Blue Period has come a long way from its shaky beginnings to becoming one of the best shows of this entire season. Blue Period Episode 10 is a huge part of that, being the show’s best episode so far. What happened to make it so? Let’s find out in this review!
Blue Period Episode 10 Overview
Blue Period is a slice of life drama anime brought to our screens by anime studio Seven Arcs, known for its slice of life and comedy shows such as Dog Days and Tonikaku Kawaii. The series is based upon a highly acclaimed manga penned by Tsubasa Yamaguchi. It is one of the most anticipated shows of the Fall 2021 season and an adaptation that has been highly waited upon for four years.
Koji Masunari and Katsuya Asano are directing the show, with Masunari serving as the chief director. He is a veteran of the industry, having been around for more than two decades and directing shows like Kamichu and Magi: The Kingdom of Magic. Katsuya Asano is known for directing episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh Vrains, among other things. You can read our review of the ninth episode here!
– Blue Period Episode 10 Review does not contain spoilers –
Blue Period Episode 10 Review- Laying Your Heart (And Soul) Bare
People watch anime for different reasons. Some watch it for the few moments of adrenaline rushing to the body, and others watch it to fulfil a fantasy that other forms of media aren’t able to. Personally, I watch and prefer anime that make me think about life, the world, and other facets of living that we as a species tend to forget about in a rush for survival. My favourite anime is Clannad, so that tells you a lot if you’ve seen that as well.
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Hence, when I say that Blue Period Episode 10 was among the best episodes of this entire season of anime and definitely my favourite Blue Period episode, you can probably infer a lot from this statement. It was certainly an experience that the series had been building until this point, and the effort that went into writing and developing this episode was obvious even if you weren’t paying attention. But what happened here, exactly?
We say Yatora and Ryuji go to the beach as a form of escape for Ryuji and kindness by Yatora. We spend most of Blue Period Episode 10 on said beach, watching the duo actually enjoy each others’ company for once. They spent the time talking about everything from Art, to sexuality and rounding it up with painting their bare-naked bodies and souls into a canvas to better understand themselves and each other. While it wasn’t a particularly subtle message, it was a great one nonetheless.
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The entire aesthetic of the episode was tremendous. The use of the colour blue to denote different emotions such as sadness and upheaval was the first fantastic use of that colour in the show, despite it being in the title. The lonely cottage on the beach, alongside the hospitality and underwater scenes, reminded me of the early episodes of The Aquatope on White Sand, which were some of my favourite episodes of the anime, period.
That wasn’t all, either. The exams are still the big bad looming over the show, and Blue Period Episode 10 sees that a lot of preparation and attention is given to that part of the show. There have been some warning signs for a few episodes now that Yatora has been ignoring, and that might come back to bite him in the ass quite soon. Even after rushing through a lot of it mercilessly, the show has managed to build up the examinations quite well.
The conversations about mental health and the returning motif of talent vs hard work were a huge part of Blue Period Episode 10. They felt like a welcome addition to the conversation. Since they are both such a huge part of the show, it’s only right that they get discussed at the pinnacle of the show. These have massively fleshed out the show by being relevant and pertinent to the current world, alongside being genuinely interesting topics for discussion.
For all the reasons mentioned above, and a few others like the fantastic music, Blue Period Episode 10 was the show’s best episode. It is going to be hard for the show to top it, but by the looks of the ending, it is going to try. I hope that it does, for the show is finally putting out the greatness it always had the capability to.
Verdict
Blue Period Episode 10 was heavy, deep, gorgeous, and tense in the best of ways. If the show lost you at the start because of the shaky beginning, I implore you to start watching it again. You won’t regret it.
Click here to read the full review of the show, since it has now officially ended airing in Japan. It doesn’t have any spoilers in it, so you can read how the show turned out without having it spoiled for you!