Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun has one of the most beautiful artworks in the anime world. Well, the word "beautiful" is subjective, so I won't be going philosophical on this topic. Rather, it is the colours used in this anime that made me watch the series. The colour palette used in this anime is very unique and it constantly reminds me of fall.
(Picture Source: Peakpx thru' Google Image Search)I do remember reading somewhere that the author of this series loves to use little things to symbolise a hidden meaning in the stories. One theoritical example I can give is how Hanako is inspired from the Shinto Sun God, Amaterasu, and his twin Tsukasa as the Moon God, Tsukuyomi. The person who thought of this theory even went as far to analyse the colour palatte used when the focus of the characters were either Hanako or Tsukasa to support his theory.
Of course I am not going to charge straight into these things as they are just theories for us to indulge in. It was an interesting concept, but it also makes me wonder why the colour palatte for this series is so different from other anime. I mean, the animation isn't old and is quite modernized with the other modern anime, and those usually have a brighter colour palatte as compared to Jibaku Shounen.
(Picture Source: The Chuuni Corner thru' Google Image Search)Anime: Beyond the Boundary
(Picture Source: Reddit thru' Google Image Search)Anime: Noragami
(Picture Source: Anime Evo thru' Google Image Search)I'll admit, those pictures I chose to compare aren't really doing any justice, and it is generally hard to compare Jibaku Shounen with any other anime. Not because of its unique art style... If you have an eye for colour, and watch this series and compare it with other anime, I believe you will get what I mean.
Alright, enough of that. Let's move on to the story itself. The story is quite an enjoyable feast for me as compared to other anime where isekai and reincaranation is all the rage now. Jibaku Shounen came and gave a breath of fresh air, delving back to the old school of handling things one day at a time.
The story follows Nene, our daikon-senpai, who tried to enlist the spiritual help of Hanako-kun, the toilet bound spirit and one of the seven mysteries in the school. However, her attempts to get Hanako-kun's help in her endeavours ended her being "tied" to Hanako as repayment for rescuing her from a spirit that wanted to spirit her away. Ever since then, Nene works hard as Hanako's assistant to investigate the dangerous rumours of the school where it could lead to the demise of the students and teachers.
(Picture Source: AnimeShelter thru' Google Image Search)The story itself may seem simple enough but as we delve deeper into it, the entire plot started to change drastically. Things are not what it seems and the seemingly cozy anime that is simply about a school girl helping an apparition with after-school activities is no longer what the entire plot of this story is.
Who knows, the Tsukasa that we all know as the anatagonist may not necessarily be the antagonist?
(Picture Source: Lost in Anime thru' Google Image Search)Anyway, if you are planning to watch this series but aren't sure whether it's worth your time, I would recommend you to watch it. The series may start out slow at first because it seems to be focusing on the day-to-day resolving mysterious and possibly dangerous rumours. But the show would slowly start to develop into something a lot more interesting. Think of Season 1 as the introduction pack, the things that you need to know, before you go deeper into the story.