My Ordinary Life

Alright. I'll agree it's hit or miss, but if it's miss for you, I won't like you very much. Just saying.

This show is an experience so bold, so dashing, so polished... so finished... that the only word that may even come close to describing it is "exquisite". The animation is the best I've ever seen in anything ever. Seriously. Just watch it. It's like they had no budget at all and they just threw all their talent and heart into it. The art style is cute, fitting, calming, and helps set the mood for what the show is. Same goes for the music. Overall, the presentation is a huge, HUGE strength of this wonderful show. If you were to judge it just by its looks and sound, anyone on earth would enjoy it greatly.

And, of course, I still find myself being very drawn to listening to the intro themes, and even the ending themes when I need something to cheer me up. I'll even rewatch them in glorious 1080p over and over again just because of how much I adore the perfectly-done animation and beautiful art in glorious HD.

Characters. All of them are unique in at least some ways and are set up in such scenarios that are absolutely hysterical. But, now we get into the hit or miss parts. The comedy is really... slapstick-slice-of-life-anime sort of thing. Of course, that's not to say it's bad. I personally prefer said comedy over almost every other type. However, some wouldn't, which is a shame. It pulls it off very well while also having soul to it. On the outside, it may just look like a regular Lucky Star based slice of life, but on the inside, it's far more than that. There are times, like in Lucky Star, where you may be touched by the sad or adorable moments. In Nichijou, imagine those, but nearly tear-inducing. This is especially present in the second season--episodes generally have more of a continuity to them, with far more character development involved.

To add to the hit or miss, it incorporates several jokes and gags based on Japanese culture. Without even considering it's Japanese animation, this show is very Japanese. This could confuse even some Lucky Star fans that aren't too indulged or exposed to such humor and lore. Of course, with that aside... it emulates the culture's tropes and traditions better than pretty much anything else.

There's just something I can't describe about this show. Something I'm missing. There's just so much polish, so much... work. Perhaps I just have a thing for amazing animation? I feel it in this more than anything that they poured all their work into this work of art... even though it may seem like the art is its primary strength from what I've said, I believe there's a balance of almost everything in this show. Tons of humour, tons of beauty, and tons of soul. It feels as if it's a delicately sewed fabric--while it may be difficult to decide what one part of it is better, take away any part of it and it will fall apart. With all that being said--it's not something you or I can just describe. Not any farther than I just did. It's something that you need to see, hear and feel for yourself. And that, just might be... the sign of a true masterpiece. five out of goddamn five. I truly think this is the greatest anime ever created. I don't even care how bold that statement is. Just watch it already, dude.

Take Azumanga Daioh as base, then add in Pani Poni Dash and compress it into 26 eps and you have Nichijou. This show controls its "beat" very well, switching between high and low gear without any signs of awkwardness. The base of it all is the regular slice of life show, so the pace would be a bit slower than say Pani Poni Dash. Also the episodes are only mildly related to each other, so you can pick your favorites and watch them any time.

Nichijou did very well as a comedy in every aspect, from the story to even its own name, seeing as "My ordinary life" is anything but. It used every plot element it introduced to further its own loosely defined "plot." It used short segments of story rather than fully formed episodes creating smaller episodes within each episode, allowing the story to bend quickly in different directions and giving possibilities to revisit some ideas later while quickly firing off a new plot devise to distract you and keep you on your feet. Through every second of the story something was happening, even at the times nothing was happening. It did what stories like "Lucky star" and "Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumia" did but its own fun and creative way. Rather than just putting in random characters that might make a background interesting, they used each person giving every character depth by never making any character a "background" character. They gave insight into each character in some form or another making a very unique story. Nichijou kept me laughing every step of the way, and I'm sure it will do the same for you.