Final Impressions / First Impressions / Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakama-tachi

「おおかみさんとマッチ売りじゃないけど不幸な少女」 (Ookami-san to Macchi Uri Janai kedo Fukou na Shoujo)
“The Wolf and the Girl Who’s Not a Match Seller but Still Unfortunate”

K-ON‘s Satou Satomi joins the cast of characters as Himura Machiko and puts some pressure on Ryouko to speak up about how she truly feels about Ryoushi. Modeled after The Little Match Girl, Machiko wasn’t enough to force them together, but did draw out a fair bit of dishonest behavior from Ryouko to make this a worthwhile finale. The story is still ongoing and J.C. Staff probably wants to leave things open for a possible sequel, so the decision to conclude things around Ryoushi and Ryouko for now worked for me. Taking a page out of Ringo’s book, I got a lot of enjoyment from seeing how Ryouko would react to the poor girl on the block suddenly confessing to Ryoushi under the mistaken assumption that he’s rich. In reality, it was more of a demand that he go out with her with marriage in mind, which had Ryouko speaking loud and clear with her body language even though it differed from her actual words. The actual date the two of them went on as per an Otogi Bank request was even better, particularly when Machiko purposely made an incident out of getting into a boat with Ryoushi. Ryouko’s speechless reaction to the sight of that was pretty priceless, and I found myself amused to no end when Ringo just took her binoculars back.

As for Machiko’s sub-story about working to pay off her father’s debts and going as far as starving herself to do so, it was pretty hard to see her as a conniving girl when she had a good reason for needing money. In addition, she did come clean about it without any prying on Ryoushi’s part, and even earnestly offered her virginity as thanks for saving her from the loan sharks. Talk about one hell of a reward. It not only shocked everyone, but also pissed off Ryoushi enough to call in the cavalry from Otogi Bank to help free Machiko from her useless father who’s now run away. Admittedly, I found Ryoushi’s serious voice a bit too forced in that scene, but the subsequent one with Ryouko jumping in to lend a hand while the opening theme was playing did give off a fairy tale-like feel. In retrospect, the two of them kicking ass together was one of the more prominent Ryoushi x Ryouko moments, as it also made Machiko realize how cool Ryoushi can be. It also led to her asking Ryouko if she likes Ryoushi, albeit the answer was merely that she doesn’t hate him. Still, it was progress in my eyes when coupled together with the fact that she smiled back at the very end and did NOT hit him for a change. Add in Liszt getting rid of Machiko’s debt and getting her a room in Yukime’s Okashi dorm, and we have all the makings of a happy ending. It may not be a completely fulfilling ending, but a happy one nonetheless.

 

Ending Eyecatch

Final Impressions:

Back in the Summer 2010 Preview, I had a hunch that this light novel adaptation could potentially be the hit show of the season. Now that I’ve actually seen the whole thing, I have to admit that it fell a bit short of those grand expectations. While I enjoyed it as a romantic comedy that borrows a lot of ideas from fairy tales, it didn’t particularly stand out as the show I was looking forward to every week. Be that as it may, it was always easy to get into and featured some good character development in its short twelve episode run (particularly in Ryoushi’s case), making it a fairly easy recommendation to those interested in this genre. The sarcastic narration on Arai Satomi‘s part is evidently something that some viewers will find a bit annoying, but I really didn’t really mind how she talked over characters as if she were doing cast commentary. Sarcasm just so happens to be a form of humor that clicks with me, so I’d often get a chuckle out of her remarks taking the words right out of my mouth.

As for the story itself, there’s clearly a lot more that hasn’t been covered from the eleven volumes of the light novel out so far, so I wouldn’t even consider knocking a short adaptation such as this for leaving things fairly open-ended. If I were to make one complaint, it would be the lack of time spent on some of the other characters such as Alice. However, for series introduction purposes, it did make sense to spend more time on Ryoushi and Ryouko and work in the Hitsujikai Shirou sub-story for impact. Production-wise, even if AT-X’s lackluster broadcast is to blame to a degree, it’s probably safe to say that isn’t one of J.C. Staff’s higher budget projects. Even in this finale, the animation quality dipped noticeably at times, with the in between shots during quick action scenes being one area that could been better throughout the entire series. For those, it wasn’t so much an issue with image clarity or sharpness as it is with consistency, since the Blu-ray releases address the former two fairly easily. Overall, I definitely felt that this was one of the better shows this season, so I wouldn’t mind seeing a continuation of it at some point in the future.

