Hey friends and fellow otakus! It's been a while since I last posted anything anime-related. I've been busy with real life, especially moving to the countryside and all. However, I am actively reading manga and webtoons as well as watching anime despite the busy days! haha
This year, I'll try to be active here again.
Anyway, first anime series I finished watching is year is quite an old one. It was released in 2006, and I'm wondering why I just watched it now? hahaha It's called Shounen Onmyouji.
Before I start sharing the story, let me explain what an onmyouji is. An onmyouji is a person who practices onmyoudo. It's a technique that uses astronomy, calendar science and divination. An onmyouji observes celestial bodies to interpret omens, and predict fortune or misfortune.
In Japan, there's this legendary onmyouji from the Heian Period that I have always been curious about. It's because he's in a lot of stories... and legend has it that his mom was actually a "kitsune" or fox spirit named Kuzunoha. So, Abe no Seimei was believed to be half-human and half-yokai.
I love Japanese folklore, and I'm into the Heian Period... so when I saw Abe no Seimei's name in the description for this movie, I automatically clicked it. LOL Anyway, let's talk about the anime...
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The story is actually about Abe no Masahiro, the grandson of Abe no Seimei. He's known to be the heir of the legendary onmyouji, but he lost his sixth sense. Because of that, he could no longer see supernatural beings which is something essential for an onmyouji.
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Masahiro gave up on the thought until he met a mononoke appeared in front of him. He called it Mokkun.
One day, they were attacked... he couldn't see the monster, but he could feel it. And in that incident, Mokkun became his eyes... and he was able to awaken his true potential.
! His grandpa, Abe no Seimei, actually sealed his ability because he was born with an exceptionally strong spiritual gift which made him more of a target by spirits and monsters. Seimei wanted to protect him until he could gain control of his ability.
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Actually, Mokkun is a shikigami who was feared by many. However, when Masahiro was young, he met the shikigami "Guren" and didn't show any fear. It made Guren happy and somehow changed his life after the "big incident" in the past. He swore to support Masahiro in his journey of becoming a great onmyouji.
The story might not be for everyone, but it sure is for me. I am quite biased, though, because as I've mentioned earlier, I'm curious about Abe no Seimei, (I'm planning on watching Onmyouji [2023] which also has him as one of the main characters) and I'm just really fascinated with Japanese folklore.
I like how the story unfolded. It's a mixture of so many things. It may have been comical at first, but it slowly developed into a more serious drama with a touch of romance (which I didn't mind). However, the last episode made me cry.
There were also a lot of interesting characters, some I'm quite familiar with because I've read about them in articles about the Heian period, as well as some Japanese folklore. Well, some characters are fictional, but I wonder if they're somehow related to real people during that time.
As for the art and animation style... they're obviously to my liking. It's giving off 90s to 2000s vibes, which is my preference. The soundtrack was also really good!
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Here's the opening song... :) The ED is also really nice. And by watching the video, you'll get the anime's vibe. :)
All in all, I like it. It was classic! at least for me. hahaha However, if you're into Japanese folklore and you're interested in Japanese history (especially Heian Period), then you should check this out!
That's it for now... thanks for reading and see you around! (^^,)/
