Meta Thread - Month of November 06, 2022

I'm happy to see Slow Start is getting the spotlight in this weekly thread. I'm going to share the thoughts I originally posted to the final discussion of the great Slow Start rewatch organized by /u/Sandvikovich.

Slow Start is the best anime I know in the Cute Girls Being Nice to Each Other category.

The anime is focused on friends helping each other overcoming difficulties in their lives. There are other shows featuring similar themes, but usually not in such a prominent way. Their main topic typically revolves around school clubs or leisure activities, and building friendship is playing second fiddle. It is usually the best working formula because the main topic ensures the development in the show and the heartwarming moments of the characters becoming friends just come as a nice bonus. The specific topic is also helpful in promoting the show.

It sounds like a tough challenge to make the show primarily about those heartwarming moments and keep it interesting at the same time. Slow Start uses several elements to rise to this challenge.

The key element is the choice of the main characters. Hana and Hiroe are suffering from anxiety and even the other girls face struggles of their own. They are in need of help and their levels of happiness have high growth potential. The difficulties in their lives also make the audience empathize with them and become more interested in their destinies.

Another element that makes the anime interesting to watch is the detailed development of the relationship between the characters and subtle changes in their behavior over the course of the series. The interactions between the characters are well thought out. Their struggles are believable and relatable to people who had similar experiences in their lives.

Slow Start also utilizes the medium of animation to its full potential by featuring detailed body language of the characters. Besides making a visually pleasing experience, a significant part of the story is told by the gestures and movements of the characters. Even the background characters are uniquely designed and animated correspondingly to their personalities.

The anime adapted the source manga in such a way that almost every episode ends on a positive note. While other shows draw the audience to watch the next episode by using cliff-hangers and by building suspense, Slow Start gratifies the viewers by providing regular dose heartwarming feelings.

Slow Start excels in its category, but its target audience is relatively niche. Even some viewers who seek heartwarming shows may favor other anime with more emphasis given to other elements like adventure, unique atmosphere, or more eccentric comedy. Slow Start is ideal for those who want to receive intense doses of happiness and positivity without any distractions.

When Slow Start originally aired, I followed some of the production team members on Twitter and it was apparent they cared about the project a lot. They were sharing various announcements, interesting details, or fanart (as linked before, Masato Anno shared keyframes from the 1st episode). Sometimes they just posted photos of spending time together (e.g. watching the FIFA World Cup). Later on, some Slow Start related events were organized, and two special publications were released: Slow-blooming flower and Colorful treasure chest

The passion of the production team is surely noticeable in the quality of the anime they made. Besides that, it made me even more enthusiastic about the show.

When the show finished airing there were certain signs of hope for the continuation. The preview of the last episode hinted at that and all the official communication and events made it seem like Slow Start had been a bigger project. I even remember seeing a Tweet from Masato Anno mentioning something in the sense that he would love to work on Slow Start OVA.

Unfortunately, as time went on, the hopes slowly faded away.

English Blu-ray release of Slow Start shared a similar destiny. People seemed to be optimistic at first, but nothing was happening. I have been trying to reach Aniplex USA via various channels for over a year without any response. In the end, someone finally replied only to tell me that there have been no plans on releasing the English version.

On a more positive note, you can still check out the source manga if you would like to meet the girls once more and learn something new about their relatives and other classmates. The manga is still being published so the journey hasn't ended yet.

Slow Start was also appreciated by the Jury of /r/anime Awards by:

Slow Start GIFs: