An Anime Called "K-On!" That Somehow Conquered the World

What made it so popular?

It was fun.

It was a pioneer in the slice-of-life genre where high school girls do old man hobbies.

Looking back, it wasn't that interesting. It was just the vibe of the time.

>>2
The story didn't seem to have any highlights.

Didn't it only take the top spot in the first season?

It was a time when everyone could easily connect online with their phones, so it became a content everyone could get excited about together.

>>10
I love this.

I can't believe the first season aired in 2009...

It had a pretty unique atmosphere compared to other anime at that time.

I don't even know why I got hooked, but probably because the girls were cute.

>>14
There wasn't a single bad character.

>>15
Back then, there was one unpopular character. The popularity ranking was extended to 30 just for her.

>>21
Seriously? Takuan was unpopular.

>>21
If we did a popularity poll now, she'd probably be number one.

I thought the drummer was the unpopular one.

It felt like there were always threads about it in the early days of NanJ.

Even the musician community was buzzing. Yui's guitar was selling like crazy.

At first, they were too lazy about the club, but when Azusa, a serious band member, joined, they became more focused.

I watched it recently. The live house episode even depicted backstage passes, which Bocchi the Rock and Girls' Club didn't. I was like, "Wow, they did this in 2009."

Recently, there's been a surge in girls' band anime like Bocchi the Rock, BanG Dream!, and Girls' Club.

The K-On! movie made 1.7 billion yen back then. That's insane.

It was probably the highest quality moe anime of its time.

It was a stepping stone for Takotsuboya.

Because of the internet, I thought Mio was more of a domineering character, but she's actually quite normal and often gets pushed around. It's usually Ritsu causing trouble.

>>30
It's funny how Ui got labeled as a Yakult fan just because she wore a blue helmet at the batting center.

>>30
Ritsu is considered the most normal girl because of Takotsuboya doujinshi.

Many popular anime today will probably make people wonder why they were popular in 15 years.

The music was really good too.

The CD-BOX still sells for a good price. I might sell it if I need money.

The twin vocals of Mio and Yui were great. The same song felt different with each of them.

A girls' band without any dark backstory is a unique milestone.

Girls playing music is now a common genre, but K-On! was a pioneer. With Nico Nico Douga, it spread easily online, and the momentum from Haruhi was still there.

I thought it was impressive how the voice actors practiced their instruments and even performed live. Sanju even used a left-handed bass to match her character.

I love Sanju threads.

Back then, Haruhi, Lucky Star, and Clannad were the go-to anime for otaku.

They always try to get girls to buy instruments.

It was one of the first anime you could watch without thinking too much.

>>45
Wasn't that Azumanga Daioh?

For its time, the animation quality was great.

It was Kyoto Animation back then.

They did a great job depicting the three years, especially the sense of loss and loneliness after the final school festival performance.

But they did something terrible to Azunyan.

Watching it for the first time in the Reiwa era is a high hurdle.

"Since it's the origin of girls' band anime, I'll watch it for educational purposes."
↓
"It's not very stimulating... time is passing slowly..."
↓
"Alright, I managed to watch up to episode 14 of the first season!"
↓
There are 27 episodes in the second season →😱

>>54
When asked to recall memorable scenes from K-On!, I can barely think of any from the second season. Maybe the cultural festival or the marathon episode.

>>61
The first season was so well done that the second season felt like a long, drawn-out ending.

>>54
Educational...?

The first season was one cour and covered a year and a half, which was really interesting. The second season was two cours and covered one year, so there were many filler episodes, making it a bit boring.

The first season moved too fast; that was a mistake.

Band anime usually focus on aiming for professional success, so depicting a casual band was innovative.

K-On! was peaceful. Nowadays, band and idol anime are always trying to be serious.

Didn't K-On! have some serious episodes too? I remember some controversy.

The "Touched by an Angel" scene was great.

It followed the momentum from Haruhi. It's like how Spirited Away sold well because Princess Mononoke was a hit.

Nichijou, what an embarrassment.

I love it.

