Jokie

Sometimes we like shows that make us laugh, sometimes we like shows that make us cry, sometimes we like shows that teach us important life lessons that stick with us. Kobato has all of this with a little bit of fantasy and romance mixed in. I remember bawling my eyes out the first time I watched Kobato when I was around 10. It’s been almost 10 years since then and I still bawl my eyes out every. Time. It’s a real gem that I feel deserves some spotlight.

Summary:

Brought to you by CLAMP, the same people who gave us Code Geass and Card Captor Sakura among many other beloved series Kobato was originally a manga started in 2005 that later got its anime debut in 2009. The story is about a mysterious, ditzy young girl who comes to earth with the goal of filling a magic bottle with “confetti” which appear in said bottle after she helps someone by “healing their heart”. The reason she fills this bottle is so that she can “reach the place she wants to go”. Along the way she meets the owner of a preschool and her assistant and from there their fates are intertwined.

My thoughts:

Characters

Kobato has a rather large cast of characters, some of them being little more than easter-eggs from previous series, but all of them are rather enjoyable. The show mainly focuses on Kobato and the people who frequent the preschool yet because of the main premise of the show, healing others, almost every character you meet gets at least a little development. The main cast contrast smoothly with one another which makes for a lot of fun scenes, but if you don’t get attached to the main cast you might find the show a bit dull since supporting characters carry extremely minor roles.

Plot

Kobato’s plot is excellent. Happy moments or sad, I never found myself feeling that any scene was forced or rushed. That being said, the show starts off very much with a slice-of-life vibe, which it is to an extent. The first portion of the show is Kobato meeting people and helping them out, in turn gaining a confetti from time to time. Because the episodes are mainly one episode storylines, I can see people losing interest if that’s not their style. The further into the show you get though, the better and deeper the story. Another thing that might turn people away is the vagueness of some of the story. CLAMP isn’t exactly known for their easy to follow themes and stories so if knowing exactly what the heck is going on is a necessity, you probably won’t find it here unless you’re familiar with CLAMP.

A heart-healing theme

The main theme of Kobato is healing others. I found this to be rather interesting theme the older I got. The world isn’t an easy place and people get hurt. From a miscommunication or a sudden change that someone might not have been well-equipped to handle, the inability to fight against the authority of your parents. We can forget about the feelings of others sometimes and begin to only focus on ourselves when life isn’t just about us. It’s about others too, and you don’t have to know them to brighten their day. You don’t have to do anything grand. A smile, an offer for some simple help, just to let someone know they’re loved and appreciated can go further than we realize, and maybe even heal them—and us in ways we never even knew.

Final words: