Dhruv Sharma
With so many slice-of-life anime coming out these days, we often get lost in the crowd and end up missing out on some really amazing shows. ‘Natsume Yuujinchou’ is this rare gem amongst all the other typical “slice of life” anime shows that takes you through an incredible journey full of emotions you’ve never experienced before. It is one of the most thought-provoking and powerful anime of our time and anyone who claims to have not enjoyed it has probably never gotten past the first few episodes.
The show is amazingly wrapped up in such a beautiful way that even after you’re done watching it, it keeps coming back at you with its deep and meaningful lessons about life. In life, we’ve all had certain problems that we’re forced to keep to ourselves because we know very well that no one will ever be able to relate to these issues. But in the end, inner peace is only achieved once we let these problems out through some significant expressive conversations. ‘Natsume Yuujinchou’ is all about the expression of these notions through its stunning illustrations.
‘Natsume Yuujinchou’ lacks an overarching plot and takes more of an episodic approach where each episode has a new story. But even then, it never ignores the development of the characters and takes tiny little leads from each episode to show the progress of the characters. The story of each of the episodes remains quite simple with no surprising plot twists or unnecessary drama, but it’s the underlying message behind each of these episodes that truly touches your heart and makes you stay for more.
It seems like Brain’s Base studio has mastered the art of creating slice-of-life anime shows by portraying the most beautiful visuals with breathtaking sceneries that have been intensively detailed. Some great examples of this are ‘Durarara!‘, ‘Baccano!‘ and of course, ‘Natsume Yuujinchou’. The artwork of an anime can either be too realistic or way too cartoonish. The animation of this one works somewhere in the grey area between the two; it gives you a strong sense of realism but at the same time, it’s so stunning that it’s really hard to believe if any of those visuals could ever be truly realistic.
‘Natsume Yuujinchou’ is one masterpiece of an anime from the start to the finish and even after 6 seasons now, it just keeps getting better. It completely engrosses you into this deep experience that you will not be able to forget too easily. And if you think you’re really tough, then give this one a try, you will surely shed a manly tear or two and you won’t even feel guilty about it. The show has a lot more to it than what I’ve have mentioned here but let’s just end it by saying that any anime lover who has not seen it is definitely missing out on one hell of a show.
Natsume Yuujinchou Season 7 Release Date: When will it premiere?
‘Natsume Yuujinchou’ season 1 premiered on July 8, 2008 and since then, it has had close to 74 episodes and 6 seasons, the last of which came to an end on June 21, 2017. Considering the rate at which the creators have been introducing new seasons of the show, it seems very likely that the anime is nowhere close to an end. Another thing that’s in favor of season 7 is the fact that many volumes of the source material have not been covered yet. Though there have been no confirmations yet, it seems like the anime is far from over and it’s only a matter of time before the Studio will officially announce the release of a new season. So as fans, all we have to do now is to patiently wait for an official statement on the release of ‘Natsume Yuujinchou’ season 7, which can be expected somewhere around early 2020.
Natsume Yuujinchou English Dub:
You can stream ‘Natsume Yuujinchou’ on Crunchyroll and Amazon Prime with its original Japanese audio and English subtitles.
Natsume Yuujinchou Plot:
For as long as he has known, Natsume, the main protagonist of the show, possesses a strange ability to be able to see Youkai. These are troubled spirits that seem to be chasing him all the time with an underlying purpose that Natsume is not able to figure out. Unlike most 15-year-old school going kids of his age, Natsume’s problems in life are much beyond the peer pressures or academic competitions of his school. He finds out that his grandmother has passed on to him the “Book of Friends” which contains the names of all the spirits that she had captured and brought under her control. And now that he owns the book, the enraged captured spirits haunt him in the hope that he will give in to his fear and somehow set them free.
He is soon accompanied by a tiny little creature named Madara that looks like a cat and claims to be Natsume’s bodyguard. And though Natsume is not aware of its true intentions, he allows the feline to stick by to just have a sense of safety at the back of his mind. The two set out on an extraordinary supernatural journey where they try to set free the Youkai that were once bound by Natsume’s grandmother.
Natsume Yuujinchou Characters:
Takashi Natsume
Takashi Natsume is the main protagonist of the series who possesses the supernatural power of being able to see spirits termed as Youkai. After inheriting the “Book of Friends” from his grandmother, he is assigned the task of returning all of the spirits whose names have been mentioned in the book to their respective owners. Takashi has dusty blond hair and golden brown eyes with slit irises. For his age, he has a decent height and he is often seen with a dull smile on his face. His slightly feminine features resemble his grandmother and that’s the reason why the spirits often assume that he could be her. This makes him the prime target of all the troubled spirits that want to be set free.
Takashi is very kind, not just to humans, but to youkai as well and quite often, his kindness is taken for granted. Having the ability to see Youkai since his childhood, Takashi feels traumatized and usually keep to himself. But after he realizes the reason behind his visions, he becomes more ambitious towards his life and also becomes friendlier with those around him. Though he is really kind to the Youkai as well, there are times when the spirits cross boundaries and enrage him. During these times, he lashes out on the spirits by throwing in a kick or a punch that is enough to knock out even the strongest Youkai. But these punches and kicks only work on Youkai because of all the spiritual powers that come with them. If he were to use the same on humans, it wouldn’t be all that effective. Since he has spent most of his childhood running away from Youkai, his athletic abilities when it comes to climbing trees and running are quite impressive.
Madara
Madara, also known as Nyanko-sensei, is a powerful beast youkai that claims to be Natsume’s bodyguard. His only condition is that if Natsume dies someday, he will get to inherit the “Book of Friends” which will allow him to control most of the other Youkai. Madara hates the fact that Natsume is so kind to everyone and keeps complaining about it. But gradually, he grows fond of him and helps him return the names of all the trapped Youkai to their respective owners, even after knowing that it is diminishing the power of the book.
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