First Impression: Hinako Note

Synopsis

This is the tale of young girl named Hinako. Because of her poor speaking ability she decides to move to Tokyo in order to join the theatre club of her high school and improve her speaking there and gain more confidence in facing crowds. Upon her arrival however, not only does she meet a girl who eats books, a girl who wears a maid outfit but she finds out that the theater club that she was so eager to join closed.

The Good

Mellow is the key word to use with what was presented in the first episode. From the colors to the characters and even the story, so many points make you want to sit back, relax and enjoy the story and art of the show.

On the note of the art, it was a pleasant thing to see on how much effort was placed into the background art of the characters such as the park scenes and the falling flower petals of the cherry blossom scenes and the signs and details of the shops that the characters pass by. Simply put, the art, animation and detail work placed into this is wonderful and a visual treat.

Like many other moe shows, the characters are sweet and endearing in their own ways and worked out well in terms of execution for the plot. The plot as well is simple, not too dramatic, but also not that different but more so than usual. Basically, the art and animation is a treat, the tone is mellow and relaxing and the characters are all different but interesting.

The Bad

Seeing the opening, ending and comedy scene towards the end of the episode, it seemed as if the creator and writer took every popular and cute aspects of moe shows involving a group of girls and put it through a mixer. There are the bright colors and highly upbeat tone and song, cute moe type girls turning into chibis and doing antics then to tie it all together, they try to make a dance number for possible fans to copy.

Simply put, the main flaw right of the bat for this series is the baiting. While there is nothing wrong with cute moe girl shows and all that jazz, but there is only so much you can put in a single episode, though subtle it may try to be before even a new viewer can spot the hints. It may not be large, but it is subtly hiding in the background of the episode and is more obvious with the themes and the ending.

Then there is the coloring of the main character. While at some points it may seem sweet and suit her well but in others it didn’t work out as well as it could have.

Conclusion

The premise presents a very sweet show and the art style and animation are both very beautiful work. The plot is not over complicated and the characters are all endearing in their own way. The only main problem that could have been easily taken out is the baiting that if looked for it quite obvious. Other than that and the color palette of the main that could have worked out better, this is a series to watch for something pretty with a dash of fun mixed in.

Rating: 7/10