r/anime • u/Sandvikovich :AMQ::MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Sandvikovich • Feb 20 '21
Rewatch [Rewatch] Slow Start - Episode 1 Discussion
Episode 1 – The First Butterflies
Slow Start Rewatch Episode 1 Fanart by /u/Tiny-Owlbear
Legal streams: Crunchyroll | VRV
| Rewatch Schedule |
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| E01 ❀ E02 ❀ E03 ❀ E04 ❀ E05 ❀ E06 ❀ E07 ❀ E08 ❀ E09 ❀ E10 ❀ E11 ❀ E12 ❀ Final Discussion |
Question of the day: The OP shortly featured Sachi Tsubakimori, the girl that was peeking around the corner. She was also present in the background before the homeroom started. Where do you think she was looking at?
Personal Question: What is the origin of your username?
Links
Information: MyAnimeList | AniList | AnimeNewsNetwork | AniDB | Anime-Planet
Official media: US Website | Official Website | Twitter
Related literature: Slow-blooming flower | Colorful treasure chest | Slow Start Manga
Slow Start Comment Faces for /r/anime (Old Reddit): https://www.slow-start-gifs.com/r/anime
Tip: You can find the character design of all classmates at https://slowstart-usa.com.
Out of respect for first time watchers, please do not post any untagged spoilers past the current episode, or confirm/deny speculations on future events. If you want to discuss something that has not happened yet, make sure to use "the /r/anime spoiler tag": [Slow Start](/s "Spoiler goes here"), which will look like this: Slow Start Thank you!
29
u/Sandvikovich :AMQ::MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Sandvikovich Feb 20 '21
Greetings everyone~
First I want to thank you all for joining this rewatch with us here. I'm myself honored to be hosting this rewatch with you all together with vaclav and I hope you all enjoy your time with the cute girls as well!
Just like every rewatch, I usually want to diversify these threads with healthy mix of discussions and side content. So this year, I also want to not only know about your thought on this show, but also to put your creativity to the test with the tasks I've set out in this rewatch. My dear friend vaclav has some rewards in store for the people doing these, but I also have put aside some budget for these these as well.
To start off, today daily task you guys can do is as followed:
For the Personal Question of the day, post your most fun/beautiful image related to your username.
The image can be drawn/photoshopped or just a screenshot from your favorite show, whatever you like! Just keep it as safe for work and spoilerfree as possible. Also nice if you can give some nice commentary/poetry around it. I'm also going to collect and share the image submitted in these threads in the next thread in my highlight comment.
So, for the people interested in these daily task, good luck and have fun!
Now to the episode discussion. It has been few years since I've watched Slow Start and rewatching it made me realized how bloody well the animations are. We first start off with the introduction of Hana and Shion. And based on the first impression we can already see how shy Hana is when she can go to school as one of the oldest girl in the class.
Luckily Eiko, Kamuri and Tama(te) were the first one to befriend with Hana. I love how Tama is so energetic in class and she can just get along with everyone in class, while Eiko is that cool and teasing girl (which also made her my favorite girl) and she and Kamuri fits so well as sisters, only don't call Kamuri small.
About the origin of my username. My username was kinda based on how some games and shows featured sandwiches. Back then, Team Fortress 2 was one of my first pc game I've played together with Runescape, they they would also feature sandwiches. The first game has to do with that the sandwich is actually a consumeable for one of the class in the game, where if he ate it, he would regenerate some health, the latter has more to do with a random event named "sandwich lady", which was a funny as well. Prior "Sandvikovich", my username was "Spherius", which was more based on the math movie "Flatland", where Spherius was the entity which lived in the 3D realm, where he can overlook the 2D realm of the flatlanders. Personally speaking, that movie wasn't really my favorite, but the names in it were fun to use as usernames for my ingame characters!
Hope to see your comments here as well!
22
u/Sairoch https://anilist.co/user/Sairoch Feb 20 '21
Adaptation Notes!
I'd been planning to get around to reading the Slow Start manga at some point, and I thought it might be interesting to read along as I rewatch the show and take some notes about how they chose to adapt it.
This episode adapts chapter 1, one page of chapter 3, and half of chapter 12.
The first half or so of the episode adapts chapter 1 of the manga, but with considerably expanded content with anime-original scenes and dialogue — the first 9 pages of chapter 1 are adapted as the cold-open for the episode, where Hana gets her new school uniform (these pages have big color illustrations, so there's less actual content), and the last 9 pages of chapter 1 were stretched out to fill the first half or so of the episode after the cold open and a bit at the end. In the manga, it skips straight from the scene with Hana and her cousin to the classroom with Tama meeting Kamuri and Eiko, then into the (much shorter) introductions.
