Anime: Sora no Oto

Sora no Woto (Sound of the Sky) is a very well made anime that was made by A-1 about 2 years before SAO. As an overview of this review, this anime has been undeservingly relegated to be forgotten at only one season. It has many things going for it and generally surprised me at quite a few points in terms of how the anime was quite well thought out, but unfortunately was not realised fully with a sequel and it would have been so much better if more lore was introduced earlier. I do wonder why this anime did not receive a continuation. The problems with doing that seem to be fairly minor compared to the plot acrobatics endured by sequels of SAO. One thing to note about this anime is that it is not a music heavy anime like Love Live! or K-On despite the title. Music is present but it is mostly symbolic and likewise appears at symbolic moments.

In short, the plot follows a tiny all-girls garrison in a remote castle. The premise seems to be essentially (with some creativity) this: Most post apocalyptic anime, or even movies for that matter, do not consider the world reverting to a dark age and still maintaining proper societies.

Many people, as well as the reviewers on this website, have compared this anime to K-ON, due to their relatively close proximity to each other time wise and the fact that on the surface of it the character designs are reminiscent of those in K-ON. Frankly that and the very broad archetypes of the characters is where the similarities end. Sound of the Sky covers a lot more themes, from warfare and life in a post apocalyptic world, to comradeship and happiness. One part that I found particularly convincing was the notion that even in a war torn world, with no hope in sight and no past to look back to, one can still find a reason to move forward. Another difference from K-ON is that while in K-ON cute girls drink tea, here we have cute girls drinking home brewed apple brandy and being well on their way to a hangover. Nevertheless and despite the surface level of similarity to K-ON, it does seem a bit strange as to how close the character designs and even some of the voice acting and a couple of the archetypes resemble those from K-ON, that much is undeniable. I would go as far as to say that (with the deepest respect to KyoAni) that I feel that the balance between "slice of life" and "action/adventure" in this anime is much better than a lot of KyoAni projects, something they seem to try time and time again with projects like Violet Evergarden or Myriad Colors of the Phantom World, the latter being rather incoherent and having minimal world building. So while I do think that it is worth to mention the comparison between K-On and Sora no Woto, the actual value of such a comparison does not define Sora no Woto, nor is it particularly above surface level. As they say, do not judge a book by its cover. Unfortunately, looking at what other reviewers on this website have written in the past, that is what they did. Perhaps the only reason I did not feel the same way is that it has been years since I watched K-On.

The character development is quite well done. Initially, the character designs and archetypes are generic, but as the story progresses the characters become memorable and they carry weight with their actions. I suppose the character of Kanata is a bit underdeveloped as she is meant to be "undecided" so to speak. Kannagi Noel is also developed unevenly, but that is not really an issue. The owl is just present there for comic relief, as a mascot, and symbolism essentially, and is the weakest part of this anime probably. The way all of these characters come together to make decisions in the final act is also very well done. As part of this, the advanced tank that they had also served as a "chekhov's gun" sort of thing and it was clear that it would be used.

In my opinion, the plot is near perfect for a regular seasonal 12-episode anime. It is a well balanced synthesis of "slice of life" and what can be described as "warfare" even if said plot is sometimes dull. What I mean by that is that this anime is in a way about cute girls living and exploring the country, but the memories and the threat of war and violence is omnipresent. To think that they fit in all this as well as the themes in 13 episodes is quite a feat in my opinion. I cannot name another anime that managed to tell such a convincing story complete with some lore in 13 episodes, and this is despite the fact that it feels much less sophisticated at times. Adding lore to the anime at certain points would have been very good, but instead what little concrete lore there is, is crammed at the very end and even then, a lot of questions remain unanswered. This would indicate that at some point there were plans to continue this anime, but for some odd reason they did not.

There are some plot ambiguities, but no glaring plot holes.

The animation of the characters is generally subpar 10 years on. The quality of such animation is low overall compared to even some contemporary anime, but it is fluid and pulls off when it needs to and because of that sometimes the animation is quite beautiful and well made. It does not harm the feel or the atmosphere of the anime, but it does show the production quality as well as the expectations of those making the anime. It is too simplistic and not detailed enough and takes a while to get used too. That said, all the landscape and background drawings, including the quite complicated and varied drawings of the city, are made very well, but that in itself is not a massive accomplishment relatively speaking. What little CGI is used has been used surprisingly well.

