Just Because! - Depressing School

[Dave Baranyi]

“Just Because!” is a story about high school students in Japan who are finishing off their second term in their last year before graduation. Everyone is depressed – students and teachers alike. Then a transfer student suddenly shows up to finish his final term at their school. Everyone is confused about that at first, but then it turns out that some of the students were classmates with the transfer student back in middle school so they start to get out of their collective funks.

Well, William Inge did a pretty good job with this general concept with “Picnic” (an old friend comes to town and upsets the routine), but we don't have any Pulitzer Prize-level writing on display here. The story telling in first episode was slow, dull and uninspiring. The directing was slow, dull and uninspiring. The voice acting was slow, dull and uninspiring. I can't see why anyone would want to bother with this show – go watch the movie version of “Picnic” with William Holden and a smoking hot young Kim Novac instead.

My final rating is C.

Dave Baranyi

[Chris Buckley]

Post by Dave Baranyi
“Just Because!” is a story about high school students in Japan who are finishing off their second term in their last year before graduation. Everyone is depressed – students and teachers alike. Then a transfer student suddenly shows up to finish his final term at their school. Everyone is confused about that at first, but then it turns out that some of the students were classmates with the transfer student back in middle school so they start to get out of their collective funks.
Well, William Inge did a pretty good job with this general concept with “Picnic” (an old friend comes to town and upsets the routine), but we don't have any Pulitzer Prize-level writing on display here. The story telling in first episode was slow, dull and uninspiring. The directing was slow, dull and uninspiring. The voice acting was slow, dull and uninspiring. I can't see why anyone would want to bother with this show – go watch the movie version of “Picnic” with William Holden and a smoking hot young Kim Novac instead.
My final rating is C.

My view of it is different. So far, _Just Because_ is the only bright spot
in the season.

It's an intelligently written character driven show. The first episode
shows the thought put into the realistic character development. Rather
than the main character transfer student directly encountering the other
major characters like we see so often, most of the other characters are
currently at a distance, having an effect on him but him not being conscious
of it (argument in next room or trumpet playing in the distance). I expect
the other characters will slowly be brought closer.

The show is undeniably slow. I don't mind slowness as long as there
are things to think about. It's clear that one of the major things to
be discovering is the motivations of the characters - why they are
acting that way. The show definitely believes in showing and not
directly telling, and that's refreshing in this kind of show. The
title of the show indicates that this is going to continue; that the
students are not even going to be able to directly tell us their
reasons.

I'm reading the preview reviews at
http://www.animenewsnetwork.cc/preview-guide/2017/fall/.122073
to see if there are shows I've missed. The reviews for _Just Because_
are all over the place, more than I've seen for any other show in the
past. Major reviewers have given it a 2 and a 5 (on a 5 point scale).
It's a show that won't appeal to everyone, but will to some!

Other shows I've tried:

_Juuni Taisen_: A disappointment - I'll watch a couple more episodes.

_Ousama Game (King's Game)_: I'm more tolerant of violence than some
others, but there has to be a reason for it. There are no reasons
here; this is just an insanely stupid show. Dropped.

_Osake wa Fuufu nu Natte Kara_: Mildly amusing, may watch some more
episodes, but not my thing (drinking show, will probably feature a new drink
every show).

_Omiai Aite wa Oshiego, Tsuyoki na, Mondsiji_: A series of shorts,
with relationship between female teacher and male student.
Unbelievable. Dropped.

Chris