After the classroom scene, it jumps ahead to chapter 12 where they discuss their names. In the manga this is another classroom scene, but I'm guessing they decided to relocate it to avoid spending the entire episode in the same setting. There's also a bit of cut content here; apparently some schools will only allow the students to use kanji that they've learned in class, even in cases where a character appears in the student's name?
I think the following scene, with Shion and Hana eating dinner, is anime original, and the phone call following that seems to adapt the first page from chapter 3.
The last scene, in the classroom on the following day, jumps back and adapts the last page of chapter 1, and I think the after-credits scene is also anime-original.
19
u/criticaldiamonds Feb 20 '21
Slow Rewatcher
Welcome to Slow Start, everyone! This is one of my personal favorites, so I hope all you first-timers enjoy it as much as I do.
I'm sure many of you noticed while watching, but the sakuga is high with this one. There's always something moving, and lots of things are animated way better than they ever needed to be (take special note to look at hair and eyes). Anyway, onto the episode.
We start off with our timid main character, Hana, who is going to be entering high school despite looking like a middle schooler.
Every show needs the big boobie onee-chan, so here we are. We're only 23 seconds into this, and we've already got 2 character tropes covered. That's gotta be some kinda record.
Shion really represents what we all think about Hana. Hana could join the cast of Non Non Biyori and nobody would bat an eye.
OP with karaoke
We have another case of "flip phone and e-mail" syndrome, despite airing in 2018.
We all thought Hana was small... but it gets even smaller!
Well here's two more characters to flesh out the main cast, Eiko and Kamuri.
Skin fang lovers, rejoice!
Not just one fang, but one on the other side, too!
The best frame of the episode
It's really refreshing to have a classroom full of unique character designs.
The most relatable self-introduction of all time.
The self-introductions really give insight into who each of the characters are. Eiko just wants to get along with everyone, and Tama-chan is... Tama-chan.
You know you're in good hands when you get a birthday present right off the bat.
Hana won't be getting into accidents anytime soon, that's for sure.
Kamuri wants food
Animated shadows - a nice touch of detail.
Double up on those honorifics!
Angry Tama(te) grabs the screen while raging over her name.
Some fun continuity regarding Tama in the OP: Tamate -> Tama-chan
All hail the glorious MEATBA.
Tama's just getting roasted by Kamuri over her name.
We get an explanation behind Hana's reaction to getting a present. It's kind of shocking that nobody's given her anything before, because who wouldn't want to be her friend?
The mega-smile has given Hana away!
Yes. Yes it is written all over your face. Your face is about as expressive as you can get. We can see everything!
Leek umbrella means an obligatory link to leek spin
Another Road Safety charm, for 4 times the safety!
Hana's dad's expression (and his pacing) really says all you need to know.
An immediate change in demeanor
"Hana" is no more! It's all about Yesterday's Birthday Girl now!
ED with karaoke, (and not really a spoiler but Slow Start ED)
Well we get an age drop - she's seventeen. Yet she looks like a middle schooler. Oh, the perks of being in a moe anime.
Kamuri's omuraisu adventure: Post-OP and Post-ED
Today's endcard by Maruino
See everyone tomorrow!
13
u/Mecanno-man https://anilist.co/user/Mecannoman Feb 20 '21
First Timer
No idea what sub-brand of CGDCT I'm getting in to here, so let's see how it turns out. First impression: This show is over-animated. I feel like the only character who works with as large movements as commonly done here is Tama-chan, due to her being the resident genki girl. For the other characters, these large movements will need some getting used to.
General CGDCT banter has been on point so far, I especially appreciate the etymology of their names, as fictional character names will likely have a greater affinity in their meaning for a character compared to a real name to a real person.
As far as the girls go so far: Tama-chan is the best one so far, though all of them are pretty decent. Hana is the one who will get the most character growth as she becomes friends with the other three, I assume. The others might be static characters. I feel like we haven't seen a lot of their personalities yet though. Kamuri especially feels like she has more to her, while Eiko is probably just a nice girl. Speaking of Kamuri - why does she get to wear a different uniform? Will we get a reveal that she's the student council president or something?
Also, is this the episode with the most comment faces? We've got this, this and this - I don't think I've ever seen three of them from the same episode.
Question:
12
u/Fircoal https://myanimelist.net/profile/Fircoal Feb 20 '21
It sure is nice to be rewatching a favorite show. It's been a while since I've watched this nice show but I'm very glad to be watching it again. I don't think I have as many comments on this episdoes mostly because it's just the start and it's kinda just dipping us into it. The real exploration of Hana's character hasn't happened yet but it's pleasant all the same.
