Mahiru Kouzuki, a skilled artist, gives up on her passion after her elementary school classmates ridicule her colorful jellyfish mural. Several years later, upon encountering an unexpected admirer in Kano Yamanouchi—a former idol with a troubled past—Mahiru decides to pursue her childhood dreams once more.
Tasked with designing the mascot for Kano's new music project, JELEE, Mahiru enlists the help of her childhood friend and professional streamer Kiui Watase to make JELEE's first music video. Together with Kim Anouk Mei Takanashi, a pianist and fan of Kano's work as an idol, the girls aim to turn JELEE into a global hit. However, if they want to succeed in this ambitious endeavor, they will first have to free themselves from the shackles of their pasts.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Comentários
Mcsuper
Music anime with girl bands or groups being the focus have never been more prominent in the anime sphere, with recent hits like Bocchi the Rock, and old hits like K-On. In this season alone, we saw the revitalization of another old music hit in Sound! Euphonium Season 3, and new kids on the block in Girls Band Cry, and Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night. There’s so much that writers can do with this type of show, from stories of inspiration, stories of young people trying to find their passion, or in other cases, more comedy-oriented shows that serve to brighten up one’s day.In the end, the formula remains similar, to showcase the growth of the characters and their differing personalties, through their involvement in a music group.
Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night is a bit of an odd case to me, because while it has its share of light-hearted moments, and the comedy is snappy and quite honestly, amazing at times, it also goes down the slippery slope of leaning into heavy melodrama. With the limited runtime that this had, with just twelve episodes, it was a bit of a questionable decision to me. In the first number of episodes, it was all about how people motivate each other, rather it was through art, music, or any other expressive outlet, and it was indeed very interesting. As the characters got introduced, they were characterized through various backstories that showed how tough their pasts were, or how they got to know other characters in the show. I’m not always a big fan of that story structure, as while it might provide great emotional highs, I’d much rather see the characters get characterized with how they act in the present, which this show does eventually do as well.
I call this an odd case, because each individual bit of character drama was honestly handled quite well, with very realistic and relatable struggles, for example, wanting to enjoy and behave in a way that people think is “childish”, or having one’s path to stardom broken because of a response to injustice. It led to some brilliant character chemistry between the members of JELEE for sure, but I also don’t think the drama contributed to the big picture of the story well enough, and also got in the way of what I expected the show to be more like, which was seeing the creative process of JELEE’s music.
To do all this in twelve episodes is no easy feat, and I just do not think there was enough time here to flesh everything out. The messages were really good, the pieces were there, but with twelve episodes, it was virtually impossible to fit in the progression of JELEE and the character drama, leading to various aspects feeling contrived and rushed, lacking the organic growth that we could have seen if this series had more of a runtime. JELEE gains a following in almost no time at all due to a timeskip, Mahiru’s art is suddenly highly respected from being mocked just a few episodes prior. Suddenly, a performance at a venue happens with not much build up. A career is put to a halt because of one single internet warrior. The antagonistic character suddenly goes along with what the protagonist proposes. You get my drift. Could this all have been fit into twelve episodes if the script was just a bit tighter? It’s hard to say how this anime should have went, because on the one hand, if you don’t have the comedy and light-hearted moments, the audience would not have as much of an attachment to the characters and their respective personalities, though on the other hand, if you don’t have the drama, the plot does not move forward. The best anime series are able to balance both the aspects of character building and pacing effectively. I do believe that the script could have been a bit tighter with the removal of a few characters, such as Baba and Koharu, so that the eventual drama could be less contrived. Again, I want to emphasize that the individual stories were good, but they just did not mesh well enough with each other. Some emphasis of side characters took away from Kano and Mahiru’s issues, and led to the overall storyline being resolved rather haphazardly.
Visually, this anime is stunning. Props to Ryouhei Takeshita for directing this as well as he did. It had a very snappy feeling in the editing made it a great vessel for comedic timing, which I still believe is the strongest part about this anime. I might not have agreed with some of the drama, but the way some of the dramatic scenes were directed was superb, along with the sound direction, to illicit as much emotion as they could out of the viewers. Furthermore, the voice acting performances here were excellent. Shout out to Rie Takahashi, Miyu Tomita, Miku Itou, and Miyuri Shimabukuro for their incredible work as Kano, Kiui, Mahiru, and Mei, respectively. There were also several music videos from JELEE that served as special ending themes, and you could see the improvement in the visuals with each passing music video. That type of subtle growth was what I wanted this anime to be like, but obviously, it went in a different direction.
With how solid the first few episodes were, I think it really showed that sometimes, things do not need to be deep and hugely thought-provoking to be good. The message was there, the characters were perfectly fine, the growth was JELEE was being seen, the comedy was snappy and funny, but the decision to go into heavy melodrama was one step I feel this anime did not need to take. The sheer energy of the show, the vibrance of the characters, all of that was sucked out with the melodrama, because even though the comedy still remained throughout, there was always that bit of drama that loomed large over it all, leaving it less fun than it could have been. It lacked a proper identity, and tried to do too much in a short amount of runtime.
In the end, it was like a slightly overcooked steak. It tastes good, but it is chewy, and leaves you slightly underwhelmed. Occasionally, some anime just have that sort of a fate. Oh, what this could have been…
Marinate1016
It’s honestly hard to quantify exactly what Yorukura has meant to me over these last 3 months, but I’m going to try to express it. This show and its cast have been an irreplaceable part of my life and ignited a fire in me that few anime have. It’s the type of show that motivates you to be a better person and take risks to seize what you want in life. It’s the type of anime that lets you know it’s ok to be yourself. Shows like this come around only every so often, and I’m glad I was here for this one. Doga Kobo areno strangers to blowing my mind. They’re one of my favourite studios, producing some of my favourite series from Plamemo, to Yesterday wo Utatte and Oshi no Ko. This studio has shown time and again they’re able to create magical anime with characters you can truly empathise with and relatable themes. Yorukura, their latest anniversary work is right there at the top. It’s one of several amazing female driven musical anime this season, but in my opinion it stands head and shoulders above the rest thanks to its cast and themes. Those themes being anything from depression, suicide, bullying, gender dysphoria, sexuality, hopelessness, abusive parents, the toxic Japanese entertainment industry, etc. Some real dark stuff gets tackled in here and it’s done in a very tasteful way and feels real.
The other big thing for me is the cast. These girls are amazing and I don’t know how I’m going to get through the weeks without them going forward. Seeing a group of girls who seemingly come from completely different backgrounds come together and bond over their desire to pursue their artistic endeavours was very heartwarming. Basically all the girls in the story had dreams that they gave up on. Whether it’s drawing, singing or being a vtuber, for one reason or another they lost their way in life and abandoned the things that really make them happy. By meeting one another, they’re given the encouragement needed to pursue those creative ambitions again and find purpose. It’s something that I think a lot of people can really relate to. Sometimes life happens and we just stop doing the things we used to enjoy, or we even lose faith in ourselves. Having someone that believes in you and encourages you to continue working at what you want in life and to improve in that is beautiful. The girls’ dynamic could not be better in this one and it made every episode a joy to watch.
Further to that point, when a couple of the girls get back into the things they love to do, it’s revealed they’re doing it because another cast member is their motivation. I like that the characters gradually realise this isn’t a healthy or sustainable approach either. Validation and satisfaction can only come from within and singing for others or drawing for others won’t make you love yourself or your work. The writing is just so good here and as someone who has done things that I enjoy, but got lost in seeking approval from other people I related a lot.
