Anime: Natsume Yuujinchou Shi
This was my 300th anime! Woo-hoo! I couldn’t have picked a better anime to watch.
The fourth season of Natsume Yuujinchou, a beloved series which has made me cry and yet warmed my heart all at the same time is back. It’s more of the same goodness as in the previous seasons. The anime starts off at a pretty quick pace for the first 2 episodes, but slows into its usual slice of life type episodes. This season, Natsume learns to rely a little bit more on his friends and really looking back, he has grown SO much. It’s also in this season that you can clearly see why the compilation of names in the book was called the book of friends. There seems to be more flashbacks in this season but they are crafted really well, in the sense that they are not always from Natsume’s point of view.
If last season saw more of what he was feeling, this season saw more of what people thought of him. Each season always has a theme in mind, which makes the episodes flow so well together. They don’t always follow the order in the manga, and there have been ongoing hints of the tension between Natsume and the exorcists for a while now. It’s what makes this anime more than just a slice of life, there’s conflict and moral dilemmas that add drama to this otherwise mild anime.
The fourth season might be the best so far and although there feels like there should be more, the ending would placate most fans for a while. There’s so many questions left to answer and there’s been a slow build up in the conflict between Natsume and Matoba. With the popularity of the latest season, there is hope that there are more seasons to come. The manga is slowly and steadily making progress, so perhaps there will be a bit of wait. In the meantime, there’s always the previous season to re-watch.
Living. Loving. Learning. 