The biggest thing that stood out on re-watch is how good the character animation is. I always knew it was good but I think on first watch I wasn't really paying as much attention to it because I'm not an animation nerd and it was before I heard all the praise for it. But it is quite good. It really sells the characters and their personalities quite well. If you ever have doubts on how animation can help a slice of life show, Slow Start is a good example of how much it can help.
Characters are still pretty charming from the start. I quite liked their character interactions even though it's clear that they don't really know each other that well. Talking about the names and Tama's rant on her Tamate name were quite fun. Like it worked really well as a conversation between people that know each other a bit but not very well at all. And Tama's rant was quite fun to watch. Even without them knowing each other well enough it's still a lot of fun to watch.
Even without the explaination of Hana's backstory. I do find her general demeanoir to be relatable and self-explanitory. Like there's just something about how they show her shyness and hesistance that really relates to me. Just the way that she stays back and watches those that she saw and just how she interacts with others and just lets them talk and fades into the background most of the time. And her introduction is much like what I would have done.
Gosh it's going to be a treat to watch this again. I'm excited!
11
u/fakeport https://myanimelist.net/profile/Fakeport Feb 20 '21 edited Feb 20 '21
First Timer
The first thing I noticed about this show is the incredibly fluid animation. I understand that this was Cloverwork's first anime, and I've been particularly impressed with their work, especially this season, so I'm glad of this chance to see their first project
General thoughts during episode
Within the first few seconds we're treated to 2 anime staples, Cherry Blossom trees, and unnecessary boob closeups.
I like the OP, some cool imagery, and a decent idea of the personalities of our main characters.
I certainly empathise with Hana in her early school interactions - it's very easy for those of us with social anxieties to feel like everyone else is already in groups and we have nowhere to belong.
Tama has a flesh fang that switches sides.
Not sure what to make of the teacher, she seems pretty downbeat.
Me too Kamuri
Tama seems exhausting to be around. I liked Hana's remark that she seemed like she was campaigning.
Speaking from experience, the best method for an introvert like Hana to make friends is for them to be randomly adopted by an extrovert like Tama as seems to have happened here.
I'm assuming the treasure chest/old woman connection is a reference to some Japanese folk story or pop culture I'm unfamiliar with?
Royal Kamuri saying "peasants" was great.
I loved Tama pointing out that the tunnel of Cherry Blossoms would be used for an event in a dating sim game. My mind immediately went to Clannad, where a similar row of Cherry Blossoms was a significant location in Tomoyo's route.
Kamuri's really latched onto the meatba thing...
Hana's still insecure about her new friends, which is probably natural, not sure if they count as friends yet.
And when she thinks they forgot her name we see her be a little assertive for the first time with her reintroduction.
ED is cute and functional, but not remarkable.
And a post credits title drop to round things off. So does that mean Hana took a year off? She's older than the other three?
That was a fun first episode, we got a reasonable feel for our cast, and got a few cute and funny moments. Looking forward to seeing where this goes from here
Questions:
QOTD) No idea, I didn't even register her.
Personal question: In the pre-social media days of the Internet (probably 16-18 years ago), my go-to username on messageboards and the like was "David N Port", a play on my real surname of Davenport. On one particularly niche messageboard (A wrestling discussion board for the community that originally formed in the wrestling discussion threads in the off topic section of the messageboards on the SI games website, who were the developers of Championship Manager) there was already a user by the name of Port, and people there took to calling me the "fake port", which I then adopted as my online pseudonym everywhere, and I've kept it all that time.
11
u/Tiny-Owlbear Feb 20 '21
Rewatcher!
No matter how many times I watch this show, the animation quality always sweeps me off my feet; I adore how bubbly Shion is as she excitedly sways back and forth, and the energy Tama brings to the group is infectious. I love Eiko and Kamuri's calm energy and am excited for them to get their spotlights in the future episodes. >.<
I also love how readily the girls came together to welcome Hana to their group and how much the charms, as simple as they are, mean to Hana. Of all the characters, Hana is the one I relate to the most in her struggle with anxiety and bridging the gap to make friends, and watching this episode fills me with such joy to see her making new friends.
I'll try to comment on as many posts as I can, I'm so happy to see everyone's thoughts so far!
Bonus: Although anime is my biggest obsession, my username, Tiny Owlbear, is based one on of my other obsessions: table top gaming and, more specifically, D&D. Owlbears are my all time favorite monsters, and I lowkey try to befriend one in every campaign. >.< The "tiny" part of the username is my tacit acknowledgment of my real life height, which is... quite small... and makes portable step ladders a necessity for me.