Nichijou would've been better without the surreal stuff like Helvetica and Go Soccer. Some people hated the Professor and Sakamoto, but they were fine.

Even now, tanned Azunyan is one of the cutest moments in anime history.

Back then, shows like Hidamari Sketch, K-On!, and Love Live! were coming out annually. There was a lot of momentum.

Bakemonogatari and Girls und Panzer normalized schedule delays, slowing down the entire industry.

>>76
There are just too many anime being made now.

I don't get why Takuan was the least popular. Ritsu seems to have more unlikable traits.

>>77
Ritsu is cute with her hair down, so it can't be helped.

>>77
Maybe it was the thickness of her eyebrows.

Takuan is barely noticeable even in the Sanju thread.

When you think about it, slice-of-life anime are kind of like YouTubers. If you're a fan of a character, you can enjoy even the most trivial things they do.

The atmosphere of the school feels so real you can almost smell it. Even people who aren't into anime liked it. It seems to resonate more with those who are really experiencing youth.

I kind of liked the feeling after the school festival in season 2 as they were heading towards graduation.

And SNS was just starting to get popular, so watching anime together with everyone felt really fresh and fun. Popular anime got even more popular because of that.

Haruhi's band episode was popular, and slice-of-life with girls like Lucky Star was well received, so it naturally became a trend.

The difference with Bozaro is that there are two vocalists and a piano.

It's amazing how Kakifly never showed any ego despite how successful it was.

>>89
I wonder if he made enough to live for the rest of his life.

>>89
The anime and the original work are almost different. They really fleshed out the thin original concept.

I remember all my otaku friends watching it with high expectations after Clannad After Story ended.

The reason they appeared at Anisama 2019 was because the voice actors themselves requested it, saying, "It's the 10th anniversary, so we should perform at Anisama."

Takuan isn’t mean, comes from a good family, and is actually physically capable. Why wasn’t he popular?

>>91
Maybe because he's too unrealistic compared to the others.

Back then, the popularity ranking was something like:
Azunyan > Yui > Sanju >> Ritsu >>> Takuan

>>100
Wasn't it more like a two-way race between Nyanji and Sanju?

Mugi-chan being left out isn’t surprising. In the anime, she was often left out too.

>>102
But the gap in popularity is abnormal.

>>119
Ritsu being more popular than Sanju is surprising. You’d think the introverts would avoid her, but maybe the more outgoing otaku liked her.

>>119
Sanju being weaker than expected is funny. I won’t even comment on Takuan.

>>119
I get why Yui, Azusa, and Mio are popular, but Mugi should definitely be above Ritsu. What's with that forehead and headband?

>>157
Ritsu has the appeal of both her headband and her hair down.

>>102
The picture where she's sitting alone on the bench is heartbreaking.

Mugi lives in a different world.

Mugi-chan could become the most popular if Takuan was removed.

>>120
That would make her a different person.

The gap between season 1 and season 2 of K-On was short. It wasn’t intended to be split-cour, but it was impressive they kept the momentum.

1 CF: "Watashi no Koi wa Hotchkiss" (Twin Vocals)
2 SS: "Ichiban Ippai"
3 2B: "Fudepen

~Ballpen~" (Twin Vocals)
4 3B: "Fuwa Fuwa Time"
5 LF: "Tokimeki Sugar"
6 C: "Curry Nochi Rice"
7 1B: "Samidare 20 Love"
8 RF: "Ichigo Parfait ga Tomaranai"
9 P: "U&I"

☺

>>116
Setup: "Fuwa Fuwa Time" (Chorus: Husky Yui)
Closer: "Watashi no Koi wa Hotchkiss" (Humming Yui)

>>116
No "Go! Go! Maniac"? You’ve got to be kidding 😡

Sometimes the BGM choices were just odd.

Now it feels like creators are just making what they know will sell, without any personal touch. It’s not just anime, but manga too. It’s frustrating because those heavily marketed works tend to get more attention.

I wasn't interested in Haruhi or Nichijou, but I loved K-On.

I can’t tell how good Yui’s guitar skills are. There are scenes where she’s praised for quickly picking up songs by ear, but she's also often considered bad.

