I started watching Welcome to the Ballroom (a.k.a. Ballroom e Youkoso) as soon as it
started back in July. I got into it
because an anime centered on ballroom dancing was something I hadn’t seen
before, and I thought it looked great based on its trailer. Right from the get-go, it’s been pretty fun,
delightful, and addicting.
The anime series centers on Tatara Fujita, a
third-year middle school student who lacks
aspirations. During a time where he’s at
a loss on what he wants to do with his life after middle school, he meets two
persons that made quite an impression on him.
First is Shizuku Hanaoka, a schoolmate of his who caught his eye due to
her prettiness and who he later learns is a talented ballroom dancer. And second is Kaname Sengoku, the instructor
of Ogasawara Dance Studio who happens to be a celebrated professional
dancesport competitor. Due to his
encounter with them, Tatara becomes drawn into the world of ballroom dancing
and his life has never been the same again afterwards.
During the first episodes, some
of the story beats reminded of Hajimme no
Ippo – in a good way. Indeed, there are
parallels between Ippo Makunouchi and Tatara Fujita, particularly on how
their arcs started. But, eventually,
Tatara’s story becomes more distinctive.
I really like that there’s neither a “prodigy” nor
“immediate success” element about Tatara’s characterization. While Ippo immediately went on a winning
streak when he started boxing, Tatara doesn’t necessarily win all of his
initial fights. He really has to start
at the bottom and work his way up. Sure,
he’s depicted to show some striking aptitude. But
he’s not quite portrayed as having an effortless, swift development. Nothing comes easy for him. The struggle and frustration of the process
are clearly integrated his arc. Growing
pains are apparent. Thus, whatever accomplishments he gains feel satisfyingly earned.
In relation to this, the storytelling
has adequate success in subverting expectations. For example (minor SPOILERS), the girl who
you may think Tatara will have as his eventual partner doesn’t turn out to be
her. The narrative takes its time before
it introduces his dance partner. He
first gets paired up with some other girls before he gets to meet her. And when they finally get together, it
doesn’t go smoothly. There’s
awkwardness. There’re fights. Again, there are growing pains. But this only makes their dynamic very
compelling and ultimately rewarding.
The animation is gorgeous. However, I wish the dance scenes have been constantly fluid, graceful, and realistic.
They are so at times, but it isn’t as sustained as I would have
wanted. Nevertheless, every frame is
eye-candy.
All in all, it isn’t perfect, but
I get to love Welcome to the Ballroom. It’s well-paced, wonderfully scripted,
visually appealing, and beautifully conceptualized.
It’s probably going to take a
while before there’s a follow-up to its 24-episode debut season, as the anime
has already caught up with the manga’s story (yep, the anime is so addicting
that I also began following the manga to get my fix). Until then, I will be eagerly waiting.
No comments:
Post a Comment