“Nyanpasu!” - Renge Miyauchi
From the very beginning, Non Non Biyori sought to set the mood and turn our attention to the blissful surroundings of our main characters. Displaying off a lush countryside of vegetation, scarce yet simple housing, and an easygoing soundtrack, it was building the tone to be both carefree and lighthearted. This anime had so many great elements to make it one of the best Slice of Lifes I’ve seen, but it was the background and environments that tied it all together for me. With one of the most adorable character casts I’ve seen in a while, some of the most beautiful background animation, and hilarious moments that make you smile every episode, this is what makes Non Non Biyori such an enjoyable journey!Art and Animation: 9.3/10
As I had mentioned before, this anime did so well in presenting us with a wonderful environment that we could experience alongside the characters. With the vivid spring colors and lush vegetation, it was refreshing to just take in the scenery and appreciate what the Japanese countryside looked like. From the forest with the sunlight filtering down to the forest floor, to the riverbanks teeming with crystal-clear waters, and the open beaches with few people to disturb you, it was such a relaxing anime to watch. The thought, attention, and consideration put into the backgrounds and setting alone made this anime one of my favorite SoLs to date. This was just the beginning though, because our cast of characters define the very essence of cuteness! The designs of the characters had fit their personalities very well, and the facial expressions had properly expressed the required emotions at the time. This added to the overall immersion and helped to add more character to our lovely cast. When it came to the animation of the characters themselves, there weren’t any huge mistakes to be discussed. The animation was very fluid and consistent the whole way through without any genuine problems at all. This area of scoring was truly a strong suit for Non Non Biyori.Storyline and Character Development: 8.7/10
As with most anime in the Slice of Life genre, there isn’t always a clear cut storyline being followed. Most of the time, it generally focuses on character development and interactions as a way to engage the viewers and keep them invested. With Non Non Biyori though, there isn’t any character development or storyline. Even events in the storyline that could’ve been used as drama aren’t really stirred up. For example, our young girl Hotaru has just moved into the Japanese countryside after being raised in the bustling city of Tokyo. Not only that, but she doesn’t even know anyone in this unfamiliar and isolated environment. This could’ve EASILY turned into a bit of a coming-of-age drama arc where she tries to adapt herself to a new and unfamiliar environment for the first time. But that's not the direction that the author wanted Non Non Biyori to take. Rather, Hotaru quite easily made friends and accepted her situation by making the best of it. This truly shows that this anime wanted to present us with an experience that was full of nothing but enjoyable moments for our cute cast of girls. The things they did weren’t really special in themselves, but just the experience alone was fun to watch as they learned new things together. Their adorable reactions of discovery, easygoing chemistry, and contagious humor was more than enough to make up for a lack of storyline or character development. Renge was by far my favorite character because of how fun and hilarious her personality was. It appeared like she was always the one behind most of the humor in this anime, and I appreciated every second of her screen time. Both her matter-of-fact wits and facial expressions made me smile every time! That amount of cuteness should be downright illegal.Soundtrack and Audio: 9.3/10
The soundtrack is one piece of the anime that I wish I could’ve seen a bit more of. Every time the soundtrack was introduced, it just added even more to the relaxing tone of the environment. Even from the very start, they made it a point to set the mood with music that would give a sense of an easy-going community and lifestyle. Then add a talented vocal cast to the mix? Oh boy, you bet this anime is gonna be a fun one. As comes as no surprise, the vocal cast did such an amazing job of making their characters their own. Their emotions were accurately expressed through their words with such a natural feel. It was such a relief to not worry about the quality of the vocal cast or lookout for that one annoying character I couldn’t stand listening to!Concluding Thoughts!What can I say? This anime was as relaxing and lighthearted as you could get with a Slice of Life anime. By not centering on a storyline or even having some type of character development, this anime could’ve easily failed and become a mindless story of a group of girls in the countryside with nothing better to do other than goof around. But with the amazing personalities of the characters, the chemistry they all shared, and the humor they enjoyed together, there wasn’t a single dull moment to be seen in a single episode. Then add gorgeous scenery and a feels good soundtrack? You get one of the best and most enjoyable Slice of Life experiences to date. For not only is it enjoyable to me, but by also being very high quality from a technical standpoint, Non Non Biyori earns its score of 9.1/10. Why the high score? Well, what better way than to see for yourself why many have fallen in love with this too-cute-to-handle anime in the beautiful Japanese countryside!A Special thanks to my Editor: @ZedlinStreaming Platform: Crunchyroll
