Hyouka: Depicting Frame of Mind and Naturalism

Overshadowing Suspense and Mystery Genres

From the start, Hyouka never expected its audience to see a cute drama à la Kyoto Animation like K-On! or Lucky Stars. However, it is complex yet subtle. Despite going against the popular trend of adapting light novels, it improved Honobu Yonezawa’s ability to study his character’s psyche. He moves the series through the characters and storytelling structure of the book. Despite being simple series, we assumed it would not feature a typical high school slice of life.

In its simplicity, it presents itself more subtly. Unlike the more obvious comedy and fantasy series, the normalcy in Hyouka helps it bestow a very down-to-earth high school life. With great care, it depicts the main character’s struggles and flaws without reducing them to archetypes. Indeed, the series’ predecessor influenced Hyouka by featuring a cute high school girl as one of the main leads.

The embedded element acts as the element itself. Each character never overshadows the primary goal of the series, which is to present us with many things. It sculpts its identity with a unique anime foundation by entertaining through suspense and mystery genres. In the first place, Hyouka states that it would not live up to the standards that regular high school anime expects.

Houtarou Oreki: the Gray

Of course, the series sets during after-school club activities. There is a school culture festival and a fan service where the characters go to the beach or hot springs. When things do happen, the entire episode plays no particular role in creating interest and is independent of the events. The trope also functions more as a familiar greeting for the average high school anime fan before taking the plunge.

It is a mystery genre; therefore, a recognized setting uses to set up the story. There is not just some weird or new mystery that the characters are solving all the time. However, we get more insight into each character, their motivations, and every character’s relationship with one another. Hidden bits and twists and turns of events confound our perception of what each character thinks they have understood before.

As a result, Hyouka evolved into a series that actively responded to our thoughts and feelings continuously. It keeps us guessing in a bumfuzzled but unexpectedly dark way. The series tells the story of Houtarou Oreki, a lazy man who prefers an unconventional gray life to the rainbow stereotypes of one of his peers. His sister asks him to join the Classics Club; the school doesn’t close down.

Eru Chitanda: the Enigma

Oreki went to the club room until he found a girl, Eru Chitanda, standing at the window. She looked at the school grounds, regardless of the setting. She tells Oreki that she joined the Classics Club, which no longer feels obligated to stay inside, and is preparing to leave. When Oreki told Chitanda to lock it when she did it, Chitanda claimed she did not have a key and did not lock the door when she entered the room.

Immediately, she found it strange that Oreki had to unlock the door to enter the room. As a result, Chitanda’s unsatisfied curiosity awakened, and she clasped Oreki’s hand in both hands. With hypnotic eyes, she encourages Oreki and convinces him to help her investigate how she locked herself in the room. Thus, the first mystery begins and explains it plainly but briefly. In addition to the episodic structure, the enigma takes during the main arc.

It is very well-developed and takes place throughout one episode. Although not always difficult to solve, the answers can be plain. On the other hand, the purpose of the episode is more to introduce a definite side of each character; at first, we aren’t aware of and do not understand the confusing story.

Denial

At such a moment, Chitanda suddenly found himself yelling at his teacher. We see more about how the previous character’s motivation acted in such a way. Rather than focusing on the reasons behind how the teacher misinterpreted the lesson, we can also say the decision to reduce the mysterious complexity of the episode was a particular intentional error. Given that the narrative will do more than a regular short story, it will run the mystery series in increments.

It forms a realistic three-dimensional presentation of the characters, apart from acting more as a small mystery sacrifice. For example, we saw how Oreki is a stereotypical light novel protagonist. He is a male high school student who acts more as a bystander and often ridicules the actions of other characters. In reality, his ideology becomes a suicide attack and moves as a bare means of protection.

Other characters would complement Oreki’s deductive reasoning skills and intelligence throughout the series. He contributed much to solving many mysteries that each club faced. However, Oreki constantly denied his abilities, so his distance from others came from a beyond-doubt place within himself. In essence, he always hides behind acts of politeness.

Downfall

He was more self-denying than obvious. When the other club members openly express their jealousy of Oreki, we learn through an internal monologue that Oreki is ruining himself. He has a substantial emotional range but hides his self-esteem when he fears feeling like a failure. Therefore, he feels uncomfortable getting out of his comfort zone to change. In simple terms, Oreki only exhibits many characteristics of individuals living with “downfall.”

In essence, there is nothing that indicates he is experiencing trauma. He is more or less as he is; it implies that he doesn’t always live like this. From the bottom of his heart, he is looking for a more colorful school life. In any case, the pacing is a deal breaker. If the audience is looking for a mystery where a mad killer mutilates someone, then Hyouka is not a recommendation. The series firmly devotes itself to ordinary, everyday life.

That, combined with the characters’ meticulous examination of every minute detail of the new mystery, has nothing to do with suspense. From such a perspective, it violates a normative rule of the genre. The series doesn’t have a single character who can unravel an equally complex mystery in seconds.

Central Baggage

Each character contributes something meaningful to the discourse. Meanwhile, the episodes combine all the little tidbits into a coherent picture. However, that doesn’t mean the depictions are more realistic. Therefore, it hinders us from looking for a grounded or rational mystery. Besides Oreki and Chitanda, there is Satoshi Fukube (a cheerful human but Oreki’s close friend) and Mayaka Ibara (a manga-loving girl who is a little sensitive).

We are most likely to believe they have figured out exactly who each character is. As the series progresses, the character’s quirks become more apparent. Their past and the things that mean the most to them reveal it all naturally. It could be that Hyouka doesn’t impress anime watchers because learning a new side of the character is a central feature of all anime. If not, it becomes a series that consistently brings up the latest information.

Each character has something unique about them makes it difficult to categorize them. The characters themselves are often surprised, and not just by the choices the other characters make. However, the options both show and tell the features impressively. Each character brings their emotional baggage to the table.

The Simplicity

While their feelings occasionally slip out, the direct conflict between the characters screams out in an outburst of their thoughts towards each other. It never happened. Indeed, Chitanda’s mysterious nature is a crucial key in the series. The reason is simple: we constantly see her from Oreki’s perspective, a character who often thinks she knows everything. However, Oreki also found himself shocked when he found out about Chitanda.

Otherwise, it makes Chitanda an engaging personality for us to observe. However, it feels ironic when Chitanda is a character without a role. It shows her making a series of errors in commenting objectively and letting us decide for ourselves. Hyouka‘s simplicity becomes a feature of how the characters find a sense of unity by embracing or accepting each other’s differences.

Oreki’s point of view and Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, Kyon, and Hachiman Hikigaya become other tropes. However, Hyouka demonstrates that unity does not always have to be something that every character does; it can come from a place of pain. Therefore, Oreki’s journey to reach colorfulness has no answer to the protagonist’s search for identity. In the last episode, Chitanda and Oreki grow romantic feelings for each other.

Clinging the Small Steps

The relationship does not develop on screen and hints more at what may ultimately be the colorful life Oreki wants. In essence, he did not fully overcome his struggles. However, there is a clear correlation between his joining the Classics Club and the first step towards upgrading. Likewise, it’s about building a support system by taking small steps. The characters in Hyouka are completely “not special” in their entirety.

It also doesn’t stand out in comparison to many other titles. However, it notably makes the series stand out and relies on its worldliness. Titles like high school tend to market more slices of life and the comedic aspects of individual narratives. Regardless, Hyouka is serious about enduring Oreki’s trials and frustrated about clinging to excessive causes.

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