In a way, Yorukura also acts as a pushback on the traditional Japanese ideology that “the nail that sticks out gets hammered down” This refers to the need to conform in Japanese society. All these girls are social outsiders in a sense and deal with a ton of pressure to fit in. By the end of the show, they all realise that it’s more important to be happy with yourself than to fit in and I just think that’s such a powerful message that kids, especially Japanese kids today need to hear.
Of course you can’t talk about this one without the Yuri undertones as well. Actually, undertones aren’t even a good word. This show is gay, gay as hell and in the best way possible. There’s proper lesbian confessions and clear romantic inclinations between characters. What I like most though is that that didn’t define the girls. Yea, they might be queer, but they’re so much more than that and that’s all in the background while the story focuses on them as people and developing to overcome past trauma and insecurities. I think one of my biggest pet peeves in fiction is when a relationship or sexuality is someone’s entire personality, sure that’s nice to get, but let’s not minimise characters to just being romantic tropes and I think Yorukura’s author nails it perfectly. Honestly, this comes as no surprise as Yaku sensei, who also wrote Tomozaki kun, is one of my favourite authors and has a talent for writing realistic teenaged/young adult characters who do things that kids their age in real life would. They’re kind, thoughtful, selfish, nasty, lost, hopeful and hopeless all at the same time just like we are in real life. People are complex and when an anime can capture that, it’s special.
Production wise, wow man. Doga Kobo have never made a bad looking anime, but this is their best looking yet, which is saying something because Oshi no Ko looked amazing. Just every aspect of this show was masterfully crafted and elegantly designed. The character models, the letterbox aspect ration emphasising impactful moments, the seiyuus, the musical performances, it’s just all.. great.
If it sounds like I’m gushing over this show and biased, it’s true, I am. I unapologetically love everything about Yorukura and it’s changed my life for the better. An instant classic and one of the best anime originals ever in my opinion. A must watch for any fan of realistic characters, and those who had big dreams, but maybe lost their way. Keep going.
Yorukura gets a very easy 10, out of 10
7_3
I feel betrayed in a way, like I just got deceived, and now I feel like a piece of demotivated rubbish if I wasn’t already one. This anime was like joining a friend group only for those "friends" to start treating you like some weirdo nobody after a while. I was surrounded by a bunch of “me fr fr” people and I thought I was going to literally die from happiness. I thought that maybe I was going to experience some genuine emotions while going through this ride. I thought that maybe there’d finally be characters with genuine personalities that don’t scream, “I AM ABLATANT CHARACTER ARCHETYPE LMAO” at me. I thought all of that, but that dream I was living didn’t even last halfway through the anime. It was wishful thinking hoping that it wouldn’t devolve into some lifeless drivel anyway, but still, what went wrong exactly?
I think it’s fair to say that the characters are the driving force behind Yoru no Kurage wa Oyogenai’s whole idea. Four high school girls who struggle with faith and self-confidence form a band together in search of the colors they’ve been missing in their lives, and to find themselves—to become who they truly want to be. Faced with the many challenges of fame, the girls endure and power through the ups and downs of the new light in life they’ve found together. Theoretically, that sounds like a seriously awestriking idea for an anime, one which has heavy inspirational themes and messaging within it, so everything should go perfectly, right? Well, “inspirational” is what it COULD have been, but you see, there’s just one big problem that makes everything fall apart: the characters.
Yes, the “driving force” of the anime itself kind of…sucks. Remember when I said they seemed to have real, genuine personalities? That mirage wore off real fast, alright. One of our main protagonists, Kouzuki Mahiru, is an illustrator for the band she’s formed with her friends, JELEE. She draws everything from promotional art to the band’s mascot, JELEE-chan. Once she entered the limelight of fame through JELEE, obviously, things started to go a bit awry. No one is used to fame from the get-go, and for a person who struggles with confidence and self-esteem like Mahiru, things started to get to her. Barraged by the internet’s reception and criticism of her artwork and her band, Mahiru, not used to this harsh environment, was quick to cave in and start thinking pessimistically. “Is my art not good enough?” “Maybe I should try to change my artstyle?” “Wow, people really like the fanart better, huh?” Are all thoughts (at least along the lines of the thoughts) of Kouzuki Mahiru, who crumbles easily. And you might be thinking, “WOW that is relatable as hell,” and I also should’ve been thinking “WOW that is relatable as hell,” but all I felt is hurt.
It’s all artificial. This entire anime, along with its characters, ends up all artificial and hollow. Mahiru IS just another blatant character archetype, and so is every single other member of JELEE. And it’s all because the anime refuses to touch on their personalities far enough. “tf u mean, it clearly touches on their development as they journey through the trials and tribulations of fame.” And you’d be completely justified in saying that, because, in truth, yes, that’s exactly what the anime does. But that journey only brings out that tiny part of their character that IS an archetype, and that makes them seem like fake people. The anime spends minimal to absolutely no effort giving any of its main characters a real, uncontrived personality, because it doesn’t explore them whatsoever, yet it drags those characters and stretches them out so that they can somehow fit with a story that requires characters with ten times more layers to them. I personally find it hard to relate or find these characters interesting at all, because while their basic characteristics might be relatable, the amount of effort put into their personalities and the depth they are given is much more like a spit in the face toward me, and other people who might’ve shared any commonality with them. And so, as a result, trying to understand, feel for, and relate to any of the characters is like trying to understand an alien speaking in ⚍ ᓭ╎ꖎꖎ|| ℸ ̣ ∷ᔑリᓭꖎᔑℸ ̣ 𝙹∷ ⚍ᓭᒷ∷。
But who the fuck cares if it doesn’t relate to ME? This review so far has been all about me, me, me, and ME! *I* didn’t like this, *I* disliked that—I need to talk about YOU, the reader. And if you, reader, are sitting here, gawking at the gall I have to bring down your favorite anime from the heavens it soars in, then that either means you’re not looking at the whole picture, or this anime wasn’t made for you in the first place. About the former: you might not actually take the characters into account, or care about them for that matter. You might be one of those yuri addicts that gravitates toward everything with any hint of yuri, or more realistically, you might be here only for the touching journey the characters go through, and not for them particularly—and I would have said I can’t really tell you that’s wrong, but then again, avoiding one of the only reasons why this anime is what it is, is kinda dumb if you ask me. And about the latter: you most likely don’t have an understanding of these characters, and probably have almost nothing in common with them, their experiences, or their feelings, which leads you to believe there are little to no faults with their personalities, while you shouldn’t actually be sure of that. And that’s fine. I get it. You can watch this anime while ignorant and oblivious of its internally vapid and lifeless characters and not have to feel awful, but to those who are able to enjoy the entirety of what makes this anime, and to those who should have been impacted the most, those who should have felt the most touched; to those whom this anime was aimed at and made for, it all ironically ends up amounting to nothing but a meaningless attempt at inspirational storytelling. That was my experience with Yoru no Kurage wa Oyogenai. I write this review in hopes that you are able to better decide whether to possibly be pushed down into the gutters, or continue with a different anime.
You know what was a real stab in the guts, though? Ryugasaki Nox’s VTuber model. That shit had me crying tears of pent-up sorrow I never even knew I had.
Thank you for reading my review.
Kuso_AR
"You know, jellyfish can't swim or shine on their own, but once they absorb light from around them, they're able to shine for themselves! So maybe...I can, too! If I'm around you, maybe I'll be able to shine, too?" Social media has taken over the world and people have embraced this new identity. To be honest, I've been waiting to see an anime effectively dive into this trendy subject and the deep process of creating content (music, animation, streaming) for a virtual online brand. YoruKura was that anime for many fans, a "new-gen" story with big ambitions, and it manages to shine. For the first 2/3 ofthe show.