The ED is fairly standard for a slice of life type of thing. The OP is much more vivid and the song is generally very nice. It evokes a sense of adventure through the countryside, so to speak, as well as mythos and culture. The opening itself is a bit weirder. It seems to make several references to several art pieces of Gustav Klimt. It also seems to be a bit more cheaply animated than the anime itself for some reason, with several character frames being reused. There is also a point in the opening where the characters are shown from behind as if they were sitting down, and all I can say is that I am not sure if that in particular is a reference to anything academically symbolic. In general, this show is not too ashamed of ecchi themes, but it does not overdo them either. One fairly odd thing to note about the opening is that it is always at the start of each episode. This is not the case with many modern anime.

The BGMs act only to reinforce the scenes, and it does that well, but it is not memorable otherwise. The OP music is memorable, on the other hand. It is not energetic or anything, but I would certainly listen to it while traveling somewhere on a train through the countryside. It is that type of song and it is good. The ED is alright but generic. The actual trumpet playing is very nice, especially when it sounds like it is through the streets of the city. The key song of "Amazing Grace" is also used and played very well in this anime. Goes to further show that even originally religious pieces can find their place in animation, though not something that the average anime viewer will appreciate.

All in all, I think that this is a seriously underrated anime. It is ironic that right now many good scripts are being adapted to anime rather haphazardly and in an almost industrial manner. This anime clearly was not made on a particularly massive budget, but the authors made the plot, the characters, and the setting work perfectly, in the very least to me. The irony is that anime nowadays tend not to match the level of clarity of vision, plot cohesion, and what appears to be motivation of this 10 year old anime, much like the dark age that is shown in the anime. In the end, I think that the way the plot, the themes, and the characters mix is only good subjectively. Without a doubt it does make it objectively sophisticated, but it may not be everyone's cup of tea. Another explanation for my almost fanatical backing of this anime is that in the 10 years since it aired, it is genuinely hard to find properly original or well executed titles. They are few and far between in my opinion and more often the popular seasonal titles are not that good whatsoever. Perhaps I am simply so starved of good titles that anything coherent and fresh looks amazing. This is proved by the later review on this site being much more favourable than contemporary ones.

There is also the fact that, on the cover and description, the anime seems to be uninspired and there is also the fact that some may be put off by the fact that A-1 animated it. Unfortunately, I think for those reasons, this anime remained forgotten by many and almost brushed off by some people, including the reviewers on this site.

My recommendation is to watch this. It is rather enjoyable and much more sophisticated than one would expect of a 12-episode slice of life anime, though even this anime falls back to the same old near-cliche tropes of more regular anime, at times. It can be watched in almost every way, be it on a road trip or binge watched on big screen. I myself watched it at a decent pace, about 3 episodes per day, while consuming a nice meal, a cup of tea, or a pint. Any of those would fit well with the feel of the anime if you decide to do that.

First off, let me make it perfectly clear that I think this is a great series which doesn't get quite as much credit as it deserves. In order to remain spoiler free, I will NOT provide any specific story/character details beyond the first couple of episodes, but will endeavor to highlight its strong points and weak points. Now, let's get on with the review, shall we?

Art & Animation[/b] - The art is very good, which isn't all that uncommon nowadays. With that being said, there are very few 'WOW' moments, but they do exist. For the most part, it's the attention to detail which pushes it past the average earmark (and the average for current anime is pretty good). However, occasionally there are spots which are amazing. The background in episode 13 definitely comes to mind.

Sound - As others have pointed out, the music in this series is excellent. Like most aspects of this series, don't expect to be constantly hit upside the head with how great it is. The sound often takes the form of a solo trumpet/bugle, which is often beautiful and poignant, but there are also quite a few moments of symphonic bliss. Kalafina did a great job with the opening and the ending them is fun, if a little on the cutesy side (and is a little out of place, thus a dock in the score). So, yeah, the sound is great.