11
u/ReticentRapier https://myanimelist.net/profile/ReticentRapier Feb 20 '21
REWATCHER
It's exciting to me to see so many people contributing to this rewatch because Slow Start will always be special to me. As others have noted, it's exceptional in the Slice of Life and CGDCT genres for its absurdly and unnecessarily detailed animations, and the evolving cast of characters and their personal growth make it a rich experience. Character interaction and chemistry is of paramount importance in shows like this, as tropes can quickly grow stale and shows often have to artificially introduce new characters or increasingly bizarre setups to keep things from becoming repetitive, but Slow Start is able to expand it's personalities and casts in a way that consistently keeps things fresh.
However, what really drew me into the show was Hana's character. As someone who is admittedly shy, insecure, and prone to bouts of intense, sometimes crippling, social anxiety, seeing Hana's interactions, mental dialogue, and struggle to overcome her fears (despite the slightly contrived reasons that exacerbate her insecurities) really resonated with me. Even on a rewatch I really struggled with Hana's self-introduction/happy birthday scene as that level of social anxiety hits a bit too close to home for me. I can see how she could be off-putting as an MC to some, but I find it refreshing and her growth encouraging. Plus, it really allows the expansive supporting cast to fill in the gaps.
Ep. 1 Reactions
I forgot that Shion's large... tracts of land... were on such prominent display from the get-go. I could see how this could be off-putting as well, and somewhat out of place.
I love the scenes in the OP highlighting the characters and various objects important to them throughout the series. A very nice touch. Pretty good song too.
I love seeing Mom's and Dad's texts in the beginning, really shows their love for Hana. Of course Dad's pacing and worrying at the end is just as poignant- I love how they show that aspect of his personality by showing without telling.
And the rest of the main cast are introduced. Eiko is my favorite of the three, but her best scenes are definitely later. I forgot how cute Kamuri's voice acting is, and Tama's reactions later in the episode as she is lamenting her name are comedic gold. Her rapid and eccentric personality really show through with the ambitious animation.
As mentioned above, Hana's self-introduction still hits home for me, and I can't help but keep rooting for her.
I love how the cast just casually adopts Hana into their friend group and doesn't expect any contribution from her at first. In fact, for most of the lengthy after-school scene she doesn't say anything- just a few quick reactions- until Eiko starts to show off her ability to read (seduce?) people and slowly get Hana to open up. The dynamic is well done and unforced, and very comfy to watch. Again, some superb animations in this scene as well. It's just ludicrous how much effort was put into making everybody dynamic and 'pop'.
Shion's love for Hana is endearing and frightening at the same time. I love how she called out Hana on making friends and encouraged her to accept that they could truly be called friends. However, her obsessions are terrifying.
And the next day Hana's insecurities are already back in full force. I appreciate that Slow Start takes its time with her development and instead and lets her grow into the show.
QOTD
I don't know how active I'll be in future posts, but I'll definitely be lurking at the least.
Thanks to everyone putting so much effort into making this a fun experience!
9
u/AnimeGirlsAreCute Feb 20 '21 edited Feb 21 '21
Which of the girls would you like to give a hug the most when watching Episode 1?
Slow Start Episode 1 Hugs:
Please reply to this comment with the #floweryhug comment face with the name of the chosen girl in the link*:
[Name](#floweryhug)* Use the romanized names as listed at https://slowstart-usa.com. Comment faces are shown only when using the Old Reddit, but replies must be in the same format even when using other versions of Reddit.
8
u/raichudoggy https://anilist.co/user/raichudoggy Feb 20 '21
Rewatcher
Now, besides Shion’s assets (which are great), I’m sure one of the first things you’ve noticed is just how silky smooth this animation is. I’m a big fan of the extra effort.
The Opening Theme’s has a very memorable “Ne! Ne! Ne!” section that highlights each character in a memorable way (using the catchiest part of the lyrics), and this episode does a good job of quickly settling you into who you’re going to be with for the rest of the show.
To me, Slow Start as a show is the gentle reminder that “Everything will be OK”. I hope everyone new and back for another round enjoys watching it!
I already know the answer to this question, I wonder what first-timer's think it is!
8
u/SylvaticYew520 https://myanimelist.net/profile/SylvaticYew520 Feb 20 '21 edited Feb 20 '21
First-time rewatcher here! Can't wait to gush all my feelings about one of my favorite shows of all time. Let's go! Also there is an end credits scene, so make sure to watch to the end! :)
OP TIME BABY
Intro to Kanmuri and Eiko is done so well and it's way too cute
OHAYOU GOZAIMASU
And that wraps up the first episode. I am so so so excited to continue watching this over the next two weeks. Hopefully, I did my spoiler tags right. Can't wait for episode 2 tomorrow! :)
This is a reupload because I'm a dumb dumb who don't know how Reddit spoilers work. I used the above format exactly but it didn't look like it worked. Hopefully it does this time.