However, with a mere 12 episodes of runtime, YoruKura is far too ambitious for its own good and leaves fans with a lackluster taste in their mouth.
Let's get the positive out first. The *first half* of YoruKaru is utterly fascinating.
Yorukaru overcomes its initial hurdle of being an original anime with A POWERFUL first impression, art and visuals that tear at your heartstrings, intriguing characters that actually feel like cohesive characters and not "moe" archetypes, and an actively trending subject. YoruKura seemed to understand what actually goes into this type of work and making it interesting for general audiences. Moreover, you see the results of the group's hard work in several of the series' endings that just look perfectly entwined. Seeing their process episode-by-episode had me on the edge of my seat.
All of the characters find a way to work together with great chemistry, develop their relationships, overcome their faults, and grow not just as people, but as artists. Their first arcs are all amazingly executed and their conflicts are a big factor to their group's success. Personally, I love Kiui Watase and how her connection between VTuber Identity and IRL Identity were done, but fans can relate to all 4 of these girl's dilemmas. The character bonds and personalities are what helped pull the story together and produce amazing works alongside the other 2 girls as JELEE.
And for those, Yuri fans out there, you're sort of in luck. This isn’t a show that "baits" their audiences with one-off Yuri-bait interactions (I'm talking about you Hibike Euphonium). There's actually good development there for a fun ride.
Of course, much credit to production. Unsurprisingly, an anime from Doga Kobo looked, sounded, and executed this well. Visuals and colors are utterly beautiful. While I was initially hesitant of Ryohei Takeshita, the Director of frickin' Eromanga Sensei, being YoruKura's main director, there isn't anything too weird other than a few odd camera angles (worst case: in the same episode a character complains about people gazing at her body, there's a camera shot on her butt 9 minutes earlier. Comedy doesn't come this naturally). Moreover, many scenes are amazingly done by the voice actors. They hit DIFFERENT. A lot of this show's direction, scripting, and production was solid.
In the middle of the season, YoruKura had many YouTubers and forum members calling it the underrated "anime of the season." A genuinely great surprise and the arguable favorite of the season. I had given this series a 9 at first too.
However, that rating has since dropped for many fans, including myself.
While YoruKura is still a great experience, many will be left with mixed feelings, and it has to do with how this series ends.
Ironically, the final part of Yorukura end up like "Jellyfish in the night" and struggles to swim on its own. A set of narrative decisions from its writing team halts everything that made the series great. In the span of just 1-2 episodes, YoruKura shifts from a step-by-step journey toward creating music and striving toward stardom into rushing new ideas, deriving character motives, and a final melodrama that leaves a weird taste in your mouth.
This isn't to say drama doesn't work in YoruKura. Each character has their own personal drama: conflicts and issues they have to overcome throughout the series. However, these were settled episode by episode and were able to entwine with YoruKura's main thesis (4 girls coming together to produce music under JELEE) quite well. However, the final drama (without spoiling of course) fails to hone in on that show's thesis, ultimately rushes many different contrived developments, and instead directs away from the show's overarching message.
And it's hard to recommend an anime with a "bad ending."
Animes with "bad endings" aren't that uncommon. Attack on Titan, Charlotte, and (my personal vendetta) Wonder Egg Priority easily come to mind. Series with amazing openings and concepts that have weak or utterly disappointing final arcs. You'll always see countless people say "Did the anime switch writers or something?", but in reality, some shows just don't know how to end well. Either 1) production experiences several issues, 2) a writer has a great concept but doesn't know how to wrap it up properly, or 3) a team has too many ideas and not enough time or episodes to give each idea grace.
While nowhere as egregious as say Wonder Egg Priority's fall, YoruKura does leave many fans with a lackluster afterthought. This falls into reason 3, wanting to execute too much with far too little time. The series, as a whole, wanted to do a lot more than its runtime of 12 episodes.
With too little time, you have 2 decisions: 1) Limit the ideas and plant the "seeds" in case of a further retelling/season 2, or 2) try and tighten the script to fit multiple arcs and ideas into one cohesive story. YoruKura probably knew a season 2 wasn't likely happening, and thus goes for option 2. However, it fails to tighten everything into the story's cohesive message.
Without spoiling the events, episode 9 completely changes the story and its tone, and the production team is now tasked with just 3-4 episodes to create, redeem, and simultaneously wrap up angsty melodramatic conflicts that were far from YoruKura's initial direction. It rushes through countless developments and redemptions that were unneeded for the story's headlining message of being able to shine. Audiences were first heavily judgy? All of a sudden they're accepting and gassing stuff up! Everything either falls perfectly into place or goes under wraps to get every idea crammed into a 4x4 box.
Some characters remain strong, others become utter shells of themselves as they are rushed into unrealistic situations, and others just...don't work for me. The most egregious of this has to be with Kano's past idol group. I cannot understand how this series wants to characterize them. Yukine Hayakawa, Kano's mom and the producer of Kano's past idol group, for example. One second she's portrayed as the selfish idealistic who only cares about her dream rather than being a mother; the next she's portrayed as being heavily considerate, making a final decision that makes not much financial sense from her position as an idol group producer. Mero Setou, the idol group's lead idol, is even more egregious as while her presence goes up (she played a major role in a past conflict), she doesn't have enough connection for a viewer to care about her. It very much seems they wanted an arc surrounding this group, how it connected to Kano's past, and evolving them. However, again YoruKura doesn't have the time. This period halted not just JELEE's process, but the anime's as a whole before the anime subsequently ends.
YoruKura is ultimately a strong anime. Beautiful visuals, amazing characters, great sound and music direction, light-hearted comedy balanced with interesting conflict and goals, wonderful music developments, and a message that worked so well at the start: shining for oneself in a deep sea and being able to swim. However, the last arc ends up losing the show's mojo with a haphazard conclusion. Could all of these fit together with better directing? Could earlier ideas have been cut to fit this arc? Could this final arc have been entirely reworked? I don't know. While the start is absolutely deserving of praise and will be given praise, the decision surrounding the final moments sucks audiences out of a show with wonderful energy, leaving it rather unclear.
*EDIT*
In actuality, you can really start seeing signs of a "downfall" after episode 6. Episode 7 introduces a new character to be important, but their complete lack of involvement in later events and character arcs makes their role rather pointless. Episode 8 also introduces a dilemma that could have many character perspectives to dive into, but it completely rushes its development to set up the story's final arc. The signs were there of too many ideas being rushed or unexplored. It just became far more evident near the end.
*EDIT OVER*
A show with very high potential and great tricks but didn't stick the landing. If you told me how a jellyfish willingly shut off the light and not swim on its own, everyone in the room would shout "YoruKura!". It would have enough presence and members to fill the Tokyo Dome.
Final score: 6.2/10
Marsh37
YoruKura is an anime that was incredibly close to being a solid recommendable show. Sadly, the final few episodes felt messy and ended up detracting from all of the good themes and ideas it was building up along the way. This was a result of failing to utilise its characters effectively, sidelining positive plotlines and pointless pandering. The art and animation quality is the one positive thing which remained throughout this anime, with a unique style. However, the music is subpar for an anime that is meant to be partially about music, and none of the songs particularly stand out as memorable. In most cases,this would not count as a negative, but given that music is a big focus in YoruKura, viewers should expect to at least have one or two songs that resonate with them for the show to be counted as successful within its genre.
