I accidentally wrote a novel about Hyouka… sorry. Spoiler: it’s really fucking good. Another KyoAni banger. On the surface, among the sea of incredibly high quality shows KyoAni makes, Hyouka doesn’t stand out much. An extremely unassuming story about 4 friends that just go around solving random everyday mysteries happening in their high school. No drama, no fan service, no cute girls drinking tea, and it’s all wrapped in a muted, almost gloomy art style… Over the course of its 23 episodes I eventually came to understand Hyouka and define what exactly it means for a show to be a slice of life as well as what sets the greatest ones apart from all the rest. Hyouka is boring. Perhaps the most boring anime I’ve ever watched. Well it’s “boring” in the definition sense that not much ever really happens in it. The interesting thing is, every single episode kept me absolutely enthralled all the way through to the end despite this. Even in the show’s definitive ‘most boring episode’ which takes notes from Breaking Bad’s Fly Episode, two characters just sit in one room talking the entire time for 25 minutes straight. That episode passes by in what feels like 5 minutes. So how does it actually keep the viewer entertained? Realism. Everything from the characters, their dialogue, and their relationships, to the mysteries, and stories told in the show feel so incredibly real. They are so down to earth that it almost feels like you are part of the friend group going on the journey with them. The mundanity of reality that KyoAni is oh so good at representing in all their anime is just as present in Hyouka as any of their other shows. I think that’s what defines the greatest slice of life shows from the rest and why KyoAni’s are so incredibly adored. They represent real life with real people in real situations without many frills or exaggerations all wrapped in jaw dropping cinematography, score, art direction, and voice acting. Wait is this my love letter to KyoAni or a Hyouka review… Hyouka is a brilliant show from start to end with incredibly lovable characters fumbling their way through the mundanities of high school all why solving silly unimportant mysteries week after week. The show consists of four main characters with it taking place from the POV of one in particular; Houtarou. While the others see little in terms of character development, Houtarou has some of the biggest, most incredible to watch development in any character I’ve seen in anime. There is also two blossoming romances between the four main characters which is never explicitly shown but heavily implied especially in the last few episodes. The relationships and dynamics between these four friends feels so wonderful to see grow throughout the show. There is so much heart shown in their actions for each other. The show has a few key arch’s that are a few episodes each where they attempt to solve one specific larger mystery. It’s generally very serialized with references and story details carrying on all the way from the beginning to the finale. Not to give away too much, but this formula changes a bit towards the end in favor of more character/relationship development centric episodes which are some of my favorite! I cry a lot okay, but this show made me feel so much nearly every episode somehow even with barely anything emotional ever happening. The ending especially is one of if not my favorite in any anime I’ve seen. Do I really need to say more? Hyouka is incredible. It’s not KyoAni’s best work, but to be fair, thats a really high bar. An incredibly ‘boring’ show that left me with the biggest, sappiest grin and tears running down my cheeks. Possibly the most surprising show I’ve ever watched.