16 reviews
»K-On!« is one of the most successful anime series ever made. To a distant observer this might seem strange, because the plot looks as empty as it gets. It's just about five girls hanging out together and playing in a school band called »After School Tea Time«. There is no drama to speak of and barely any tension. Still, »K-On!« is remarkable, exactly because it renounces any kind of dramatic structure. The depiction of everyday life is calm, sweet and surprisingly witty. (There are even some jokes about j-horror and slice of life anime.) »K-On!« is the perfect show to sit back and relax after a hard day of work.
But there's more to it than that. With Naoko Yamada (»A Silent Voice«), the anime has a director of great talent. Her portrayal of the young schoolgirls is insightful and lovely. It's more about character, less about plot. Sure, some people might call »K-on!« a mere excuse to show cute girls. But the series has a bigger point to make. It's actually a bittersweet tale of lost innocence. Yamada clearly knows that the friendship depicted in the story is not as firm as it seems. There's a longing nostalgia encasing »K-on!«, the thought of the adult that goes something like this: »Oh, these naive girls, their friendship won't last forever. But I sure whish it would. Hell, I wish my highschool years were like this!«
In the first season, Yamada totaly merges into the ideal world of the highschool student. In the second season, she unravels this illusion gently. The conclusion of this theme is very touching. If you want to watch a relaxing, entertaining and sensitive anime, you can't go wrong with »K-on!«. It's heartfelt and doesn't deserve the eye-rolls it sometimes gets.
But there's more to it than that. With Naoko Yamada (»A Silent Voice«), the anime has a director of great talent. Her portrayal of the young schoolgirls is insightful and lovely. It's more about character, less about plot. Sure, some people might call »K-on!« a mere excuse to show cute girls. But the series has a bigger point to make. It's actually a bittersweet tale of lost innocence. Yamada clearly knows that the friendship depicted in the story is not as firm as it seems. There's a longing nostalgia encasing »K-on!«, the thought of the adult that goes something like this: »Oh, these naive girls, their friendship won't last forever. But I sure whish it would. Hell, I wish my highschool years were like this!«
In the first season, Yamada totaly merges into the ideal world of the highschool student. In the second season, she unravels this illusion gently. The conclusion of this theme is very touching. If you want to watch a relaxing, entertaining and sensitive anime, you can't go wrong with »K-on!«. It's heartfelt and doesn't deserve the eye-rolls it sometimes gets.
- manisimmati
- Mar 6, 2018
- Permalink
K On! is about a bunch of girls joining the Keion (easy listening) music club, jam some music, have fun together, and have tea, together, in a cutesy cutesy way. If you are discouraged by this short summary, it is normal and that's sucks. But fear not, once you start watching, it will grows on you.
The characters (Yui, Mio, Ritsu, Tsumugi,...) are all freaking likable because they are all adorable, hilarious and cute. Also their friendship is also adorable to watch, at times, very hilarious. Their journey to conquer their weaknesses are also, very funny. Yep, even character weaknesses are funny to watch.
So, you maybe thinking 'It must be am audience entertainment bait like fan services in those anime with big boobs teenage girls and kawaii lolitas.' Nope. At times they show some passion about music and especially rock, which very based on teenagers reaction when they listen to their favourite genre. It feels very high schoolish. And I couldn't believe how magically it can achieve it, although it does not dwells very deep onto the subject, yeah cup cakes and tea.
Overall I gave it a 9 because I cannot make it a 9.5 and there's not enough music from a easy listening club. Other than that, it's a great anime about friendship, high school, and jamming music.
BTW, those equipment are expensive, especially that Les Paul Yui using. LES F*CKING PAUL, FOR A BEGINNER!!!!! Damn
The characters (Yui, Mio, Ritsu, Tsumugi,...) are all freaking likable because they are all adorable, hilarious and cute. Also their friendship is also adorable to watch, at times, very hilarious. Their journey to conquer their weaknesses are also, very funny. Yep, even character weaknesses are funny to watch.
So, you maybe thinking 'It must be am audience entertainment bait like fan services in those anime with big boobs teenage girls and kawaii lolitas.' Nope. At times they show some passion about music and especially rock, which very based on teenagers reaction when they listen to their favourite genre. It feels very high schoolish. And I couldn't believe how magically it can achieve it, although it does not dwells very deep onto the subject, yeah cup cakes and tea.