The characters have a level of complexity, although this is not always to the benefit of the anime. It is a recurring feature of YoruKura for characters to question their ways of thinking, indicating that they may be on the verge of developing, and then miraculously ending up almost exactly where they started. It is not necessarily an issue if character development is slow, or even non-existent, but where YoruKura fails, is where it appears to pretend that the characters have come a long way and developed, when in reality, they end up with an almost identical mindset that led them into a rough spot to begin with. Many of the side characters are clearly designed to appeal to certain niche audiences, which has the potential to alienate viewers outside of those communities. This is not inherently a bad thing, as having a solid target audience requires a certain level of exclusivity, however YoruKura doesn't follow through on key character moments in most cases, leading its characters to be used as a form of bait for its audience, rather than actually creating a meaningful narrative that can truly connect with the viewer emotionally.
The storytelling, alongside the character writing, ends up completely stifling any possibility of a satisfying conclusion. The two central girls, who the story sets up to support one another, ultimately don't really do anything for one another in the final act, leaving rest of the main cast to pick up the slack, which otherwise, could have been used for some emotional character growth. Subplots are introduced and seemingly forgotten about by the end of the show. The theme of creating art for the dopamine effect of 'number go up' is seemingly presented as something to be overcome with some greater purpose, however YoruKura fails to come up with any proper alternative idea for its story to cling to as a good moral. This ultimately ends up feeling shallow, and despite spending a large portion of the anime searching for it, its unclear what the main character's purposes for creating really are, and how they have evolved from where they started.
If you aren't a part of the niche audience that this anime tries to pander to, it is likely that you will find the characters become annoying, as they fail to truly grow as people or deal with any of the core issues which they intitially face. If you are a part of that niche audience, you have a chance of enjoying the anime, however its failure to land cleanly at the finish line may still leave you disappointed.
internetfemcel
'Yoru no Kurage wa Oyogenai' is easily the anime of the 2024 summer season that had the most potential. With a strong first episode, there was a glimmer of hope to have a double feature of amazing idol/band shows. However, as the weeks have ticked on and the episodes have come and gone, that potential still lies dormant within it. The main cast of this anime is very likable, and by all means the majority of the props for this anime go to them. I don't think it's a stretch to say that this show is a perfect entry to anything 'idol-adjacent' due to how straightforwardthey are with the pitfalls of being famous as well as the legacy that someone can carry with them when famous from a young age. There's a lot of great commentary in here about your past not defining you, and it's nice to see some of the main cast actually suffer from it.
Unfortunately, it's not all sunshine and rainbows with 'Jellyfish can't Swim in the Night'. This show is trying to be so many things at once. At times, it's an idol show. In others, it's an art show and a vtubing anime. Sometimes even motorcycle riding (please leave this to 'The Rolling Girls'.) and a band anime. If this is really what you're going for, it needs to be done in a way where the characters don't rely so much on the group to succeed. It makes for these episodes where almost nothing of substance happens, and we just get twenty minutes of rehashing character dynamics and throwaway characters made to fill time. You can't make four different slices of pie into one dish because the flavors will mix with one another and create something you didn't mean to, something that makes all the slices taste a bit off. It's what really soured the ending for me, the fact that these girls' dreams are literally being hindered by the group that they created together. Kano and Mero are the characters that I have the biggest issue with, and it's not even close. Both get off their arcs right back where they started, at odds with one another, and by the time we fully understand what their dynamic is together, the show is over. Mero gets off scot free, and Kano has a forced reunion with Mahiru that feels so empty because Kano did nothing but sulk. It's so frustrating to see this anime fail at what it's trying to achieve because the pitfalls are all in areas where you can literally see what could have been done to write them better.
Of course, you can't talk about this show without at least mentioning its clear intent of creating a romantic relationship between Mahiru and Kano. This is great, in theory. Representation is important within any piece of media, and that goes doubly for relationships between women. What I just can't stand, however, is that this relationship feels so forced. The two just gravitate toward one another in literally every social setting regardless of the topic, and leave the supporting characters behind, namely Mei. Mei is deeply in love with Kano, and she takes Mei's confession and just shrugs it off. It's only heartbreaking because Kano doesn't care, and (forgive my harsh words) I hate that. You can't just leave something like that unaddressed. With all this being said, I could absolutely forgive this show for its subpar yuri. That is, if Kano and Mahiru's fight didn't happen. It's done in a way that paints Mahiru as an outsider for Kano's shortcomings and just leaves the viewer baffled, watching Kano become immature in a matter of seconds. Yet another icarus moment for this show.
It really isn't all terrible, and that's meant with complete sincerity. This is a great show to watch with some friends, and, as was stated earlier, it's a good introduction into idol anime. It's got some genuinely great episodes, (namely 2, 5, and 11) and from what my artist friend has told me Mahiru's got a really great arc for artists to dig into. 'Yoru no Kurage wa Oyogenai' is best enjoyed by creatives, as its heights are reached by encouraging its characters to do what they truly love. Unfortunately, it's also strangled by these same aspirations, which is why it's an anime that I just can't recommend. Mei best girl
KodekMillenium
So... Yorukura actually felt lacking towards the end. But let me phrase this as to why I ended disappointed. Let's start with the fact that this is an original, meaning any hype for Yorukura was actually a good thing, amazing even. The anime started with a blast and it immediately touched me, I got really invested with it's main point: the characters! While being an TV original is usually detrimental to character focused animes since you don't have the same calm approach to the introduction and development of those characters feelings and drives as a novel or manga normally have, Yorukura actually managed to introduce and showit's main group of protagonists amazingly well. They didn't fell empty, boring or standard... they felt real! And the more I got to know these characters, the more I grew to like them and their different sides specially the two main protagonists of the group in Mahiru and Kano.
Well, this didn't last long as Yorukura felt victim to one of the most terrying villains for animes: Not enough episodes!
There was not enough time for the show to present it's main drama and point and end it properly, while maintaining the same quality of developmente the first few episodes had. After the incredibly written episode 9 which is, by far, the best one, it's pace and storytelling took a deep dive.
The characters felt cartoonish and out of place and their emotions and feelings felt rushed and badly written. They didn't have enough time to process and react to the drama and their own feelings so it felt that as soon as the drift in their relationship was created it was suddenly repaired and it felt like there was never any problem to begin with.
This anime and it's characters deserved at least 16 episodes so they could reach the ending they deserved. So in the end it felt lacking and I could not give it the original 9 I planned to give and I'm very disappointed but not at the anime itself, but with the people that were responsible for wirting everything
Stark700
They say jellyfish represents a symbol for balance. That very idea could be applied to this anime, starring a group of idols with different motivations. Together as a unit, they are called JELEE, who tries to make a name for themselves. As part of Doka Kobo's 50th anniversary, this anime seeks to prove themselves of capable of delivering on their celebration. As odd as the title sounds, you won't see jellyfish swimming around. No, this is is a show about music and a group motivated by their own reasons to be part of something special. As an original anime, you don't need knowledge or background aboutmusic to enjoy ths show. As a major part of this anime's themes, we witness how each of the characters deal with their own personal demons and self identity. Starting from day one, we follow them on a character journey.
The first prominent character we need to come and understand is Kano Yamanouchi, who later serves as leader of the group. While having a seemingly normal persona, it's shown that her character is emotional vulnerable due to events from the past, including a scandal. She seeks to reinvent herself and becomes a voice of reason. Kano herself is also very relatable given her fear of being abandoned. There's many moments where she felt being left alone as her father is a no-show throughout the series. Watching Kano's character equates to watching a child growing up and making the best she can to escape that lonliness. To her, JELEE is practically her second family.
It's not soon after that we also come to understand Mahiru Kazuki, JELEE's illustator. Due to her past, she develops an inferiority complex and believes she may be holding the group back. This inferiority complex causes Mahiru to make questionable decisions that conflicts with the group's interests, including Kano. It's through these internal problems where we see characters' flaws and how they seek to resolve them.
