Run With The Wind… Sort Of! | Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru First Impressions Review
Hey everyone and welcome to our place!
We continue with the battle of trying to give a first impressions review to all the Anime shows I said I was going to be watching… It’s not being easy… But, well, let’s see if we are able to push this forward and do it! 😀 Today I bring you:
– Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru | Run With The Wind –
– Synopsis –
Kakeru Kuhara is spotted running while fleeing after stealing some bread by Haiji Kiyose. Haiji immediately gets impressed, follows him and offers him a place to stay with the promise of some food. Kakeru decides to accept the offer and goes with Haiji.
However, what he did not know was that he just got tricked to join the running club where the objective is to enter the Hakone Ekiden Marathon, one of the most prominent university races in Japan. The problem, everyone else is a complete beginner.
A Sports Anime With a Deeper Setting?
I’m gonna be honest, after reading MyAnimeList synopsis and read that the main character was fleeing because he had to steal some bread to eat I thought this would be more of a deeper sports Anime. There is not really a problem with a sports Anime not having a deeper meaning and/or setting. Nevertheless, I thought Kakeru’s background would be darker and not as cliché.
Here’s what I thought. I thought Kakeru was a poor guy who, to be able to pay his college, he did not have a place to sleep and no food to eat. This kind of background made him run a lot of times from different situations making him this high-speed runner who was going to get a chance to come up on top with this opportunity. However, it seems I was wrong (?)
I mean, he already said to Haiji that he lost his apartment (and all his money) to a Mahjong game and there was no more conversation about it. I’m not sure if he was lying, or not, but the Anime did not really give any kind of hint that he was doing so. This way, at this moment I’m believing that he basically lost everything while gambling. To be honest, it just broke the hyper for the Anime I had in the beginning… I almost feel click baited from MyAnimeList synopsis, if that is a thing.
So, Just a Normal Sports Anime?
Well, I wouldn’t say “normal”. However, there are some aspects from it that we already have seen in many other sport Anime shows. We have already had a glimpse of Kakeru’s past and it seems that he quit running because of something regarding his former team in high school. In this case, that he was treated poorly. So, that’s really nothing new, there are many characters from the sports Anime which will have that kind of story. Heck, even Anima Yell! has one character with that kind of backstory.
However, the way this team was made is NOT what I normally see from an Anime. Here we have 9 guys who ended up living in the old apartment Chikuseisou. All of them were tricked to live there and no-one knew that this apartment, is, in fact, the dormitories of the running team which means that, if they want to live there, they will need to join.
Now, when they know this all of them say no. But, with some extortion, manipulation, and stalking done by Haiji they all agree to stay. In a funny kind of way, of course… Or at least that’s what the Anime tries to make you think.
However, It Ends Up Being an Enjoyable Ride
Strange… I know. But, the truth is, I have been enjoying the Anime so far. It’s funny to see 10 guys, completely different from each other living in the same house. Moreover, it’s also funny to see people who have never run in their lives seeing themselves obliged to do so. And, these are 10 funny characters. Contrary to what you would expect, even with only 3 episodes, I’m pretty sure I can pinpoint which character is what. This is only possible by having completely different designs for all of them as also different personalities, which for me was very well executed.
I also like the more mature design. Clearly, this is not an Anime like Free! where it aims to show you handsome men doing some kind of sports that make us all shipping them with each other. I mean, there is not a problem with that (AT ALL!), but it’s kind of refreshing to see a sports Anime following a different vibe.
When it comes with Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru it seems that will be following the real deal. Although I do not know how the hell they are going to be able to get to the same level with people that have been running all their lives. But, that’s another story.
Until this moment, I think the comedy is there. Gotta love Akane trying to run! But, not so much for the drama. Nevertheless, I’m sure it will come sooner or later and I’m actually curious if they are going to follow the cliché path like appearing a mysterious rival from the past or if they will actually try to do something different.
What About You?
In conclusion, it is going to be an Anime I’ll be watching and see what happens! I’m not as happy I thought I would be, but it still got me interested. Time will tell if I end up getting bored during the 23 episodes (yes, it will be 23 episodes) or not.
