 One of this season's stranger new shows, featuring flying cats and some very unusual character designs - here's a first look at Windy Tales...
1 - Wind Cat
Nao has a fascination with the clouds and the wind - so much so that
she's happy to skip class just so she can sit & take photos of the
cloud. When a freak gust of wind carries a cat into the air, Nao is
caught up in it a blown off the school roof - a gust that seemed to be
centered on one of her teachers, Taiki. Her accident leads to rumours
that she tried to commit suicide, though, so Nao tries to find the
'flying cat' she'd seen earlier to prove her side of the story...
2 - Wind Festival
Nao, Miki & Jun have headed off to Taiki-sensei's home village -
Nao is hoping to learn more about his ability to control the wind, and
the upcoming Wind Festival there seems as good a chance as any. At
first, Taiki's not pleased to see them - he came home to get a break
from teaching, not to do more of it - so they have to resort to one of
the village's older folk for lessons. It's soon time for the Wind
Festival, though - and despite being told to stay indoors during it,as
the winds used could kill, Nao's determined to see it first-hand...
Character designs are 'interesting' - this is not a show you could
call 'visually pleasing', by any stretch. The art style's more what you
would expect to see from a trying-to-be-hip American cartoon, rather
than anime.
The feel and flow of the series, though, is definitely more
'trasitional anime' - this is a slice-of-life series, with a twist -
the twist being those who are able to control the wind. So far the
story is all about Nao and her efforts to find out more about this -
it's really an extension of the fascination with the wind that she
already had - and while the show is slow-paced and unusually drawn, it
does a good job of catching the attention.
I've mentioned in one or two recent shows that I'm just about OD'd on 'slice-of-life' anime. Windy Tales
has surprised my by being in some ways more of the same, but in other
ways intriguing enough to beep me interested. A breath of fresh air, if
you like, and well worth checking out. |
