Part ten of PA Works series on cute girls doing cute things in rural towns.
With that said, they’ve definitely been maturing as a studio. All their shows of this vein have tried to capture the feeling of small town life, and I feel like this one has come the closest yet. Their other shows tend to get all wrapped up in the cute anime girls doing cute anime girl things. This one’s not really like that. The main focus isn’t on the girls, it’s on the town itself. Sakura Quest successfully captured the feeling of community that was only halfway there in their previous shows. It truly feels like the main character is not the cute girls, but the town of Manoyama. It captures an entire cross-section of the town and their feelings and thoughts as the time marches inexorably onward and the town begins to change and evolve.
That said, it’s still not my favorite genre. I did struggle to pay attention at times. But I think Sakura Quest was one of the best of the genre.
- Storytelling – B – Good focus on the changes as people leave town.
- Voice – B – Does great at capturing the sense of community.
- Characters – B – For once, the cute girls were some of the least developed characters (but still great).
- Attention Grab – C – The show’s biggest weakness for me.
- Production – B – Looks fine.
- Overall – B-
Recommendations – Hanasaku Iroha, Kuma Miko