Ookiku Furikabutte

To start, I have to say that I was never a fan of baseball. I've always found it incredibly dull, and I'm therefore still not sure what posessed me to start watching this anime. But I am beyond glad that I did, because its become my favorite of all time. Oofuri was the best "pick me up" I could've asked for at a rough time in my life - you can't help but get the warm-fuzzies from this one - and it completely changed my attitude towards baseball to boot.

There's something about Oofuri that has a more real feel to it than other sports anime, such as Eyeshield 21, and even more so than many other anime in genral. The drama isn't overplayed, the characters are believeable, and it really pulls you into the game. I found myself shouting at my computer screen at points, jeering the umpire and cheering the team. Its that good.

The opening themes are fabulous (I now have "Dramatic" on my ipod) and the animation is clean and consistant. The characters are unique and likeable, and their skills come from hard work. The plot progression is unhurried and neatly developed, with the characters growing as innings go by. I enjoyed the measured suspense, and I was left wanting more episodes at the conclusion of the series. My only regret about this series is that I wish there had been more out-of-game episodes, simply because I was addicted to the character interactions.

My warnings: avoid this one if you don't enjoy obvious shounen-ai undercurrents, are particularly impatient, or are easily frustrated by meek protagonists. If none of that will bother you, then Ookiku Furikabutte is absolutely a must watch!

I was happily surprised when I started watching this show. At first I didn't know if I would like the characters, especially Mihashi, but everyone grew on me over the series. By the time they started playing matches I was on the edge of my seat hoping Mihashi wouldn't mess up and Abe's a demanding pitcher. Of course Abe had to get over himself at first. I wanted to shake him a couple times before he got to really know Mihashi and how much work he puts into pitching. I really wish this series was longer. Oh well, let's watch it again!