53 Comments

  6. Ye your right divine this could have been the one for this season and be a top 3 contender for series of the year but did fell short. My personal feeling was that it was too much over the place too many episodes dedicated to certain characters when imo would have been better if they mainly focused on the romance between Ryouko and Ryoushi

    only series now that are win and not some what fail are: Nurarihyon no Mago, HOTD, Shiki and Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu. There r some other decent ones but in terms of being a decent series (plot, character, reasonableness, target audience, skill)

    crazystudyguy
    Reply

    1. This series was ok. Could have been better but could have also been worse. The series this season that were good are: Shiki, Asobi Ni Ku Yo, HSOD, Amagami (still on going), Ocult Academy, and Nurarihyon (prolly my fsvorite of the new ones). I also really love Sekirei and Strike Witches but those are sequels.

      Karmafan
      Reply

    2. agree with most of them but Asobi Ni Ku Yo really? cats and dogs… and a big boobed eye candy meh has there been anymore development between the main guy and the black hair girl with glasses?

      crazystudyguy
      Reply

  8. I was hoping for a kiss too, but I didn’t really expected it 🙂
    Well at least we got some kind of satisfying confession, since Machiko asked Ryouko to face her straight if she likes (in the meaning of “having feelings for him”) or hates Ryoushi. Since her answer was “I don’t hate him.”, that leaves only one option.
    It wouldn’t fit Ryouko’s character (yet) to say “I like/love him” so this was the right way, I suppose.

    Thanks for blogging this! Looking forward for a second season, you will tell me when it’s announced, I guess 😉

    virox
    Reply

  9. This was actually one of my favorite shows of the season. A little corny during some moments, but for the most part, the light comedy was nice. I do hope there’s a 2nd season, as I really didn’t feel any closure, and would love to see more character development from all the others in the cast. Nice show.

    ChunkyBai
    Reply

  10. Good ending~ Not completely fulfilling like you said, but still nice. :] Hoping for a second season, otherwise I’ll have to pick up the light novels and work my way through them slowly. lol

    Pao
    Reply

  11. I dont know why but I loved this anime. I never thought a semi-random anime like this would grab my attention but it was my favorite anime this season (Highschool of the dead getting redicilous sometimes). I really enjoyed watching it. Can’t wait for the second season.

    dxb_blackwolf
    Reply

  13. I found Ringo to be the best character in the series (loved the fake tears and lousy made up story) but so far series wise only Occult Academy stands out. LotLH’s up and down and sadly the most consistent series in terms of entertainment K-On just ended. Mago, Asobi and HotD got boring. Seitokai is still ok along with Maid-sama.

    Nothing compelled me to catch the series as punctually as Angel Beats, hopefully i’ll find something next season. Big hopes for SnO though

    Zaku Fan
    Reply

  14. my issue with the narration wasn’t the sarcasm – gotta love sarcasm – but the way she talked over other characters. you’re right in that it’s a lot like a cast/crew commentary on a DVD, but the difference is you watch the commentary AFTER you’ve seen the original content, so you’re not missing anything in terms of dialogue.

    diet otaku
    Reply

  15. Ryouko said she doesn’t hate him and she smiled at him! With her, that’s basically first base!! Not really, but we all knew that’s all we were getting. Himura was cute and I think she’d make a good love-rival for Ryouko, too bad she said she’d back off though. Ryouko needs some competition if this is ever going to go anywhere, assuming there’s a Season 2.

    Overall, a decent show. Once the Narrator cut back on talking over everyone it got a lot better, and Ringo was definitely the best character. I’d watch a second season just to see if Ryouko EVER goes “dere”.

    Aex
    Reply

  16. Well, I expected the finale to be open-ended but I was hoping for a bit more than the happily ever after. Still, that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it, with Ryouko’s tsundere armor slowly shattering, Himura’s ridiculously tempting reward, a little action and of course, Ringo

    As a series, I agree definitely the better of the seasons but my expectations weren’t exactly met. I remember when spring ended where Durarara! and Full Metal Alchemist left me, I guess I was just looking for a good show though technically not as big but delivered in entertainment and something to look forward to every week. Ookami-san was a good show, there were ups and downs but light comedy at its best.

    Jaden
    Reply

  17. Satomi’s voice was recognizable for me, she was just perfect for Machiko’s personality, mischievous but still innocent enough to be likable.

