I love anime and most of director Shinkai Makoto's work - "The Place Promised in Our Early Days", "5 Centimeters per Second", "Children Who Chase Lost Voices", and "Your Name" are among the best anime in the past few years. I haven't yet seen "Weathering with You".
Unfortunately, "Suzume", his latest work, in my opinion does not live up to the quality of those other works. Don't get me wrong, the animation is just as good. But what was missing is the chemistry between the main characters and a compelling mystery in the story overall.
There is something to be said about reusing common tropes too much. A high school girl or boy protagonist is par for the course in Japanese media and especially in anime, but why does it always have to be that way? Surely sometimes we can get something different?
And the mysterious destruction of a town or city has already been done - and very well so - in "Your Name". Had we not seen these elements before, then I would say "Suzume" is a really good anime. Sadly, precisely because we have seen these elements before, then I have to say "Suzume" is an ok anime only.
If you're a fan of Shinkai Makoto - like I am - then you should watch "Suzume" so you can make up your own mind. If you're not, then probably skip this one because it is not among his best work.
Unfortunately, "Suzume", his latest work, in my opinion does not live up to the quality of those other works. Don't get me wrong, the animation is just as good. But what was missing is the chemistry between the main characters and a compelling mystery in the story overall.
There is something to be said about reusing common tropes too much. A high school girl or boy protagonist is par for the course in Japanese media and especially in anime, but why does it always have to be that way? Surely sometimes we can get something different?
And the mysterious destruction of a town or city has already been done - and very well so - in "Your Name". Had we not seen these elements before, then I would say "Suzume" is a really good anime. Sadly, precisely because we have seen these elements before, then I have to say "Suzume" is an ok anime only.
If you're a fan of Shinkai Makoto - like I am - then you should watch "Suzume" so you can make up your own mind. If you're not, then probably skip this one because it is not among his best work.