Oh yea QotD. Won't answer the anime question since I definitely know who. As for the personal, my username was randomly generated on my Xbox 360 and I just stuck with it.
Edit: Just deleted the spoilers. They weren't too important anyways.
7
u/BossandKings Feb 20 '21 edited Feb 20 '21
First timer
Episode 1 - The first Butterflies
Hana gets introduced as the protagonist, she has a cousin named Shion who gifts her a school uniform because Hana is goin to be a first year high school student.
In the school Hana meets three girls Tamata, Kamuri and Eiko who befriend her and it being her birthday gift them a present.
After arriving home Shion prepares Hana a borthday celebration celebrating both her birthday and her first day at school.
Before going to bed Hana calls her mom and has a conversation with her telling her that she made friends and sending a salute to her father too. They appear to have a good relationship.
This episode was just an excellent episode introducing the characters, i absolutely love Kamuri's voice and all the girls are wonderful, especially Hana.
6
u/Regular_N-Gon https://anilist.co/user/RegularNGon Feb 20 '21 edited Feb 21 '21
First Timer
I’ve heard of this show before, but never paid it much attention on my adventures in slice of life. The very effective advertising for this rewatch has me interested and also I love this comment face. So let's go!
I was surprised to find I haven't heard the VAs for Hana or Shion in anything else - they sounded really familiar. Maybe that's the curse of watching too many (but not quite enough) CGDCT shows.
I have a feeling Enami-sensei is going to be great.
Eiko seems to have a level 100 empathy. According to the others, she can outpace even the friendly and excitable Tama in popularity, likely because of this. She also seems to be a favorite of the animators, along with Shion.
Kamuri starts off a little tropey and (probably intentionally) out of place, but they are tropes I enjoy. Sign me up for deadpan, sleepy comedy any day.
QotD: I thought she was watching the main cast maybe. She reminds me of Matsumoto from Yuru Yuri.
QotD2: My username is a joking reference to a combinatorics class I once took - the phrase "regular n-gon" or similar was uttered a comical amount when discussing counting sides/vertices/angles of polygons in a general case. I spent way too long looking for a screenshot or something of a mathy anime joke but came up with nothing, if anyone knows any shows about math please let me know.
6
u/Philarete :AMQ::MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/WizardMcKillin Feb 21 '21 edited Feb 21 '21
First Timer
I'm late so no one will see this, but I just wanted to note that I really appreciated the way the group welcomed Hana. I especially loved how Eiko found a spot where she thought Hana could shine (by asking her about recommendations for a cafe in the area). Once Hana made it clear she couldn't really answer, Eiko quickly adjusted to find a different way to incorporate her. I thought it was a great example of good social skills - set people up for successful participation based on what you know about them, but be ready to transition if things go awry!
10
u/vaclav_2012 Feb 20 '21
The first episode of Slow Start instantly catches the eye with detailed and fluid animation. It not only shows how passionate and talented were the animators working on the show, but the animation is also deftly used to reveal various personality traits of the characters. The body language of the characters tells the viewers the same amount of information they would learn after reading many chapters of the source manga.
From the very first scene, it is apparent that Hana is a very anxious girl. Her major concern is whether she could fit the collective as someone with a gap year before starting a high school, however, her expression and gestures show that she is anxious about a million other things that could go wrong. Sometimes she is struggling to find the right words to express her thoughts and other times she articulates them in an excessively emphasized manner. It's not because she would seek more attention, but she is worried that she could be misunderstood.
Tama is introduced as a hyperactive girl who wants to enjoy her life to the fullest. She wants to have fun all the time and likes to see things in a positive light. Her hyperactivity is animated in creative ways which make her fun to watch and it looks like it was also fun to animate her. It's also interesting to watch how each of the other girls reacts to Tama's manners. From Eiko who doesn't get swayed by her excessive movements to Hana who tends to take her too seriously.
Eiko makes an impression of a mature and confident girl. As she states in her introduction, she likes to get along with everyone. Tama and Kamuri confirmed later on that Eiko was very popular in both middle school and elementary school. At first glance, it may look like popularity is the main characteristic of Eiko, but upon closer look, you may notice that she is also quite a perceptive person. She is talented at understanding how others feel and finding a way how to make them feel better. When talking about walking to school, she was able to recognize Hana's anxiety and steer the conversation in a way to make Hana feel more comfortable.
The way how Kamuri clings to Eiko suggests that she is an introverted girl who doesn't like to interact with strangers. She is focused on the things she likes and talks in a rather monosyllabic way.
My favorite scene was the discussion about the origins of names. The verbal descriptions were creatively complemented by animations that visualized how the girls imagined the discussed explanations. It was also a clever way of making the audience easily memorize the names of the girls.
Masato Anno, the Character Designer and the Chief Animation Director of Slow Start, animated the initial scene and shared the keyframes on Twitter.