And you? Are you following Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru or you are still thinking on trying it out? Tell me what you think in the comments! ^.^
OOO This anime looks cute! Please report back after watching it. I’m in the middle of watching Monster (totally not even related in genre at all lmao). But I know a good sports anime that you’ll LOVE. If you haven’t already watched, please watch and review Ace of diamond, and Major. I feel like making a review I have so much to talk about with those animes!
Ahah I will report back at the end of the season don’t worry! I’m pretty sure this one will be one of those that I’ll be watching until the end 😀
Ahahah well that’s the thing about Anime! There are great shows around across many different genres 😛 Oh you should definetely do a review! I still haven’t watched, but they are both in my want to watch list 😀
NICEEE! I’ll have to rewatch Major and Ace of Diamond if I really want the after feeling of the anime. I haven’t watched those for a while. I watched them both like 3 times. I’m looking forward to your follow up post.
With the hiatus of Attack on Titan I have been looking for a show to take that place. I’m not sure if this is the one (as I don’t really like sportsanime) but a lot of people are pretty postive about this series, and are urging me to give this a go. I might check it out…as always wonderful post! ?
To be honest, from the vibe I got until now, although a sports Anime there is way more to that than just sports! It has been a pleasant ride and it felt a little different from “normal” Sports Anime so I would say you really should give it a try 😀
Thank you so much Raist <3
Well…if I do, I will let you know what I think of it ??
This one kind of won me over after the first three episodes. I really didn’t want to like it given I have zero interest in running and wasn’t really looking for a sports anime, but there’s just some fairly solid work with the characters, the set up and the visuals over those first few episodes that made me want to stick with it. I don’t know if I’ll end up bored by the end but for now at least it is pretty interesting.
I’m with you! 😀 The show is completely sold and I’m pretty sure that I will be following it until the end!
I think the group of 10 so different guys will make a good plot, even if it’s more for the enjoyable and comedic part! Something that is really funny is how they were able to put 10 characters completely different from each other, give them screen time to all and made me like all of them LOL
They really did a good job of introducing the characters and fleshing them out in a way that felt fairly natural. And while there’s still plenty to learn about them, I’m not staring at the screen wondering who each character is and whether I’ve met them because the story did such a great job setting the scene.
Episode 2, with Haiji having an entire episode to force the others into running, kind of rubbed me the wrong way while I was trying to finalise my seasonal watchlist (which is the entire reason why I’m not watching it). However, I may have a chance to get up to speed with the show if 1) Han Gyaku Sei Million Arthur shows up and forces me to reconsider my lineup (which is unlikely) or 2) Zombieland Saga, Merc Storia or Gridman make a huge misstep (which is slightly more likely). Alternatively, I could catch up with it once 8 or 9 weeks is over due to Double Decker…but with Crunchyroll constantly pulling strings to get simulcasting shows early, who knows whether that will actually be the case…
Yeah I can understand why, I also felt the same thing as you. They did try to put it into more the comedic side, but the truth is he used extortion and manipulation to get to his objective.
loool! I’ve actually yet to watch zombieland saga, merc storia and grindman 😛 But it will come ahah xD Double Decker I’ve watched the first two episodes and the show seems pretty cool XD
This show is probably my favorite of the season so far. I just love the way they are handling the dynamic of all ten of the guys and focusing on making them seem like actual people. It may not be the most original concept for a show, but it is so much fun to watch.
I’m actually trying to figure out which one will be the best for the sport Anime 😛 If this one or Tsurune. Both of them seem to grab this overused concept and give their own fresh and good twist 😛
I agree! It will definitely be interesting to see how they both proceed as the season goes on.
Thing really started to come together in the last episode. I have enjoyed the first two, but I like the art of him running and his past being that constant ghost chasing him. I’m excited if they keep going more in depth into characters.
Couldn’t agree more with you! I normally don’t really get into sports animes, exept for Free that is. However, this one really seems to promise a lot 😀