As JELEE's video editor, there's no better fit for that role than Kiui Watase. As the most technical skilled member of the group, they depend on her to craft projects, thus setting high expectations. Unlike Mahiru, she has a stronger independent personality and always aims to be productive. This belief and self motivation sometimes causes rifts among the group when we see how she's different from others. Nonetheless, Kiui is a key member of JELEE for her talents and there's no denying that.
Finally, there's Mei, a girl with social anxiety that we may all have experienced sometimes in our lives. Truth to be told, Mei is probably the most pure talented character in the show. She has earned accoldes and established herself as a talent prior to forming JELEE. Her most important relationship is with Kano, as she slowly reveals her more vulnerable side. Watching these characters grow and develop is inspiring and motivational. In the entertainment industry, there are so many variables that could prevent JELEE from succeeding. However, the anime goes to lengths at how these characters try to overcome seemingly impossible barriers. It's one of those shows that is much more about music performance or building a recognizable name. It's about them growing up and becoming a better version of themselves.
Still, you should hold back expectations if you believe the relationship will venture into shoujo-ai category or beyond. There are teasing moments but none of it really come build more into romance. This is about JELEE and each member, not a soap opera with relationshp drama. The drama here explores human emotions rather than appealing for shippers. The story itself also carefully crafted through character development. With 12 episodes, it formulates into character journeys. It's how this anime feels so real at times and how each cast member motivates themselves.
Jellyfish Can't Swim in the Night's art style choice pinpoints to simple yet effective designs for its cast. The main characters are decorated with colorful outfits matching their various personalities. However, it's the character expressions that exceeds expectations. We have to remember that this anime has lots of raw human emotions, and it's imperative for the show to capture those moments. Thankfully, it's accomplished through its chereography and timing of the scenes. As an anime about entertainment industry, this anime does set a high bar for what it advertises.
After watching Jellyfish Can't Swim in the Night, I can safely say that the show is far from creatively bankrupt on ideas. Rather, this anime succeeds at conveying human emotions while developing each of the main cast along the way. As a collective unit, they strive to aim for success and acknowledgement. It's something that's inspiring, motivational, and real.
Canafa
This show is tough, because the first 3 episodes were fantastic - Mahiru and Kano felt like *people*, not characters, and as we were introduced to the other two parts of the band they also felt like they fit in naturally. As the show went on, it continued being pretty good, though the show's biggest flaw started to become evident by around episode 5; the show wanted big drama moments, but either didn't want to, or have the time to, really execute on those stories in a satisfying way. Ultimately, it should've either cut some plotlines or had like 3 more episodes to work with. Everythinghad to be wrapped up cleanly within a single episode, no matter the stakes to the drama. Spinning so many stories while leaving existing story threads unattended resulted in the ending feeling rush and several loose ends left untied, and ultimately left the show in a situation where one of the emotionally strongest episodes felt totally superfluous and that it should've been cut in order to make room for the actual story. In particular, episode 9 leaves off with an absolute bombshell, but then the next two episodes kind of wander and don't actually resolve anything until it has to be hastily finished up in the finale, which is handled fine but ultimately unsatisfying.
At first, this show held some of the most promise of the season with a series of fantastic character moments, but it just failed the execution on the overall plot. And in those character moments, this show is very well written, and the voice acting is among the best of the season, which is why I'm still giving this a "good" rating. I'd love to see what these characters could be, what this voice crew could pull off, if the episodes were written more like one story rather than told episodically.
To summarize, if you care more about a strong thematic throughline and individual character moments than unified stories, I think you might get more out of it than I could, but if you want a story with good drama and satisfying resolutions then look elsewhere.
Tenderizer79
I'm confused. Everyone is saying this was a great anime that fell apart in the last 3 episodes. That is absolutely NOT what I think. The final three episodes are the only half-way decent part of this show. The first 8.5 episodes were just an absolute nothing burger. They left me with absolutely nothing to latch on to and made me feel numb more than anything. It's not that there was something wrong with it. Try as I might I couldn't find anything to fault it for. It does everything right, but nothing well. I guess you could fault it for some inappropriate fan-service and yuri-bait, butI don't really care that much about those issues.
If there's one thing I heard a lot about the start of this show, it the "potential". People had high hopes for this series and I think that's what carried it in the beginning. But potential can't carry a show for me. A show needs to have some emotion to it in the first few episodes. This show had none.
And then we get to the ending. Some people call it a disappointment, but I liked it. It did a few things I personally love to see, episode 10 saw a sharp increase in the amount of "distinct" animation, and some of the voice acting in the later episodes I really felt. I don't think it makes up for the rest of the show, but I'm glad I didn't drop it once I was already half-way through.
I'd suggest watching the first 1-3 episode(s). If it feels like a nothing burger, drop it. If it feels like it has potential, ignore that. If it emotionally stirs you, keep watching.
johnbradshaw
"The reason Yamanouchi Kano sings! See, I want to be a reason for people to keep looking forward. For the fans who support me... No, not just them. Anyone lost about what they really love, And anyone who struggles every day, and hates the world. And even the ones who used to make fun of me, just everyone! I want them to feel happy, that life's fun, and just the best! That life's worth living until the next gig" - Yamanouchi Kano. Jellyfish can't swim in the night is one of those anime I wish that were given more time to explore their ideas. A standard season of 25 episodes will benefit it somuch because it's one of the most relatable show I've ever seen. An anime for the social outcast, for those who are lost in life, for the broken-hearted and for me...
I personally love watching Idol anime since I love watching people pursuing their dreams. I love hearing their worries, insecurities and witnessing their loneliness. Youth is foolish, they will often make mistakes and pay the price. But when their eyes sparkle on the stage and their dreams are fulfilled, I feel a sense of happiness. That's why I also watch Hololive (Vtuber), I just love to see people accomplished their dreams which I never could. Jellyfish can't swim in the night is not an idol anime but it has all of that and even more.
Yamanouchi Kano is a retired idol. She was forced to after being in the center of a big drama that derailed her career. But even after going through those hard time, she doesn't give up and continuing singing anonymously as a youtuber named JELEE. One night when she was wandering around Shibuya, she happens to have a fateful encounter with Mahiru - the artist she admired the most. Mahiru also has given up on drawing after facing harsh criticism and she just couldn't take it. Along with Mahiru, Kano now decides to revive her career. And along the way, with the help of a lonely pianist and a troublesome vtuber, that's where their story begin.
As with any good slice of life anime, Jellyfish can't swim in the night is a heavily character-driven show. The story has its strong points but sometimes it still relies on melodrama to advance which I'm not a big fan of. But the characters are amazing though. Every characters has no proper introductions, motives, problems and a lot more,... Those characteristics make them feel grounded and relatable. I had a great time watching their stories, laugh and even cry a little bit with them. You have to see for yourself though, might be I just love them a lot and is biased toward them.
Jellyfish can't swim in the night has great music, easily to understand since it also focus a big chunk on music. It has a catchy and melancholic opening and a pretty passionate ed. For the animation, pretty good I dare to say. Nothing too extraodinary since a slice of life doesn't need to, but the animation is fluid and easy to follow. It also has a pretty and standard artstyle for an "all-girls" anime. Some might complain it feels generic and while it is, I really think this artstyle works for a show like this and shouldn't be changed just for the sake of change and creativity.