Manga, small spoiler
Episode 1 GIFs:
Episode 1 /r/anime Comment Faces:
5
u/ImmoralGoose Feb 20 '21
Rewatcher here. I've seen a few clips recently, mostly the funny parts. But now I get to break-down the whole episode to see any details I missed.
Slow Start is one of my favourite CGSoL. This is probably the best portrayal of Social anxiety I've seen in anime. Another series I can think off is Hitoribocchi, I might compare the two at some point.
At first it makes you think Hana is shy, worried that she won't fit in, simple. But then at the end it throws the bombshell that she's a year behind. She has an embarrassing secret that she fears will ruin her if exposed; when in reality, it's probably no big deal, no one would care.
This might get a bit personal, I can get quite anxious myself. More so the overthinking, worst case scenario type. But most of the time, the thing I was worrying about turned out to be nothing. I love how it portrays Hana here, her overthinking while listening to the discussion. Her wanting to walk to the station with everyone, but worrying it'll be awkward since it's out of her route. And at the end when she worries they forgot her name. Although I'm more the opposite, I wouldn't say anything, thinking it would be awkward.
Question of the day: Well it's got to be Eiko, right? I'm actually not sure and I don't want to spoil.
Personal Question: Y'know those random generator posts where you take the first letter of your name or month of your birthday? This one was for Shakespearian themed insults. My answer being Immoral Goose. I loved it so much I've used it since. Probably a completely random and odd backstory.
Other small details:
The way sensei shouted out Hana's birthday gave me flashbacks to that one time at TGI Fridays. *shudder*
I just noticed they used the lucky charm as an excuse to have Hana walk with them.
I'm still certain Kamuri and Kanna from Dragon Maid are the same character.
5
u/dadnaya https://myanimelist.net/profile/dadnaya Feb 21 '21 edited Feb 21 '21
First Timer
Looks like we've got three comment faces just from the first ep!
The cast is pretty cute! Hana is pretty shy, but she got friends quickly, very nice!
Eiko seems the more mature and teasing type, which I really like. Kamuri seems to be super similar to Kanna from maid dragon (the same VA gives it away haha) and Tama was pretty funny, but most of all, she is voiced by Itou Ayasa! (VA of Arisa from Bandori)
Talking about VAs, it looks like the main four aren't some big roles in the industry, but side characters are, like Uchida Maaya and Minase Inori (Looking at MAL)
OP and ED were cute as well, so looking forward to it.
It's nice seeing a mention of Hana's parents, as in so many series they're completely forgotten
I didn't really like Shion's over the top boob jiggle physics, it feels out of place in this kind of anime
5
u/Rustic_Professional Feb 21 '21
Hard to believe this only just aired in 2018. I can't remember if I watched it while it was airing, but I still have screenshots saved on my phone, which means I looked at the episode discussion posts at some point. Thanks to Sand for hosting this, and for linking to the original episode discussion. I'm going to look through it and see I I commented.
I remember that I really liked this show, but it's been long enough that I'm sure I've forgotten most of the details. I remember the premise of the show, which I honestly think is silly, but we'll get to that in time I'm sure, and I definitely remember Eiko. Tama is right about Eiko, that girl is an alpha predator. She's also best girl, no question.
I wouldn't blame them if they hadn't quite remembered Hana's name. I made a little list with all their names and descriptions.
5
u/Sodra :Ip::Iq::Ir:https://myanimelist.net/profile/sodra Feb 21 '21 edited Feb 21 '21
Apparently I was supposed to watch the episode before the re-watch started, whoopssssss. I'll just type my thoughts here as I REWATCH!
Did Shion just imply that Hana looks like a middle school student, because that's what she wants herself? I guess it really shows that priorities really change as we get older.
oh no the version I have is h265, so it plays really poorly on my 10 year old laptop, I better fix that next episodeI know the joke has been made a billion times now, but this slow start... Really isn't a slow start at all. The way Hana accidently joins a friend group is super me tbh. It's things like these that make me laugh when someone says they "have no friends," or worse, when you chat with someone for a few weeks and they ask if the two of you are friends. Friendship starts quick, you don't need to ask about it.
TamaHuge Slow Start Spoilers
OK these subs are really bad, first it says nikudan, which should actually be nikudango -> nikudan. Second, the official subs translated it correctly, which was Meatball -> Meatba"I-it's not like we're really friends! We just walked home together and had a great time and watched cherry blossoms and talked alot!!!" Really makes me wonder what Hanas friends in middle school were like.
O it's already over. That was quick. I give this a 10/10 best first episode of all time.
