After Aria showed me the light, I figured I’d give slice of life one more chance, and Hidamari Sketch, which I had attempted previously, seemed a good enough place to start. I still don’t think I get it entirely — I feel like I’ve gone snorkeling in a body of water that warrants a submarine — but at least I enjoy it enough now to keep at it. And anyway, there’s plenty to love about Hidamari Sketch. The artistic direction, the quirky characters, the humor — oh, the humor.
Moment #10 earns its lofty position by being the single funniest anime moment of the year for me. I don’t know if it’s all that funny in its own right, but it caught me off guard and left me in tears. You might say it’s masterful timing on the part of the writers.
In a nutshell, Yuno and Miyako are looking for a subject for their drawing class, and they come upon a bust of the (in)famous Marcus Junius Brutus. Brutus showing up in anime at all made this scene immediately funny to me. But what truly made the scene was Miyako’s doing exactly what I would do in this situation:
I lol’d. I rofl’d. I daresay I even lmao’d.
And after watching that scene another half dozen times, I finally moved on to Miyako’s ordeal in carrying the weighty Brutus.
This is one of those scenes that resonates with me at just the right pitch, that seems written specifically for me. It’s Pontifus-service. Of course I’m interested in Brutus; Julius Caesar aside (actually, Julius Caesar considered, I guess), he hangs out in the mouth of Satan in the Inferno, and I’m positively bookish, so I like that stuff. And of course I want to see characters in anime, which I love, exploit classic literature, which I also love, for the sake of humor. It’s like they knew, and scenes that call into question the psychic abilities of their writers are some of my favorites.
Man, I forgot about that scene. It was great. were you talking Shakespeare there, before Dante? Brutus is kinda goofy at the end of Julius Caesar, ultimately. Though, uh, not in a Hidamari way. Though Sae would probably make a good Mercutio.
Haha yeah, this scene was hilarious. Omae mo ka, Brutus????!?!?!? Miyako/Yuno antics are hilarious in general.
[...] Pontifus: Omae mo ka, Brutus? (excellent moment indeed!) [...]
@Cuchlann
Yeah, Shakespeare, and just the situation in general. It would have been a better play, maybe, if Brutus had been goofy in a Hidamari way. There should have been a bathhouse scene with Brutus and Cassius.
@lelangir
I was a little surprised that the scene I found funniest in Hidamari Sketch didn’t even involve Yoshinoya.
You know Yoshinoya always pleases me, but after the first few episodes (definitely this latest season), she hasn’t been as amusing as she once was. Though the short where she ran around the school during break hiding from the principal was excellent.
yoshinoya’s voice is what turns me off. I like how, compared to the typical “I’m only 40 years old and single” teacher archetype. Yoshinoya savors her childishness…but I think her overflowing moe(?) is taken a bit too far for my tastes, even if it is hyperbolic meta-satire.
I wouldn’t call Yoshinoya moe in the traditional sense. “Hyperbolic meta-satire”…yeah, something like that. She seems like a reaction to moe, an example of moe taken way too far. Her “moe” is just ridiculous, and nobody in the show really admires her for it, if I remember correctly. I think that’s part of why I thought she was hilarious though. I have a high tolerance for moe anyway.