Hiiro no Kakera 9/10

Hi there, renxkyoko Iglesias here..

This is about the anime, Hiiro no Kakera ,  which I had promised to ” review”  quite a while back.  I have given it a high rating because it has all the elements of what I love in an anime…. supernatural/ fantasy/ thriller, and more importantly ,  a kind of romance that I highly approve of…. no rivals , no girls with big boobs that get in the way,  lily white protagonists, ( hey, it’s fantasy, right ? ) and  OTL that spans a thousand years.  I could have given it a 10/10  if not for the fact that the characters  wear their high school uniforms, morning noon and night, 24/7, and the utter destruction of the world  depends on a 15 year old protagonist  who doesn’t seem to realize the gravity of the situation, that is,   the  fate of  humanity rests upon her fair shoulders.

So, what is Hiiro no Kakera all about ? Here’s  a short summary. [ SPOILERS Galore ]

 

The female protagonist is Tamaki Kasuga, a 15 year old  girl whom we see on first episode   getting off the bus from Tokyo, to  ” visit” her grandmother who lives in a remote village. No one is there to meet her at the bus stop, so she walks off alone  towards what she remembers  is the road to her grandmother’s house. She  sees  ” hungry -for – human flesh” spirits/gods in the forest,  and she’s saved by  a boy her age, named  Takuma Onizaki, whom she later finds out  is one of  her  5 Guardians  who are duty bound from birth and by blood,  to  guard and protect the  Tamayori Princess, who happens to be Tamaki.

So who are the Tamayori Princess  and her 5 Guardians , and what are their roles in the story ?

About a thousand years ago, the Tamayori Princess was the one who sealed  the power of the sword Okirinimaru.  Whoever gets hold of this sword  will possess a power and strength so great that if left uncontrolled,  the wielder can destroy the world whether he likes it or not.   Her descendants , or anyone with the Princess blood flowing in her veins, are duty – bound to protect the seal. Over  the centuries,  5 artifacts that originally belonged to the Tamayori Princess ( bracelet, small bells, ring, mirror, necklace ) are now  used as protective  barriers , and Tamika and the 5 Guardians are supposed to protect these barriers and seal from getting broken and unsealed.. On first episode,  Tamaki learns that her grandmother is the current princess. However, as  the princess grows old,  the barriers and the seal considerably weaken, as well. Time to pass on this duty, she declares.

I know you’re wondering about Tamaki’s parents.  Her parents  have been sent to work overseas,  and I have a feeling the grandmother has a hand in this. It’s just too convenient.  So, now, Tamaki has to enroll at  the village high school, where the 4 Guardians (  the 5th one is the oldest, and is not in HS )  are also enrolled, and Takuma is her classmate.

Henceforth, the adventure begins.

This anime has 24 episodes, and the title means Scarlet Fragments.  It may look like I have revealed so much of the story in the summary, but, believe it or not,  that is just the summary of  the first 2 episodes. There are so many twists and turns, betrayals, treachery, and  deceits  that will  have you watching   on the edge of your seat from get – go.  In my book, however, there are only 3 real antagonists in the story, 2 are straightforward villains, and the other is the one that will surprise you.

What I like even more is the romance part  of the story.   It does not dominate , and in fact it sometimes feels  wishy-washy, and  it’s there  just to lighten our mood. There is no romance  ” feels” in 14 episodes, the first season. The main guy, Takuma, is, in fact, a tsundere,  and is cold towards Tamaki, calls her an idiot  all the time, and gets easily annoyed by her. Tamaki, on the other hand, is  caring , optimistic, lively, and self- sacrificing. She does not show her real feelings for Takuma until the second season. Here’s the thing….. on the surface, the story seems to be all about the protection of the seal , and all the things  Tamaki and the Guardians have to go thru  to prevent  the destruction of the world from happening.  But if  you dig deeper, you will find  love that spans a thousand years is , in fact,  the core and  origin of this story, and love is the thing that is able to save humanity.

So, this is it. Hiiro no Kakera on spotlight. 9/10 . * throws confetti *

If you have already seen this anime, please feel free to comment and discuss  and let me know what you think.