    I still don’t know why I picked this series up in the first place, lol. Maybe it was the cast that lured me. Not that I’m complaining anyway as it does get quite funny and entertaining enough to keep me watching till the end.

    Kinny Riddle
    Reply

  19. Aww, man?! It felt so rushed, though.. tch-!

    -sighs- That was the quickest 23 minutes ever. Either that or I was really into it. >>” Anyway, Machiko was crAzy! I couldn’t help but chuckle at the whole dating-sim stunts. And the fact that Ringo pointed it out was icing on that cake. She’s does have a black heart. <3

    Machiko’s butt was HAWT!! (Yay-ee-YAY-EE!)

    Shirt
    Reply

  20. Well, I remembered not being overly impressed with the start of this particular series and came back later on (like Working) to find it enjoyable. I did like the growth in Ryoushi’s character the most. It was definitely fun to follow but knowing nothing of the manga, I didn’t have anything close to expectations about it. I wouldn’t mind another season to dwell on other characters.

    Shinjiro
    Reply

  21. I loved the first episode.. There were a few episodes ( like the one with Ringo’s half sister) that I thought were very well handled, but the series didn’t give me a kick like Arakawa did. The animation was a bit sloppy and I thought they could have handled Ryoushi’s character development a little better. However the highlight of the series was definitely Ookami’s insecurity and fears carefully covered by her self- assertiveness and false bravado. I would give the series a 7 on 10. 🙂
    That aside, Arakawa Season 2! Yay!

    nick
    Reply

  23. Definitely one of the better shows out there this year. I can’t say it’s the best, though. I guess the way it ended is to be expected of a show that’s adapted from an unfinished light novel series. I really do wish they’d make a second season. If they did, it would be quite welcome I believe. YAY for Ryoushi not getting punched XD lols

    Naiika
    Reply

  24. Himura clicked with me pretty quickly, despite her motives. Overall it was pretty good but the ending wasn’t quite what I expected. I expected another showdown but I suppose that’s one of the things they want to leave for a sequel.

    LaN
    Reply

  29. I’m not too fond of these type of ending’s but eh I kind of was expecting to end like this since Ookami really wasn’t honest with herself in the first place. All in all a decent series but not worth archiving.

    exia
    Reply

  30. I like how Ryouko said something along the lines of “I’m dealing with some serious stress here, so you better be prepared!” when fighting the guys, refering to the big amount of jealousy she had to cope with ]:>

    virox
    Reply

  34. I love the character designs in the series in an overall sense, but I do agree. It feel a bit short on expectations. It looked like in the last episode, they sort of rushed it(like it seemed so-so without too much going on) so I kind of wished they wrapped it up better.

    chuu
    Reply

  39. It really did fell short of expectations. By the middle part the only thing bringing me back to the show was Arai Satomi’s narrating, to be frank, I don’t find her annoying at all. Still good show to watch just to kill time.

    T.K.
    Reply

  40. lol 1: the “bumping into boy with a sandwich in her mouth” pickup method… I saw this scene first in Evangelion, and now I am asking myself if it was done before in dating sims?
    lol 2: Ringo the genre-savvy recognizing it as “something straight from dating sim”, and getting her evil grin 🙂
    lol 3: Ookami san stalking the hunter (pun intended) together with Ringo, with Ringo adding oil to the flames of jealousy
    lol 4: Nekoneko knuckles meowing sound FX – I want a pair for my GF, shes quite a brawler
    lol 5: Machiko taling to eavesdropping Ookami
    Not enough of romance completion for me, but this leaves a second season option open, which
    I hope will become reality

    ewok40k
    Reply

  42. Professing his love for you several times, exclaiming how beautiful you are, protecting you more than once, defending you from the douche that scarred your past and even turning down a cute girl with sweet compliments of how amazing you are and………………. you just “dont dislike him?”

    there is a limit to tsundere, for my taste, and this was it.
    enjoyed everything else though.

    Omegan
    Reply

  44. I’m echoing most of the other comments when I say I’m glad I picked this up. Before each season I check out summaries of shows to know which ones for sure I want to watch. Then others trickle in when I get a bit curious which turn out to be better than I thought and I enjoy them.
    This was one of those shows.
    I enjoyed the ending. I thought the smile was a really big step for Ookami and a great scene to finish on. I’d love another season.

    stefkov
    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *