Hello lovelies!
I hope you're doing well! I'm back with another anime review, and this time, it's for "SoniAni," or "Super Sonico the Animation!"
So for a little background information, Super Sonico (すーぱーそに子) is a character that was created by the Japanese computer and video game company Nitroplus, and she made her debut at a music festival sponsored by Nitroplus in 2006. She was so popular that the company developed music, manga, games, toys, and now an anime series all about her! Sonico's defining features are her pink hair and headphones (as well as her large bust). Nitroplus has since made other characters that are companions to Super Sonico, and their merchandise is sold alongside hers.
Now I didn't know much about Super Sonico when I decided to watch the anime, other than that I had seen a lot of pictures of her online, and that my friend Eunice adored her and loved to draw her a lot. I was a bit put off initially because of a lot of her suggestive photos, but she was too cute to resist so I jumped in anyway.
To start off, here's the plot synopsis from Anime News Network:
"Super Sonico is an 18-year old college student who plays guitar for the three-girl band Fastest Speed in Space and models for pin-ups. In spite of her busy schedule, she still finds time to her grandmother at her restaurant. One night, her band members Suzu and Fuuri, are late to a concert, forcing her to play alone. The result of that show will have far-reaching consequences for Sonico."
Unlike the plot synopsis for "Is the Order a Rabbit?," I don't like this one very much. It seems to focus only on one episode instead of a synopsis for the entire series. I'd describe this anime as a chronicle of Sonico's life, centering around her work as a model and her passion for her band, which is actually called First Astronomical Velocity. Sonico tends to get herself in trouble for her inability to say 'no' when someone needs her help, which leads to some pretty crazy situations in which her friends Suzu and Fuuri jump in to save the day. If I were to categorize this into a genre, I would say it's a mix of slice of life and comedy.
Let's get on to the characters, shall we?
What is "Super Sonico the Animation" without Sonico? Here she is in her everyday style. Like the plot synopsis above stated, Sonico is a college student who also works a job as a model, is in a rock band with her friends playing the guitar, and helps her grandmother out with her restaurant as well. Sonico lives in her own apartment apartment, and it's never mentioned where her parents are, as all we ever see in the anime is her grandmother. At first, Sonico seems like the too-perfect anime heroine who we all love to hate for being that way, but as you continue watching, her flaws are shown, and you can't help but fall in love with her. One of her main flaws is that she just cannot get up in the morning. She has at least four alarm clocks, and her five cats have to crawl in bed with her and meow at her constantly--even then she might fall back asleep. She has a much thicker build than most anime heroines, and that's one of the reasons I like her. It's nice to see a girl with a softer body be happy and successful, even if she's still drawn in wonky anime proportions. Sonico is a hard-working girl with a positive attitude, so you can't help but root for her. She is also a bit naive, but luckily she has her friends to help steer her in the right direction.
Speaking of friends, meet Suzu. Suzu is the leader and bassist of First Astronomical Velocity, and Sonico's best friend. The essence of Suzu is captured in the above photo. Basically. Suzu works at a themed cafe (you can see her pink nurse uniform in this picture), and is in charge of all band activities. She sets up rehearsals, books shows, and spouts out a lot of big ideas whether it's about songs, lighting, or costumes. Suzu is of average build, and is the smallest of the three girls, but she constantly loves to show off the bodies of her friends and thinks that they're beautiful, though sometimes she can get a little overbearing on the matter. Suzu brings a lot of comedy into the series due to her being outspoken and wound up all the time, and it's entertaining as hell to watch. I find myself relating to Suzu in that when I'm passionate about something, I go all in, and I'll do whatever it takes to reach a goal. Suzu's passion for her band and her friends is inspiring, so she's a character I love to watch.
The last of the main three characters (but certainly not the least) is Fuuri. Even though I've fallen for Sonico's cuteness and Suzu's fire, Fuuri is something special. Fuuri is the drummer of First Astronomical Velocity, though you could never tell that by looking at her. She's the softest, cuddliest anime character I've seen in a long time (I think her boobs are even bigger than Sonico's), and she's also the quiet type. The main gag with Fuuri is that she never stops eating. In just about every shot that she's in, Fuuri has some sort of food in her hand or in her mouth, and when she doesn't she's thinking about food or talking about how hungry she is. Usually when anime characters eat like this, it's portrayed as a bad thing, but somehow the writers of SoniAni have made it so adorable. She'll walk into a scene with an armful of nikuman and all I can think of is "OMG SO CUTE!!!!!" I can't put my finger on it, but something about Fuuri just melts your heart. She's a girl who loves her friends, loves her food, and loves to perform onstage. With all that drumming I guess it makes sense that she's hungry all the time!
If I introduced all of the characters in SoniAni this post would be a novel, but I want to introduce just one more character who I think brings a lot into this series. That character is:
Manager Kitamura.
This man is so hilarious he was one of the reasons I kept watching the series. More Kitamura please!!! Mr. Kitamura is Sonico's manager at the modeling agency, and he always wears this ogre mask. You never see his face. Ever. Which is part of why he's so fabulous. Mr. Kitamura is always with Sonico on the job, and he's very protective of her. If a photographer ever has unsavory intentions, he opens up a can of whoop-ass and makes sure that they're never seen again. HE USES A FREAKING KATANA. He's a fine upstanding man who has zero tolerance for sexual harassment in the work place, and that's a huge problem in the modeling industry, especially in the gravure style shoots that Sonico does. I'm glad that the writers introduced a character like this in the series and shed light on this problem, even if it was in a lighthearted way.
One more thing that I like about this series is that the ending song of every episode is a different song by First Astronomical Velocity. I love the fact that they kept the continuity of the band theme and had a wide variety of songs instead of just one song that they play over and over again. I'm hoping that First Astronomical Velocity will turn out like Houkago Tea Time and that they'll keep releasing music, because these songs are really good! I need to get my hands on the OST for this show so I can listen to all the songs again.
I don't know if this show has a confirmed second season, but I surely hope it does! This series is fun, hilarious, and heartwarming, and I think anyone can enjoy it regardless of gender or age (though I think I'd rate this PG-13). There are some gratuitous body shots, but that was to be expected with an anime about Super Sonico. I don't think that they distract from the plot and since they made Sonico a gravure model, it fits in with the scenario. Overall, I would definitely recommend this anime if you need something to cheer you up, or just want something fun and uplifting to watch.
If you're interested, you can watch the anime on Crunchyroll here!
Have you seen this anime yet? Let me know what you think in the comments!
Thank you so much for reading, and I'll see you in my next post!
xoxo
Martha
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