Overall, even though the anime still has a lot of problems, mainly the characters need more time to be explore. There are many problems the characters faced that I personally feel that can't be resolved in the pace of a 12-episodes season. But I will still recommend Jellyfish can't swim in the night since anime like this show is the reason I truly felt in love with this wonderful medium. If you feel the same, feel free to give me a friend request and we can talk about anime list these and give some recommendations.
EmanueleIGTX
I can't understand how they blew it all up.UUA An anime with good animation, a good premise, good characters, but they managed to ruin everything. A story forcibly pushed toward a fake happy ending. Meaningless character development. Everything is resolved in an awkward way, going to frustrate what happened before. It is not a tender ending or a pleasant ending. it is just a fake ending. I do not recommend it. After the first 6 episodes it is just torture to see how it goes on. I gave 5 as a rating and not 4 or 3 just because the animations are really good. Butthe story would deserve a lower grade. Too bad. Good potential totally wasted.
CaptainKenshiro
After watching two Bang Dream anime and being completely put off by everything about the early episodes of Girls Band Cry and drop it, I tried my luck with the actual title of the girls band/idol-ish subgenre I wanted to watch, which is this. As expected, it is the only one I enjoyed and the only one I thought it was overall decent and worth a watch, but still only so barely. Despite grouping it into that subgenre, the truth is that the girls here do not actually form a band, but more like an artistic group where just one of the girls writes and sings.The others add illustrations, compose the music and make arrangements, and do the video editing and organize the events they take part of, stuff like that. So it is not an anime just about the musical part of a band, but about the whole artistic process that is more and more important nowadays, and I appreciate that approach as somewhat different and fresh.
This series is also topical and covers different themes through its characters, as the artist doubts her abilities because her art is seen as weird or inferior compared to others that makes fan arts of her creations later on.
The singer and co-protagonist of the show was a former idol so through her we can see some shady aspects of the idol industry, such as groups sabotaging others and any possible incident ruining your public image. She’s also full of mommy issues, as a big part of her character arc is how she was used and tossed apart by her mother within the idol industry, and now tries to get back at her while finding her own artistic vision and expression.
The composer has a more typical backdrop of having to live up to the expectations of others and being mocked because of her looks, while feeling like she has nowhere to belong. Changing from playing piano to compose her own themes with her idol she freakily fangirls over could be seen as a form of expression of artistic freedom but it is honestly not looked into that much nor that well. Her kind of perverted and freaky fangirlism over her new friend makes her the less serious and worse character out of the main ones to be honest.
Then there is the editor, who is also a vtuber, so you know there’s another topical thing in there. She’s primarily a tomboy who, like Anon from It’s MyGO!!!!!, came to realize she’s not that special nor cool (from others’ perspective), and was isolated by the rest and mocked by her back by her fake friends. It’s interesting to see how she became a neet that lies about her life and the repercussions that had once that was found out.
Through these characters, and the group becoming an artistic group that gains popularity online, the series also shows online harassment and cyberbullying on social media, so you know that was a good detail to have in there as another addition.
And like I’ve been implying so far, the characters, both as a group and on their own, essentially go through the same character arcs as the ones from the shows I watched before it. Introspecting about their goals, looking for a personal purpose and objective, trying to find a place and group to belong to along with their friends, and as a form of conflict, different artistic visions and clashes between the members for personal reasons later on.
The series also has generally a good pace, as it follows the whole process of the girls while making music and videos, and in turn, they are fleshed out at all times.
I will not call the writing anything amazing however, as it is true that the girls become quite successful quite easily and quite fast, and even when they are harassed and doubt themselves, they don’t have it too hard to face those hardships and controversies and stuff.
Is the themes and character immersion that makes the first half of the show good, more than the actual writing itself, which is still fairly naïve and convenient.
Did I say first half? Is the second half crap and makes the anime not worth watching? Well, not exactly, though it does make it inferior that it could have been.
From episodes 7 to 9 you can notice that the focused is switched to another older idol that has her own struggles, being older and a mother and all. There’s another episode on which the girls are apart doing their own thing and deciding what they want to do with their lives and stuff.
There was still character immersion, so it wasn’t bad, but when you see characters doing things completely different to the main activity of the show, while at the same time introducing another secondary character with just very little screentime, and almost falling into fanservice territory, you can notice that the writing starts to crumble.
Around these episodes, the series decided to have some interactions between the main girls that didn’t mean much to me, but others could see them as romantic. Let me be clear, there’s no development nor payoff to any of them, so it is once again silly yuri bait that would leave you disappointed if you expect something from it.
As episodes 8 and 9 go back to focus on what the show is about, while introducing the main conflict between the main characters, you think that the show is back on track, but unfortunately that is not true at all.
The last three episodes introduce drama, conflicts, cringe and unserious scenes at the most crucial moments of the band, overreactions that are different from the tone thus far, more focus on the vtuber girl with her possible gender dysphoria and not very clear relationship with that woman from episode 6 being barely looked into, more like glossed over, and left ambiguous, and eventually, having a very happy resolution where all the characters that did some very crappy things are forgiven just because and without a proper focus and buildup.
The finale itself isn’t bad, each girl finds what they want to do and everything is resolved, it is just that the last three episodes speedrun through way too much stuff without an organic flow and handling of it to call the resolution good, it’s more like meh.
As for the visuals, I was pleased with them after watching two or three (and a bit of another) anime in CGI, so I liked to see another 2D animated show again. Not that it isn’t anything amazing, as artwork, character designs, motions and effects are all just fine, with perhaps the backgrounds being the best bits. The directing would include several changes in perspectives, as sometimes the girls are filming or watching a video with specific cameras. Also, although it is something present in anime for years by now (Yuru Camp is the first example I can think of this), including phone screens to show the characters talking and going through social media is part of the plot in here, so that was a fine detail.
As for the sound, since there is only one character that sings here, they hired seiyuus this time, so the acting is a lot better than the ones in BanG Dream and Girls Band Cry. No performance stands out that much or is that good, but Rie Takahashi has some of her most unique and most pleasing to hear (thus best as far as performances goes), characters in here, so I wanted to point it out.
The music is just some generic jpop that I don’t like, but is fine for the show and the lyrics reflect the characters well, a pattern that seems to be a part of the subgenre or at least the titles that I’ve been seeing recently. A thing worth pointing out is that the show has four endings, one with two versions, canon songs made by this artistic group, and often the result of all of the work they do throughout the show. So you know, their inclusion is worth mentioning in terms of writing and directing and as part of the plot, and not just as background decorations to end an episode and roll some credits.
Bottom line, I do think that the show is worth a watch, for a one time experience, but more so for being topical, relevant for our times, the themes it includes, and the character immersion. The writing and presentation are otherwise not that good, and the final course of the show is very mediocre if not straight up bad.
starquake
I really liked this anime, especially in the first 10ish episodes. It was strong in it's story, the characters got me so invested, and I will not lie and say I didn't tear up at certain scenes. As an artist online it hit so close to home and was very beautiful. I wish it had more than 12 episodes to work with. The last big arc felt so rushed, I wish there was more time to let the characters breathe, with a few more episodes the writers could have done so much more. This is one of those anime that I watch anime for. Though I seeit's flaws, I can't take this anime and say that is anything short of breathtaking.
Gwynbleidd_Alan
I had mixed expectations about this anime since it's an original creation and the descriptions were a bit vague, making the plot seem underwhelming. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find a hidden gem of the Spring 2024 Anime season. Or at least I can confidently say that for the first half of the season. I was captivated by the first few episodes of the anime, as the plot truly draws you in. It offers a fascinating story that shows how music, creativity, and art can express feelings in a way that nothing else can. The main characters, members of the band "JELEE" each haveinteresting background stories which are explained in detail, giving them character depth, so you as the viewer, can invest in them. The story offers a bit of everything but ultimately what ends up holding it back from the heights it was destined to reach, is the fact that it simply tries too much and ends up coming out as a half baked cake towards the end of the season.