Story[/b] - The story is this series most lacking point. The story's background is there and is quite solid, but it often takes a back seat to other issues, such as character development. One of the most common complaints about this series is that there's a lot of filler. However, most of the 'filler' episodes are there for a purpose rather than just mindless entertainment. However, episode 7.5 is definitely an exception to this rule. It's fun, but it's almost pure filler.

One thing to note is that the main plot, as it were, doesn't come together until the last couple of episodes. Prior to that there's a lot of development in order to provide background information. However, the ending is awesome.

Character - This is an area where the series shines much brighter than most realize. This is especially true to those of us who have seen K-On, since the main protagonist of Sora no Woto (Kanata) is almost as blatant of a rip off of Yui as you can get. And Rio, another main character, is pretty darn close to Mio as well. However, each of the five main characters has a solid past and has character growth throughout the series. You just have to pay a little more attention to it than in some series where they beat you over the head with 'Aha, I've learned something new' moments. Just like in real life, sometimes you have to read between the lines. I believe Kanbe Mamoru deserves credit for trusting his audience so much.

Value - This series isn't nonstop action. There are a lot of quiet moments, which is rather rare in current anime. This is probably the hardest category to rate, since it's so subjective, but I believe Sora no Woto holds a lot of value for most people. However, if you are someone who needs a lot of fighting in their anime, this series is not for you. Otherwise, give it a shot.

Enjoyment - If it's not obvious by now, I enjoyed this series a lot, but I also know that it's too slow paced for a lot of people, so am giving it a more realistic score than I would like.

So, all-in-all, give it a shot and remember to judge the anime on it's own merits, rather than a majority opinion. Just remember that even when the anime outright states that 'cause a' had 'effect c', there might be a 'cause b' and you'll do just fine.

Important:This review is based off of pwq Subs. Therefore, all sound and animation issues will strictly conform to what I have seen in their releases. Also note that all my reviews are done after watching the series at least two times.

KEY phrases will be boldfaced for the reader’s convenience. Just link the nouns to the adjectives. Also, I'm spelling the Woto in Sora no Oto as Woto since that's how they spelled it in katakana though it still means "The sound of the sky"ー空の音。


Premise: Great visuals, mediocre plot, and some standard characters- same old, same old.

Background: As pwq subs said, Sora no Woto is “K-On! at war.” At multiple times, the viewer feels as if he is watching K-On! at war and, depending on the viewer, it will either detract from the experience or enhance it. If you were not a big fan of K-On! then stop reading, Sora no Woto probably will not be for you.
Presumably, Sora no Woto takes place in the future where a great world war has regressed human technological capabilities back to what they were in the twentieth century, except for the spider tanks. Furthermore, Sora no Woto focuses on platoon 1121, nicknamed the five Maidens of the Fortress, who watch over a little village called Seize. The main character of the story is a fifteen year old girl named Sorami Kanata who is inspired to join the army after being entranced by an army bugler’s performance of “Amazing Grace.” She successfully enlists into the army as a bugler and is assigned to platoon 1121. Most of the series is just a lighthearted adventure with platoon 1121, but this does not mean that things do not get serious. Indeed, in the final few episodes there is much drama and little action. This is what mostly sets it apart from K-On!
Notably, Seize is modeled off of Cuenca, Spain.


Animation: When I first looked at Sora no Woto, I thought that the character designs were misleading. Like most people, I believed that it was made by the same person who drew K-on! So, I researched a bit and found that it was done by a completely different person, but seriously the resemblance in style is uncanny. Just an added note, this was not done by Kyoto animation but by A-1 and broadcasted on TV Tokyo.
Sora no Woto looks absolutely gorgeous at times. If anything, compliments should go to the animation, because it was well done. The backgrounds looked stunning when the animators wanted them too and sometimes even when they did not want them to. A good deal of detail went into these backgrounds and the viewer will easily be able to tell. It was unfortunate that their setting rarely changed, but when it did, it looked spectacular. For example, there was one episode where the troupe heads to check surveillance devices on the borders. The scenery of their voyage was just stunning. This was definitely one of the times where I fell in love with the art of Sora no Woto.

Colors also fit their environment. The colors used were very calming and induced a relaxed feeling, which is perfect for half of its genre. Contrasts were also used at times to show energy and action, and these worked well. In regards to actual movement of the characters, it was fine. I felt that the movements were not as fluid as something like bakemonogatari, for example, but decent enough that people would not be annoyed. I never really felt that it was a war anime though because of the awkwardness of the fighting. By that I mean that the animation for the fighting felt really slow and not very realistic.

