Kita He

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Title:	Kita He Diamond Daydreams Diamond Dust Drops 北へ。～Diamond Dust Drops～
Overall:	Watch
Keywords:	2004, Drama, Modern, Romance, Short, Shoujo, TV, Video-game inspired
Notables:	R1 License - ADV (Renamed)
The intense cold of winter, the sensation of a refreshing summer. Everybody wants to experience the big land in the north - Hokkaido. The series is based on that outlook on the world and is centered about the springtime of life. It is about the individual activities of the charming heroines and their experiencing of youth. While expressing the characteristics of that time in a subtle way, the viewer is left behind with a comfortable sensation of "emotion". [TV series, 2004, 12 episodes, 24 min; based on a set of Dreamcast dating games released in 1999 by Hudson Soft; see also the 1 OVA release "Kita e: Pure Session" from 2000] 1:30min Series Opening - YouTube Video 1:30min Series Ending - YouTube Video

Overall	Art	Animation	Character Design	Music	Series Story	Episode Story	Reviewer

Watch 4	8	7	8	6	6	7	Ggultra2764	[series:1083#1552]
Kita He Much like earlier anime I've seen like Seraphim Call and Sentimental Journey, Diamond Daydreams is a collection of separate stories focused around several young women facing different ordeals in their lives. Unlike the two titles I mentioned though, Diamond Daydreams is bogged down by its fair share of issues that effect its overall quality for me. Rather than devote focus purely on the central female character of each story, Diamond Daydreams tries to incorporate focus on supporting characters for the female lead of each story arc. The problem with doing them in this way is that with only two episodes to devote on each of the female lead characters, there isn't much time to fully flesh out the connections that these supporting characters have with the female lead in many of the stories leaving said characters underdeveloped. In addition, the choices in musical selection during tense or self-reflecting scenes felt questionable for me as either said insertion wasn't necessary or it did not match the mood that scenes were trying to give off. In particular as Devil Doll pointed out, the OP musical choice felt way too energetic and happy for the somewhat somber mood that the series was consistently trying to pull off. Also like Devil Doll, I felt that the stories with Kyouko and Shouko were the best developed out of the six stories as there was enough time to get fleshing out of the characters as the situations faced by the two characters were nowhere as complex as what the other four character stories tried to pull. However with the show's issues in musical choices and fleshing out of its characters for many of its stories, Diamond Daydreams made for a mostly mediocre watch due to making story developments for its female leads too complicated to properly flesh out in just two episodes a piece. Last updated Sunday, May 15 2011. Created Sunday, May 15 2011.

Watch 4	8	7	6	7	7	9	Devil Doll	[series:1083#752]
Kita He [Score: 70% = "Watch+"; recommended non-fantasy episodic school romance: Boys Be, Hatsukoi Gentei] Drama: Low/Med (not really a series story but the episodes themselves do have drama) Comedy: None Action: None SciFi: None Ecchi: None This is not a series (and thus doesn't get a higher value for "Series Story"), it is a collection of (too) short stories (apparently the scenarios of the dating game) just vaguely connected by the setting on the Hokkaido island ("kita he" means "northwards") and the "Diamond Dust" legend ("when two lovers watch the falling snow crystals together they will achieve happiness"). So if you're out for character development you should look elsewhere, but if you're into melancholic short stories check this one out. And don't let yourself be fooled by the overly happy OP song - this one has absolutely nothing to do with the series' content. This is no comedy and no action story; the calm and slightly sad ED song is much more appropriate. These shoujo stories are mild dramas, narrated from the respective heroine's perspective, painted in pastel colors, with average animation (insert my usual ranting about walking characters here) and music (see above for the songs), characters looking similar to those in Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto, using rather simplistic concepts and lots of clichés; so it's the specific episode story and development of events that have to save the day. Six stories are being told: Akanegi Atsuki is a young woman who works at the fishmongers run by her mother, experiencing the hardships of life, poverty and the impending arranged marriage to a rich family's heir who'll then pay the mortgage on the family shop. Too short to develop the characters, and the ending looks overly forced, so this part was a loss for me. (Watch) Shiraishi Karin is a schoolgirl lying in hospital for two years now and writing stories published at her homepage, but she's afraid of the surgery that might save her life. Still too short to give a lot of depth to the characters, and the ending was obvious, but how they got there was surprising to me - so this part was quite nice in the end. (Watch+) Asahina Kyoko is a young woman directing a film of the university film club, trying to win the forthcoming film competition (like she did some years ago already) at any cost. Focused on this one character, two episodes provide enough character development as well as interaction with her film crew and her boyfriend, and the ending is less obvious than in the previous two parts. (Rent-) Kitano Suomi is a young woman who observes a boy quarreling with his friend after skating, decides to go on a "date" with this boy, and with time they open up to each other. Not much of a story and an obvious development, but a charming interlude. (Watch+) Saibara Shouko is a popular female radio show moderator having an affair with a married man, and one of her anonymous fans responds to her words and her problems. Similar to the university film club story, the development was really interesting, and while the characters once again don't get enough depth, the events are driving this story towards a surprising and very emotional ending. (Rent+) Harada Akari is a schoolgirl working part-time (to earn a living for herself and her father who's an alcohol addict prospecting for gold in a river instead of going to work) while her boyfriend has canceled his apprenticeship as confectioner. Again, too obvious messages, but the story contains at least one significant surprise and left me liking all three lead characters in the end. (Watch+) The final episode is an epilogue, with all characters having their short appearances, thus giving the audience a satisfying feeling of conclusion to all stories. This fluffy feeling of "emotion" is what the series wants to provide, and if you're the target group, it will probably get its message along to you. Last updated Wednesday, September 01 2010. Created Thursday, July 07 2005.

Other Sites

Name	URL
Original Site of the series	http://www.kita-he.com/
Japanese only
Kita He - White Illumination	http://dreamcast.ign.com/objects/012/012813.html
Dreamcast Game
Kita He - Photo Memories	http://dreamcast.ign.com/objects/012/012814.html
Dreamcast Game

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