You might be wondering what I mean by that, considering I praised it very highly in my introduction and you have every reason to do so. But, as much as it pains me to say it, the show slows down so much after the great start it had. It falls into the trap of introducing drama for the sake of drama, which admittedly can make for great writing and gut punching emotions, but it is not always necessary. What makes this even worse though, is that the unnecessary drama writes itself into a corner which causes it to be resolved way too quickly and quite frankly without making much sense. Ultimately, this leads to the show ending on a somewhat deflating note which more or less stops the entire momentum from the first few episodes in its track. The last episodes tries to wrap up things which was done decently well but feels very rushed. The show also teases a romance between two members of the band "JELEE," only to let it fizzle out without picking it up again. This makes me wonder why they teased the romance in the first place, only to revert to strictly friendship towards the conclusion of the show. Another weird thing was the fact, that there are a few random scenes that seem to cater to fan service, and they feel out of place compared to the overall tone of the show, which does leave an odd feeling here and there. All of these things mentioned above are why I ultimately felt like the show ended up being a half-baked cake. It tries too much in the 12 episodes it has and maybe could have succeeded more with a 24-episode season. But since this is not the case, it fails to resolve everything it sets out to do and writes what feels like a pretty "meh" ending which leaves many things up in the air.
With that being said, I really did enjoy a lot about "Yoru no Kurage wa Oyogenai", considering there is a lot to like. The band members of "JELEE" each feel unique and have their own little quirks and problems which make them a dynamic group. The art style and animation are great, with vibrant and colorful visuals that enhance the overall feel of the show. The voice acting is excellent, and the show features many great songs that seamlessly fit with the art direction. It also has well-timed comedic moments that got a few solid laughs out of me.
In conclusion, I think the show is good for what it is and offers an enjoyable watching experience that I would definitely recommend, albeit with some flaws. Sometimes, less is more, and trying to cram too much into a 12-episode season didn't work that well, but alas, it wasn't meant to be.
SSJ-SUP3RM4N
When looking at the listings before the Spring season this year got underway, this entry likely went beneath the radar of many, especially with many powerhouses like Demon Slayer, MHA, Tensura, Mushoku Tensei, and the galactically-anticipated third season of Konosuba also on tap for the season. Seasonal watchers like myself who don't mind digging amongst the weeds find comfy homes with these types of titles, an original anime from a proven studio and staff with an intriguing VA listing that somehow received little to no hype coming in whatsoever, but I digress. The music genre has enjoyed a resurgence these past few years, and thisentry seeks to capitalize. Some will recognize Yuki Yaku, the original creator of this series, as the original creator of the Bottom-Tier Character Tomozaki novel series, one in which its thoughtful character and scenario writing is a strength. Does this series meet a similar standard with its characters? I'll attempt to answer that and more with this review. Let's begin.
As the synopsis suggests, the main drivers of the story are the four girls it centers around, Mahiru, Kano, Mei, and Kiui, and how they make their mark as a hot new music group on the block. There is a theme shared almost ubiquitously amongst the individual arcs of the four girls as well as the overarching story as a whole. The main theme here, one pretty common in anime, is about overcoming your pre-defined self and becoming the person you envision yourself to be. All 4 girls’ arcs are personifications of this, and those sentiments are also the driving force for all 4 of them to work together as a group. They are all very different people and their versions of their ‘ideal selves’ all exist on very different standards, making for very fresh and interesting interactions. For all 4, their personal growth is well-written and it is not long before finding yourself rooting for them. They are not necessarily equal in terms of realism and relatability, but they are so in being able to resonate with viewers. Overcoming personal struggles, like how they are demonstrated here, is a universal language that everyone can communicate in. Of course, the whole group has conflicts with each other, some of which towards the end are oddly placed, but most of the time viewers will see the four of them against the world. Social media is another important theme, as the group talks about their presence on it a lot, so many of the conflicts actually result in the group going up against the reactions of the Internet.
Though the entire group of four gets more than enough time to shine together, Mahiru and Kano are treated as the leads. Though the show treats Mahiru as the main character, Kano's developments stick out more. As a pair, they are fun, and refreshing in the way that they aren't complete opposites of people that somehow end up getting close, but actually relate to each other on a very foundational level. There was a strange touch of yuri bait between the two that was not necessarily out of place but seemed to lack any true intent. It just seemed like an element that was sprinkled in at the last minute for the sake of fanservice.
That aside, there are two very significant issues with the narrative. Firstly, far too little story progression happens in the middle third, leading to the final phase being a rush and an ending that felt too open. There's a lot of time spent in the middle third with more slice-of-life scenarios, which is not an issue itself. Where it becomes a problem is introducing side characters with no relevance on top of showing scenes that don't tell viewers much about the characters they should be caring about to begin with. In addition, though the aforementioned main theme fits the show, it often feels like the writing sticks to it too closely. At times, there is a lack of dynamism to the narrative where events that should feel consequential do not. Yes, we see the characters grow, but what is not readily apparent is any significantly tangible impact in that regard after the fact. Some of this may be due to the 'social media' aspect where all we see in terms of those story beats is the character's reactions. In a way, the ‘middle third’ issue also plays a hand here, as this problem is most apparent towards the end. The main plot twist, which actually does a good amount of shaking things up, occurs way too late, forcing the rest of the story to play catch-up, resulting in a subpar ending.
With all the faults that come towards the end of the story, the first 2 or 3 episodes are simply magical, with some of the most engaging directing so far this year. Unique camera angles and pans, the creativity of the backdrops, and the night-life vibe of late-night downtown Shibuya all gave the early episodes so much life. The sound design is top-notch in many scenes, and it is about as good as a first impression could get with the music and voice acting. The character introductions are packed with impact. Mahiru and Kano's initial meeting is a tone-setter for the character dynamics and shows that aspect of this anime at its absolute best.
Visually, Doga Kobo deliver here, as they always do. As mentioned previously, the first episode is at a very high level production-wise. In terms of some of the more cinematic elements specific to the direction, none of the following episodes match the first few in terms of those techniques. That said, the base level of quality and color in the design and backdrops stays clean and consistent. The fidelity and detail are very good. Some of the day-time backdrops look a bit dry, but the nighttime backdrops make up for it with their extra brightness and color. The main quartet's character designs are colorful and set a tone of individual contrast between all 4 of them. A nice touch added in also is that recurring side characters have equally colorful and distinct designs, instead of the main 4 sticking out like sore thumbs amongst a sea of generic blacks and blues. The visuals that complement the music videos the group makes are what make those songs stand out. It is often a barrage of whites and blues with sweeping curves and bright sparkles. The little avatar that moves along with the music is a fun spin as well. This is likely down to personal taste, but one or two more songs presented that way would have really elevated things.
Since this is a music anime, it is apparent that care was taken towards the sound design. Rie Takahashi's casting as Kano was another big draw to this anime at the start of the season, and it is easily apparent why from the onset. Not only does she have a unique tone, but also a very strong singing voice. For all 4 girls, the performances are all high-quality. Alongside their designs, the voice performances do a great job in giving each character their distinct identity, making moments they come together all the more intriguing. Miku Itou is the second name that most people will draw to in the listing. She plays Mahiru and while it is a very good performance, it is not anything not seen from her before. She is more or less the straight man of the group so she does not move across her range as much as the other three do. The music the group ends up composing is nothing too extraordinary either, sticking to contemporary J-pop sounds, but it sounded good and as mentioned, Rierin's singing is always a pleasure.