The character designs reminded me a lot of K-on’s character designs. This in itself isn’t actually a bad thing, but it’s kind of hard to take them seriously at times. Just by looks, the protagonist, Kanata is reminiscent of Yui, the squad leader Felicia looks like Mugi, and Rio looks like a serious Mio. I’m not sure why the characters were designed in this way because this definitely makes it feel like a light-hearted, 4-koma manga when it is not. I have to admit though that the characters definitely fit into their environment, but at the cost of unnecessary parallels.

In the anime, the troupe is called the five Maidens of the Fortress and the OP really tries to force that idea on the viewer. In this regard, it succeeds. I personally could appreciate the OP but couldn’t like it. Aesthetically, it looked very nice and authentic, but as a viewer I found it to be dull and boring. The ED probably would have been better as the OP since it was livelier and served to show who each character was and how they interacted with each other. Traditionally, OPs serve that purpose and EDs are milder. Just personally, I feel as if they should have been switched. The ED itself was decently animated, but really nothing special.

Overall, I guess you could say that the animation was inconsistent in quality- ranging from decent to outstanding. Coloring was nice and matched the beautiful scenery. Characters felt similar to K-on! but it’s acceptable because they fit the setting. Characters moved averagely but the fighting seemed really slow and awkward. The OP and ED were decent but not the greatest thing to ever be broadcasted.


Sound: Similar to K-on, the sound of Sora no Woto was one of its biggest factors. Kanata joins the army because of an encounter with a soldier playing Amazing Grace on a trumpet. In the base, she learns how to play the trumpet from Rio and then plays it to signal other troops and the town of danger or just as a wake up call. The trumpet playing was as realistic as it could be. Unlike Nodame Cantabile, when someone in the anime sucks at playing an instrument, they actually play like they suck.
BGMs were not memorable but suitable for the anime. The viewer doesn’t feel as if he is hearing the same BGMs over and over again, which is great. Voice acting worked just as well as K-on! This might be a good thing or a bad thing depending on where you stand. For me, I enjoyed the voice acting but, some seiyuus did not capture their character completely, which is unfortunate. During laid back times, all the seiyuus are perfectly fine at playing their characters, but when a serious moment arises, some seiyuus fail to rise to the challenge.
The OP and ED were honestly kind of boring and easily forgettable and I did not go out of my way to listen to them more than twice. Don’t think that this makes the OP or ED bad, because that’s not entirely true. They are as good as any average OP and ED could be and they suit the anime if anything at all.


Story: Sora no Woto’s story line can almost be defined as a daily life except for the fact that it focuses on the lives of soldiers. There is some war action and tragic back stories, but those take place later in the anime. For now, I’ll divide this into two parts- the serious and the non-serious.

Non-Serious: These take place in the beginning half of the series. This is basically to give the viewer a taste of Sora no Woto and introduce the characters. These episodes were touching, amusing, and sometimes generic- there really was no consistency. Even my enjoyment was inconsistent. Sometimes the episodes were so boring that they felt like that first extra episode of K-on and sometimes the episodes were exciting and made me eagerly anticipate the next episode. The boring episodes and interesting episodes are not exactly even though. I believe that the interesting episodes slightly outnumber the boring ones. But if you do not appreciate art as much as I do, you might find some episodes less interesting than I did.

Serious: These episodes are in the last half of the series. The serious episodes actually focused on the war and the scars of each character. In all honesty, I wish they just kept it consistent with the first half even with the chance of criticism for not making any war connections because, honestly, it did not really work. Not once did I really believe that any of those people were soldiers. At times there was tension, but nothing really like the seriousness of war. It felt as if they just turned the seriousness up one notch instead of five. If the creators wanted viewers to really feel like this was a war anime, this is what they should have done. If they wanted this just to have a war setting with funny characters, they should have just going the route they were going in the first half.

Overall: The viewer could sense that there were going to be serious moments in the series, but probably could not predict that they would be so weak. War scenes should have been done more seriously or not at all. It really is “K-on at war.”