In the show, she’s bad and doesn’t exceed the level of a high school student. She's not on Bocchi-chan’s level. The OP and ED where she's supposedly a professional are way better.

Mugi felt like she was only allowed to exist to bring snacks.

Mugi-taso isn't essential to the story.

>>168
Who do you think funds their activities?

>>168
Without her, they’d run out of funds quickly.

>>168
How would they manage the training camps?

>>168
Yui’s Giita would be a different guitar.

Azunyan peropero.

Thank you, Sanju.

What’s the guy who made "Don't say 'lazy'" doing now?

K-On:
2009:
April: Season 1
December: Live at Yokohama Arena
2010:
April: Season 2 (2 cour); movie announcement in the final episode
2011:
February: Live at Saitama Super Arena
December: Movie release
→ Major activities ended within 3 years
→ → →
2019:
September: Secret slot at Anisama at Saitama Super Arena

K-On was like Bocchi the Rock 12 years too early.

Bozaro is K-On that actually practices.

Something about Sphere?

Bozaro is less friendly, while K-On is super tight-knit.

After Love Live, idol anime started popping up everywhere, but it took years for band anime like SB69 and Bang Dream to emerge.

Does SB69 count as a band anime? Mashumairesh is definitely a band anime.

Show by Rock has good music.

Don’t say “lazy” played during lunch, and the otaku got all fidgety.

Behind the scenes of "Don’t say 'lazy'":
- They had to create it before the voice actors were chosen.
- The production team was shocked when Kyoto Animation said they wouldn't consider singing ability, only acting ability, during the voice actor auditions.
- They made the song so it would sound rock-like no matter who sang it, anticipating that the chosen voice actors might not be good singers. Luckily, they ended up with someone who could rock.
- They struggled with "Listen" in season 2 but quickly created "NO, Thank You!" later in the season.

Sphere’s four members all auditioned for K-On. Tomatsu and Takagaki auditioned for Mio, but it was an unknown actor who got the role.

By the way, Satou and Taket

atsu also auditioned for Mio.

G-folk sure love Sanju.

K-On didn't really dominate. A lot of anime fans thought it was just marketing hype. It was satisfying to see it lose to Bakemonogatari in Blu-ray sales.

>>159
They hit number one on Oricon charts multiple times.

Galkura is fun, but K-On has more charm in the music scenes. K-On popularized student bands and benefited from the creativity of the anime writers. Both were done by Hanada, though.

After School Tea Time
- Named by the advisor because it's where they eat and drink.

Mashumairesh
- Formed after adding Mashima Himeko (Mashima Fresh).

Kessoku Band
- Named by Nijika.

Togenashi Togeari
- Named by Nina, who just picked words that caught her eye.

K-On could have been like Bocchi the Rock if marketed better. Maybe it’s the difference between Pony Canyon and Sony.

Bocchi conquered JAPAN JAM and Rock in Japan, while K-On was only showcased to anime fans.

>>212
K-On's CD sales were far superior.

>>217
Bocchi’s first album outsold K-On’s. Bocchi also wins in live performances, having had more. K-On only did two live shows.

>>229
Bragging about an album with the OP and ED included...

It was a work consumed as a communication tool.

Takotsuboya's image is too strong.

>>242
It’s the best work by Takotsuboya, so it can’t be helped.

Kyoto Animation and top-tier voice actors — no wonder it was a hit.

Haruhi and K-On made voice actors into idols.

>>257
One of them went off the rails.

>>258
This is just the beginning.

Are there any all-girl bands where none of the members have boyfriends?

>>259
There’s no way that exists. It's purely a 2D concept.

A victory of adaptation.

If they had made it like Lucky Star, it wouldn’t have been as popular, and the band anime boom wouldn’t have happened.

It was a first-mover advantage. It was the start of Kirara anime about high school girls with hobbies.

Later works were probably made based on the success of K-On.

It’s like Columbus's egg. They figured out what to keep and what to cut, and it worked.

In retrospect, it was epoch-making.