HighxJoker is back at it again with the good feels
What They Say:
“Sunset of Youth”
HighXJoker are find out while telling the producer about their cultural festival, that they are slated to play a concert at said festival. This is their first big concert after their debut! Two problems, Hayato is having trouble finishing the new song he’s writing, and Jun is worried about the success of their performance.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Every time HighxJoker are present in an episode of this show, I always find myself giggling or “aww”-ing at something that happens. This week was no different. I really felt for these kids and their faith in themselves as a band.
They are all very excited to be performing for their student body, but also very nervous as well. The most nerves come from Hayato and Jun. Hayato offered for them to perform a song he had already begun writing but was unfinished. He hits a creative brick wall in the beginning which is very relatable to any writer anywhere. Jun, on the other hand, is worried about their quality as a band, whether they will be good at this performance. This is subtle at first but comes out in a small burst after Shiki told some people about their new song. Shiki is hyped for this concert and he believes Hayato can get this song done and they will be fine, but Jun stands up from the table and yells at Shiki for not thinking before he speaks and brings up the possibility that the song won’t be finished. Jun is the most realistic member of this band and arguably the most mature, but I feel like he should have more faith in his club. Sometimes it seems like Jun is the leader of the band instead of Hayato, even though Hayato is their club’s founder. He had a say in Shiki joining the band and as of yet, had not accepted him as an official member of the club. I assume this was done as a way for Shiki to earn his keep and give his all to this band, but he has been holding back, so it is fair for Jun to be this harsh but in that scene where he yells at Shiki was different. All of them are nervous about this concert, and it seems Jun was getting the brunt of it. He spends most of this week being more quiet than usual. Natsuki believes he is frustrated at himself about Shiki being different from him and hard to understand, and trying to make someone (possibly his parents or the fans) happy. Jun is harsh, but he means well and wants the best for the band.
High school is hard, I know, and being in a band of idols while still needing to deal with school could be even more exhausting. These kids pull it off like…well, kids in high school who also happen to be idols. This episode ends up showing us more of the relationship these kids have as a band and gives us our first performance from this band in this series so far. Every idol group but this one has had a performance at the end of their intro episodes, but HighxJoker did not, so this is where we get it.
The performance itself was very well animated and snuck in pretty good CGI when needed. Thought it was noticeable, it didn’t take away from the stunning hand-drawn portions of the performance of the band playing their instruments. In other anime that might involve a musical performance, the characters look very awkward and don’t look believable as they play their instruments possibly because the animation budget doesn’t allow them to be as detailed. But in this performance, the movements were next to flawless. My favourite part of the performance was this big sweeping shot that the camera did of the band that swooped from Haruna to each member as it makes its way to the back of the stage for a silhouette shot of the group from behind. I found it very impressive. This series obviously focuses very much on the performances and I especially commend them for this one. The hype for the joint concert is real and I might have sort-of high expectations for the presentation in that concert after seeing this one. I also loved how, after being a big part in promoting the concert, Jun finally acknowledged him as part of the Light Music Club; only as a “temporary member” but it was a beautiful moment for Shiki and I loved it. Someday I hope Jun lets him become an actual, official member.
In Summary:
Watching this group work and prepare for this concert was inspiring and very fun to watch. I love their relationships with each other personally and as a band. It was cheesy, but it’s always cool seeing things going well for all these groups. This series never fails to make me super happy.
Grade: B+
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