In the end, this could be a truly great one if only there is more focus in the middle third of the story. The effects of the sluggishness of the middle third do not manifest until it is all over, but breaking it down in hindsight reveals that is the root cause of it. Not only is this anime unable to avoid a common anime-original trap of sputtering out in the final phases of story, but it stays a bit too consistent to its themes and does not take many risks until it is far too late. Still, even with those woes of the story, there is still a lot to really like here. Visually, it meets the standard you'd come to expect. The characters are lively and are able to move both independently and as a group. The voice acting is excellent. The incorporation of art and music both in the watching experience and how they are presented alongside the story make for a relatively unique experience. It is well-written in that though the art and music were written by real people, it is easy to get invested in them as products in the universe of the show instead of that of our own. For better and for worse, this anime feels like another wave in the recent wake of ‘cute girls making music’ anime that has started making splashes since the turn of the decade. While it lacks the mainstream appeal of a Bocchi The Rock or the more niche acclaim of a Girls Band Cry, it does enough to stand out on its own. It is not a must-watch, but music anime enjoyers will find a home here. The things that matter the most are what it does best. The music is bops and the girls are cute. For many viewers, there is not too much more to ask for than that.
Hehehu
I will try to summarize my thoughts without spoiling anything big, so let me say this: this anime is a solid 9 all the way until the last 2-3 episodes, then if falls off. It starts really well; the first two episodes leave you wanting more and that alone will carry most of us to watch it entirely. During the first two thirds of the series, it is pretty much perfect, the progression of JELEE is fast enough to feel the evolution but not too fast is unrealistic, Mai is one of the most funny and likeable characters there are, Kiui feels like such a real personyou really can connect with her and feel her struggle, and Kano and Mahiru’s relationship as friends is very sweet you can see they do support each other well, with minor hiccups they keep progressing on their dreams both as a group and individuals and then…
then Mahiru throws it all out the window, does something completely unacceptable and betrays the entire group specially Kano, her excuse so shallow and selfish you just can’t believe it, in any real-life scenario it is the kind of thing that ends friendships right there, there is no way to go back from it, but then they do make up… by the power of the script, the writer says they make up so it happens without any explanation, and you will notice this trending of all the important conflicts ending in ‘somehow it worked out’ it feels weird, I have the feeling they thought they still had 6 or more episodes but then realized they had to wrap it all up and so they did.
On the more forgivable side, they do Mai dirty by dumping on her all the resolve to keeping the group together at the end, being the only one to really come thru, Kiui’s arc as a character gets so convoluted you don’t really understand what her struggle was anymore and just have to go along with it but it takes away from her credibility as real person and not just a character to give a message, all the conflict in the fan base at her supposed conclusion tells you all you need to know because it really came out of nowhere, to me personally if something is not shown in the show then is not up to the viewer to write the story for the studio. And rivaling Mahiru’s reconciliation, another big ass-pull as well was the resolution of the main antagonist force here, Kano’s mother and Mero, I am sorry but you just can’t create characters with that background, destroying the lives of more than 1 person and expect the audience to accept an evangelization, I’m sorry can’t really say more without really spoiling it but you will understand if you do decide to watch it.
Don’t get me wrong if you are the type that can turn off your brain and just enjoy the show, then you will like it but if you can’t it may ruin the experience especially since you probably expect a lot of the show by the time you reach the conclusions. So please try not to expect a lot here, is for the best.
abhineeth
Anime originals have been hitting hard recently and I watched this a enjoyed the aired episodes of this one while half expecting the ending or latter half to be fumbled as some other popular anime originals, but Oh was I wrong. Yoru no Kurage wa Oyogenai which literally translates to Jellyfish cannot swim in the Night is a new girls band anime that flew under my radar in the new anime season which was until Mother's Basement's recommendation video came in. I was immediately intrigued and went ahead and watched the episodes that had aired thus far and needless to say it did not disappoint.The show follows a young artist who stopped making art when she realized that her friends didn't really vibe with her art, and lives her daily life putting on a social mask of sorts to blend in with friends - which is until she meets Kano, who unlike her, isn't afraid to speak her mind and lives her life true to herself, and when she sees Kano stand up for her art while she herself couldn't it lit a fire in with a desire to change.
This is not a unique setting by any means, but what separates this anime from the rest is the execution. All the characters have so much life and so much going for them that it's hard not to get invested in them, it takes its time slowly build up the characters and gives them amazing development (strange thing to say for a short 12 EP anime) and the themes that all 4 of our lead characters tackle are all unique and is handled amazingly.
One character I absolutely love is Kiui, she is girl who has the attitude of a boy and is cheerful, confident and always on top of things screaming things like 'I am a superhero' and was kind of a king of the pack, that is at least until she enters middle school, where everyone else has changed while she remains the same inside. Things that used to be cool to everyone else changed while for her it remained the same, and she referring to herself as 'Ore' - which mostly only boys do was also made fun of now while nobody said anything about it in her childhood. She couldn't handle this sudden change in her environment and stopped going to school, and found somewhere else to express herself, youtube streaming , where she lied about her background and streams video games. The way the show develops her character touched me like nothing else in this anime season and while I was a bit disappointed that development wasn't much in the earlier episode which is focused on her, the later episodes completely changed my mind.
While all the characters tackle different themes they work flawlessly to support each other and help each other grow, every single character has moments in this show that touched me on a deep level, even Mei who I thought was the weakest of bunch was given amazing moments that made me swallow my 'thoughts', so for me there isn't any weakest of the bunch here, because they were only able to grow together with the help of every other main character.
The unique art style, amazing animation, direction and not to mention amazing music also work together to make this what it is, but what makes this one of the Best Anime of this Season for me is definitely the amazing and touching character writing.
Seansy
Congratulations to the staff at Doga Kobo on an amazing 50th anniversary anime! For me, this show was a joy to watch from start to finish. All of the most important aspects to a great show I saw in the first 3 episodes for writing, direction, art/animation, sound, characters, etc. continued through to the end. I had high expectations going into this series with Yuki Yaku writing the script, and he continues to deliver characters that are both realistic and interesting, reflecting all of the complexities of the human condition. The themes, comedy, and drama were all well-done, packaged together into a message of self love thatseems very relevant in an increasingly connected digital world where differences are often quick to be "Othered".
I was worried the ending wouldn't be able to successfully wrap everything up going into the last episode, but I thought it stuck the landing pretty well. Another of my worries partway through was that I wasn't much of a fan of one of the members of the group, Mei, after her initial character arc was concluded. Fortunately, she was able to shine later in the show in such a way that she went from a character I was fairly ambivalent towards to one that I liked. Outside of that one issue, all of the characters that receive significant screen time were well developed within the time constraints of the series.
A short side note that while the show is not without flaws or above criticism, a lot of the complaints, particularly those about "melodrama" or "forced drama", were honestly stunning for me to read. The conflict in question was foreshadowed since episode 1 and builds throughout the entire series, including the ending. It is neither forced, over the top, or comes out of nowhere. It also fits in well within the themes the story is telling about self-worth. I asked a couple other reviewers I know and trust for their thoughts and they had a similar reaction. Take that for what you will.
My biggest complaint is that I felt that more could of been done with the story itself with more episodes. Instead, the show decided to leave some things as is rather than try to fit more than was possible to realistically cover within the 12 episodes allotted. I would of preferred to see more, but I'm satisfied with the story we received.
The last thing I wanted to give readers a heads up on is that there is some yuri bait/subtext, but I found it tastefully executed. Your mileage may vary.
Thank you for reading.
