No tags yet.
Iroduku: The World in Colors
Shades of Good and Bad
Series in a Sentence
Hitomi, a young witch who cannot see colors, is sent back in time by her grandmother, Kohaku, in order to regain what she has lost.
What I liked
Since this series deals with time travel, though not to a huge degree past the aforementioned sending of Hitomi back in time, there are a lot of “fish-out-of-water” tropes at play here that I am a sucker for. From seeing Hitomi react to technologies and people not present in her time to seeing how people react to her, there are a lot of cute and heart-warming moments. On the flip side, Hitomi’s presence in an established friend group allows for some dramatic confrontations between cast members. Such moments, though, are not just there for fan service or drama: the series depends on them for growth. For the most part, such growth is successfully pulled off. An argument always leads to reconciliation and understanding, bonding moments further romantic “ships” between the cast, and almost every question of confrontation left unaddressed or unanswered receives a resolution. These moments also help propel a facially simple story past that label. On the topic of the story, it is predictable but interesting enough when combined with the animation and sound design to not be a hindrance. The magic, for example, is subtle yet eye-catching with color and the variance in how it is presented is pleasant. Besides the growth I addressed earlier, characters are generally inoffensive and likeable with most getting just enough screen time to not feel left out or unimportant. Ultimately, likeable characters, good enough animation, a subtle soundtrack, and a focus on growth through confrontation made this a relaxing series to watch.
What I Didn’t Like
There isn’t really anything I didn’t like about this show but, unlike other “masterpiece” series that I would say the same for, that’s not a great thing here. Perhaps the best word to describe that statement is a word in my “what I liked” section: Inoffensive. For many, that in and of itself will be a negative. Character designs were FINE; Music was FINE; story was FINE; drama was FINE. When looking for a series to watch, the word fine might be something keeping you away: If you want to sink time (albeit not a lot relatively since it is only a one-cour series), you want to go for something great. There is ONE thing I didn’t like, but that’s more suited for spoiler territory.
Overall Feelings
Iroduku was the feel good story I wanted to watch but not quite the feel good story that I wanted to get. The story progressed in a predictable way, characters and relationships grew in a predictable way, and the production was what you would expect. Despite that all, though, it was still a good watch. I must reiterate, though, that it wasn’t the fell good series I wanted. On the heels of rewatching shows like Barakamon (and catching up on the manga), I was craving any story with similar beats. On the surface, the idea of self-discovery and the “fish-out-of-water” story was there but deep down the quality was just a bit average overall. Give it a watch if you want, but don’t feel bad about putting it on the backburner. You can discover yourself in many different ways thanks to many different people.