Anime: Uta Kata

Uta Kata is an interesting idea for a story that did the mistake of becoming a series instead of a movie. The basic concept is extremely captivating but stretching it to last for 12 episodes, most of which are aimless slice of life, ends up killing all the excitement.

To put it very simply, the story is about some girl getting powers from some other girl and spends each episode trying to help those around her with magic. The catch is, most of the times she ends up creating more harm than aid, and thus there is a very dark side to her otherwise supernatural gift. Now let me make a list of the interesting points of this premise:
- Yuri innuendos between lolis; run now and watch it you sleazy viewers! Yuri never fails.
- A different magical transformation on each episode. That’s right, if you are bored with the same repeated clips and attacks of mahou shojo, then this is interesting for having a different uniform and a different elemental power on each episode.
- Dark and depressing side to an otherwise cheery genre. It goes against the norm of such shows and presents how even magic can have its toll and negative side.
- WTF ending trying to make everything bigger than life itself. Because it’s anime and can do this stuff.

In theory the above elements would be enough to have ourselves a winner. And it is true; when it first aired it had some interesting reactions from several viewers, especially female shojo fans and male Yuri fans. Unfortunately the feeling went away pretty fast because as I said it was a nice idea stretched to last too much and to the most part nothing happened. So if I am to add the negative side to the above strong points I mentioned, we get these results:
- There are lots of Yuri themed anime and this is amongst the weakest ones because of the simplicity of its characters and the blunt plot which makes it easily replaced with a dozen other better directed shows.
- Having different uniforms on each episode is a minor detail that in the longrun does not help much in keeping you interested. Cardcaptor Sakura for example did the same and it was a lot more moe to the point it mattered. Also there is Fairy Tale where a female warrior named Erza does the exact same thing and it is a lot fancier than just a few minutes of some simplistic magic we will never see again.
- Dark themed mahou shojo are uncommon but there have definitely been better examples. The older Princess Tutu and the newer Madoka Magica are famous examples which simply overshadow in context and presentation the simplicity and dullness of Uta Kata.
- Nobody does it better than Gainax when it comes to WTF endings and this is definitely nothing much before those.

So individually Uta Kata may seem interesting and special but in closer examination and comparison with anything else that came around it ends up being way too simple and boring. The character dynamics are weak, their design is generic, and the premise does not really deserve a whole series to be told. Backed up by unimpressive artwork and soundtrack is the final straw to tell you DON’T LIKE THIS SHOW. So I am just going to say go watch Princess Tutu or Madoka Magica (although I dislike Madoka) instead of this since it is completely obsolete before them.

I normally wouldn't be caught dead watching a "mahou shoujo" anime. What initially caught my eye with Uta Kata was that each of the protagonist's 12 costume designs were done by different, well-known manga artists, so I'd decided it was at least worth a quick peek. What I had watched with little interest actually turned out to be quite enjoyable, marking Uta Kata as one of anime's many underrated shows.

Story & Character

A special thing to note about this anime is in the 12 different magical powers that Ichika is granted. Given the show's 12-episode runtime, Uta Kata had basically set itself up to be a shallow, power-of-the-week series. The mere fact that its creators were able to avoid this altogether goes to show that, even with its rather simple and somewhat predictable storyline, a lot of thought was put into creating a story that flowed well and kept itself engrossing.

Uta Kata's story rarely loses focus, makes good use of foreshadowing and giving the viewer a clear idea of each character's importance to the main arc of the story. Ichika's experiences with her friends are detailed between each episode, and it's clearly seen how Ichika grows as the show slowly comes to an end. In many ways, Uta Kata is a coming-of-age story, and the amount of attention placed into this theme really lets Ichika's character grow on you. Though Ichika's growth in the series is strong, a small disappointment lies in Manatsu's lack of attention throughout. Although it's explained why she maintains a low profile while staying with Ichika, more attention should've been given to her relationship with Ichika, and place some focus on the emotions she goes through while watching over Ichika. Another thing is the show's lack of background. There are very few hints that imply the nature of Ichika's powers, but none of them amount to anything that is clear. The purpose of her powers, however, are cleared up well, and in many cases, that's all that really matters.

Animation

Created by gimik, Uta Kata looks almost exactly like Kiddy Grade in terms of animation design. Like Kiddy Grade, animation is clean, and always fits the mood well despite its simple design. Characters expressions are done well and always consistent, and never tear away from the mood of the anime. One beef I have with the show is its panty shots, which are numerous at first. Thankfully, the "ecchi" is lessened in frequency as the show reveals its more serious side. A special mention goes into Ichika's beautiful and varied costume designs, and the fact that the creators weren't compelled to display a full-length, nude transformation sequence every time Ichika called upon her powers.