Characters: In terms of making the viewer bond with characters, they technically did not succeed. I felt as attached to these characters as I did to K-on characters, which is not really that much. In twelve episodes, it is indeed difficult to accomplish this feat. On the other hand, for something like K-on, it is not as crucial to gain the viewers’ compassion, but for an anime with a war setting, it is imperative. Sora no Woto has a war setting and thus should be able to make viewers feel something for the characters’ dilemma. I said technically earlier because most of these characters felt similar to ones in K-on, so technically we have already bonded or not bonded with these characters. Even if you feel as if they have different personalities, the art style will fool the viewer into thinking that he has seen these characters before and that he knows them already. Air head? Check. Motherly type? Check. Person who tries to keep the group in check? Present. So far that is 3/5 characters from K-on. All we’re missing is the scaredy-cat and an energetic tomboy. It will either be a turn on or off for viewers to see such familiar characters and thus, the best advice is just to imagine as if these characters are completely different from the K-on ones. Good luck though.

It feels pointless to actually review the characters’ personalities, but I’ll do it anyway. The characters’ chemistry felt perfectly fine. They worked well together probably because it already worked in K-on. Their personalities complemented each other and thus created a nice balance that kept the viewer interested at times. In terms of their “sorrowful backgrounds” the creators failed to make the viewer interested. In twelve episodes, it is really difficult to make viewers bond with characters because it is such a short interval. In general, it is hard to make viewers bond with characters because they are not real. But for a seinen like Sora no Woto it is definitely crucial to get viewers to feel some kind of compassion for the characters, which brings back up my original point that the creators should have focused on either the serious part or the light-hearted part of the anime rather than do both. In the end, I did not even have a favorite character. Their backgrounds were sometimes melodramatic and insignificant and that is really unwanted for an anime that is trying to be dramatic.

Oh wait! Redeeming factor- there was character development. Indeed, the characters overcame their past scars and bonded as a troupe to exact justice on the evildoers. I will not go into detail on these emotional scars, but they did conquer them by learning from each other. The viewer will be able to tell that the characters changed from who they were initially and will hopefully be able to appreciate the new selves. Personally, I found their changes acceptable and welcome despite their almost petty and generic obstacles to overcome.

Value: “Hey it’s K-on! oh wait no it’s not…” That is seriously this anime���s value- a knock-off K-on that tries to be serious. Its animation quality and sound were great, but characters and story not so much. I would probably only watch this on blu-ray for the stunning visuals and imagination of what a future post-apocalyptic war would be like with people in a Spanish country speaking Japanese. I guess I will cut Sora no Woto some slack since it was more original than most animes that aired around the same time, but not that much slack. This is a maybe buy for visual fanatics and a rental/download for those who just want to watch it to say they watched it. I did not exactly hate watching it twice, but I do not think it was really worth the time.


Enjoyment: Sure, I enjoyed some of it but in hindsight, it was just something to watch, not real entertainment. Watching it a second time was not as painful as I thought it would be, but it sure was not as enjoyable as the first time I watched it. Sora no Woto is an anime that gets staler as time passes by. I enjoyed the non-serious episodes more than the serious ones since the serious ones were just so much easier to mock and criticize. The non-serious episodes were not very original but at least much more entertaining.

Final Words: Like better than average animation? Watch Sora no Woto. Otherwise, try something with more prestige unless you really really want to watch this anime. Do not get me wrong, Sora no Woto is not horrible but it is definitely a bit below average. If you are curious, check it out. If not, then just pass it by and you will not be missing much.

Done reading? All critics feast on criticism or praise and I’m hungry. Don’t forget to rate this review!

"Sora no Oto" ("The Sound of the Sky") is the first installment of three-part "Anime-no-Chikara" ("Power of Anime") project between TV Tokyo and Aniplex, to be followed by "Senko no Night Raid" and "Seikimatsu Occult Gakuin". Each series will have an original story (i.e. not based on manga), and potentially higher budget since they're getting a free time slot to broadcast on.

