in the episode wasn’t so serious that it was out of place for a first episode but was a good enough catalyst to allow for the show to present scenes that would not only set up the character dynamic for the two focus characters but also the intrigue for the audience. I liked that it told the audience directly, but not so direct that it was a shove in our faces. This show seems like it shows potential and I will be looking forward to what it will show.

REVIEW:
Turns out this anime is pretty run of the mill. Though it started strong with its subtle character development and various interactions that hint at a bigger picture. Whether the anime had been hard-pressed by its smaller 12 episodes or the development cycle was a bit rushed, this anime felt a bit rushed and underdeveloped in terms of both character development and in the dynamics between the various characters. There is a total of 5 characters, 2 of which are the main ones. I feel as though introducing all of them at once in the adaptation was a stupid decision on behalf of IG Production Studio since the 12 episodes weren’t nearly enough to even develop the 2 main characters let alone all 5. What remains is 3 characters I really don’t have a connection with, with the later interactions suggesting that they know each other so well that they can just act very very casually around each other. I know that leadership camp was supposed to be the catalyst for the characters to start liking each other and bond to form their main group, but it was severely underwhelming of a catalyst and as a result the group dynamic just appears rather than being developed over time. It would have been a better decision to focus on the two main characters for the anime adaptation, though judging by the ending of this anime, it was anticipating a season 2 to no avail. Anyways, in terms of the plot it’s a really typical shoujo scenario: the mysterious guy, the energetic and pushy girl, the subplot love story and drama on the side (though this is not developed at all really). Despite these seemingly typical and generic features, I felt as though this anime could have done a lot more with its characters than it did, Futaba in particular suffered the most from this. Initially, she had interesting motivations and was developed throughout the first few episodes making her quite a good character to follow. After establishing herself in the group however, her personality quickly changed. I know that was a part of the series itself, but in itself it just made the show very sluggish following in the mind of this generic kind of school girl that appeals to every kind of shoujo fan. As a character, she does have some moments where she shines but they are few and far between. On the other hand, Kou is initially really kind of a douche, which does follow the typical shoujo formula. Douchebag + mysterious = nut ofc. Anyways, during the last two episodes is where the show itself starts to get interesting, because we as an audience get to experience the pain felt by Kou himself as we watch his mother slowly die in front of his eyes. This explains his personality throughout the series and we are shown his character arc. This in itself is probably the best part of the anime itself, but it is also representative of one of its biggest downfalls.
With shoujo anime in particular, I think that the most important thing is balance. Balancing the two main protagonists so that the audience has a chance to bond with each character and appreciate their relationship as well as their motivations behind certain actions. From this, the side characters must also be developed, so that the show is padded with some other things to care about as well and to sometimes be the catalyst for the main characters to interact. Ao Haru Ride, I think, does a bad job of balancing all aspects of what I just mentioned. Futaba is developed in the first half, Kou is developed in the second. Although chronologically this is correct since its in the persecptive of Futaba, it just makes it imbalanced in terms of development. We as an audience are given very little reason to want to cheer for the couple to develop romantically. The pace just becomes too slow with that stupid Yuuri loli coming into the mix and adding in useless filler drama. I would have much rather liked it if the anime were to focus on the main couple themselves. Whilst watching in fact, I realised that by the end of the series Kou was a much more interesting character to me, with his motivations and backstory helping to develop his character beyond the mysterious asshole he was in the majority of the series. Futaba receives no such development, instead she is given a personality to appeal to the lowest common denominator and just comes off as your typical shoujo protagonist. Though it is a part of her character arc to change in such a way, they just do nothing with this change and as a result it feels a bit wasted. Anyways, just a lack of development throughout gave me no motivation to care about the characters for most of the series, until the last two episodes where the character development is probably at its strongest. Furthermore, I feel like when the characters point out the most obvious connections the anime is treating the audience like they’re idiots. They make it really clear when things link when it can just easily be seen regardless, so I really disliked that it had to be so on the head with those revelations.
Now, for the art. I think that the art is reminiscent of Bokura ga Ita (a better shoujo) which was charming in its own right, but with Ao Haru Ride it seemed a bit more generic when compared to Bokura ga Ita. It was cute at times, but really ugly at others. I think that it’s fine. What I liked in particular though were the flashbacks. Production IG could have easily just added a filter and changed the colour pallet a little, but with the flashbacks in Ao Haru Ride, using watercolour and a lighter colour pallet is really enjoyable to look at and I appreciate it.
The music was servicable, just your normal piano music. Worse than Kimi ni Todoke, but not too far behind. Nothing special about it really.
Overall, this anime would have been better with Kou as the MC since Futaba is so ughhh by the end of the series. Though they do link the characters with their backstories and makes it sort of heartwarming by the end of it, just the whole middle-section of the anime makes it very hard to give this anime more than a 6. The underdeveloped side characters in combination with weak motivations of the main characters make this kind of a sluggish watch but at the same time it does kind of redeem itself slightly by the end. I think that Production IG was relying too much on a season 2 for this anime and maybe that’s why it just felt both rushed and incomplete.