Overall I gave it a 9 because I cannot make it a 9.5 and there's not enough music from a easy listening club. Other than that, it's a great anime about friendship, high school, and jamming music.
BTW, those equipment are expensive, especially that Les Paul Yui using. LES F*CKING PAUL, FOR A BEGINNER!!!!! Damn
I really thought this anime was really well done and the music was very uplifting. I like the fact that we see the 4 girls being more themshelves then based on how they look. I sometimes feel that some anime always makes young girls look "overly cute" but this one really stood out for me since their personalities were totally unique!
Definitely recommend this anime to anyone who is need of music in their ears and a bit of relaxed humour as well! I given it 8/10!
Definitely recommend this anime to anyone who is need of music in their ears and a bit of relaxed humour as well! I given it 8/10!
- Irishchatter
- Aug 9, 2018
- Permalink
Even though K-On! is supposed to be about the light music club in a Japanese high school, 80% of the show is the characters drinking tea, eating cake or simply having fun with the music part gracing us rarely. There is no plot and is mostly about cute girls doing cute things. But then, why does it work so well?
Its the characters and the completely relaxed atmosphere. Even if the characters live in their exaggerated anime land tropes, they feel real and honest. There is nothing to worry about while watching this show, watching these characters have fun, be carefree and work hard when they need to makes us have a wonderful time. This show is the equivalent of being served hot chocolate after being invited to a warm cozy home in winter or cool ice cream in summer. Its the ultimate anti- depressant.
There is great sense of escapist nostalgia while watching this show, its self aware with the fact with characters who never get fat while eating so many sweets, or having successful shows even though they barely practice and goof up something near the last moments. One would wish if real life were like K-On!
When the series ends you are left with a sense of melancholia that is bittersweet on seeing the characters graduate and move on with their fun phase of school life. But you know they will never stop having fun till the end.
Its the characters and the completely relaxed atmosphere. Even if the characters live in their exaggerated anime land tropes, they feel real and honest. There is nothing to worry about while watching this show, watching these characters have fun, be carefree and work hard when they need to makes us have a wonderful time. This show is the equivalent of being served hot chocolate after being invited to a warm cozy home in winter or cool ice cream in summer. Its the ultimate anti- depressant.
There is great sense of escapist nostalgia while watching this show, its self aware with the fact with characters who never get fat while eating so many sweets, or having successful shows even though they barely practice and goof up something near the last moments. One would wish if real life were like K-On!
When the series ends you are left with a sense of melancholia that is bittersweet on seeing the characters graduate and move on with their fun phase of school life. But you know they will never stop having fun till the end.
- BecauseIAmBATMAN
- Mar 14, 2017
- Permalink
This show is nothing short of a masterpiece. Only a genius could write a story that leaves such character attachment. After a few episodes you will find yourself strangely attached to the light music club, and all its members. The brilliance of the character development, each one with their own little quirks and traits, is the strong point of this show. Though each episode is pretty devoid of any real plot, on a per-episode basis, the pacing is great and it never becomes dull.
If you love music, you'll love this show. The opening theme, Cagayake Girls, and one of the songs used during the series, "Fuwa Fuwa Time", are catchy as hell. You'll find yourself downloading the mp3s and putting them on your iPod, or what have you.
The first episode might not hook you, but if you watch 3 or 4 then you will surely become a fan.
Best part? There is a second season, and it's even better.
If you love music, you'll love this show. The opening theme, Cagayake Girls, and one of the songs used during the series, "Fuwa Fuwa Time", are catchy as hell. You'll find yourself downloading the mp3s and putting them on your iPod, or what have you.
The first episode might not hook you, but if you watch 3 or 4 then you will surely become a fan.
Best part? There is a second season, and it's even better.
My first exposure to this anime was when I was either 10 or 9 years old, I dont remember clearly, but it aired on this asian Anime channel called Animax and I watched it. Not quite knowing what anime was at that time, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Later I did research after watching it on Animax about three times.
This anime taught me a lot, I'd say the way I am now is because of this anime.