Animation: 5/10
The first thing you'll notice is that the character design is almost identical to "K-On!" series, except they're wearing military uniforms rather than school. The characters were very well-drawn and super-cute, but disturbingly uncreative and seemed out of place in the fortress. I couldn't help but feel like I was watching a bunch of high school girls in cosplay.
The landscapes and the European-style town/castle in the background were really beautiful. A screenshot of "Sora no Oto" landscapes would indeed seem very impressive.
However, there is a fatal flaw to the backgrounds: Excessive absence of motion. Practically every single scene is made up of animated characters moving in front of a still picture. The only background animation I have detected are clouds and rivers. The tree branches (and leaves) stay still, background characters never move, shadows don't flicker in candle light. In fact, even the main characters freeze up a lot when they're not talking. This series probably has least action of any major anime produced in the decade. Despite the extremely beautiful appearance of drawings, the art department was definitely very lazy or understaffed in animating them.
The series was well directed though, with some nice camera angles and flow of the story using creative cuts.

Sound: 10/10
The word "Sound" is found in the series title, and it does not disappoint.
Although BGM/Soundtrack weren't exactly masterpieces like "Naruto" or "Initial D", they were very memorable, and used very effectively to emphasize drama, and was a major aspect of the story. The main trumpet rendition of "Amazing Grace", and a flute concerto piece were especially wonderful. Background noise, such as birds chirping, river flowing, the sound of rain, door creaking etc sounded exceptionally real, and even the background conversations in the streets and festivals consisted of real, discernible conversations.
Voice actors matched characters well, and all had distinct voices despite the nearly all-female characters in the series.
OP sets the mood really well, and ED "Girls, Be Ambitious" actually sounded like an Ootsuka Ai song, and was definitely among the best Seiyuu anime songs.

Story: 6/10
The story is about a clumsy new recruit who was inspired by a trumpeter in the army in her youth. She joins the army and assigned to a platoon in a very tactically insignificant military outpost. The platoon consists entirely of girls and young women, and they rarely get any real missions. Our protagonist quickly bonds with fellow members and spend fun and exciting days interacting with people in the nearby town or exploring the area.
The world of "Sora no Oto" is a very intriguing one; a post-apocalyptic world where the town (and amount of nature that exist around them) seem like a medieval setting, but early 20th century technology is commonly in use, and there are also technologically advanced relics of the "old age" that are probably a century or two ahead of the present standards. "Old age" technologies are scattered around the world, but mostly defective due to wear of time, and too advanced to backward-engineer, so the stories of past prosperity are passed down as myths. Strangely, the wide range of technology conformed very well, and made the story work without seeming too forced.
Most of the story was very well-crafted with focus on relaxing slice of life. Pacing was great, and there were a lot of captivating scenes.
Due to the very short length of the series, I think the story would've worked better if it wasn't episodic, and had more continuation. Also, the ending was extremely cheesy and predictable, and sudden acceleration in plot development made it seemed rushed.
Abundance of plot hole was also a major concern, such as the need for live-trumpet as a signaling device. I'm pretty sure wireless transmission is a piece of cake when you have tanks with legs, and in the worst-case scenario, a light-based Morse code would make much more sense :roll:

Characters: 6/10
The two main characters are almost clones of "K-On!" vocals in terms of both appearance and personality, and Noel was practically Nagato from "Haruhi", except she suppresses her emotion rather than not having one. The two remaining members of the platoon were stereotypical tsundere imouto (younger sister) character and kind oneesan (older sister) character.
I felt the cuteness of the main characters backfired because they seemed really out of place all the time, and I probably would've connected with them much better if they had more mature appearance. All-girls platoon is just too implausible and characters did not feel real.
However, characters developed fairly well considering the short length of the series and their unoriginality. We slowly learn each characters' pasts, and the amazing direction makes it really easy to see them slowly bonding without being too cheesy for the most part.

Value/Enjoyment: 6.5/10
I personally really like slice of life anime, and this was a decent one. You should not expect to see any mech action or too much morality issues discussed, because the military and war aspect of this series was barely touched upon. The animation and characters really lacked creativity, but the setting is quite unique, and the relaxing atmosphere was truly wonderful.
It was a enjoyable series for me, but there were lots of space for improvement, and the story didn't really have any deep meanings. Music and the atmosphere were quite memorable and touching, but "Sora no Oto" is ultimately a watch-and-forget series as a whole.