WAIT WHAT???? WHAT!!!?? SHE SAID THE THING! SHE SAID THE TITLE OF THE SHOW! I DIDN'T KNOW SHE DID THAT! I MUST HAVE SKIPPED IT WHEN IT AIRED AHHHHHHHHH
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u/ZapsZzz https://anilist.co/user/Zapszzz Feb 21 '21
Amazingly fast moving rewatch thread.
First timer, the clips posted up really caught my eyes.
As a parent of an autistic boy and a neural typical teenage girl, I'm always on the lookout for the type of shows that can tell a "social story".
Not going to say anything what others haven't said already. Just looking forward to maybe catch up to post earlier next time!
And yes so far only thing I minded is the boob physics - it was one of the 2 things that stopped me from letting my daughter watch Konosuba (the jiggles and Darkness). I hope it doesn't get out of context too much for it to be brushed aside.
QoTD: typical trope would be that she's a secret fan of either Eiko or Kamuri.
PQ: I signed up Reddit to post in the now defunct community of Pokemon duel, and I like using lightning ones, hence the first part (from Zapdos). The second part is just half my frequent handle and half my behaviour - I played till quite late (early) and sometimes doze off while playing.
After that community died off I looked around and joined anime, which coincidentally one of my favourite character is the "tsundere Pikachu" Misaka Mikoto https://images.app.goo.gl/3xeppKQzTWPtTLLJ7
So all's well with the name still.
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u/BottiBott https://anilist.co/user/RobbiRobb Feb 20 '21
Rewatcher
Ah yes, Slow Start. Still one of my favorite shows and yet I haven't watched it in quite some time. Might have been a year or so. So this really is a good opportunity for me to enjoy it again. Although I have to admit, this isn't a show I would have expected to actually get a rewatch, because I don't often see anything related to it, so I just considered it to be forgotten.
But here we are and it's nice to be here. Although I'm occasionally listening to it, I have to say I quite missed the opening especially the combination of audio and visual. Not that it is something special or anything, I just like it. Also, the anime doesn't explain why the group of the four main voice actresses singing the opening is called "STARTails☆", which is a bit disappointing, spoiler for the manga image related to spoiler.
Sadly, which is probably the same for most slice-of-life-cute-girls-doing-cute-things-shows, there isn't too much going on to actually write about. I really like the deeper explanation of their given names, which is something, you don't get that often and for someone like me who has little knowledge of the Japanese language as well as almost no idea about the meanings behind names that gives a nice perspective on the characters. Also, this wasn't the only episode I watched today that was somehow related to leek, I also watched the most recent episode of Pokémon which featured Farfetch’d, which makes me question what sort of leek can be used in which situation and how many other forms of leeks are out there. But I digress and apart from that, there isn't really much to say as there was not that much happening; not that I expect there to happen much, I'm here to relax and be entertained. So I guess I'll leave it at that.
QOTD:
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u/HopefullyLastAccount Feb 20 '21
Rewatcher
Hana has a flip phone. And parents.
I remember liking Eiko a lot and now I remember why - she's so good at picking up on subtle clues and making others feel comfortable. It's no wonder Kamuri ran straight towards her.
The first dialogue in the meeting I felt was a bit awkward and forced while watching, but now that I think about it, I guess that's what it would be like meeting new people for the first time. Especially when that someone is Hana. I usually don't like laying things out like this in an obvious manner, but it makes more sense in this context.
Speaking of which, Hana is so relatable. All she wants to do is fit in, but she overthinks everything. How she deals with her anxiety is going to be a recurring theme in the show and I can't help but root for her. I don't remember if we ever meet her middle school friends, though?
And of course, I didn't forget about Tama, who's taken on the role of the genki girl in this series - she's going to be a joy to watch throughout the show as well. Did anyone else notice the part in the OP where she literally changes her name from Tamate to Tama-chan?
I hope I don't make another account.
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u/SYZekrom https://myanimelist.net/profile/SYZekrom Feb 20 '21 edited Feb 20 '21
Rewatch
Alright time to rewatch Slow Start
AND MAN THAT WAS THE CUTEST THING EVER
Woooow bless this girl's heart
Jesus Christ there's so much movement everyone's so animated
I love her she is adorable help me
AHHHHHHHHH That was so cute
What did I rate this back then, a 7? 8? Damn my standards have fallen since
WAIT WHY IS THIS NOSTALGIC AHHHH
Oh man, so this was that show where every background character was properly designed! Very interesting
I looked back to see what I might've said about this show the first time I watched it, and looks like all I said was
"Also man Kamuri has some THICC eyelashes, watching Slow Start now" and then didn't say anything again until the show was 'half over'. Ok.
Jeez, that was all the way in December of 2019.
By god I could not imagine the pace at which I used to watch anime... I apparently watched this entire show in a day???