After I rewatched it when I was in highschool, the anime hit different. I could see that the interactions the girls had would be a lot similar to mine as I always studied in an All girl's school. I also related to Ritsu a lot. It was a comfort show to me, if I felt sad or happy I'd search it up and watch it. It is one show I will never get tired of no matter how much I watch it. Even the mangas, I love them so much. I remember in 6th grade we had to write letters to our favourite authors as a part of our library period. I wrote a letter to Kakifly thanking her for making such a manga.
I cant explain how much I love this show and the mangas. It's my all time favourite, I learnt a lot through this anime :)
Hope y'all like the review.
This anime taught me a lot, I'd say the way I am now is because of this anime.
After I rewatched it when I was in highschool, the anime hit different. I could see that the interactions the girls had would be a lot similar to mine as I always studied in an All girl's school. I also related to Ritsu a lot. It was a comfort show to me, if I felt sad or happy I'd search it up and watch it. It is one show I will never get tired of no matter how much I watch it. Even the mangas, I love them so much. I remember in 6th grade we had to write letters to our favourite authors as a part of our library period. I wrote a letter to Kakifly thanking her for making such a manga.
I cant explain how much I love this show and the mangas. It's my all time favourite, I learnt a lot through this anime :)
Hope y'all like the review.
- prithapikachu
- Apr 7, 2021
- Permalink
Difficult to put into words what I felt.
Seeing k-on was an escape, a sigh from all the problems I had in my day to day, watching a chapter was completely disconnecting from the real world and enjoying a wonderful story.
The tranquility and simplicity make the series a very difficult work for me to overcome. His story always felt organic, human. Her characters, so simple and unique in their sense, from Yui with her big heart, Mio and her shyness, Mugi with her sweetness, to Ritsu with her explosiveness. He knows how to create funny, funny moments, ilarious situations, but he also knows how to make me cry, make us feel sad and a little depressed, but always with a smile.
I am writing this and my desire to cry does not disappear, they are still here, and here they will stay. K-on is not for everyone, it does not have a strong plot, nor an extremely great character development, and it is precisely because of this that I consider it one of the best series I have seen. Also, isn't it incredible that such beautiful songs come from here? It really is a gem in every way.
Graduation is not the end. Thanks K-On!
Seeing k-on was an escape, a sigh from all the problems I had in my day to day, watching a chapter was completely disconnecting from the real world and enjoying a wonderful story.
The tranquility and simplicity make the series a very difficult work for me to overcome. His story always felt organic, human. Her characters, so simple and unique in their sense, from Yui with her big heart, Mio and her shyness, Mugi with her sweetness, to Ritsu with her explosiveness. He knows how to create funny, funny moments, ilarious situations, but he also knows how to make me cry, make us feel sad and a little depressed, but always with a smile.
I am writing this and my desire to cry does not disappear, they are still here, and here they will stay. K-on is not for everyone, it does not have a strong plot, nor an extremely great character development, and it is precisely because of this that I consider it one of the best series I have seen. Also, isn't it incredible that such beautiful songs come from here? It really is a gem in every way.
Graduation is not the end. Thanks K-On!
(For S1 and S2)
I can't befriend anyone who doesn't feel anything when they realize the journey with these four girls is gonna end.
This series reminded me of my dream that establishing (or joining) a rock band, and how amazing rock music is. The plot......almost doesn't exist, but that's its advantage, which is you can watch it in an extremely relaxing, comfortable condition. If you like animes describing the daily lives of a group of people, you must be high for K-On. Not only that, but you can also feel touched seeing these four's growth and the spirit of music. Last but not least, the girls are so freaking cute. Be there forever! Honey Tea Time!!
This series reminded me of my dream that establishing (or joining) a rock band, and how amazing rock music is. The plot......almost doesn't exist, but that's its advantage, which is you can watch it in an extremely relaxing, comfortable condition. If you like animes describing the daily lives of a group of people, you must be high for K-On. Not only that, but you can also feel touched seeing these four's growth and the spirit of music. Last but not least, the girls are so freaking cute. Be there forever! Honey Tea Time!!
