This is my favorite series for the immersing mood and atmosphere. Every episode is heart-wrenching in one way or another, although it doesn't quite reach genuine Tear Jerker territory because most of the tragedy happens to minor characters. And there are a lot of them; In a nutshell, the series uses an episodic format to give us a short story about a different yokai with his or her own background each episode. Some are recurring, but many are one-shot characters.
While the episodic nature is the series' main selling point, giving it a chance to tell many different tales rooted in mythology and painted with emotional drama, it is also its one major weakness. Other than the title character and his manekineko Vitriolic Best Bud, the other major characters...the Fujiwaras, Tanuma, Taki, Nishimura, Kitamoto, Sasada, Natori, and Matoba...are not fleshed out as much as they probably could be. However this is not too much of a big deal as they are developed just enough to show what they mean to Natsume, to give the audience a good idea of their unique personalities...and to inspire lots of fanfiction, since they, along with the world they live in, are developed just enough that you can't help wanting to see more. (Seriously, it feels like questions are intentionally thrown in and never answered just to keep the reader or viewer guessing.)
As I've already stated, the atmosphere is very immersive due to great storytelling often aided by slightly melancholy, but very beautiful, piano music. The pacing never feels too fast or too slow for whatever conflict the author has in store for Natsume and his friends. The series is packed with many fun, sad, peaceful and stressful moments so it is never dull.
Emotional Ambience
This is my favorite series for the immersing mood and atmosphere. Every episode is heart-wrenching in one way or another, although it doesn't quite reach genuine Tear Jerker territory because most of the tragedy happens to minor characters. And there are a lot of them; In a nutshell, the series uses an episodic format to give us a short story about a different yokai with his or her own background each episode. Some are recurring, but many are one-shot characters.
While the episodic nature is the series' main selling point, giving it a chance to tell many different tales rooted in mythology and painted with emotional drama, it is also its one major weakness. Other than the title character and his manekineko Vitriolic Best Bud, the other major characters...the Fujiwaras, Tanuma, Taki, Nishimura, Kitamoto, Sasada, Natori, and Matoba...are not fleshed out as much as they probably could be. However this is not too much of a big deal as they are developed just enough to show what they mean to Natsume, to give the audience a good idea of their unique personalities...and to inspire lots of fanfiction, since they, along with the world they live in, are developed just enough that you can't help wanting to see more. (Seriously, it feels like questions are intentionally thrown in and never answered just to keep the reader or viewer guessing.)
As I've already stated, the atmosphere is very immersive due to great storytelling often aided by slightly melancholy, but very beautiful, piano music. The pacing never feels too fast or too slow for whatever conflict the author has in store for Natsume and his friends. The series is packed with many fun, sad, peaceful and stressful moments so it is never dull.