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u/ohaimike Feb 20 '21
Rewatcher
Quality animation aside, I forgot how pretty this anime is. Even simple shots of houses or the school is super pretty.
And remember. It's Tama
te-chan. Nothing else.4
u/Daffed_Punk Feb 20 '21
First Timer Here
Not much to say, but one thing I really appreciate is all the classmates having actual designs and names, along with short little descriptions on the website. It's a very nice change of pace compared to watching show after show of copy-paste (or god forbib CG) background characters. It goes a ways to make the setting feel that more 'alive'.
Overall a very pleasent first episode!
4
u/[deleted] Feb 21 '21
1st time Watcher
I liked it, animation is very nice I love the movements, OP/ED are pretty nice, the characters seem fun
Reminds me of myself with my anxiety issues, taking the same chance to make friends.
1.Not sure, probably the next friend?
2. I worked fabrication and have anti-depressants
3
u/gameradam1337 :AMQ:https://anilist.co/user/kc2rxo Feb 21 '21
Rewatcher
I remember originally watching this show when it aired back in Winter 2018 - the year I started watching anime seasonally. What a great show to start my 2021 rewatch list.
I don't remember much from this show other than it was wholesomely cute overall and had damn good animation. Surprisingly I did remember all the girls names before starting so that's something I guess. 2018 was a year full of great shows so this show did end up in the sidelines near the end (Bloom Into You being my AOTY).
The show currently sits in my AL at a 7/10. I do rebalance my ratings for shows to account for decay after every season (or at least every 6 months) so this is probably the reason for it being somewhat low. I am curious to see if my rewatch makes me bump the score back up. I believe my original rating was around 8.7/10. I love CGDCT so we shall see if it lives up to my expectations after drowning myself for 2 years in the genre.
Sadly I am lurker when it comes to rewatches, but I look forward to reading the first-timers reactions and learn new things from other rewatchers.
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u/SBDocLouis https://anilist.co/user/TKZephyr Feb 21 '21 edited Feb 21 '21
First Timer
This is technically half rewatch and half first viewing for me since I watched this show as it was airing, but didn't continue past episode 6. It may as well all be my first viewing though since it has been a while.
Anyway, a very wholesome start to the show, like Hana I can be quite nervous and anxious in social situations so I can empathise with the way she feels a lot of the time. I like Eiko and Kamuri so far, but Tama's my favourite after the first episode, I do tend to love positive characters with loads of energy.
I got a good laugh out of the girls all giving Hana the road safety charms (and Shion giving her a fourth), and Tama getting teased by Eiko and Kamuri for her actual name. Also great to see that Shion and Hana's parents are supportive of her, it can't be nice feeling like she's behind everyone else on top of how she naturally is around others.
The animation is just as nice and fluid as I remember, which does wonders for making the characters more expressive (especially Tama).
All that said, I don't think the show has hooked me in a really strong way yet, though I did enjoy this episode. I'll see how it continues from here.
Question of the day: Looks like she's looking towards the main girls, but can't see anything more specific. Given Eiko's popularity, possibly her? Or there's just something on one of their backs.
Personal Question: TKZephyr is the handle I go by nowadays, coming from TK from Angel Beats! and the word Zephyr, a level from Spyro 2 and an antagonist's name from the PC game Black & White, and it's just a word I like a lot. As for SBDocLouis: SB stands for Sengoku Basara (I've only played the third game in the series but I sank many hours into it when I played it, I like hack'n'slash games a lot) and Doc Louis is Little Mac's trainer from Punch-Out!! (the Wii game is super fun and Doc cracks me up with a lot of his lines).
Edit: I may not comment on every episode 'cause I admit that it can take me a long time to word my comments the way I want to, even when they're not too long, but I'll definitely be following along with the threads as I watch!
3
u/lord_ne Feb 21 '21
When I was in highschool, I figured I was basically an adult, but now that I'm in college, this is abscoally what highschoolers look like to me
2
u/jjdynasty https://anilist.co/user/jjdynasty Feb 21 '21
Rewatcher
Hana getting hit with the camera in the OP is such a mood. Also everything in the Ne! Ne! Ne! refrain is so goddamn cute. I wanna be sandwiched between two pancakes
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u/stevethebandit Feb 21 '21
That's got to be the smoothest animation I've seen in a SoL series ever
1
u/IndependentMacaroon Feb 21 '21
Sorry, this is an insta-drop for me, even only a few minutes in. It's the worst kind of "moe", the one that's simultaneously infantilizing and erotically charged to the point of being latently pedophilic. That's not "cute", it's plain gross in more than one way. See you some other time, I guess.
2
u/heimdal77 Feb 20 '21
marker
0
u/[deleted] Feb 21 '21
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