As a musician, I can relate so much from this anime. Forming a band during high-school is just different. Characters' personalities in this anime is one of the reasons why I recommend it to everyone. I am sure some people expect better storyline, but considering the quality of music (openings, endings and tons of character's image songs), you know they invested the most in audio experience instead of visual. Such a masterpiece from 10 years ago, can't wait for season 3!!!
- thbasicneeds
- Nov 9, 2020
- Permalink
- TuPapiRiko
- Aug 15, 2020
- Permalink
It's an out and out comedy anime with elements of musical and slice-of-life. It is the story of 5 High School girls joining the light music club of the all-girls private Sakuragaoka High School. Their practices, performances, school activities, other outside activities or even their challenges have been covered in a very subtle and comedic way. So, rest assured there is no unnecessary drama. The weird habits of each protagonist only add fun to it. The anime is just too good when you compare it with your world-weariness. The main female characters are kawaii(cute) and the (original) Japanese voice actors make sure that they sound just as sweet and as innocent. The anime is a very definition of Moe itself. Even the ending has been shown in such a way that the only reason why you would feel sad is because this cuteness comes to an end.
If you are looking for some slice-of-life recommendations, this one should be at the top of your watchlist. However, I don't believe that this anime is for those who has just started watching anime.
If you are looking for some slice-of-life recommendations, this one should be at the top of your watchlist. However, I don't believe that this anime is for those who has just started watching anime.
- jaysshukla
- Sep 19, 2021
- Permalink
On the surface, K-On is about a group of four (later five) girls who are running a light/pop music club at a Japanese all-girls high school. And while that is generally an accurate description of what the show is about, that doesn't entirely give you a slightly bigger picture of what the show is in a nutshell. On a more objective level, most of the time, the characters don't always do or talk about music. More often than not, you'll likely see them goofing off by either drink tea or discussing things about what's going on in their lives. But on a more subjective level, the series is about trying to find purpose in life and connecting with others, or in the case of season two, learning to move forward in life as time goes on (while never forgetting what you experienced in the past). It hits me very well on an emotional level, as someone who remembers all the times that I had with my friends at high school and all.
What truly makes the series work so well are the characters. All of them are very entertaining, likable, and relatable in a lot of ways; not to mention that they get a lot of great character development as the series goes on till the end. My favorite character would easily be Ritsu (voiced by Satomi Sato in sub and Cassandra Lee Morris in Sentai/Bang Zoom dub), especially with her interactions with her friend Mio (voiced by Yoko Hikasa in sub and the incredibly talented Cristina Vee in dub). What also works super well is the atmosphere. It's probably one of the most relaxed and stressed-free pieces of entertainment that I've watched; there's a homely and cozy vibe about it that makes it very easy to get into.
Coupled with solid humor, visually splendid animation, fun music, and great voice acting, this is an anime series that I would recommend to anyone. Go check it out whenever you can. 10/10.
What truly makes the series work so well are the characters. All of them are very entertaining, likable, and relatable in a lot of ways; not to mention that they get a lot of great character development as the series goes on till the end. My favorite character would easily be Ritsu (voiced by Satomi Sato in sub and Cassandra Lee Morris in Sentai/Bang Zoom dub), especially with her interactions with her friend Mio (voiced by Yoko Hikasa in sub and the incredibly talented Cristina Vee in dub). What also works super well is the atmosphere. It's probably one of the most relaxed and stressed-free pieces of entertainment that I've watched; there's a homely and cozy vibe about it that makes it very easy to get into.
Coupled with solid humor, visually splendid animation, fun music, and great voice acting, this is an anime series that I would recommend to anyone. Go check it out whenever you can. 10/10.
- Natenbox62
- Apr 10, 2023
- Permalink
While the music surprisingly enough really took the back seat in K O. It still was a heart-warming show with a diverse and fun cast of characters.
While the more racy jokes got grating after a while, they really went down in the second season.
I would recommend this show to anyone who likes the more laid-back approach of a slice of life show.
While the more racy jokes got grating after a while, they really went down in the second season.
I would recommend this show to anyone who likes the more laid-back approach of a slice of life show.
- ahano-47418
- Apr 17, 2022
- Permalink
- RJXAnime2003
- Jul 22, 2021
- Permalink