An ending is, in another sense a beginning and the same is true with anime. Days ago I finally completed my Spring 2018 Anime Recommendations so I had a bit of time to spare and look around the new titles that are going to air (most of them already aired though) this season. The first one that caught my attention was Yama no Susume (Encouragement of Climb). There are 2 reasons why I got intrigued by this show, first is that it is already on its 3rd season which is a rare occurrence in the industry. The other one is that I somehow feel like I have heard or read the title somewhere else before so I asked Google-san about it and then I eventually recalled where I first saw the title - it was when I was reading an article about anime that are similar to Yuru Camp.

As I have the free time and I was already curious at the moment, I decided to give the show a try and boy was I surprised, that was one of the best discovery I have made this year. Now allow me to tell you exactly what makes this show good, and who knows? Maybe this will end up in your watch list too!

Yama no Susume (Encouragement of Climb)

Genres: Adventure, Slice of Life, Comedy

Plot

Before I begin, I would like to mention that the first season only runs for 3 minutes per episode and has a total of 12 episodes and the second season runs for 13 minutes per episode and has a total of 24 episodes. So if you are thinking that this would take too much of your time don't worry it won't and in the case that you are worried about the time being too short, you also don't have to worry because they handled the show pretty well despite having little amount of time to work with. So with that out of the way, let's properly start this one.

You may already have a rough idea of what this show is about based on the title and the fact that this is included in a list about anime similar to Yuru Camp, but allow me to talk about it anyway (this section would be too short otherwise lol).

This is about a group of girls that climbs mountains. That may seem too simple of an explanation so allow me to revise it a little. The show is about a girl named Aoi Yukimura that was once passionate about climbing mountains but an accident lead to her developing a fear of heights, therefore she slowly lose enthusiasm and ended up leaning towards indoor hobbies, secluding herself from social interactions altogether. But someone pulled her by the hand (literally) and dragged her out of her comfort zone and that is her childhood friend that just got reunited with her, Hinata Kuraue.

I guess that explains the title, no? Just imagine someone with fear of heights going for a climb, man that would need more than just words and that is exactly where things get better, the showcase of the characters' friendship that is the definition of through thick and thin in every sense. It is not like someone would instantly overcome their fear and say "okay let's do it" just because an old friend returned and wanted to climb some mountains, but the show made it work. They made reasons for Aoi to face her fear and climb: first is the promise(no, this is not Nisekoi) that she made with Hinata when they were kids to climb a mountain and watch the sunrise together again, second is the fulfillment that she had when she accompanied Hinata and witnessed the view from above a small hill and of course, as someone who lived her life in solitude, the warmth of having friends that will laugh and argue with her and will support her all the way is the clinching factor.

Beautiful friendship is a staple in most slice of life shows so that may not give too much of an appeal so I would state another reason why this show hooked me. At first glance this could easily be taken as a soothing happy go lucky show that is good to relieve stress which is not wrong, but looking at it on a different perspective it tells more than the story of a loner girl that found the courage to climb mountains. If one would think about it, we all have our own fear and things we are trying to avoid but how do we handle them when the need to confront them arise? Do we run or do we face them head on? That is the aspect of the show that I think truly deserves all the praise. It doesn't make mountain climbing just as gimmick to hook people in, it showed the hardships and dangers of mountain climbing, the feeling of disappointment when you arranged a climb only to give up half-way through. It didn't gloss over the ugly and difficult parts just to serve a relaxing show, they made it in a way that may want others to reevaluate if pushing through is really the right choice.

. But you know the saying that "there's a rainbow after the rain" perfectly applies to this show because all the difficulties that one has endured only serves to make the victory at the end ever more satisfying. So if you fail then you just have to try it once again. Remember why you started and if you can't do it alone, then this time try it with the help of your friends.

Characters

There are four core members of the cast: Aoi Yukimura, Hinata Kuraue, Kaede Saitou and Kokona Aoba. I don't have much to say about the characters. They are a fun bunch that are entertaining to watch. Aoi and Hinata may be polar opposites but they blend well, one is a shy, timid girl and the other one is a rowdy, energetic girl. A perfect pair to even out each other's character and Hinata's cheerfulness is the best way to breakthrough Aoi's social anxiety. And by the end of the show you can actually see just how much Aoi has grown.

Then we have Kaede, the reliable (except cooking) upperclassman and veteran mountain climber. She is the one with the most experience so she always guides and look after the other 3 members of their group.

Last is Kokona, a middle schooler that Aoi and Hinata helped in one of their climbs that joined their circle of friends. Despite being the youngest, she has proven to be dependable especially when it comes to cooking. This may be the result of living alone with her mother who is most of the time at work. She has a vivid imagination and a purely kind individual that always wears a smile on her face.

Animation

Another highlight of the show is its superb animation, I have no other thing to say than praise for the quality that the studio has achieved on this one. This applies not only to the beautiful views of nature and architecture but also to the characters. One of the things that makes animation great for me is how the characters move and they did it really well. Their movements are lively and even their facial expressions are on point, heck even their hair sways seamlessly which I think is a great attention to detail.

Then they have scenes like this. Breathtaking.

And scenes like this one will make you look twice to verify that they are animated because they look like the real thing at first glance.

I think I already made my point here, but just in case, I am also planning on making a separate post about the beautiful scenery that the show offered because there are a whole lot of them and I think the studio (8bit) made a remarkable job at this one that deserves appreciation so look forward to it.

Conclusion

I believe I have nothing more to add. The show is a mountain of inspiration that will take you on a wonderful journey so go get your equipment and together we will aim for the beautiful scene beyond the horizon! Let's climb!

This is my first Summer 2018 anime season post and hopefully I can make the next one before next weekend (I just jinxed myself there). I am planning on making a compilation of titles that I find interesting and maybe a solo list like this one for those that I find to be too good to miss. I am just waiting for at least three episodes to air so that I could at least make a more proper assessment before making the list. See you again on my next recommendation. Ciao~