Winter Sonata
Number of episodes: 26
Production Studio:
JM Animation, G&G Entertainment
Fansub Release Viewed: SFW
Likelihood of US Release: Low
The beloved Korean drama gains an animated adaptation, with Korean actors reprising their roles as the characters.
Episode Summary
Joon Sang boards a train to New York City, leaving behind Yujin, his high school sweetheart. Joon Sang has occasional flashbacks to his former life in Korea and to the relationship he had with Yujin, though brain damage from an accident has left both his memories and his eyesight fuzzy. Eventually, according to the doctors, his eyesight might fail completely, so Joon Sang takes in every beautiful sight in the city while he still can.
Yujin continues to write him letters, and as the snow begins to fall outside of her window, it also falls in Joon Sang’s part of the world, covering the city in a white blanket. Even though they’re separated, the two seem to share a moment with each other.
Thoughts
This episode was listed as an Episode 00, and while I went in with the understanding that the content probably wouldn’t constitute a proper introductory episode, it was the first episode that was available, and I’m of the opinion that if a production studio wants to release something that’s only peripherally related to the main story or that jumps in partway though as the first episode, then that’s their choice. Needless to say, this episode wasn’t a proper origin story and seemed to introduce the main couple during the aftermath of a painful breakup — something that was probably a major plot point was given only a suggestion at the outset of the episode as Joon Sang caught his plane. The remainder of the episode provided only cryptic flashbacks to past events, and introduced Joon Sang’s injury and its after-effects of eventually causing his blindness.
While I realize that most of the people who constitute the intended audience for this series have already probably watched the Korean drama from which it’s derived and therefore will know exactly what’s going on, I was very confused for most of the episode. Unfortunately this confusion led me to be bored by imagery that could most certainly have provided some sort of emotional response had I been more in-the-know. I didn’t completely fail to connect, however; the scene with Joon Sang taking in the sights of the city, including the glowing Christmas tree, was beautifully done, and the final scene of the two sharing the snowfall, apart from each other was blunt enough that even someone ignorant of its more nuanced connotations could enjoy it.
Overall, the visuals are definitely one of the high points of the first episode. The character animation itself is nothing to write home about, but the use of color in the backgrounds is very striking, especially during a sunset scene in New York and the aforementioned Christmas tree. There is considerable but subtle use of CG in this episode, more noticeably for various vehicles but also for some of the backgrounds, an effect that is used sparingly and adds a touch of realism to the production. The character designs are meant to mimic the look of the actors to some extent I believe, so they have a more adult, refined look than one finds in most anime. I noticed that many of the background characters looked somewhat over-simplified as if perhaps the effort wasn’t evenly distributed, but it’s not glaringly obvious.
One thing that most perceptive viewers will notice is that the dialog is almost entirely in Korean (perhaps the ever-present Japanese subtitles would tip most people off that there’s something different about the language). I had heard that the actors for the drama would be reprising their roles for the animated version, and was curious about whether they would attempt it in Japanese, but this answered my question. This may be indicative of future trends; already this season I watched another Japanese and Korean co-production, Animal Detectives Kiruminzoo, where the theme songs were performed in Korean. Perhaps Japan might begin to see Korea less as a source of cheap in-between animation and more of a collaborator on equal ground.
One humorous aspect of the dialog, however, is that the New York scenes are sprinkled with English, and the acting is about on par with English dubs of years past. A little girl is given a voice that sounds as if the actress is straining to speak in that high of an octave, and the acting by the doctor apologizing to Joon Sang regarding his condition is acted so flatly that the effect is almost humorous. I’m curious as to whether there will be much more English, since the next episode, judging from the preview, seems like it will go back to the beginning of the story. But I hope that if there’s more they might try a little harder.
Overall I think that this show might appeal more to older viewers, since the romance contains little of the flash and humor of most of the romantic series the majority of the fandom is used to. It also seems to lay on the cheese with abandon, forgoing realism for melodrama. A Japanese teacher of mine in college once told me that perhaps the Japanese people at large fell in love with this drama because it portrays a more traditional kind of love that’s mostly missing in modern-day Japan. So far that seems to be a true assessment, so anyone used to more contemporary styles of romance may be put off by the quiet longing of this piece. However, anyone curious to know more about this story that helped to usher in a Korean wave in Japan might do well to give this show a look.
Pros
- Some nice visuals, including competent use of CG imagery
- Suggests a positive future for Japanese and Korean co-productions
Cons
- Some bad English acting
- The story might be too old-fashioned for many viewers
