Hi everyone! Today I'm writing about Nodame Cantabile, one of the funniest and most touching anime series I have ever watched.
Nodame Cantabile's story revolves around two music students who are completely different yet by some weird freak of nature, find themselves bunched together by their circumstances, or mainly, the heroine's incessant need to be attached to the uncooperative hero.
Enter Noda Megumi and Shinichi Chiaki.
You can clearly see the huge expanse of difference between the two characters which is what makes the story alluring. They both go to Momogaoka College of Music where Chiaki is the top student, coming from wealthy family of musicians, while Nodame (a mix of her first and last name) is your typical piano student who barely gets by.
Chiaki meets Nodame purely by accident by showing up dead-drunk in her doorstep only to awaken surrounded by garbage and other toxic materials he'd rather not figure out! Haha!
Naturally, Nodame is drawn to Chiaki's physical attributes immediately while Chiaki takes a longer while to appreciate Nodame and all her quirks. What's more, the series is surrounded by dramatic moments that definitely had me squealing, sitting on the edge of my seat in anticipation, and all but tearing my hair out in frustration!
They meet a whole range of different characters, some start out as Chiaki's fans, some end up as really good friends, and some eventually find out the gift that is hiding behind Nodame's unique personality.
What I liked the most about this series is the overall production. Despite the art and character designs being pretty simple, it incorporated a lot of comic expressions and extras that make them more memorable. Also, the music is note-worthy, a good sign that the anime production focused on the character's roles as music students.
All in all, it is a feel good anime series with a lot of character growth, which is all I could ever ask for in any story. There is definitely a good mix of laughter and tears to be had with this series, making it a must-watch for music-lovers out there.
Also, the manga is so awesome that they turned it into a live action series which had two live action movies as sequels. Pretty nifty, huh? So go and watch it!
Til next time, live long and prosper!