I’m genuinely glad that there still is someone making a video essay about Hyouka in 2024, a rare one with the more common perspective about this show as well. You see, Hyouka is the type of show that most anime watchers stop at appreciating its masterclass production value and write it off otherwise, while loyal fans stick up to its core values and place it amongst the best from Kyoto Animation or the industry as a whole. I’m of the latter type and more so, almost every anime I’ve watched in the last couple years were from KyoAni, having been enchanted by their soul and heart. Thus I can see myself as personally biased in my take on the show and develop slight disagreements with yours, however I see where you’re coming from with the criticism of this show having no plot nor a narrative throughout its length, what’s the purpose of watching all the way to the end, after all? The review breaks away from the usual praises and complex essays I’m so used to with the Hyouka fandom, and produces a solid argument for those who don’t love this show as much and often undermine it with baseless words, hence I call it rare. And I must admit, your take on the show is more representative of the anime community as a whole, however it still is baffling why some people love this boring, low stake mystery show with no plot so much from this point of view. At its core, Hyouka is never meant to have a plot, the Classics Club that it surrounds has no goals but to publish an annual anthology, each one of its members has no valid reason to join it. The name itself serves little more than as the title of the first big mystery of the series, because it’s only (Chitanda) Eru’s personal problem, not something so crucial to the existence of the club or the life of its members. Hyouka, then, upon the unveiling of the meaning behind its name in episode 5 as merely a pun, has already established itself as an idyllic work based around the mundane life of four completely normal high school students. It’s unfair in my opinion to fault the show for not having the plot when it sets itself apart by not doing so, and be immensely successful at it. With that said, this show is nowhere close to being a show about nothing, there’s a reward for watching all 22 episodes - not (Oreki) Houtarou’s unrealized confession to Eru, nor the beautiful scenery, but the characterization leading up to that point. Hyouka, much like other KyoAni shows about nothing, is a character-driven slice of life of normal humans going through high school in their own ways, it’s their characters are humans that make then enjoyable and their developments that make the conclusions worthwhile. A more popular illustration for this would be K-ON!, those who have sat all the way witnessing the girls doing all kinds of silly stuff will never say that the ending is unemotional, or that Tenshi ni Furetayo! isn’t a sad song. It’s boring to just be a witness in others’ lives certainly, but for those who are enchanted by KyoAni slice of life, it’s an escape from reality while being constantly reminded of it. Some of their shows like Hibike! Euphonium are even tougher pills to swallow for that realism plus drama, and even that show which centers around a band trying to win gold at national competition, still is a character-driven slice of life at its core. It still tries to break away from the tropes by making the protagonist lose her ultimate personal goal, but that difference makes it stand out with a great message behind. To add an example of this show’s exceptional attention to its characters and how it leverages this specialty, we can look at the background stuff during the school festival arc. The arc is heavily but discreetly centered on the motivation behind its main mystery - that Tanabe is riddled with inferiority complex and has his expectations unfulfilled. The interesting part is that this message of the untalented getting thrashed by the talented is replicated 3 more times: Satoshi vs. Houtarou, Kouchi vs. Anju, and Mayaka vs. Kouchi. One problem with 4 different perspectives, all intricately linked together in the background, makes for such empathy with the viewers that few anime are able to achieve. It’s something easily missed amist the chaotic atmosphere, much like ourselves in real life. Hyouka is unique in the same way that other KyoAni shows are - that it makes the average life special by embracing its averageness, but it's because of this direction that excludes it from the average anime. It’s reflective of our lives yet comfy to watch, its low stakes nature never fills the air with unnecessary tension, it’s the perfect escapism for those who seek to understand its characters. The show is loaded with characterizations and metaphors that come with them, befitting of the Classics Club theme and allow it to have a surprisingly high rewatch value. I lack the vocabulary to further elaborate at this point, so I recommend checking out Under The Scope’s review of this show, which strictly follows this point of view. He encapsulated it very perfectly: “The show’s mystery lies in its character interaction.” I highly recommend reading the novels, I assure that it has pretty much the same substance as the anime except that it’s told from Houtarou’s first perspective so that we see much more of him personally. The story goes for two more volumes from the anime and the more we read, the more we understand the characters. Shoushimin is also worth a read/watch, I wouldn’t say I enjoy the anime as much as Hyouka, but it’s certainly filled with more substance and stakes, making the conclusions of arcs a bit more rewarding in my opinion.

nowadays episodic formats has been forgotten... most things are serialised nowadays

hyouka is one of the most beautiful animes I have seen

I don't think Hyouka is the best anime to recommend, but it is my no.1 favorite anime. The overarching story is about Oreki leaving behind the grey, iconic energy reserved lifestyle, into a rose-colored life/perspective with the push of Chitanda; it's a down-to-earth introspective personal story that I think is even more valuable in this day and age full of apathy or nihilism. Things doesn't always have to be bombastic nor dramatic to excite, there are many moments (especially in these chaotic times) where the seemingly mundane is precious, something that could bring joy. It truly is a _slice_ of _life_ anime, and where most fill in the blanks with overwhelming cuteness, gag comedy, or muh deep philosophical question about existence itself, Hyouka is restrained in it's approach to show that life is inherently interesting and you don't need to go through insane length to find it to be; I don't think this is a negative as you concluded, it just means Hyouka won't be many people's cup of tea (even when it airs, it mostly got lukewarm reception). With that out of the way, the setup, framing, and foreshadowing is immaculate, Hyouka often rewards people who are paying attention and it can be a fun experience of it's own. Another youtuber "Replay Value" have a series of dissections for most Hyouka episodes and it's somewhat mindblowing how much details KyoAni put into every frame. Rewatching the anime often reveals many things you didn't notice before, I just love this anime. Somewhat off-topic but if you're looking for a series that essentially have a similar format and vibe to Hyouka (though more fantastical), check out _Natsume Yuujinchou/Natsume's Book of Friends._ It's also another mostly episodic slice of life series where the main character solve mundane issues or do other mundane things with (most of the time) quirky set of characters.

The title instantly reminded me of this season's Shoushimin: How to Become Ordinary, also made by the creator of Hyouka ☺

hyouka is really interesting to me,the animation being 12 years old is really gold an the story is also not very complicted yet good this one may not be very active like COE but it is beautiful

I’ve been waiting for this 😂

10/10 video. Would watch again

still waiting for volume 7 of the novel

A W video bro, you should read vol 5 of novel, it's great, and "How to become ordinary" is looking great you should watch it.

What do you guys think about this anime? I really do enjoy a good mystery, but I think if the anime had split itself into 2, ongoing mysteries, vs the number of mini mysteries, it could have been even better. That being said, I’ve not read the novels, so I can’t really attest to what may/may not have adapted. 🤔