Short and Sweet is Sometimes Best
In the anime world, people are always talking about where they stand on super long series or whether they prefer an eleven episode series, but rarely do they ever include the series that are under twenty minutes where the amount of episode vary with each series or in some cases just the short films. These short anime often are just ONAs, but in some cases, some get a TV run.
I do believe that short anime are often under-appreciated by most people, myself included. Though, when I started to look at the ones I’ve seen I noticed how some of them are really good and better than a lot of longer series.
I think there are a lot of reasons we don’t notice or watch and appreciate short anime that much. I think one of the biggest exceptions to this rule was with La Maison en Petits Cubes, but the reasons why many of us know that one are obvious. With that said, besides an Oscar winning short, we don’t really talk about short series that often, even amongst the anime community. I think part of it is that they don’t get released as often as a normal run series or movie, and when they are, there isn’t much demand for them.
So with all that said, I decided to make a few mentions in this post about the anime that are under 20 minutes in each episode, but are still just as good, if not better than some of the “normal running” anime. They deserved some love too, so I decided to give them some appreciation on this blog. I decided to exclude a lot of OVAs because that subject could be wide enough for a whole other post.
The Diary of Tortov Roddle (6 eps – 3 mins)
If you can’t already tell, this short ONA is by the same producer of La Maison en Petits Cubes, but I much preferred this creation , which was released back in 2003. Within three minutes this anime will transport you to a new world where you’ll forget everything from this one. It is truly a breath of fresh air. It’s beauty leaves me speechless. A must watch.
Chi’s Sweet Home/New Address (206 eps – 3 mins)
Poyopoyo is currently trying to fill the shoes of being a super adorable cat that Chi left behind, but let’s face it, it’s never going to happen. Chi was an adorable series that you really can’t help but smile at. It was simple, but enjoyable. Also with all its episodes, it managed to even give us some arcs to prove it ha some actual stories to tell.
Time of Eve (6 eps – 15 mins)
Of course I couldn’t forget to mention Time of Eve! With top notch animation and a great story to follow, it’s hard not to love it. It presented a lot of themes and characters that you could really sympathize with. An anime that was simple, but in all the right ways. Still one of my favoruite anime to be released in 2008.
Kogepan (10 eps – 4 mins)
Kogepan is awesome just because of its premise. It’s about a burnt piece of bread in a bakery who gets drunk off milk and somehow still hands out life lessons at the end of the day. Oddly enough, this was one of the first anime series I ever saw.
Rain Town (1 eps – 10 mins)
So I end my mentions with the most recent short animated film I saw. Rain town came out in 2011, but didn’t get much attention, which is a shame because it really is very good. It’s absolutely gorgeous and creates a wonderful atmosphere that tells a whimsical story. Watch it!!
A show about drunk bread? Count me in.
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lostty Reply:
January 25th, 2012 at 3:52 pm
you better believe it!
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I guess I’m one of those who under appreciate anime, and to be honest I don’t know that much. The only thing I know on your list is Time of Eve. The Diary of Tortov Roddle looks interesting and I like the art, I might try that one of these days.
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lostty Reply:
January 29th, 2012 at 12:25 am
I admit that I myself, don’t appreciate them too much either, so don’t worry. I think you’d like Tortov Roddle, really worth a watch!
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Not about story, quality and that hoopla critics enjoy but one of my fav shows of 2011 that had 3 minute long episodes is without a doubt, Morita-san wa Mukuchi. Another great one I also enjoyed but have yet to review due to being lazy is Fireball. I should really make an “Appetizer” segment one of these days.
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lostty Reply:
January 29th, 2012 at 12:27 am
I have seen Morita-san, another good one to add to the list! Fireball was good too, I haven’t seen its sequel yet though.
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Time of Eve and Rain Town have caught my interest. I will give these short anime a shot, then.
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lostty Reply:
January 29th, 2012 at 12:27 am
Both excellent choices!! I hope you enjoy them!
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I like this post. Great recommendations. I would also throw in Fumiko no Kokuhaku (Fumiko’s Confession) because it’s 2 minutes long and kind of funny and Glassy Ocean which is simply beautiful, melodic, and fantastical.
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lostty Reply:
January 29th, 2012 at 12:29 am
Thank you for the suggestions. I haven’t seen either, and I haven’t even heard of Fumiko’s Confession (and I just looked up, it seems its made by the same director as Rain Town!). I will definitely check them both out!
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Kogepan and Rain Town are two shows I’ve never heard of! I have to watch those sometime, as I love these short things. Time of Eve will be watched sometime later, I haven’t got the time to yet.
Thanks for the post! (and I will stop lurking and start commenting from now on)
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lostty Reply:
January 29th, 2012 at 12:31 am
I’m glad I was able to give some suggestions!
I love hearing peoples thoughts on my posts, but I’m happy just to know you read my blog
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I actually heard of Rain Town, but never got around to watching it. Will definitely make an effort to now.
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lostty Reply:
January 29th, 2012 at 12:32 am
It really is very good! I’m glad you will
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The movie version of Time of Eve was incredibly short to me, although I dare to say it was the best Anime film I seen in the last past three years.
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OverlordG Reply:
January 28th, 2012 at 11:44 pm
Actually I counted and it somehow reached the basic 90 minute mark. Let me check, it’s 106 minutes, credits included. Maybe it felt short to you.
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lostty Reply:
January 29th, 2012 at 12:24 am
They’re definitely implying it had that short feel for them because it was so good. Understandable of course.
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