Sound

There's nothing really special to mention about sound. Uta Kata's background music is completely forgettable, but always fits the mood and is mostly acoustic. The short violin quartet pieces between commercial breaks are memorable, however, as well as the show's OP/ED songs. On a few rare occasions, listening to a song over and over again as the number of remaining episode dwindle actually makes the song sound better. Uta Kata's OP/ED's are one of them.

Value & Enjoyment

Uta Kata is a surprisingly good show that deserves at least one rewatch. Its mood is always slightly sad, and it works really well if you're into a show with a little melancholy. At a brief 12 episodes, you'll likely be left wishing there was a little more, not because it feels unfinished, but because it was enjoyable.

This mine review is for those that have high standars (in watching anime, not in reading reviews).
You have been warned. Notice also that this IS my humble opinion.

The story.
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Not much to tell. There are girls, that go to some place, and there they encounter a problem, and the protagonist call a deity to solution that problem. Yes, that is it.

I see that this one IS very similar, to Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha, but without the dumber application of programming/robotics of the later. So similar: Even, in the first episode, the protagonist start introducing her mother, father and friends just like in Nanoha.

Characters.
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They are the common mix of stereotypes. Nothing to remember.

Animation.
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This serie is of the statical ones. It could be called "Manga to be seen on a screen". Mostly they move their eyes and mouth. Screen motion and screen change do the rest.

Sounds seems standard. It did not called much my attention.
------

Value.
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Nothing really. Since story, characters and animation are low.

Enjoyment.
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Low.
I followed this serie because OTHER downloads were slow, and this one were fast, and it caught me thinking if the next episode will be improving or will be even more empty.


Finally I can say some of the series that I believe are of excepcional quality, so you can have some reference and some motive of why I qualified this serie as I did.
They are (in no particular order):
Maison Ikkoku, Dr Slump, Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon, Ranma 1/2, Robotech, Captain Future (and others that I not remember).

I am sure you know some or all of these, and I am sure that you consider them to be at least very good. That kind of anime is the one that I humbly recommend to watch.

Uta~Kata was just as I thought it would be from the reviews written, but I was looking forward to the darker side of the series and I got it and it honestly wasn't bad.

animation[/u]: Overall, it was very good animation. The eyes were big (bishoujo eyes) but they were cute and colorful. Each character had his or her own hair color and it pretty much suited their personality in a way. The costumes were amazing[/b]and that was one of the main things I looked forward to each episode was each costume that Ichika wore had its own unique value representing an element. Each costume was hand drawn by a famous manga artist which lists at the end of each episode who they were and what the sketch looked like. (My personal favorite was fire..but they were all unique and awesome.)

sound[/u]: You basically couldn't ask for better sound than this. The opening was light-hearted and cheerful and I listen to it every now and then on my ipod but the ED was of perfection. I love the artist Savage Genius and that ending (Itsuka Tokeru Namida) was just spectacular with the manga artists work thrown in it made me shiver. All the effects sounded very real in the anime too, so I thought this deserved a 10.

story[/u]: The story was very in depth. It certainly kept me guessing until the last minute on a few things. Nothing went unanswered and all of the answers are basically held until the final episode. (I happened to take a few lucky guesses that I was proud of.)

character[/u]: Each character had his or her own personality. No one character was the same so I really enjoyed that. There was character development throughout the series. Not one character really remained static or unchanging. The seiyuus were fantastic; couldn't ask for a better job.

value[/u]: This was like my fellow reviewer said: a gem among animes. I looked forward to watching the show every night. As the darkness and mystery kept building up, the more I loved Uta~Kata.

enjoyment[/u]: I really enjoyed Uta~Kata a lot. I would seriously consider rewatching it in the near future just to take a look at all the colors and costume designs in this anime, thats what really makes it sparkle.

Overall, you will like this if you want a break from hardcore action. It starts off light-hearted and moves to dark and I love animes like that. Give this one a shot and you'll see.

~cc4rtwrigh

Verdict: Surprising Jewel

It's true that character designs already tell you a lot about a series - but they definitely won't tell you everything. And looking at the index picture, the educated guess about this one will be "just 'nother magical girl series", only spiced up by a dose of "moe" thrown in for good measure. Which isn't entirely off the mark, of course - but the beauty of this one lies in what they make of it.

Since what first starts out as an (above average) MahouShojo concept soon turns into something considerably more wicked and intriguing - making this one a recommended watch even for those who usually DON'T feel any particular interest in skimpily clad girls waving around magical powers.



Animation:
Explaining the concept of "moe anime" will take too long here, so I'll stick with just stating that, although the facial designs may look a bit simplistic at first glance, they are highly consistent and able to convey a good deal of emotion - while the animation is fluid, and the overall character detail level is rather high, especially the costumes.
Apart from that, the series skillfully makes use of summer colors, sun hazes and scene lighting, resulting in a really enjoyable visual experience.

