Chikai no Finale is the second sequel movie from the series Sound Euphonium. This movie takes place a year after the series, with the new first year students joining the club and the old third year students graduated. I was very excited when I found out that Sound Euphonium is getting a sequel. I’m a bit disappointed that it is a movie instead of a series but I appreciated it nonetheless. Now let’s move forward to what I think about this movie.
Long story short, I love it. I get to relive Sound Euphonium again, how could I not love it?
I like all the new characters that are introduced in this movie, especially Kanade. She seems really likable in the beginning but turns out she has much that she hides. She looks A LOT like Kaori. At first I thought she was Kaori. But that can’t be right cuz she’s extremely short. Anyway, her character is much more complex than what the movie shows in my opinion. If given more time, I’d love to know how she interacts with other characters especially with her fellow first year members. Her small conflict with Motomu seems to either be solved off screen or not solved at all. I’d really like it if the first years are given more screen time so that we can explore more about their personalities and why they join the club.
Seeing that the club managed to participate in the national competition attracts a lot of first years to join the club. However there isn’t a character who is underwhelmed by the club members’ skills. I mean, I expected to have a character who joins the club and has a high expectation, only to find that the seniors aren’t really that good. However, there is no character like that. Maybe the author just doesn’t want a character like that or maybe most of the seniors are skilled enough in their respective musical instruments. Welp if there is a character like that, it would be quite interesting in my opinion.
One of the highlights in this movie is the character development, specifically from the series to the movie. The movie doesn’t really give enough time for the audience to acknowledge certain characters’ development. However, in the case of Kumiko especially, you definitely see her growth from the series to the movie. She was more evasive of the conflicts that appeared around her and tried to avoid being overly involved in other people’s problems. In this movie, she is more upfront and aggressive. She speaks her mind more often and solves problems by talking heart to heart with other people, something she always managed to avoid in the series. It’s a character development you can only know if you’ve watched the series.
The conflict between the first years is similar to the conflict in the first season. For example, establishing a hierarchy of skilled and less skilled people and the hierarchy of seniors and juniors. Like I said, it’s basically Sound Euphonium all over again. While the stories and the conflicts are handled slightly differently, don’t expect something inherently new or innovative from this movie.
The romance in this anime is top notch. It certainly didn’t go the way I thought it would be but it’s still refreshing. Romance is not the focus at all but I like how it is incorporated in the film. It’s a nice extra touch, just like the series. I’d argue that this movie actually focuses more on the romance than the series did.
The animation is stunning. The music is stunning. I can’t say much about them really. It’s Kyoto Animation and it’s Sound Euphonium. What more should you know?
Some people think the movie is too rushed. I personally don’t agree with them. In terms of timeline, yes it’s very fast.The whole movie takes place from the beginning of the year to the day of their competition. But when I watched it, I didn’t really feel that anything was moving too fast. The everyday things that the characters do aren’t really important towards the plot so it’s understandable that they skip through them. The movie doesn’t give me time to rest but I enjoyed the movie just as much as I enjoyed the series. Maybe I’m just biased here because I love the series but to me, the pacing is acceptable. I agree, however, that the movie could be more polished if it was given more time.
Now, I found out that apparently the sequel is supposed to be a series instead of a movie. Or rather, the movie is adapted from a novel which has the same length as the first and the second season. Rumour has it that KyoAni is going to make a series sequel but the events are the same as in the movie. If that’s the case, I would be a little bit disappointed, I must admit. But I’m sure I’m going to enjoy the series just as much as I would if I watched it first and then the movie. It’s like rewatching a series. Only this time, more detailed.
In conclusion I think this movie is very good. If you’re a fan you wouldn’t want to miss it. Unless you don’t want to be spoiled and want to go straight to the third season when it airs, that’s an option too. If you want to watch this movie, make sure that you’ve watched the first two seasons first. While you can understand this movie without watching the series, I think it would lack the depth of the character’s past in your experience. The characters talk a lot about their past and you wouldn’t know about them unless you’ve watched the series. So keep that in mind.
Getting Up Early 