Nostalgic Anime Retrospective No.23] Variety Sound Effects in "Honey and Clover," Played with "Comic Notes

The award-winning shogi (Japanese chess) manga "March Lion" has been adapted into an anime that will air from October 8, 2016.

When one thinks of Chika Umino's anime adaptations, "Hachimitsu to Clover" ("Hachikuro") is the first that comes to mind. The first season aired in April 2005 as the first installment of the noitamina slot (the second season aired in June 2006).

Comical sound effects synchronized with "comic notes

HACHIKURO" has a strong impression of a sad love story depicting an unfulfilled one-sided love. The film begins with a scene in which the main character, Takemoto, reminisces. When I was still small. One day, while riding that blue bicycle that used to go everywhere with me, I suddenly thought..." ...... Piano background music is playing in the background.

As the opening theme ends and the title opens, we see Takemoto, now a university student, receiving croquettes from Morita, his eventual love interest, and sharing them with Mayama and others who live in the same apartment. This scene, too, begins with Takemoto's narration, and although it is a short scene of about five minutes, background music is frequently played to accompany the characters' appearances and the timing of their conversations. In just five minutes, four pieces of background music are used.

In addition to the background music, you will notice that there are also sound effects (SE) that accompany the characters' movements. When one of the seniors slides into Takemoto's room, there is a "whoosh" sound that gives a sense of speed. When Morita falls down after losing his power, there are "Gigigigigigig...," "Slam! When Morita falls down, three types of sound effects are inserted to enhance the comical atmosphere. In particular, the final "Curreen" is timed to coincide with the crown-shaped symbol, or "comic note," that appears above Takemoto's startled head.

The SE that coincides with the "comic note" is used throughout the entire "HACHIKURO.

When the background becomes dark (vertical effect lines are used to indicate darkness), a heavy "zubba-ba-ba-ba" sound is heard. When a character appears with the sound of "Gahn," a sound effect like a piano sound is inserted.

In episode 11, Morita and Mayama punch each other in a scene that resembles a gag animation from the 1970s, in which "their arms and legs grow out of a cloud of smoke, and the smoke is covered with a band-aid. The theme of "HACHIKURO" is certainly "HACHIKURO.

The theme of "HACHIKURO" is certainly "sad one-sided love," but in terms of expression, it is full of retro-style gags. Not only are the classic "comic" expressions such as excessive "sweat" and "tears" used frequently, but there are also many leaps in movement, such as walking with a mere sliding motion or changing from a serious face to a deformed expression with no eyes. These extreme expressions do not seem unnatural in the original manga because the changes are made frame by frame. In the anime, however, a character's face suddenly changes within a single cut, or a "comic strip" suddenly appears in mid-air. Each time this happens, the animation uses frequent sound effects to clearly signal that "this is a gag," successfully diminishing the sense of suddenness. As mentioned above, the anime "Hachikuro" also uses background music frequently. Even if there is a faint sound effect, it does not bother the viewer.

What kind of sound is appropriate for the "highlight" of the heroine's appearance?

The sound director of "HACHIKURO" is Hitoshi Akedagawa, and the sound effects are by Katsuhiro Nakano. Usually, the sound effects team is in charge of sound effects and prepares environmental sounds such as footsteps and birdsong. The comical sound effects used extensively in "HACHIGURO" must have been designed by Mr. Nakano.

The highlight of the first episode of "Hachikuro" is the scene where Takemoto sees the heroine, Hagumi Hanamoto (Hagu), and falls in love at first sight. In the original story, the frame lines are removed to depict Hagu's silhouette with a fluffy touch, and her beauty is delicately rendered by using screen tones to encrust the scene with flowers.

In the animation, Takemoto's subjective cut captures half of Hagu's body. From her head to her hand, cherry blossoms fall in a spinning circle. The camera follows the falling cherry blossoms as it pans vertically. In the long pan, Hagu's figure is shown slowly in a close-up ......, which is a heartbreaking cutwork attempt. For this cut, a large original drawing was made by pasting animation paper together. During filming, a filter was layered over it like the sunlight filtering through peach-colored trees. Without a doubt, this is the cut to showcase.

So how was the sound of this cut designed?　The entire cut is dominated by the flowers falling from Hagu's head to her hand. The rotation of the flower is accompanied by a cool metallic sound that can be heard as "shwash shwash shwash..." or "twinkle twinkle...". In addition, a music box repeats a short melody. The sound is designed to be as soft and delicate as the picture.

No background music is used in this scene, and the sound effects are kept to a minimum. In the cut just before Hagu's appearance, Takemoto's "Ah? The only sounds are Takemoto's "Ah..." when he realizes Hagu's presence. It is easy to imagine that the sound was purposely reduced in order to let the audience hear the music box-like background music and the "twinkle, twinkle, twinkle..." sound effects.

Animation is a visual expression. However, from the aspect of a TV program, it is necessary to make viewers turn around and understand with "sound. Honey and Clover" is an animation that is as lively as a variety show. Its excessive sound design may be a specification demanded by the "noitaminA" slot with the intention of broadening the range of people who watch anime.
By "listening" as well as "watching" the anime, we may be able to grasp the role and value of the anime.

(Text by Keisuke Hirota)
(C) Chika Umino/Shueisha, HACHIKURO Production Committee (C) Chika Umino/Shueisha, HACHIKURO II Production Committee