Sound:
While the background tracks fall somewhat short of being spellbinding, both op and ed are of a high quality - and will most likely grow on you sooner or later. I for my part made sure to always watch both in every episode (also because there are interesting scenes in them that change with every ep).

Story:
It's probably not overly complex, but the creators really managed to make the most of it. It may seem to drag on a bit during the first three episodes, but you soon notice that this was a deliberate move to slowly make you familiar with the characters. And the more the series' darker undertones begin to surface, the more they will have you on the edge of your seat.

Characters:
Another aspect where this one shines, although not right away. Manatsu will seem kinda shallow to you at first, but before long it turns out that there are quite valid reasons for her behavior. Ichika on the other hand is one of the most credible magic girl characters that I have seen in a while, since she reacts naturally confused to all the arcane stuff happening around her (and to her). And while she seems somewhat clamped up during the early episodes, she soon after reveals to be a really strong and believable character.



Finishing line:[/u]
Great watch. And already scheduled for a rewatch.
While the premise of the series seems simple enough, the ensuing developments really turn it into something memorable. The strongest point of this one might be that somewhere in the middle of it, you will more and more begin to understand Ichikas personal troubles - and soon after get really attached to her and care for her. Which will be just in time for the intelligent and moving finale, where suddenly everything falls into place.

To sum things up, even though UtaKata may not be a timeless masterpiece, it sure is a lot better than what it looks like at first glance - and is definitely worth a watch if you like believable characters and a nice story.

First impression: Well my first impression is not that verry good. From the intro I got the feeling it was yet another kind of magical girl anime. With other words not something that I liked that much. But then again you can't allways trust your first impression since it could be wrong alot of times.

Animation: It's pretty good and so on but... Im not sure how I like the designs since it feels like they are like 12 or something like that. I think they're suppsed to be 14-16 something like that and it throws me of a bit. Other than that it's quit good. And even if it does have the whole magical girl aspect in the show it don't reuse the whole half nudity transformation that they do in most magical girls animes. Why don't they you might ask well because she uses diffrent skimpy outfits everytime so there you have it but then again not all of them are skimpy.

Sound: I really do love the outro, I listened to it so mush that Im sick of it and yet that very song is coming out of the speakers as Im writing this review. Im not that picky about sound and animation since thats really not my thing, I belive that if you get to caught up in that you might miss out something good. As long as I don't dislike it too much I don't care. That not to say that they have bad voice acting in the show it pretty good... but I do get quite annoyed by the whole ROGER that they say alot of times or yohkai (No not demon) as they say in japan.

Story: Now you might wonder why the hell did I continue to watch this if I don't like the whole magical girls genre if you're not wondering start asking that now. To be honest I didint have any plans to continue watching it but before I cheked out the first episode I had alredy dl 6 of them so I thought why the heck not. Much to my surprise it won me over so that I can't stop watching it and started waiting on the next episode in short it got me hooked. What really won me over was the story, it's not your typical magical girl anime for you. It's darker and mysterous. You don't have any change into a super girl to kick the ass on some monsters that want to invade the world, I hope you heard me NO such thing in this anime... so far at least and I doubt there will be any of the sort in it. So why with the whole semi nudity change into a costume... as silly as it may sound it's because she's doing someone else's homework. It all starts with summerbreak and the students are cleaning up the school. Then this girl Ichika drops her cellphone in an old storage place. When she later goes there she finds that the cellphone somehow got stuck inside this giant mirror and a girl she dreamt about show up and walks throu the mirror with her cell phone in exchange she's going to summon the spirits of earth and write about it. Ok so it sounds crapy but I just don't want to give away to much of the story since it's good or maybe Im just not cut out for this. But keep in mind it's not all happy and lovy dovy like other series. Im a bit dissapointed with the ending... it's not quite what I had expected it to be and in some ways it didint answer all my qustions on the series. I hope the OVA will cover up those things.

Characters: You have a few main characters and a few support characters the usual. There is alot of character growth. Even if it's short you do get to know them and see who they really are and so on. Alot of things happens to the main character during this time and you don't really understand all the things about the characters you want to know more about them and how they are connected to each other and to be honest I could not see where this was heading or what's going to happen in the end.

Value/Enjoyment: Im the kind of person who don't like to rewatch most things unless it's that freakin good... this show has a great set of characters that you don't really know what's happening to them and a great story where you understand some things and some you won't until they reveal what's it's all about if they do it. But this might as well be one of the series that I'll rewatch some day like maybe 2-3 months from now. The first episode did not get me hooked or anything like that... it felt more like another anime series out of many but a few episodes in it got alot darker and things start to changes and before I knew it I couldn't wait to se what was going to happen.