What do you get when you cross a time-traveling girl, a humanoid alien that can spurt out quantum equations per nano second, and an all too smiling bishonen esper into the life of a normal teenage boy who is trying to keep his temperamental girlfriend in checked. Rewind *ahem* female classmate from blowing up the world, and you have the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.
Based on a series of light novels written by Nagaru Tanigawa, illustrated by Noizi Ito, and published in Kadokawa Shoten, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, is the story of Kyon, an average Japanese teenager entering his first year of senior high school, gets entangled in the wild and self-amusing antics of Haruhi Suzumiya. Kyon’s enstrangement, or should I say, enslavement to Suzumiya begins when Kyon baffled by Haruhi’s speech at the start of the school year, gets him to engage Suzumiya in a string of casual conversation. Haruhi’s answers to his questions are an enigma and way off bizarre coming from a long brown haired beauty. Kyon makes a happenstance hypothesis about Suzumiya’s hairstyle. And the following day, Haruhi cuts her hair short— an all too drastic thing for any girl to do.
Warn by his two friends, Taniguchi and Kunikida, to stay the hell away from Haruhi Suzumiya. Kyon still engages Suzumiya in conversation and surprisingly, gets actual answers. Kyon’s world turns upside-down, when Haruhi inspired by a chide speech given by Kyon, announces amidst an ongoing class session, that she is forming her own club. There’s nothing unsual about forming a school club— not unless your club slogan is to invite time travelers, aliens, espers, and every other supernatural, extra-terrestrial, and psychic being to come in and join. And the first ‘victim’ to get dragged into this demented club is no other buy Kyon himself.
Soon they are join by Yuki Nagato; a stoic book worm(who might as well be a clone of another beloved anime heroine), Mikuru Asahina; a shy, busty, and cute sophomore, and Itsuki Koisumi; who as Haruhi would like to call ‘The Mysterious Transfer Student’.
Kyon finds out that these seemingly hapless ‘victims’ of the SOS Brigade(a.k.a. Save the world by Over-loading it with fun by Suzumiya Haruhi— believe me, even the original Japanese acronym says the same thing), are actually secret agents sent to monitor and keep in check Haruhi Suzumiya. Who doesn't know, has the power to alter and create new worlds. Thus it is their task— and Kyon’s nerve-wracking responsibility to keep her imperial highness in check. And how does one keep a temperamental god in control— why, keep her amuse with utter senseless antics and gimmicks.
The fourteen episode series starts with an amateur-made movie written and directed by Haruhi Suzumiya, and followed by the first and second episode of the series, what follows after is a side story episode involving a trip to an exotic island . The fifth episode is the actual third episode, the continuation of the episode three (which is really episode two). Everything is set in an anarchronologic order, one episode gets followed by another episode which seems to be another story on its own, then followed by the actual chronological episode.
It was voted as the anime of the year 2006 and appeared on the cover of New Type USA. It also won the Animation Kobe award for TV feature in the same year. The series was produced by Kyoto Animation and directed by Ishihara Tatsuya, with character design by Ikeda Shoko. After its TV launch in April 2006, a fandom of otakus calling themselves ‘Haruhi-ists’ emerged, adding to the success of the series. Heck, if Suzumiya knew that she had such a large fan base in the real world— she might have shifted worlds to this one.
Though most episodes of the series like side stories wherein the main focus of the story is to keep her imperial highness entertain— least, unknown to herself, threaten to annihilate the world. You will get a kick at how Kyon, still trying to reason out that the whole idea of Suzumiya being a God is absurd, gets dragged in every stunt or gimmick Haruhi perpetrates herself and trying to maintain the safety of the world.
Despite all the unusual yet hilarious stunts that shown in the series, there are still touching moments in the series that will make Haruhi irresistibly kawai. In episode 08, Someday in the Rain, Kyon wakes up— resting after enduring another demanding command of her imperial highness— and sees a slightly worried Haruhi standing over him. After doing some stand-in singing in episode 11, Live alive, Kyon finds Haruhi resting under a tree during lunch, pondering over the meaning of life. Kyon looks at her with such tender eyes that Haruhi mistakes for ridicule and she tries throw some grass at his face. But it seems the wind isn’t entirely in her control and strips of grass fly into her face. In episode 12, we get to know more about Haruhi Suzumiya.
After watching it, it is no small wonder why the series was voted one of the best anime in 2006 and created such a fan base after the airing of the series. A hilarious yet serious anime that will make you laugh to no end, and at the same time, start you to think whether there’s more to this world than it seems. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is one of those rare short anime series that you will love to watch, watch all over again, and never tire of. Where in the hell is Season 2?!#?*!!!!
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